Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

People are complicated. Love is not.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

“But what about the lurkers?”

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

The republican caucus is already covering themselves with something, and it’s not glory.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

They’re not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

This blog will pay for itself.

Second rate reporter says what?

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

I really should read my own blog.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

You are here: Home / Past Elections / 2020 Elections / Biden For President / Wednesday Morning Open Thread: Keep On Keeping On

Wednesday Morning Open Thread: Keep On Keeping On

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Something to look forward to:

Something nobody is looking forward to:

… “If by that time we have put into place all of the countermeasures that you need to address this, we should do reasonably well,” Dr. Anthony Fauci said. “If we don’t do that successfully, we could be in for a bad fall and a bad winter.”

If states begin lifting restrictions too early, Fauci says he predicts the country could see a rebound of the virus that would “get us right back in the same boat that we were a few weeks ago,” adding that the country could see many more deaths than are currently predicted.

So far, more than 1 million Americans have been infected and at least 58,355 have died. A leading model predicts more than 72,000 people will die in the US by early August.

Being able to test for the virus, track cases and isolate every infected American will be key factors in ensuring that second wave isn’t as deadly, Fauci says…

Fauci says the federal government needs to provide strategic guidance and assistance to help states up their number of conducted tests. He hopes he can guarantee everyone who needs a test can get one by the end of May or early June.

“The truth is that we’re going in the right direction,” he said. “But we need to continue to partner in a very active collaborative way with the states, we need to help them the same way they need to do the execution.”…

And some random, get-yourself-dancing music, just as a sweetner…

Reader Interactions

270Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    I don’t know if this was covered in the overnight thread, but Justin Amash is running for president as a Libertarian.

  2. 2.

    Baud

    LGM

    There is an downside and an upside here. On the one hand, the idea that the white working class can be brought back into the Democratic fold by offering a social democratic policy agenda has been debunked about as thoroughly as can be. On the other hand, the educated suburbanites fleeing Donald Trump’s Republican Party have much more progressive views on economic policy than all of the silly ad hoc articles about the “PMC” would have you believe.

     

    This isn’t an ideal situation because of the distortions of the Electoral College, but it is what it is. The Katie Porters of the coalition suggest that there is a viable path forward.

     

     

  6. 6.

    Baud

    @JPL:

    Yeah, I’m good.  I probably won’t know for sure until I get the antibody test at some point, but my doctor said it’s not worthwhile given the of absence of serious symptoms.

  7. 7.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Baud: Oh no!  How’s this going to affect your campaign?

    Seriously, can you give us more details on why you think so?

  11. 11.

    Baud

    @mrmoshpotato:

    How’s this going to affect your campaign?

    I’ll probably start holding more rallies with Trump voters.

    Seriously, can you give us more details on why you think so?

    See # 10.

  13. 13.

    Lacuna Synechdoche

    CNN via Anne Laurie @ Top:

    A second round of the coronavirus is ‘inevitable,’ the nation’s leading epidemiologist says, but just how bad it is will depend on the progress the US makes in the coming months.

    I’m not sure why we keep talking about a second wave when the first one doesn’t seem to ending any time soon.

    I mean, I get that a lot of people think this wave will go into abeyance over the summer, but is there really any sign of that? Sure, the numbers are going down here in NYC, because social distancing is working, but a lot of states are relaxing their stay-at-home orders – some never even instituted any –  just as the numbers are starting to go up in those areas. And continued outbreaks in warmer countries like Singapore, India, and Australia, don’t bode well for a summer break.

  15. 15.

    NotMax

    Internet and cable (which includes landline phone) went on walkabout for 3½ hours last night.

    The horror, the horror…

    ;)

  24. 24.

    Sab

    @Baud: Does it itch?

    ETA: Actually, take care.

    This seems to be such a strange disease. So many utterly different symptoms. And our corporate overlords not keeping us informed at all.

  25. 25.

    debbie

    The local news showed footage of a drone flying over Manhattan. Basically deserted streets, like something out of The Road.

  26. 26.

    Baud

    @Sab:

    A little. And it’s tender.  Hurts some when I wear shoes and walk for any distance.  It’s better now than it was.  I just found out recently that it’s a possible symptom of Covid.

  28. 28.

    germy

    Justin Amash's candidacy is basically: "Do you like all the evil Trump does, but want to shout 'I didn't vote for him' when your friends call you out for your complicity? Vote Amash! Help Trump win but pretend you didn't!"

    — Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) April 29, 2020

  30. 30.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @germy: I don’t see Amash’s candidacy being a draw for anyone other than former trump voters who have come to the inescapable conclusion that the man is a disaster.

  31. 31.

    NotMax

    @mrmoshpotato

    Keep several downloaded and never seen movies and several unlistened to albums on the computer for just such a contingency.

    Took the opportunity to finally watch Billy the Kid and the Green Baize Vampire in full. Good fun, once the ears become attuned to the thick British accents. Doesn’t seem to be a trailer, here’s a scene.

    ;)

  32. 32.

    germy

    Meat processing plants should be FORCED to be reopened immediately. Yes y’all of them if we have to but there should be no more sterile or clean place than a meat processing facility. The idea that people will starve while we bury hogs and pour out milk is utter STUPIDITY.

    — Chris Loesch (@ChrisLoesch) April 27, 2020

    MAGA BROKE: the government denying us dine-in shrimpfest for a few weeks is a violation of our civil rights

    MAGA WOKE: the government should march workers back into infected meat packing plants at gunpoint https://t.co/xTxhDGROxm

    — kilgore trout, multiyear slanderer (@KT_So_It_Goes) April 28, 2020

  34. 34.

    NotMax

    @Baud

    Could it be a slight allergic reaction to a new pair of socks or a recently developed reaction to your laundry detergent?

  35. 35.

    debbie

    @germy:

    I saw a tweet over the weekend with huge piles of potatoes that were going to be tilled over into the ground because they weren’t being bought. I’ll say it again and pie even more people: It is shameful that all this food is going to waste when there’s so many people who are so hungry. The good will alone makes the expense worth it.

  38. 38.

    Sab

    @debbie: Last spring we were worried that McDonald’s would run out of potatoes because the Spring rains delayed planting season for too long.

    We sure aren’t very economically agile anymore. So much for the glories of free markets.

  40. 40.

    Baud

    @NotMax:

    Could be.  It’s a condition usually associated with a reaction to cold weather. I didn’t see much about allergic reactions, but I suppose anything is possible.

  44. 44.

    debbie

    @raven:

    Well, that’s good. I had the thought when I saw the photo that maybe someone was really just angling for more financial aid.

  46. 46.

    debbie

    @Sab:

    It’s this goddamn Just In Time crap. Why worry about shelves emptying when we (think we) know we can get back-up supplies? Wait, what?…

  48. 48.

    rikyrah

    Bill Kristol ??

    So the Republican position is employers should get a waiver of liability if their workplace turns out to be unhealthy, but employees should lose unemployment benefits if they won't return to that unhealthy workplace. Will American capitalism survive the current Republican Party? https://t.co/IJvwMKmxBp— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) April 28, 2020

  50. 50.

    rikyrah

    There is zero chance – zero – that Justin Amash will win the presidency.There is plenty of chance that Amash's votes will not come from Trump's cult, but at Biden's expense.There is a large chance this will reelect Trump. Thanks for being the new Ralph Nader, @justinamash.— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) April 29, 2020

  51. 51.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @debbie:

    There is no way to get the food being destroyed to the people who want to eat it without a large company doing so as charity.  Storage and transport are expensive, assuming you can even organize the process.  The government could do it, but Trump is both incompetent and can not grasp the idea of helping others without direct quid pro quo.  McConnell is getting off watching the vermin rabble starve.

  58. 58.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @raven:

    Note that this only works for the farmers who have a city close enough they can go and hope people in need pick up the product, but it does make the point:  Farmers in general don’t want to destroy their produce, and would rather give it away if they could!

  59. 59.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: I started having skin reactions to the clothes detergent I have been using for years. It took me years to find this one I was safe with. Instead of going on a search again, I started double rinsing my clothes. Problem solved.

    I have had skin sensitivity problems all my life, so my situation is unique. Still double rinsing is worth a try.

  60. 60.

    John S.

    @rikyrah: Not all of us, but sadly, a majority. I guess we have to rely on women and non-white men to save the country from itself… again.

  63. 63.

    Sab

    @debbie: Yeah. I bought the usual supplies at Costco in January, and what with their huge packaging we are just now running out. My local grocery store chain is also the biggest landlord in the county, so they are plugged into other supply chains. So we buy our TP in individual tissue paper wrapped rolls like I used to see at work. Their tenants are not at work, so that frees up some supplies.

    I better get my gardening act together. I lived for 20 years as a vegetarian, so we will probably be okay if I plant. Cats may have to learn to hunt. Most of them have never been outside. Poor guys.

  64. 64.

    germy

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    ALBANY, N.Y. (WWNY) – Governor Andrew Cuomo wants to do something about milk dumping.

    Many farmers have had to dump their milk because the coronavirus outbreak shut down places that used it, such as schools and restaurants.

    “This is just a total waste to me,” he said at his coronavirus briefing Monday. “We have people downstate who need food and farmers upstate who can’t sell their product.”

    Cuomo said the COVID-19 crisis — which has put many people out of work — increasing demand on food banks from 40 to 60 percent upstate, 40 percent on Long Island, 100 percent in New York City, and 200 percent in Westchester County, the site of the state’s first outbreak.

    “We need to make that marriage between product upstate and need downstate.”

    To do that, Governor Cuomo announced the Nourish New York initiative.

    It’s a plan where the state will buy $25 million worth of fluid milk and dairy products, like cheese, sour cream and yogurt, and send them to food pantries around New York.

    https://www.wwnytv.com/2020/04/27/cuomo-says-milk-dumping-is-total-waste/

  67. 67.

    debbie

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    Farmers are getting all kinds of free money from Trump. As a token of their appreciation, they ought to feel some sort of obligation to see that their wasted products can be put to some sort of positive use.

  68. 68.

    John S.

    @rikyrah: Not sure I’m buying that argument. I know a few white men who are already excited for Amash so they don’t have to vote for Trump again. They never considered voting for Biden.

    Unenthusiastic Biden voters don’t intersect with Amash nearly as much as disaffected Trump voters do.

  71. 71.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: The problem has always been in those areas where sweat can combine with chemicals in close contact with the skin so feet and calves were a problem area, but yeah, it’s just a thing to keep in mind.

    IANAD and have never played one on TV.

  72. 72.

    germy

    Mungin first started feeling sick on March 12, her sister Mia, a registered nurse who works in home health care, told PIX 11 last month. She went to the hospital on March 15 with shortness of breath, fever, and cough, all of which are officially on the CDC’s list of the most common coronavirus symptoms. Instead of being tested, Mia told PIX 11, Mungin was treated for an asthma attack and received a shot for her headache.

    Back at home in Brooklyn, Mungin’s condition worsened, and on March 19 she called 911. According to Mia, one of the EMTs “insinuated she was having a panic attack,” as Mungin repeated “I can’t breathe.” They again administered her an asthma treatment. After arriving at the hospital for a second time, Mia says Mungin left after a doctor told her family that her lungs were clear, and that they weren’t going to test for the coronavirus because “we don’t have enough tests.” One day later, Mungin was on a ventilator at Brookdale Hospital, unable to breathe on her own.

    https://www.thecut.com/2020/04/brooklyn-teacher-rana-zoe-mungin-30-dies-from-coronavirus.html#_ga=2.61426858.788683665.1588160948-880435842.1588160948
    Meanwhile, last night we were watching “Inside Edition” and saw a segment where an obviously wealthy white family’s dog tested positive for the virus.

  74. 74.

    satby

    @Sab: don’t put indoor cats outside, they won’t do well. If they even survive predators, they haven’t hunted for food. And they’ll get parasites.

  75. 75.

    Brachiator

    More Americans have died over two months in this pandemic than died in a decade long tragic war in Vietnam.

    A UK historical comparison, from BBC News:

    The number of people killed by coronavirus in London in the four weeks to 17 April has narrowly surpassed the number of civilians killed during the worst four-week period of aerial bombing of the city during the Blitz in World War Two.
    Figures held in the National Archives, and collated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, show that 4,677 people were killed during the Blitz and buried in London cemeteries in the 28 days to 4 October 1940.

    Registered deaths in London attributed to Covid-19, in the four weeks to 17 April this year, have now reached 4,697 according to a BBC count based on data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

     

  76. 76.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: No, a nurse and a Med tech. Do they count?

    Also I have several friends who are doctors, but one is a physicist and the other 3 are geologists. Maybe they count?

    ETA I almost forgot my son’s ex is a pediatrician. We’re even friendly. That’s gotta count for something!

  78. 78.

    Sab

    @satby: I agree. Just joking badly. I am actually worried about feeding the little guys six months from now. After they eat us what will they live on?

  82. 82.

    mrmoshpotato

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Also I have several friends who are doctors, but one is a physicist and the other 3 are geologists. Maybe they count? 

    What type of rock can be thrown the farthest – igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic?

  84. 84.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: Well then I’ll talk to her about your case, I’m sure she’ll give a diagnosis and treatment program for you to follow.

  89. 89.

    Sab

    @OzarkHillbilly: My boss’s daughter is a nurse in Seattle and his wife was quarantined out there on a visit but he still was completely blindsided. Can’t make people see stuff they don’t want to see.

  92. 92.

    SFAW

    @Baud:

    One of my nieces apparently has the same (or similar) thing. I’ve been told people are calling it “COVID toes” or “COVID feet” or something like that. Her mom is freaked out, because of the possible transmission, but the niece is asymptomatic (or “asymptotic” as some say) otherwise.

     

    Best of luck, I hope you’re OK.

  93. 93.

    WereBear

    @Sab: I think Baud needs to consider the demographics of his constituency. We haven’t done a census lately, but I know cat fans are right up there with dog fans!

    Ducks… well, that’s a well-duck situation. We need a commission.

  95. 95.

    zzyzx

    @John S.: yeah, who exactly are these prospective Biden voters who will be irresistibly drawn to Amash? At worst, it’ll prevent some people who really hate Trump from going all the way to Biden, but it’ll still be taking votes away from the Trump pile.

  96. 96.

    SFAW

    @Baud:

    I’ve often been told I act like a two year old,

    I can’t imagine why. On the other hand, it means you’re over-qualified, compared to the current Oval Office Occupant, so that should provide a campaign boost.

  97. 97.

    MattF

    @Baud: Be safe.

     

    WRT Amash, the word I’ve seen used in journalismistic articles is ‘volatility’, I.e., it makes everything less predictable. It could be a step in the crack-up of the Republican Party, the ‘entitled white boy’ demo. Hewitt will fart out the WH line, so that might be interesting. We shall see.

  98. 98.

    Sab

    @HinTN: I am an accountant not an infectious disease person so I know nothing. Corona viruses are related to the common cold. Shingles is from chicken pox which is a herpes virus. I believe that coronna and herpes are very different.

  102. 102.

    Subsole

     

    @rikyrah: These people could have saved us a lot of stupid questions if they had just listened back when we warned them…

  105. 105.

    satby

    @Sab: my joke is that if anything ever happened to me that by the time anyone was alarmed enough to check my house they’d find healthy critters gnawing on a well marbled haunch.

  107. 107.

    Soprano2

    Someone mentioned the “just in time” crap. It’s a myth, because someone has to store the stuff somewhere. In the 1980’s I worked at a box plant where several customers wanted us to be their “just in time” warehouse for corrugated boxes. There isn’t a world where a company calls up a manufacturing plant and says “we need “x” tomorrow”, and the plant manufactures it right then. “Just in time” is a way of pushing your warehousing off on someone else, period.

    I hate how bad the economy is right now, and how much people are suffering, but I’m looking forward to asking all the Trump supporters why GDP is negative, since they told us that if we elected Trump there would be 4%+ GDP as far as the eye could see, because he would make the economy so much better. LOL (Of course we all know that’s a lie, but they all believe it.)

  112. 112.

    Immanentize

    @Baud: I’m sorry to hear this, Baud.  My wife had chilblains on her toes in the winter — which seem to be like this odd toe thing that is coming up with Covid.  She was tall and grew up in Texas and Boston winters were not for her.  It was an inflammation of the blood vessels related to circulation in the extremities.    But she found great comfort in no-additive lotions or aloe and wearing Uggs at home instead of shoes.  Lots of warm room for the feet.  Get some UGGs and get better

  113. 113.

    germy

    With @justinamash vacating his seat to run for President, he's left a vacuum in this toss-up district that will either be filled by a pro-Trump extremist, or me–a proven leader. Together we can win this seat and build a better America for all, but we'll need your help.

    — Hillary Scholten (@HillaryScholten) April 29, 2020

  115. 115.

    Brachiator

    @schrodingers_cat:

    RIP Irrfan Khan. He passed away after a year long battle with cancer

    I have noticed many of the heartfelt tributes to him from his friends and colleagues in India’s entertainment industry.

    Someone recently had recommended a film in which he appears, “The Lunchbox.” It is now on my “watch list.”

  116. 116.

    mrmoshpotato

    @WereBear:

    Ducks… well, that’s a well-duck situation. We need a commission.

    While setting up said commission, can we say we’re “Working on commission”?

    Oh to get thrown out so early in the day!

  117. 117.

    satby

    I just look forward to the day 18 months or so away when I can stop wondering if my slight breathing issues are signs of covid or my usual asthma with allergies. I worry about taking my medicine because it ‘s inhaled steroids and I don’t want to depress my immune system. Fortunately, it’s all just slightly annoying, and I don’t have a fever.

  118. 118.

    germy

    Bollywood actor Irrfan Khan, known internationally for roles in 'Jurassic World,' 'Slumdog Millionaire,' 'The Amazing Spider-Man,' & more, has died aged 53(via @BBCNews | https://t.co/Rd1Av0soZ3) pic.twitter.com/31GHJ1d05i— Fandom (@getFANDOM) April 29, 2020

    Harrison Ford, known internationally for Cowboys & Aliens, Ender's Game and The Secret Life of Pets 2 https://t.co/AVUoEtYcXh— Lauren L Walker (@LLW902) April 29, 2020

    They even forgot about the Life of Pi oh come on— Paradox (@paradoxilicious) April 29, 2020

  120. 120.

    Zzyzx

    @MattF: or, he’ll get the same 1-2% of the vote that the Libertarians always get. Is Amash more popular than former NM Governor Gary Johnson? They’re going to run someone and Amash doesn’t terrify me more than generic Libertarian.

  122. 122.

    Baud

    @Immanentize:

    I’ve spent winters in Maine without having this problem, which leads me to believe its covid related.   I kind of hope it is, just so I’ll at least have gone through it relatively unscathed.

    @satby:

    I’ve had allergy symptoms too.  Thankfully, I’m familiar with what that feels like so it was less concerning, but I hate having to pay attention to everything that happens to my body.

  123. 123.

    germy

    Irrfan Khan’s on screen presence was palpable. It was more than just charisma. There was something else at work when he performed. The camera loved him. And the versatility & consistency he showed was exceptional. He could take on any type of role. Can’t believe he’s gone… RIP. pic.twitter.com/Nv3JT7gzIH— Dr Omar Ahmed (@bressonian) April 29, 2020

  124. 124.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Brachiator: Lunchbox was good. BTW have you watched Mira Nair’s The Namesake? 

    That was the first movie I watched with Irrfan Khan in it. Both he and Tabu are awesome in it as an immigrant couple from India. It is based on Jhumpa Lahiri’s book by the same name.

  125. 125.

    MattF

    Not to downplay anyone’s (justified) concerns, but the list of coronavirus symptoms has gotten so long that it’s not very useful. What we need is universal testing, and now.

  126. 126.

    SFAW

    @Dorothy A. Winsor:

    Martha McSally says “asymmetric” people can pass the disease along. Who knew?

    Who knew that she was a moron? Oooh, pick me, Ms. Winsor! Pick ME!!! I know the answer!!!

  127. 127.

    Nicole

    @Baud: Hey Baud, if it is Covid 19 sending all my good thoughts and wishes that the symptoms stay mild and limited to your feet.

    Drew Magary wrote a good piece on conservatism in GQ- made me think of Justin Amash, as he calls out some Never Trumpers towards the end, though not Amash specifically:

    https://www.gq.com/story/on-conservatism

  131. 131.

    satby

    @Baud: but I hate having to pay attention to everything that happens to my body.

    Me too. I’m not inclined to hypochondria so this is mostly annoying to me, not worrying. But because this disease can advance quickly in a patient we’re forced to. Still, I hope the worst of it, if you have it, is covid toes; and that you stay mainly asymptomatic for the rest of the duration.

    Edit, sorry pendants. I think in phrases separated by commas. Normally I try to go back and fix them.?

  136. 136.

    Brachiator

    @Dorothy A. Winsor:

    Martha McSally says “asymmetric” people can pass the disease along. Who knew?

    Does this mean that Brad Pitt might be immune?

    In 2013, Dr. Kendra Schmid developed a formula that measured a person’s attractiveness based on 29 different points of the face, with symmetry, proportion and ratio playing a key role in Schmid’s 1-10 scale. According to The Huffington Post, Schmid’s formula determined that actor Brad Pitt has an almost perfect-looking face. The actor earned an astounding 9.67 out of a possible 10 points, which, duh.

  139. 139.

    Immanentize

    @satby: I am not trying to be alarming, but fever is no longer considered a symptom that is necessarily present in the Corona Virus infection.  So, it seems to present a lot like asthma or allergies.  Without fever.  In other words, about 90% of us will have the same symptoms as Covid over the next two months.  This really sucks without testing.

    I am still using my nasal steroids for my seasonal allergies — mostly to just sleep at night.

  144. 144.

    Brachiator

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Lunchbox was good. BTW have you watched Mira Nair’s The Namesake? 

    Have not seen it. Another movie for my watch list.

    I might even have some free time to catch up on these!

    One news story noted that early on Mira Nair had noticed his potential.

    He kept in touch with Mira Nair – who had spotted his talent at drama school but cut him from Salaam Bombay. They would go on to make The Namesake in 2006 and New York, I Love You in 2010.

  146. 146.

    hueyplong

    Irritating that they’re getting away with reopening without even making a good faith effort at testing.

    I’m not interested in ever again hearing any GOPer utter the phrase “sanctity of life” in any context.

  147. 147.

    Baud

    Here’s the CDC’s current list of symptoms, which may be out of date.

    Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms or combinations of symptoms may have COVID-19:

    • Cough
    • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

    Or at least two of these symptoms:

    • Fever
    • Chills
    • Repeated shaking with chills
    • Muscle pain
    • Headache
    • Sore throat
    • New loss of taste or smell
  149. 149.

    germy

    WASHINGTON (AP) — Weeks after Robert Mueller was appointed special counsel in the Russia investigation, Roger Stone, a confidant of President Donald Trump, reassured WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in a Twitter message that if prosecutors came after him, “I will bring down the entire house of cards,” according to FBI documents made public Tuesday.

    The records reveal the extent of communications between Stone and Assange, whose anti-secrecy website published Democratic emails hacked by Russians during the 2016 presidential election, and underscore efforts by Trump allies to gain insight about the release of information they expected would embarrass Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton.

    The documents — FBI affidavits submitted to obtain search warrants in the criminal investigation into Stone — were released following a court case brought by The Associated Press and other media organizations.

    https://apnews.com/ce9a4541f903109079900528d9f0a9e7

  152. 152.

    NotMax

    @Immanentize

    Yup. Still using once daily (if I remember) the Costco brand version of Flonase. Many days could get away with skipping it with impunity, on others it’s rush hour in Sinus City without it.

  153. 153.

    PST

    @Sab: On the subject of weird rashes, my wife got a rash on one arm that looked just like a picture in one of the stories about rashes as a new Covid-19 symptom. She was, of course, very worried and sent pictures to her doctor, who responded right away. The doc diagnosed it as shingles, and then said, “I know this is a ridiculous question, but I have to ask: Have you been under any extra stress lately?” Anyway, it will be a very mild case due to a 10-year-old vaccination. Thank goodness, since shingles can be hell. Maybe that’s what Baud has. Stress can trigger it, and I hear that running for president can be stressful to some.

  156. 156.

    Immanentize

    @NotMax: I have a monthly prescription for the stuff (fluticasone propionate) which makes it infinitely less expensive that OTC.  Thank you, my Doctor!

     

    ETA re your question days ago.  I have managed to shake about 5% if what I paid to Viking out of them.  I guess I have them on the run!

  157. 157.

    Brachiator

    @mrmoshpotato:

    Did any test subjects break the machine?

    These silly studies always focus on celebrities. Another example.

    Have you ever seen a movie starring Scarlett Johansson and found yourself transfixed by her gaze? There’s a reason for that. According to De Silva, the Avengers beauty has the very best eyes in the business, scoring a whopping 95.95 percent.

    “The distance between the eyes, divided by the length of the eye should equal 1.618,” he said (via Us Weekly.) “The distance from the nose to the edge of the eye, divided by the distance from the edge of the eye to the corner of the lips should equal 1.618.”

     

  158. 158.

    JMG

    I wake up every morning in the spring pollen season with a phlegmy cough and congested nose. So now I start each day with a 10 second panic before I remember this is how I was before the virus existed. Fun!

  160. 160.

    Sab

    @PST: I am so glad for you and for her. Really, I am. So much pain out there, but 80% who get it are surviving.

    I am kind of angry lately, but I do not want the whole world to die.

  163. 163.

    Sab

    @PST: I meant to get my extra shingles shot but didn’t because tax season landed early this year. My husband had the shot and it was intense. So now I am unprotected due to my bad choice. Life.

  164. 164.

    NotMax

    @PST

    Not if it is both feet at the same time. Shingles presents on one side of the body. Can later present in a separate outbreak on the the other side.

    The single outbreak I had back in my late twenties wrapped around from a clean straight line (that could have been laid out with a T-square) at the sternum to a similar line at the backbone on the left side only, bottom rib to middle of neck. Doctor called a nurse in to look at it, with an “I want you to see this. That’s as classic a presentation as you’ll ever see” comment thrown in for her benefit. Then gave me a B12 shot, a tube of corticosteroid cream and sent me on my merry way.

  167. 167.

    satby

    @Immanentize: yeah, I went to get one off of Amazon, they’re now ridiculously overpriced and won’t be available in most cases until mid- or end of May. So  just check my fingernail beds for bluish tint. Like they did decades ago. So much winning.

  168. 168.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @Baud: That list isn’t accurate; according to friend who had it; constant heavy fatigue that lasted for almost a month is the big one.  He described as being perpetually hung over.

  169. 169.

    SFAW

    @Sab:

    What does that even mean!?

    It means McSally is “not on a first-name basis” with the English language.

  170. 170.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Brachiator: Have you ever seen a movie starring Scarlett Johansson and found yourself transfixed by her gaze?

    No.

    There’s a reason for that. According to De Silva, the Avengers beauty has the very best eyes in the business, scoring a whopping 95.95 percent.

    I do not find her attractive at all, which is just proof once again that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

  172. 172.

    Sab

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: My dad was a doctor, and he used to laugh that when he was in med school he used to develop symtoms as he read his textbooks. Rabies was particularly scary.

    He is still alive, very old, and in a nursing home dementia ward.

  173. 173.

    catclub

    @rikyrah: The intelligence community is NOT going to let Trump pretend he ‘did not know’, or ‘nobody told me’.  They have receipts.

  175. 175.

    schrodingers_cat

    @SFAW: I can translate. Is there some app/software that lets you right subtitles?

    The lyrics are pretty funny.

    One line:

    Scriptwriters no matter how talented you are, the movie will become a hit because of this song.

  176. 176.

    NotMax

    @satby

    Shamefacedly have to admit that the first time I saw pulse oximeter written here, through not yet quite focused eyes read it as pube oximeter. Luckily was not imbibing liquids at the time or would have done a spit take.

    ;)

  178. 178.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @germy: One of the tweets down that thread claim to be a worker in the meat packing industry and was saying the real problem is a worker shortage. So there so many workers are ill, or so many quit rather than die the plant owners are being forced to improve the conditions.

  181. 181.

    satby

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques: that still shows eight states above 1, and they could seed outbreaks in other states. And a lot of those are the states with meat packing plant hotspots. So social distancing and stay at home orders worked, but as those restrictions are eased it’s likely that the infection rates will rise again.

  184. 184.

    NotMax

    @Dorothy A. Winsor

    Can’t help but think of W.C. Fields’ character in It’s a Gift hanging a sign on the front door of his grocery store: “Closed On Account Of Molasses.”

    Accompanying exasperated muttering: “Phew! Spreadingest stuff I ever saw!”

  186. 186.

    barbequebook

    Just catching up so this is more from last night’s thread, but,  Just had a brilliant idea.  Why don’t all the “end the lockdown” protestors volunteer to work at the meat processing plants. They’re such patriotic Americans and all this concern over the virus is overblown anyway.  They’ll get plenty of the social contact they are demanding and keep the food supply chain moving.  It’s a win for them and America.

  187. 187.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @catclub: Yes, that’s the trick, not to mention four states are well above RO1 and that’s before Plan Georgia of let’s force the high risk jobs back to work at gun point first, because what could go wrong?

    The thing that just infuriates me is the concept was; we slam on the breaks and isolate for a month, beat the virus down to something managable and then things can move on. Instead the Hard Right is being utter dicks about the whole thing, keeping the R0 up and dragging this thing out so they can get their stoned nihilist troll on.

  191. 191.

    Sab

    @oatler.: Yes. Her eyes were amazing. I always loved her as an actress.

    My husband has huskie blue eyes. I always tell him that they remind me of husky dogs, that obviously have no soul. He laughs. Our dogs have big brown eyes. I don’t.

  192. 192.

    NotMax

    @Dorothy A. Winsor

    There was an incident here some years ago which closed the single major vehicular artery into town when a multi-thousand gallon storage tank of of molasses near the harbor sprang a gigundo leak. Normally took me 18 minutes to drive to work from home. That day it took 2½ hours in stop ‘n’ go traffic over meandering detours.

    Must have been two months afterwards until one didn’t get a potent whiff of molasses when driving by.

  193. 193.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @satby: I am wondering if that’s why a lot Blue States are dragging their feet, they figure over time the yokels who first get infected in the Idiot Red States are most likely go around infecting other people, after 20 days they will recover or die, so given enough time that blocks reinfection in the Blue States.

  196. 196.

    PST

    @NotMax:

    Yup. Still using once daily (if I remember) the Costco brand version of Flonase. Many days could get away with skipping it with impunity, on others it’s rush hour in Sinus City without it.

    I also use that Costco version, which is quite inexpensive. My ENT said not to worry about prolonged exposure to steroids from it. She said it works topically and practically nothing gets into the circulation. So if she’s right, and I guess she ought to know, we should have to worry about an effect on immunity.

  197. 197.

    schrodingers_cat

    @O. Felix Culpa: Too soon, he was a great talent. The only saving grace in that godawful Slumdog movie. There are so many better movies that cover the same ground with much more finesse than that movie. See for example Anurag Kashyap’s Black Friday which has not been released in India on the 1993 bomb blasts that rocked Mumbai. Or Govind Nihalani’s Ardh Satya  (Half truth) on the nexus of police and the Mumbai underworld.

  199. 199.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @satby:Germans urged to stay at home amid fears Covid-19 infection rate is rising again

    Germans have been advised to stay at home as much as possible and continue to apply physical distancing as official data appeared to indicate the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic was once again accelerating.

    The basic reproduction number (R), indicating how many new cases one infected person generates on average, has come to be seen as the key indicator over whether restrictions on public life can be loosened after Angela Merkel stressed the importance of keeping the number below one.

    On Tuesday, the German government’s disease control agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), announced the reproduction number for Monday 27 April had risen to 1, after having put it as low as 0.7 in mid-April.

    Lothar Wieler, the RKI’s president, later specified that the reproduction rate for Monday was 0.96, and therefore technically still below one.
    ……………………………………..
    The medical expert also warned of pinning too many expectations on a single indicator, saying that “R is only one index among many”.

    As German politicians are increasingly divided over the speed at which social distancing measures should be relaxed, the negative news of the rising reproduction number had sown some confusion, especially with latest official data also showing new cases of confirmed infections with Covid-19 dropping below 1,000 cases for the first time in almost seven weeks.

    Other scientific institutions studying the spread of the pandemic in Germany question whether the downward trend of recent weeks has in fact been reversed, as the RKI’s numbers suggest.

    So plenty of caveats but yeah, open up the economy.

  201. 201.

    PST

    @NotMax: Yeah, you’re right about both feet, of course. I hadn’t read the thread carefully. Hopefully, though, the tip to consider shingles may still help someone. I worry, of course, that the doctor’s diagnosis was hasty, and the wife is out there mainlining acyclovir for no reason and spreading coronavirus from behind her mask. No other symptoms, though.

  203. 203.

    satby

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques: well I live in Indiana right now and it’s not only above 1 but there are strong signs the Republican governor is going to follow his party over the cliff and “reopen”. Which may not matter because compliance was pretty craptacular anyway.

  204. 204.

    Marigold

    @Baud: Huh. I’m not a doctor by any stretch, but the pictures look a lot like secondary effects of my Reynaud’s syndrome. Basically, the blood vessels tighten up too enthusiastically when I get cold, to the point that my fingers and toes can turn dead white. I can get chillblains in the winter if I’m careless (I was a stubborn teenager), and my arms and legs have had that mottled appearance since I was 16.

    I don’t really have a suggestion, just watch your circulation? Especially if you have any compounding issues?

  208. 208.

    bemused

    I found a video of Fintan O’Toole’s Irish Times opinion piece, Trump destroying our country. Powerful and painfully true. I just wish I could find the entire oped to read but subscription blocked.

  209. 209.

    Calouste

    @schrodingers_cat: I saw Slumdog described somewhere (it might even have been on the DVD case) as a “feelgood movie”. Well, I guess if you ignore the murderous riots, forced prostitution, screaming poverty, more murders, mutilation, suicide, and probably a few other things I have forgotten…

  210. 210.

    SFAW

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Yeah, I figured you could, but learning Hindi might be a trip. [Of course, I could probably do passably when I was young. Now that I’m old, it’s a lot more difficult.] I’m wondering how difficult it is to learn. I’ve heard Arabic is the most difficult for a non-native-speaker to learn; I have no idea where Hindi falls on that spectrum.

    The subtitles were helpful, primarily because I could then read the English words interspersed in the Hindi lyrics. Seeing the English provided me with a lot of “insight” (so to speak) into the point of the song.

  213. 213.

    japa21

    So far, more than 1 million Americans have been infected and at least 58,355 have died. A leading model predicts more than 72,000 people will die in the US by early August.

    I don’t understand this. I am not a statistician so I don’t know where this figure comes from. We will hit 60,000 deaths today. 12,000 more will probably be by next weekend.
    Looking at Worldometer, I pay a lot of attention to the column “serious, critical” condition. Two days ago that was at 13,000 plus. Today it is over 19,000.

    If we don’t hit 100,000 by August I will be surprised.

  214. 214.

    WereBear

    @satby: well I live in Indiana right now and it’s not only above 1 but there are strong signs the Republican governor is going to follow his party over the cliff and “reopen”. Which may not matter because compliance was pretty craptacular anyway.

     

    Every day my heart goes out to service workers in such states.

  216. 216.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Calouste: Its not a feel good movie but it all seems like a caricature.

    There were some errors in the movie that took me right out of the movie. They jump on a local train in Mumbai and end up at the Taj. Its like getting on the subway in NYC and ending up in Chicago. It was a total WTF moment for me.

    ETA:  There are many Hindi (and other Indian language) movies that have covered the same ground, in addition to the two examples I have given above.

  220. 220.

    MisterForkbeard

    @OzarkHillbilly: I think she’s extremely pretty but I don’t find her attractive. Except for Lost in Translation, in which she’s generally phenomenal but also very normal.

  221. 221.

    TS (the original)

    @Soprano2:

    Just in time” is a way of pushing your warehousing off on someone else, period.

    I worked for a package printers & their customer contracts meant they had to fill orders in a very short period of time. The only way to do this was to stockpile. The problem – what risk to take with the stockpile – because as everyone knows, the package printing could change – with no notice given – and anything then stored was waste.

    I always think of that company whenever I go to the store & discover a product I buy has new updated wonderful packaging.

  222. 222.

    leeleeFL

    @rikyrah: Just mentioned Bill Kristol and I agreeing much of the time lately. It really is the APOCALYPSE!  I would have said this could NEVER occur, even discussing the weather!

    WHOCOULDANODE?

  224. 224.

    Another Scott

    @rikyrah: It’s a sexist thing to say, but there seems to be a lot of evidence that women have done much, much better in handling leadership positions during this pandemic than men have.

    Maybe men should be disqualified from elected office for a few cycles (at least)??

    It's hard to explain how much of American politics has to do with how men feel about their mothers. https://t.co/8gWkYHBDWA

    — LOLGOP (@LOLGOP) April 28, 2020

    (sigh)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  225. 225.

    Mo Salad

    @Baud: I may be dealing with the toes as well. The micro-clotting symptom combined with using my kitchen table as a CPA with an extended tax / PPP season work station could be causing it. Or it could just be the sitting on my ass and no COVID.

    Either way, try these:

    1. Don’t sit too long, get up and walk around.

    2. Elevate your feet if you can.

    3. Baby aspirin (81 mg) once or twice a day as a blood thinner. Unless, of course, you have a heparin IV drip laying around anywhere.

    Those seem to help.

  227. 227.

    Another Scott

    @Baud: Be careful about the popular press reports.

    https://www.podiatrytoday.com/blogged/covid-19-skin-manifestations-and-foot-what-we-know-so-far (it’s kinda technical).

    […]

    The American Academy of Dermatology started a registry for skin lesions and patients with the COVID-19 virus.9 This is accessible for any health care professional to upload patient data and I encourage you to utilize it. As more evidence begins to disseminate from around the world regarding these pedal lesions and their correlation to the virus, we will be able to determine the causality, frequency and meaning, if any, of the skin manifestation to the viral presence. However, until the medical community can assess the fruits of these efforts, one should reserve any definitive statements regarding a correlation between the coronavirus and dermatologic manifestations in the lower extremities until researchers can analyze more evidence.

    tl;dr – Maybe a COVID-19 symptom, maybe not.

    Hang in there.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  228. 228.

    WereBear

    @Another Scott:

    Maybe men should be disqualified from elected office for a few cycles (at least)??

     

    They do get so emotional (Kavanaugh) and can’t handle money (Trump) and have wavering loyalties (Graham) and think they are above all rules (Pence) and are at the mercy of their hormones (Trump) and can’t handle frustration.

    Yeah.

  229. 229.

    PST

    I know this is pedantic, but I’m not the only pedant here, and it bugs the hell out of me. The acting secretary of the navy just wrote, in a formal press release:

    Therefore, I am directing Adm. Gilday to conduct a follow-on command investigation. This investigation will build on the good work of the initial inquiry to provide a more fulsome understanding of the sequence of events, actions, and decisions of the chain of command surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt.

    Emphasis added. I know Trump does worse 50 times a day in his tweets, and this could be viewed as trivial in light of all the troubles of the world today, but to me it is just one more sign of the fish rotting from the head. More fulsome understanding!?

  233. 233.

    montanareddog

    @PST: Since the Acting Sec of the Navy groks that President Donald J Trump is the kindest, smartest, tallest, fittest, most competent, most loyal, most handsome, most beloved leader of the United States ever, that would be the Acting Sec’s fulsome understanding.

  234. 234.

    Gvg

    @debbie: it costs money and it take workers to transport and distribute food. Those workers are all at risk of giving each other the virus. The problem right now is a contagious disease. Unless everything was done by robot or grew their own food, food not getting to the hungry is inevitable. Hint, farming a balanced diet for yourself is hard, you will have nothing left and the first bad weather will finish you. Farmers HAVE to trade and must have supply lines.

    this is nothing to do with morality. Nothing to do but try not to die until we have a vaccine or cure.

  236. 236.

    TS (the original)

    Gov Cuomo talking. He repeats the facts every day. This is how he gets the message out. He says every day that they are working with science and facts. His demeanour doesn’t show a lot of  empathy – but his words do. He thanks those who deserve thanks, he explains why they are doing what they do, what is needed for “re-open”. He explains why the subways have to stay open & what they are doing to keep everything safe. He is honest.

    He is also currently attacking McConnell and other senators who do not want to assist the “blue” states.

  240. 240.

    Another Scott

    @japa21: As I understand the common model, they assume that cases will fall like a rock (as in Wuhan) once we pass the “peak”.  Many countries aren’t doing that (not just the USA).

    There’s a lot of noise in the Worldometer.info daily numbers, but we certainly don’t seem to be falling below ~ 2000 +/- 500 deaths per day yet.  So, it’s not at all clear to me that these models based on Wuhan’s experience have much predictive value.

    :-(

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  241. 241.

    Immanentize

    @PST: It sounds like it should mean something….

    Maybe he is actually (literally?) looking for a fulsome and more falttering/complimentary investigation.  But to whom?

  242. 242.

    Matt McIrvin

    @JMG: I don’t see Massachusetts opening up any time soon, but what I am looking forward to desperately is the moment when the maple blossoms drop, because for me that’s the end of the heavy spring allergy season and I’ll no longer have to wonder every day if the crud in my throat is early COVID. I have an absolutely terrible couple of weeks every March (junipers?) and a less severe but longer bout in April into May (probably the maples).

  244. 244.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Another Scott: China’s experience is almost unique, probably because they locked down so hard after things got really bad. Nobody else really did that–either they managed to get a lid on it in the first place or they’re taking less severe measures that really drag it out.

  246. 246.

    Matt McIrvin

    @MattF: Donald Trump looks almost like a gender-flipped clone of his mom; it’s eerie. But his father is the only one he talks about.

  248. 248.

    Matt McIrvin

    @PST: Early on in this, I got a weird rash on one hand that I think was just from the effect of excessive handwashing and not enough lotion.

  250. 250.

    TS (the original)

    Cuomo is so on the ball. Reporter asks about people not wanting to go back to work – do not want things opened.

    Cuomo: Didn’t you tell me last week that people were outside protesting because they wanted to go back to work, now you are telling me they don’t want to go back to work. Welcome to America.

    A politician who remembers who said what and when. Trump should watch, every day.

  251. 251.

    artem1s

    @MattF:

    WRT Amash, the word I’ve seen used in journalismistic articles is ‘volatility’, I.e., it makes everything less predictable.

    The actual Libertarian Party still usually has some sort of vote and nominates a candidate on the general ballot – or am I thinking about old Ross Perot party?  and they still have to get a candidate on the ballot in enough states to matter.  As I recall the Libertarians and Greens usually don’t want to spend any money on actually getting votes or putting together a staff.  they just spend enough to hit up the more gullible rubes and then try to rake in some speaking fees on the Sunday shows.

    what insane lunatic is the Green Party nominating?  who does Putin want them to nominate?  I’m betting Gabbard makes a late summer appearance to rake in some more cash.

  252. 252.

    trollhattan

    @TS (the original):

    A politician who remembers who said what and when. Trump should watch, every day.

    Put Andy on a sofa flanked by two blondes and Trump’ll tune in, believe me. It’ll be yuge!

  255. 255.

    SFAW

    @catclub:

    The intelligence community is NOT going to let Trump pretend he ‘did not know’, or ‘nobody told me’.  They have receipts.

    Big effing deal. Very little they’ve done (so far) has mattered re: removing the Murderer-in-Chief. Oh, it gives us all even-more confirmation of The Liar’s treason, but that and a buck will get you on the subway. [Yes, I realize the subway costs more than a dollar these days.]

  256. 256.

    trollhattan

    @SFAW:

    I have exactly the same problem, presuming “dump” and “ignore” are equivalent. (Fan since “Girl with the Pear Earring” and her Ivanka impression simply kills.)

  259. 259.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @trollhattan: I’d forgotten she was Ivanka on SNL. I’d like to see more of the “Complicity” type stuff, but I guess it is hard to satirize someone with no personality effectively– and the grift doesn’t lend itself to sketch comedy

  261. 261.

    laura

    @schrodingers_cat: how right you are – I had to watch the trailer and was reminded of her playing the sitar. Guess who’s going to rewatch The Namesake today, this girl. I forgot that it was a star turn for Kal Penn, but Irrfan Khan just came in and stole the whole movie. Then on to Puzzle.

  262. 262.

    trollhattan

    @Fair Economist:

    About 40% of California deaths have been from senior care homes. Wonder whether they need to be considered separately from the general population in determining rates and trends for setting policy?

  264. 264.

    catclub

    @Sab: This seems to be such a strange disease. So many utterly different symptoms.

     

    There was some reporting that  CV19 attacks T-Cells. which is what HIV does,  and kaposi sarcoma was often cancer on the feet.

  265. 265.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques: I mean, “the virus will eventually die out” if we keep doing the things we’re doing to keep it below R1 for months.

    A long, slow road and even after it dies out locally we’ll still get reinfection clusters from outside the state. :(

  266. 266.

    Origuy

    The US Foreign Service Institute ranks the languages that they train their employees on a scale of 1 to 5, depending on the length of the training. Arabic, along with Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, are at 5; the training lasts 88 weeks. Hindi is at 4, taking 44 weeks. That’s to achieve “Professional Working Proficiency”, not fluency. I suppose at that level you could follow a movie, but you wouldn’t get everything.

  267. 267.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Origuy: If he watches Hindi movies he can learn and understand it in less than 44 weeks. I learned Hindi by osmosis, thanks to Hindi movies and listening to news in Hindi.  I already knew the script (Hindi shares it with Marathi and Sanskrit) so learning to read and write in it was not too much of a problem. I am fluent in Hindi but speak it at the proficiency of middle schooler probably.

  268. 268.

    MoCA Ace

    @Immanentize: Have you ever seen a movie starring Scarlett Johansson and found yourself transfixed by her gaze? There’s a reason for that. According to De Silva, the Avengers beauty has the very best eyes in the business, scoring a whopping 95.95 percent.

    @Brachiator:  I felt that way about the gaze of Marty Feldman….

    Shit, you almost wrecked my new wireless keyboard, and cream of mushroom soup up the nose stings a little :)

  269. 269.

    Fair Economist

    @trollhattan:

    About 40% of California deaths have been from senior care homes. Wonder whether they need to be considered separately from the general population in determining rates and trends for setting policy?

    We know the population is heterogenous and that modeling a heterogenous population as homogenous can be seriously wrong, but I don’t think anybody has enough info to meaningfully split important groups out, especially nursing homes. So blindly into that dark night we go.

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