covid politics

[hodad]

So Trump declared, 
“When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total. And that's the way it's gotta be. It's total."
at yesterday's presser.

While he tries to position himself as dictator, several governors (not all Democrats) are gearing up to give Trump the big middle finger.  These governors seem to have noticed that Trump's motivation for ending lockdown has a lot more to do with making Trump look good than any petty concerns about the welfare of this country's citizens. 

Trump, meanwhile, seems to have taken notice as well, issuing some vague threats about how he'd handle a "mutiny" by the states.  He did not come right out and say, "L'etat c'est moi," but I suspect that has less to do with what he believes and more to do with it being hard for him to pronounce.

And in other news, the state Supreme Court nominee that Wisconsin republicans risked voters' and pollworkers' lives for went down in flames.  Congratulations & continued good health to the intrepid voters of Wisconsin.

 

[JohnRoberts]

So Trump declared, 
“When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total. And that's the way it's gotta be. It's total."
at yesterday's presser.

While he tries to position himself as dictator, several governors (not all Democrats) are gearing up to give Trump the big middle finger.  These governors seem to have noticed that Trump's motivation for ending lockdown has a lot more to do with making Trump look good than any petty concerns about the welfare of this country's citizens. 

Trump, meanwhile, seems to have taken notice as well, issuing some vague threats about how he'd handle a "mutiny" by the states.  He did not come right out and say, "L'etat c'est moi," but I suspect that has less to do with what he believes and more to do with it being hard for him to pronounce.

And in other news, the state Supreme Court nominee that Wisconsin republicans risked voters' and pollworkers' lives for went down in flames.  Congratulations & continued good health to the intrepid voters of Wisconsin.

I can't read his (dictator) mind, but am inclined to agree that he does not have constitutional basis or authority to prevent state governors from making local state decisions regarding reopening the state economies.

I suspect there may be some subtext with presumptive VP candidate Cuomo taking advantage of the national media platform to push back against POTUS and appear presidential himself.  (He has already mentioned repealing SALT tax legislation so launching trial balloons for his 2020 platform. )

Of course I am answering speculation with more speculation, so  Caveat lector

JR

 

[crazydoc]

So Trump declared, 
“When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total. And that's the way it's gotta be. It's total."
at yesterday's presser.

Almost time for Godwin's Law.

 

[L´Andratté]

Almost time for Godwin's Law.

Time for Peter Principle...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle

 

[john12ax7]

Thanks for explaining capitalism to me....

Apologies if it came across the wrong  way.  I'm just disappointed with corporate bailouts yet again.  Wasn't a fan of 2008 either,  or 1998 for that matter.

Share buybacks as a general thing are ok if done responsibly imo. But that's not often the case.

 

[Matador]

So Trump declared, 
“When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total. And that's the way it's gotta be. It's total."
at yesterday's presser.

He's not trying to be a dictator, it's the opening to a negotiation.  He asks for Stalin-esque total power, but will settle for Maduro or Erdogan-like  privileges.

 

[JohnRoberts]

Apologies if it came across the wrong  way.  I'm just disappointed with corporate bailouts yet again.  Wasn't a fan of 2008 either,  or 1998 for that matter.

no problem... we  probably agree more than disagree.

Share buybacks as a general thing are ok if done responsibly imo. But that's not often the case.

Share buy-backs are a return of capital to share holders so generally OK, but can be irresponsible if they borrow money, they shouldn't. Dividends are taxed, share buy-backs are not taxed until shares are sold.

That said for years IBM was the poster boy for using share buy-backs to manipulate their sagging P/E.... Most serious investors understand the math and look at all the numbers, or more than just the one.

JR 

 

[fazer]

Coincidentally I have seen web ads from that exact same merchant saying they will not run out of TP

I have been to the grocery store 3 times in the last 3 days and found TP in the 3 different grocery stores each time.  This is now a non crisis for now . Today when I went in I found the tp and decidedly not to buy to let the next person who needs it have the opportunity. 

 

[Brian Roth]

As an Olde Phart (sort of an Olde Hippie.....so I lean waaay libertarian) in these bizarre times I read multiple sources to triangulate.  This article shocked me.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/14/politics/trey-hollingsworth-coronavirus/index.html

Wow......

Let's have millions dead so what's left of the economy can stumble along

 

[JohnRoberts]

I have been to the grocery store 3 times in the last 3 days and found TP in the 3 different grocery stores each time.  This is now a non crisis for now . Today when I went in I found the tp and decidedly not to buy to let the next person who needs it have the opportunity.

Maybe you shouldn't go to grocery stores every day... Back decades ago I used to buy groceries every day. Now I use my time more efficiently.    :

I stopped looking for TP after I found some almost 2 weeks ago. I did not cancel my web order from before I found some (yet, but probably will).

TP NEVER  WAS A REAL CRISIS, sorry if I perpetuated that media generated perception in any way. This perception is apparently shared by many, thanks to the "sky is falling" media.  This is exactly like when media reports rumors of a gasoline shortage, causing everybody to top off their auto gas tanks, creating the exact short term shortage they reported. 

Now n95 masks actually appear to be in short supply (but I have been accused of sloppy thinking).  :

JR

 

[fazer]

Maybe you shouldn't go to grocery stores every day...

Just how it worked out not my normal plan .  We are living in the country and traveling between the city on weekend (Easter) with daughter and then back to the country to use acres of social distancing. 

Got my mask gloves and washing clothes when I get home.  My phone doesn’t recognize my fingerprint anymore from washing my hands and the dried out skin.

I love working in the shop barn on things that need done around the place. 

 

[Script]

This article shocked me.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/14/politics/trey-hollingsworth-coronavirus/index.html

That's the ugly face of neoliberalism. Voices like that can be heard in other Western countries too, not just in the US. -- Proponents are mostly "younger" politicans.

 

[cyrano]

As an Olde Phart (sort of an Olde Hippie.....so I lean waaay libertarian) in these bizarre times I read multiple sources to triangulate.  This article shocked me.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/14/politics/trey-hollingsworth-coronavirus/index.html

Wow......

Let's have millions dead so what's left of the economy can stumble along

Your president seems to agree that the oil companies' profits are more important than people dying.

It's useless, of course, in the age of electric vehicles. People all over the world are finally seeing what billions of cars do to air quality, the climate and even the weather. Let's hope they still remember when Corona is a thing of the past...

 

[hodad]

So here in Georgia, I saw a rather unsettling article on ajc.com about underreporting of cases and deaths in nursing homes and extended care facilities here in the state.  Data collection is still woefully inadequate (Republicans have for years done a nice job of cutting govt social services to the bone, which is almost certainly part of the problem.)  But even worse, testing is still woefully inadequate.  Even in spots like nursing homes, where the need for testing is extremely pressing, it's still a struggle to get access to enough testing.  Our half-bright governor is starting to push to open up testing to a bare minimum level--at least now you won't need a note from a doctor to get a test.  But the range of people allowed to get a test is still very narrow.

And test & track?  Are you kidding me? 

That's where we are.  As Trump pushes furiously to "reopen" the country, as Republican agitators around the country begin organizing anti-quarantine rallies, we're still so far from ready to go back to business as usual that it's laughable (and not in a funny way.) 

 

[JohnRoberts]

As an Olde Phart (sort of an Olde Hippie.....so I lean waaay libertarian) in these bizarre times I read multiple sources to triangulate.  This article shocked me.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/14/politics/trey-hollingsworth-coronavirus/index.html

Wow......

Let's have millions dead so what's left of the economy can stumble along

Reaction to suggestions like this depends on where you are standing... Seniors in the target group at risk for dying or serious illness are understandably not receptive, younger people who would likely benefit from scraping off a bunch of seniors citizens could embrace it (they could move out of the basement and up into the master bedroom).

We have long been thwarting natural selection by supporting the weak and infirm among us. The world would survive if this was allowed to run its course with vaccines developed at normal speed (after years not months).

The auto companies building ventilators can't do it fast enough to help much now, so this is mostly rebuilding the national stockpiles. This is a good thing for next time, and there will be a next time.  N95 masks reportedly were depleted by H1n1 outbreak and not adequately restocked.

Philosophically I can see his point, while it seems a little selfish, but that is human nature to be selfish. Civilization is based on appreciating a greater good (like preventing avoidable deaths) and making personal sacrifices for that greater good.

JR

PS: If you find CNN shocking maybe don't go there....  This is all probably a little shocking to people who think government is the solution for everything. 

 

[hodad]

  This is all probably a little shocking to people who think government is the solution for everything.

But this is exactly the sort of thing govt should be involved in solving--it's what most sane people, right or left, would want their govt to excel at.  This is why Trump's numerous missteps (and the hobbling of the response caused by GOP malice towards the institutions they are ostensibly running) are so glaring, maddening, and unforgivable. 

 

[hodad]

. The world would survive if this was allowed to run its course with vaccines developed at normal speed (after years not months).

Have you given much thought to what that would look like?  New York has a diagnosed infection rate of something like 1%.  This virus has the potential to infect as many as 70% of the planet's population. 

So imagine if  the US hit  10% infection rate in a short period of time.  30 million people.  You'd see a complete collapse of medical systems.  The fatality rate from COVID would double or triple due to lack of medical care, and other treatable medical conditions would go untreated, causing further loss of life.  I would expect looting, maybe riots.  The global financial system would be a shambles. 

So yeah, the world would survive.  But it'd be nothing like the world we have right now, and it would take decades (or more) to put it back together. 

 

[cyrano]

The greedy certainly aren't helping in any way...

the AirSense 10—the world's most widely used CPAP, costs 700$. Its manufacturer, ResMed, says the device only functions as a "continuous positive airway pressure machine", used to treat sleep apnea. It does this by funneling air into a mask. ResMed says the device can't work as a bilevel positive airway pressure device, which is a more advanced machine that pushes air into a mask and then pulls it back out.

https://www.resmed.com/en-us/sleep-apnea/cpap-parts-support/sleep-apnea-full-products-list/cpap-machines/airsense-10/

However, Trammell Hudson, famed security reaercher and hacker, pulled the firmware and found out everything needed is already present in the firmware...

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2020/04/firmware-jailbreak-lets-low-cost-medical-devices-act-like-ventilators/

To demonstrate his findings, Hudson on Tuesday is releasing a patch that he says unlocks the hidden capabilities buried deep inside the AirSense 10. The patch is dubbed Airbreak in a nod to jailbreaks that hobbyists use to remove technical barriers Apple developers erect inside iPhones and iPads. Whereas jailbreaks unlock functions that allow the installation of unauthorized apps and the accessing of log files and forensic data, Airbreak allows the AirSense 10 to work as a bilevel positive airway pressure machine, a device that many people refer to as a BiPAP.

Another case of manufacturers swindling buyers out of their money?

 

[cyrano]

My reading list is filling up with this stuff...

In the wake of reports last month that four US senators sold stocks shortly after a classified briefing on January 24 about the risk posed by the novel coronavirus, Timothy Carambat, a mechanical and software engineer, created a website to make stock sales by every senator more visible.

In an email to The Register, Carambat, who runs a design firm based in Covington, Louisiana, called Industrial Object, explained he was motivated to create Senate Stock Watcher after news broke that Senators Richard Burr (R-NC), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), James Inhofe (R-OK), and Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) had dumped stocks before most people in America understood the implications of the outbreak. It is illegal for senators to buy and sell shares using non-public information.

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/04/13/senate_stock_sales/

https://senatestockwatcher.com/

 

[JohnRoberts]

My reading list is filling up with this stuff...

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/04/13/senate_stock_sales/

https://senatestockwatcher.com/

The legislators have passed rules prohibiting profiting from non-public information, then with a wink and nod, gutted the penalty/enforcement. Effectively having the foxes guard the hen house...

Just ask yourself how these pukes become millionaires on legislator paychecks?

JR