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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2020 13:18:59 GMT -5
I think everyone has been impacted by this pandemic at this point. Some in a major way health wise or financially. Some in minor ways being isolated. Last night I hit a wall and had a minor meltdown. My wife and I both work in medicine so our work lives have been crazy. Our vacation plans have been canceled. We cant visit our parents. Other than walking our dog and watching TV I have no leisure activities. Our Easter get together with our girls has been postponed indefinitely. Oh and our foster daughter is bored out of her mind not be able to go to school or hang out with friends.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 3, 2020 18:35:25 GMT -5
I don't know if this is political but Trump has made some executive tweet or whatever to stop 3M from sending Canada it's N95 masks... as you can see these have French as well as English, not manufactured for anywhere else. I thought mister business man, mister deal maker, might respect especially during times of crisis that supply chains which run both ways should not be F-ed with. Very angry on this one! Tip-toeing the political line... I just saw a comment I really enjoyed... “Time to free Meng Wangzhou!” All politics aside, there’s a certain way friends are supposed to behave toward one another. In a typical Canadian example (and Northern US, come to think of it): when a bad snowstorm hits and cars are stuck everywhere, you don’t shovel your snow in the neighbour’s driveway and make excuses like “I gotta take care of my own driveway first”. You work together to get the snow away from the entire neighbourhood. Not blaming America on this one... Americans are an incredibly generous people, as I learned while living there for five years. But yeeesh... such behaviour from certain individuals sure is irritating. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2020 19:55:00 GMT -5
I also feel a little guilty for these as I am very fortunate in that my job is largely unaffected by this and remains stable, but I sometimes feel a little envious of all the people talking about how much free time they now have to catch up on hobbies and all. Obviously I appreciate my job, and I would much rather be working than unemployed, so don't think I don't appreciate how lucky I am. It would just be nice to be able to unplug for a while. I mean really unplug. I am RIGHT there with you, man.
while I realize how lucky I / we are (my spouse is also working as we both work in industries deemed essential) - if anything, my days have gotten longer with this craziness going on.
I was already working from home 4 days a week, but now it's every day, logged in most days 14-15 hours.
so I get what you are saying, as it's wearing me down and a short break would be wonderful. . .but I can't ever voice this as I have TONS of friends who were either laid off or furloughed 
so I totally get where you are coming from.
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Post by beccabear67 on Apr 3, 2020 20:52:36 GMT -5
All politics aside, there’s a certain way friends are supposed to behave toward one another. In a typical Canadian example (and Northern US, come to think of it): when a bad snowstorm hits and cars are stuck everywhere, you don’t shovel your snow in the neighbour’s driveway and make excuses like “I gotta take care of my own driveway first”. You work together to get the snow away from the entire neighbourhood. Not blaming America on this one... Americans are an incredibly generous people, as I learned while living there for five years. But yeeesh... such behaviour from certain individuals sure is irritating. There's also a report of 3M masks in Thailand bound for Germany being hijacked for the U.S. and Trump says today "we are not happy with 3M"? This man is subjectively making the U.S. an outlaw nation with outright theft of others' property and has the nerve to chastise a company following international rules? www.wsj.com/articles/germany-cries-foul-over-berlin-bound-masks-diverted-to-u-s-11585943440German officials said a shipment of face masks destined for Germany was seized at Bangkok airport and diverted to the U.S. in an act of “modern piracy”—the latest accusation that the Trump administration is throwing its weight around in the global scramble to secure scarce protective equipment needed in the fight against coronavirus infections. - The Wall Street JournalHe is affecting the lives of so many and I do not see why he is even involved nor having such powers. This may be political, but more than that, this is life and death. If a Canadian university discovers a cure or develops a vaccine first we will not be hoarding it to ourselves or crowing while blaming everyone else under the sun. He was berating the fake news again today, he was telling a woman reporter to be ashamed for asking a question. This is very bad timing to say the least, not that it was wonderful all the other times before. The numbers I have seen for the U.S. puts them (or you as the case may be) second only to Spain right now as worst case scenario. I think you should be told. More than one in ten deaths from this are in the U.S. right now. A higher percentile rate than Italy. The preparations made for pandemics was dismantled. The stocks suggested be manufactured were not approved. Who was not doing their job? Washington State started as badly as anyone could, but they, the people and the government, are making a real dent in the curve there. So there is one success to build on. Friends. Some have never known the real meaning of the word it would seem. Everyone for themselves is the quickest path to collapse I believe. A house divided need not seek enemies outside it's borders really anyway, and certainly not work towards creating more either. |
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Post by rberman on Apr 3, 2020 22:11:59 GMT -5
Today (April 3) in the USA there are 245,000 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed.
On March 3 there were 103 cases diagnosed.
It already seems a lifetime ago.
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Post by BigPapaJoe on Apr 4, 2020 0:23:09 GMT -5
Detroit — A city bus driver who complained recently in an online video that a passenger had openly coughed on his bus amid the coronavirus pandemic has died from the respiratory illness. Jason Hargrove, 50, died Wednesday of COVID-19, according to the head of the city's bus driver union, Glenn Tolbert, on Thursday. In his March 21 Facebook post (EDITOR'S NOTE: Contains obscene language), Hargrove spoke heatedly about a woman, whom he believed to be in her 50s or 60s, coughing openly on the bus without covering her mouth.
He started to feel sick four days after this incident.
Damn.
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Post by BigPapaJoe on Apr 4, 2020 0:24:26 GMT -5
This is from a few days back.
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Post by beccabear67 on Apr 4, 2020 0:36:47 GMT -5
Well, I'm sure ready to 'move on', oh happy day! But it's going to be quite a few months at best, but here's hoping for a better someday for everyone, and less stress, and less us vs. them on everything.  I've been watching Star Trek: Picard. I saw ep. 5 when it was on to see him meeting Seven Of Nine and now I've watched the first seven eps on-demand over three days and it's a lot better show than I expected. If you have any affection for The Next Generation it is worth finding and giving a chance. I could still swear Dr. Agnes knocks the head off a virtual Rog 2000 in ep. 5. Three more eps. lined up on demand and then it looks like a long wait for a season 2. Star Trek usually helps imagine a better future so I hope this one will do that trick for me. I guess I'm lucky I actually can enjoy being alone, I actually need it sometimes to hear myself think. I'd be perfect as a lighthouse keeper, although a cat (or two) would be nice. With my BF it's the same only it's two of us doing things, because we have so many interests and curiosities in common, and when we do something solo it's totally cool too (although lately we would really like more together time). We're still getting groceries, just with more safety procedures and habits. The cases haven't really been exponential in this little corner of the planet like it seems to have gotten in some places, so far, hope that stays true. |
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,220 
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Post by Confessor on Apr 4, 2020 3:12:22 GMT -5
You know what I'm gonna say...
The thread's getting increasingly political again. As I've said twice already, we realise that mentioning politics is sometimes unavoidable, but snarky, sarcastic Trump/Republican-bashing posts are not OK here (and neither would left-wing/Democrat bashing posts be). These types of posts are passive-aggressive, combative, and serve to alienate or upset other forum members. That's not OK.
I've just deleted 3 or 4 posts that clearly crossed the line, and the members who posted those comments will be being disciplined for not heading the moderators' earlier warnings.
Going ahead, we will delete any posts that we feel cross the line without warning and the members responsible will be disciplined.
I can't stress this enough: this isn't the new Politics Thread. So, please refrain from mentioning politics at all unless it is absolutely necessary. And even then, be sure to do it in a measured and respectful way.
Thanks for reading everybody.
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Post by Mormel on Apr 4, 2020 5:46:08 GMT -5
One thing that puzzles me regarding the efficiency of social distancing, once a virus starts spreading in the community (and not just from travallers), is that in the admittedly limited sample of my province, many people suffer from flu-like symptoms. Among those who get tested because of those symptoms, most are negative for the coronavirus; their symptoms must be due to some other flu-like virus. And that worries me a little. How in tarnation did they get the flu? It's been three weeks, now, and everybody is keeping their distances and washing their hands... no virus, either SARS-cov2 or influenza, should be able to get to these folks. And yet they still get ill. Does that mean that isolation measures are still not strict enough? A lot of people seem to not realize the contact they have every day often through things like shared elevators, door handles, newspapers, flyers and mail delivered, packaging on anything else delivered. Plus family members transmit viruses over a period of time, you have a relative with a flu and someone else in the family/home gets it and you don't, and you get it from one of them later on down the line. You can walk through a public/shared space someone else who is ill had been, even outside, and not know it I suppose too without a face shield and you inhale or your eyes might pick up something. Even doctors and nurses with all the knowledge and protective materials get sick. It's all about minimization and slowing over a period of months I think. Had measures been extremely strict with people arriving from or via hot spots... but for whatever reason someone in charge of some airports and other entry points decided inconveniencing dozens or hundreds was too far and now tens of millions have to be affected to keep things semi-manageable for when it really starts to hit; flattening the curve. I was inconvenienced at the border for purely political reasons a few times where I had to show I had a job and funds available to me or be considered some sort of threat to immigrate or marry a citizen (even though I could've become a citizen for a few reasons in the past and didn't take the 'opportunity'). If during a time of pandemic outbreak some people had been pulled aside and quarantined we could've paid them full for their lost income and saved all this b.s. right now costing tens of trillions. Oh well. Somewhere between two extreme and motivated groups was the reality, and the science, but it doesn't fit on a banner or a hat, people don't get excited for having regulations until maybe they learn the hard way what happens when those protections have been erased or flat out ignored. This... I'm living in the Netherlands, I work at a warehouse where work has not yet stopped. The supervisors are urging us to keep at least 150 cm distance, and we must make use of the disinfectant alcohol after use of the toilet. However, it was only yesterday that they decided to have someone disinfect the contact points on our electric pallet trucks as well (and even then, only the steering fork, not even the 'ON' switch on the dashboard that everyone touches) after we've all been merrily swapping pallet trucks without washing our hands for the past month. The majority of our work force are migrant workers who live in subpar accommodations with several people occupying very small rooms, which complicates social distancing and increases contamination risks... but the Dutch government has never prioritized the well-being of Eastern European migrant workers (there are also no financial safeties in place for them in case either the crisis or the upcoming recession threatens the continuation of their temporary contracts), and is not about to start to care for them now. A decision that may end up biting them in the butt. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 4, 2020 8:58:36 GMT -5
Procrastination was strong, this year, but I guess I’ll do our taxes today... uuuurgh...  |
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Post by impulse on Apr 4, 2020 9:46:11 GMT -5
Well, I spoke too soon. At 5 on Friday our leadership told us the company is temporarily lowering salaries across the board. Not a devastating amount, but it hurts, but I respect and appreciate their openly-stated goal to preserve jobs as a first priority and to not take permanent solutions to temporary problems (i.e. layoffs). Also the senior execs are taking a much higher proportional pay cut to the rank file workers. Sure, they have a lot more cushion than we do, but they don't have to do that, and we'd never know if they didn't. The good thing is that since I work in tech, it is very likely correct that this is just a temporary downturn and business will pick up as our customers' needs haven't changed; just need to wait until it is safe to do stuff again. I still didn't need a pay cut, but oh, well. I'm choosing to stay positive. My gasoline consumption is down like 100,000%. |
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Post by impulse on Apr 4, 2020 9:48:17 GMT -5
You know what I'm gonna say...The thread's getting increasingly political again. As I've said twice already, we realise that mentioning politics is sometimes unavoidable, but snarky, sarcastic Trump/Republican-bashing posts are not OK here (and neither would left-wing/Democrat bashing posts be). These types of posts are passive-aggressive, combative, and serve to alienate or upset other forum members. That's not OK. I've just deleted 3 or 4 posts that clearly crossed the line, and the members who posted those comments will be being disciplined for not heading the moderators' earlier warnings. Going ahead, we will delete any posts that we feel cross the line without warning and the members responsible will be disciplined. I can't stress this enough: this isn't the new Politics Thread. So, please refrain from mentioning politics at all unless it is absolutely necessary. And even then, be sure to do it in a measured and respectful way. Thanks for reading everybody. Just a thought, would it be better to funnel off COVID-19 discussion into its own thread? Not saying it should be an anything goes free-for-all or anything, but that topic is so inherently intertwined with politics due to global economy and supply chain issues, foreign policy, etc, that it is impossible to avoid entirely. Just a thought. 🤷♂️ |
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,220
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Post by Confessor on Apr 4, 2020 10:14:31 GMT -5
You know what I'm gonna say...The thread's getting increasingly political again. As I've said twice already, we realise that mentioning politics is sometimes unavoidable, but snarky, sarcastic Trump/Republican-bashing posts are not OK here (and neither would left-wing/Democrat bashing posts be). These types of posts are passive-aggressive, combative, and serve to alienate or upset other forum members. That's not OK. I've just deleted 3 or 4 posts that clearly crossed the line, and the members who posted those comments will be being disciplined for not heading the moderators' earlier warnings. Going ahead, we will delete any posts that we feel cross the line without warning and the members responsible will be disciplined. I can't stress this enough: this isn't the new Politics Thread. So, please refrain from mentioning politics at all unless it is absolutely necessary. And even then, be sure to do it in a measured and respectful way. Thanks for reading everybody. Just a thought, would it be better to funnel off COVID-19 discussion into its own thread? Not saying it should be an anything goes free-for-all or anything, but that topic is so inherently intertwined with politics due to global economy and supply chain issues, foreign policy, etc, that it is impossible to avoid entirely. Just a thought. 🤷♂️ Speaking just for myself, I don't really think there's any need. It's not conversations about the virus that are the problem. You can discuss government responses to it or the social impact it's having without engaging in antagonistic political snark. If political context in a post is absolutely impossible to avoid, then, as I said above, you should try to present it in a measured and respectful way, as some posters have done in the last few pages. You definitely shouldn't post a combative comment like, "Trump is the Antichrist", to quote one recent example that I deleted. I want to be crystal clear about this: it's the violation of forum rule #1 that political name-calling like the above example causes which is our concern here. We're not trying to outlaw mentioning politics, which is why we haven't amended the forum rules to forbid its mention. However, it bears repeating that the CCF is not a political discussion forum. It's a vintage comics one. It is absolutely unacceptable that any forum member of any political persuasion should be made to feel unwelcome or bullied by other members posting inflammatory, accusatory political comments. In that regard, it's probably best to avoid politics altogether in your posts. We don't have a political thread here any more precisely because it was so divisive and caused so much lingering bad feeling between members. As the moderators have said a number of times, if you want to have robust, in-depth political discussions with folks online, then you need to find another forum to do it in. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2020 10:20:14 GMT -5
Procrastination was strong, this year, but I guess I’ll do our taxes today... uuuurgh... you do know that at least Federal Taxes were pushed out, so you have a couple of extra months to file.
tho yeah, if you have time, get it done. (we did ours in late March just to have it done).
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