Coronavirus

[Randomizer]

Pence doesn't even have experience running a successful job against a public health issue and did an extremely poor job when governor in Indiana versus
HIV. He has repeated contradicted scientific evidence about how to deal with diseases and denied smoking causes deaths. You need someone that does know how to deal with diseases like a doctor and not a denier.

The vaccine for specifically coronavirus is likely to take 12 to 18 months to test and produce.

The US has now cases where there is no link to travel or exposure to people that have traveled to infected areas.

from Associated Press:
"President Donald Trump accused Democrats of "politicizing" the coronavirus, calling their criticism of how he has responded to the disease their "new hoax.""
https://news.yahoo.com/live-coverage-tr ... 59493.html

[orathaic]

Literally, "Trump says political opponents are politicising public health emergency while he politicises and minimises a public health emergency"

Not doing the job, but then he was never suitable for this job; so it comes as no surprise that he would continue to fail...

[orathaic]

Ora, before I waste any more time looking at random crap on Twitter. If you're going to post about Trump calling the coronavirus a hoax, could you link to something showing him actually doing it rather that some random hack claiming he did.

Here: https://twitter.com/girlsreallyrule/sta ... 46048?s=19

I will also note, he is vague and on the verge of a barnum statement, what it sounds like he means will vary based on what the audience member thinks of the speaker (is that the exact opposite of a barnum statement?)

[Octavious]

...how so? In what possible way could someone misunderstand Trump saying that there are 15 victims of the virus in the US as him saying the virus is a hoax?

I can sort of understand someone hearing just the first bit getting confused over whether Trump means the virus himself is a hoax of the politicising of it is a hoax, but with the context of the rest of it that uncertainty vanishes.

[flash2015]

I am not sure how, even in the most charitable interpretation, coronavirus and "hoax" go together.

Is coronavirus a hoax? That is silly. Almost three thousand people have died from it.

Is the politicization of it a hoax? I don't understand how that can possibly make sense. It is getting politicized so obviously politicization cannot be a hoax. I don't know how you can expect it not to get politicized, this is the role of oppositions...especially when the media are giving this 24/7 news coverage.

Is saying there have been missteps/errors in the response a hoax? That is just silly too. For example we have already seen that the quarantine of suspected cases has been mishandled...and perhaps may now cause an outbreak. There are also valid questions about CDC/HHS funding (Trump says we can just rehire if we need them) and there are concerns that Pence will put ideology above medical necessity just like he did in Indiana with HIV (he delayed needle exchanges allowing HIV to spread wider than it should have).

Are worries about coronavirus having a major effect a hoax? We are having big outbreaks in multiple advanced countries now (e.g. South Korea and Italy)...and this is likely to spread to many more countries. I don't know how you can be so confident that the USA will be somehow immune.

What a leader should be doing now is to rise above the politics, balance the fine line between keeping the populace informed of the danger (it is coming and will cause disruption - it is just too wide spread now)...and not inducing irrational panic. Instead Trump has decided to muddy the water, blame democrats for the stock market falling (seriously? - stock markets are falling everywhere, I am surprised they didn't react sooner) and claim that coronavirus will just disappear soon and we have nothing to worry about. How more irresponsible can you get? I guess his plan will be if there is a miracle and it does get stopped quickly he will take credit, if it doesn't, just like the stock market, it is all the democrats fault...somehow (he has already tried to link coronavirus to illegal immigrants). Unfortunately many of his supporters will continue to accept this nonsense without question.

[flash2015]

Last night Trump was gloating about how no one had died yet in the USA. Unfortunately that changed today...

[flash2015]

Trump does have some chutzpah to even complain about politicization. Politicization is all Trump does, he is always out to score political points 24/7 even in the most highly inappropriate of venues (like the prayer breakfast a couple of weeks ago). If he actually believes that overt politicization is wrong then he needs to try to lead by example.

[orathaic]

What a leader should be doing now is to rise above the politics, balance the fine line between keeping the populace informed of the danger (it is coming and will cause disruption - it is just too wide spread now)...and not inducing irrational panic. Instead Trump has decided to muddy the water, blame democrats for the stock market falling... <snip>

What Trump is doing is making this about himself. Coronavirus was getting more coverage than him, so he (tries to) turn it into the new Russia investigation/impeachment. He continues to show zero leadership and ignore criticism. While campaigning, which he actually seems to enjoy, because he gets to be the center of attention in a crowd where there is no criticism, or space for critical thinking...

This is not new, it is typical of Trump. Though this may be the first crisis he has faced which was not of his own creation (the firing of CDC staff aside)

[Randomizer]

I'm waiting for the political cartoon of a crowned Trump standing at the seashore yelling at the Coronavirus wave to turn back. For those that are too young to get the reference, Google King Canute and the sea.

[Octavious]

For those that are too young to get the reference, Google King Canute and the sea.

Cnut hasn't been king for a thousand years. How old do you think some of us are?!?

But good to see you comparing Trump to a famously wise king. Nice to know you're not completely biased against him.

[Randomizer]

Canute was showing that it was useless, while Trump is going to fight a disease with silencing doctors and a tax cut. :)

[flash2015]

In the US people are already going a little crazy. In San Francisco, there are Costco locations where water/toilet paper are flying off the shelves faster than Costco can replenish them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDJyfGvPpqo

I could perhaps understand people stocking up on food...but water and toilet paper? This isn't a hurricane or a snowstorm.

It isn't as bad in my area on the east coast but today I was handed a baby wipe as I entered the Costco (the guy was also motioning with his hands indicating that I need to keep my distance).

[Octavious]

No signs of any craziness in the UK so far. I've had a cold for the last week and not so much as a funny look. It's in the news a lot, and is making its presence felt as a popular subject in jokes, but that's about it.

[orathaic]

https://twitter.com/RaniaKhalek/status/ ... 06402?s=19

US latest, Coronavirus costs ~3-4 thousand to test.

https://twitter.com/soureh_design/statu ... 62305?s=19

With the current fear that many would prefer to take the tiny risk than be stuck with thousands of debt...

[Randomizer]

Arizona they got sent inaccurate test kits in the county with a confirmed case. This means 2 week to send samples to Atlanta CDC for testing.
https://www.abc15.com/news/state/lawmak ... ng-process

[Randomizer]

Meanwhile the fake cures are being sold:
https://www.newsweek.com/televangelist- ... us-1487069

Some are selling bleach to drink to cure users.
https://www.factcheck.org/2020/02/fake- ... al-bleach/

[Octavious]

https://twitter.com/RaniaKhalek/status/ ... 06402?s=19

US latest, Coronavirus costs ~3-4 thousand to test.

https://twitter.com/soureh_design/statu ... 62305?s=19

With the current fear that many would prefer to take the tiny risk than be stuck with thousands of debt...

As much as I'm no fan of the US health care system, I very much suspect that the sorts of people who have just returned from a flight half way across the world to China or Italy and the sorts of people who can't afford a couple of grand for a medical test are two different groups of people.

[Octavious]

Arizona they got sent inaccurate test kits in the county with a confirmed case. This means 2 week to send samples to Atlanta CDC for testing.
https://www.abc15.com/news/state/lawmak ... ng-process

There are no accurate test kits. Surely the number of people given the all clear on the cruise ship who were subsequently found to be infected proves that.

[orathaic]

Arizona they got sent inaccurate test kits in the county with a confirmed case. This means 2 week to send samples to Atlanta CDC for testing.
https://www.abc15.com/news/state/lawmak ... ng-process

There are no accurate test kits. Surely the number of people given the all clear on the cruise ship who were subsequently found to be infected proves that.

Really? I'm pretty sure we have confirmed cases, they must be testing something to confirm it...

[Randomizer]

https://news.yahoo.com/cdc-lab-atlanta- ... 25285.html
There are lab tested confirmed cases. However the lab manufacturing test kits initially sent to some areas made mistakes and has been replaced.

The release of people from quarantine is a flaw in policy and Trump hasn't done much to fix it. He has also prevented the CDC from releasing information from places where patients have been successfully treated that could help doctors in planning treatments.