Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

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

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

Let there be snark.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

This blog will pay for itself.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

Today’s GOP: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

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

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

rich, arrogant assholes who equate luck with genius

The next time the wall wtreet journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

This really is a full service blog.

You are here: Home / Healthcare / COVID-19 Coronavirus / COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Sunday / Monday, Sept. 26-27

COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: Sunday / Monday, Sept. 26-27

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So much for Plan(et) B* …

… “I came back to Earth with a house full of COVID,” Isaacman, 38, said in an interview from his home in Easton, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, five days after he and his Inspiration4 crewmates safely splashed down in the Atlantic. read more

Isaacman said his wife, their two daughters, aged 5 and 7, and his in-laws all came down with COVID-19 upon their return from Florida, where the family stayed in the days immediately before, during and after the spaceflight and were apparently exposed to the virus.

So far, Isaacman said, he has yet to test positive…

Isaacman said none of his family has fallen seriously ill, though they do have symptoms.

He said all the adults in his household were fully vaccinated before their trip to Cape Canaveral, where the SpaceX rocketship he flew aboard blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center. The family also spent time in Orlando before heading home earlier this week…

*(/snark)

======

Ireland:

======

======

H/t commentor Redshift – Andy Larsen is The Salt Lake Tribune’s data columnist:

… In other words, unvaccinated people in Utah have been between 4.4 times and 5.1 times more likely to get COVID-19, be hospitalized, or die because of it than vaccinated people in the past eight months.

OK, pretty straightforward. But that’s obviously been changing, right? After all, you’ve heard a lot recently (including from me, by the way) about vaccine efficacy declining as time passes. Given that the majority of those vaccinated got their shots in March, April and May, five to seven months ago, aren’t we likely to see that gap shrink?

Not so fast! It turns out that the gap has actually been growing. In other words, we’re seeing the multiplier — the ratio of coronavirus cases among the unvaccinated when compared to the vaccinated — increase over the past month.

Why is that? Well, coronavirus spread happens exponentially. Because the vaccine prevents most cases and makes other cases more mild, the contagion coefficient is higher in mostly unvaccinated communities compared to mostly vaccinated ones…

Ben Garrison, suffering from “bad flu like symptoms with loss of smell”:

Reader Interactions

69Comments

  1. 1.

    mrmoshpotato

    “This is death by anti-science and a lot of this has been coming out of the nighttime Fox News being a bunch of Dump-humping dumbfucks,” Dr. Peter Hotez says about the widespread Covid-19 vaccine misinformation.

    Fixed.

  3. 3.

    brantl

    This hasn’t happened yet, but you know it’s going to, and I am dreading it. There’s going to be a T-shirt that says; “Get a mask, get the shot, or shut up and die, already!” And the first person to wear it is going to be in the biggest fist fight that ever happened.

  4. 4.

    mrmoshpotato

    I refused writing a medical letter of exemption for a patient who wanted a vaccine exemption letter. They rated me one star and wrote this stunning review, “I’d rather die than see or talk to Dr. John again.”

    ??‍♂️

  5. 5.

    mrmoshpotato

    @brantl:

    This hasn’t happened yet, but you know it’s going to, and I am dreading it. There’s going to be a T-shirt that says; “Get a mask, get the shot, or shut up and die, already!” 

    Would probably sell like hotcakes around here (BJ).

    Also, mmmmm, hotcakes.

  7. 7.

    HeartlandLiberal

    We live in Bloomington, Indiana. Residential campus of Indiana University. (Most beautiful residential campus in the country, but that is another story.)
    County has had lowest infection and hospitalization rate in state. But that may be changing. Wife informed us yesterday that City has announced no weekly recyclables pickup this week. We have separate chipped containers for garbage and recyclables, pickup every week. New garbage trucks with arms that pick up and dump contents into top of trucks. One man does the work of what three men used to do thanks to automation. Yet: the reason no recycles pickup? Too many workers out sick with COVID. They could not staff garbage and recycle pickups.

  9. 9.

    YY_Sima Qian

    On 9/26 China reported 13 new domestic confirmed cases & 3 new domestic asymptomatic cases.

    Fujian Province reporter 2 new domestic confirmed cases. 16 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 2 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 415 active domestic confirmed & 1 active domestic asymptomatic cases.

    • Putian did not report any new domestic positive cases. 4 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 2 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 178 active domestic confirmed (58 mild, 118 moderate & 2 critical) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. Fengting Township (except for 7 villages at Low Risk, & 8 villages & 1 community at Medium Risk) remains at High Risk. 8 villages & 1 community at Fengting County have been re-designated from High Risk to Medium Risk. 5 zones, 1 residential compound, 1 residential building, 1 school, 2 communities & 15 villages are currently at Medium Risk, all at Xianyou County.
    • Quanzhou did not report any domestic positive cases. 4 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 19 active domestic confirmed cases (including 1 serious & 1 critical transferred to hospital at Xiamen) in the city. 4 villages remain at Medium Risk.
    • Xiamen reported 2 new domestic confirmed case (both mild, 1 each at Tong’an & Jimei Districts), both traced close contacts. 8 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 215 active domestic confirmed cases (57 mild, 160 moderate & 4 serious) in the city. Xinmin Township remains at High Risk. 5 villages, 1 zone & 2 communities & 3 residential compounds are currently at Medium Risk.
    • Zhangzhou did not report any new domestic positive cases. There have been 3 active domestic confirmed cases reported in the city, though they are actually being treated at Xiamen. 1 community remains at Medium Risk

    Heilongjiang Province reported 11 new domestic confirmed & 3 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 49 active domestic confirmed & 5 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.

    • Harbin reported 11 new domestic confirmed (8 mild & 3 moderate; 9 at Bayan County & 1 each at Songbei District & Mulan County) & 2 new domestic asymptomatic cases (both at Bayan County), all traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine. There currently are 48 active domestic confirmed (43 at Bayan County & 2 each at Mulan County & Songbei District, & 1 at Nan’gang District) & 2 active domestic asymptomatic cases (both at Bayan County) in the city. 1 sub-district remains at High Risk. 1 residential compound has been elevated to Medium Risk. 7 residential compound are currently at Medium Risk.
    • Suihua reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases (at Beilin District), a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine. The currently are 1 active domestic confirmed & 3 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 1 residential compound has been elevated to Medium Risk.

    Yunnan Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 9 active domestic confirmed & 2 domestic asymptomatic cases remaining in the province, all at Ruili in Dehong Prefecture.

    At Hunan Province there currently are 7 active domestic confirmed cases remaining, all at Zhangjiajie

    At Henan Province there currently are 8 active domestic confirmed cases remaining, all at Shangqiu.

    At Shanghai Municipality there currently is 1 active domestic confirmed case remaining.

    Imported Cases

    On 9/26, China reported 22 new imported confirmed cases (3 previously asymptomatic), 17 imported asymptomatic cases:

    • Yunnan Province (locations not specified) – 12 confirmed cases, all Chinese nationals returning from Myanmar; 4 asymptomatic cases, 2 Chinese nationals each returning from Myanmar & Laos; via land border crossings
    • Beijing Municipality – 3 confirmed cases, 1 Chinese national each returning from Switzerland & the UK (via Copenhagen), & a Moldovan national coming from Moldova (via Istanbul & Hong Kong); 2 asymptomatic cases, no information released
    • Tianjin Municipality – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), a Chinese national returning from Singapore
    • Shanghai Municipality – 1 confirmed case, a Chinese national returning from Guinea (via Paris CdG)
    • Guangzhou in Guangdong Province – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), a Chinese national returning from Gabon (via Nairobi); 4 asymptomatic cases, 1 Chinese national each returning from Bangladesh, the DRC (via Nairobi), Saudi Arabia & the UAE
    • Foshan in Guangdong Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from France, off a flight that landed at Guangzhou
    • Dalian in Liaoning Province – 1 confirmed case, no information released
    • Nanjing in Jiangsu Province – 1 confirmed case, coming from the Philippines
    • Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), coming from Mexico
    • Qingdao in Shandong Province – 1 confirmed case, a Chinese national returning from Japan
    • Changsha in Hunan Province –  3 asymptomatic cases, no information released
    • Taiyuan in Shanxi Province – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
    • Xiamen in Fujian Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from the UK (via Amsterdam Schiphol)
    • Sanming in Fujian Province – 1 asymptomatic case, a Chinese national returning from Myanmar; the case at arrived at border crossing at Lincang in Yunnan Province on 8/21, passed through 21 days of centralized quarantine & tested negative multiple times, upon release from quarantine on 9/13 the case returned to Sanming via high speed rail & re-entered home quarantine, testing negative on 9/12 & 9/22 but positive on 9/25; probably a recovered case shedding dead viral fragments

    Overall in China, 36 confirmed cases recovered (20 imported), 23 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation (20 imported) & 3 were reclassified as confirmed cases (all imported), & 958 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 1,012 active confirmed cases in the country (526 imported), 11 in serious condition (3 imported), 344 active asymptomatic cases (334 imported), 2 suspect cases (all imported). 20,176 traced contacts are currently under centralized quarantine.

    As of 9/26, 2,200.202M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 2.51M doses in the past 24 hrs.

    On 9/27, Hong Kong reported 3 new positive cases, all asymptomatic & all imported (from Kazakhstan, the Philippines & Egypt, all had been fully vaccinated).

  10. 10.

    eclare

    @HeartlandLiberal:  I assume that will happen here in Memphis soon.  The paper recently published vaccination rates of various city departments.  The lowest was garbage removal, at 37%.

  11. 11.

    satby

    We like to think that being liberal means we’re more smart and reality based. It doesn’t. The dumbshittery runs amok on this side of the divide too. I am so tired of the stupid.

  12. 12.

    Baud

    @satby:

    I don’t disagree.  There’s a lot of bullshit that gets ignored because it pales in comparison to what’s going on on the right.  But what specifically triggered your comment?

  13. 13.

    Biff Baxter

    At this point, I’ve had it with the hardcore anti-vaxxers. Don’t argue with them. Let them deal with the consequences.

  14. 14.

    boatboy_srq

    Isaacman said his wife, their two daughters, aged 5 and 7, and his in-laws all came down with COVID-19 upon their return from Florida, where the family stayed in the days immediately before, during and after the spaceflight and were apparently exposed to the virus.

    RELATED: My alma mater is in FL, with at least one campus in a COVID hotspot. Homecoming is in a couple months; it’s a big deal for alums. A week ago I emailed Alumni Relations telling them that I was not coming because it wasn’t safe, and pointed a finger at the surrounding communities whose ICU beds are full. Two days later Alumni Relations published a notice to everyone that on-campus Homecoming is cancelled and what events can go virtual will.

  15. 15.

    Amir Khalid

    Malaysia’s Ministry of Health reports 10,959 new Covid-19 cases today in its media statement, for a cumulative reported total of 2,209,194 cases. It also reports 278 new deaths as of midnight, for a cumulative total of 25,437 deaths – 1.15% of the cumulative reported total, 1.25% of resolved cases.

    Based on cases reported yesterday, Malaysia’s nationwide Rt is at 0.92.

    862 confirmed cases are in ICU, 378 of them on ventilators. Meanwhile, 16,430 more patients have recovered, for a cumulative total of 2,005,943 patients recovered – 90.8% of the cumulative reported total.

    19 new clusters were reported today, for a cumulative total of 5,432 clusters. 1,165 clusters are currently active; 4,267 clusters are now inactive.

    10,947 new cases today are local infections. Sarawak reports 2,723 cases: 81 in clusters, 1,436 close-contact screenings, and 1,206 other screenings.

    Johor reports 1,226 cases: 88 in clusters, 585 close-contact screenings, and 553 other screenings.

    Kelantan reports 983 cases: 55 in clusters, 604 close-contact screenings, and 324 other screenings. Selangor reports 974 local cases: 79 in clusters, 565 close-contact screenings, and 330 other screenings.

    Penang reports 793 cases: 25 in clusters, 326 close-contact screenings, and 442 other screenings. Sabah reports 751 cases: 46 in clusters, 366 close-contact screenings, and 339 other screenings. Pahang reports 739 cases: 273 in clusters, 382 close-contact screenings, and 84 other screenings. Perak reports 713 cases: 92 in clusters, 335 close-contact screenings, and 286 other screenings.

    Terengganu reports 689 local cases: eight in clusters, 542 close-contact screenings, and 139 other screenings. Kedah reports 660 cases: 16 in clusters, 392 close-contact screenings, and 252 other screenings.

    Melaka reports 344 local cases: 29 in clusters, 104 close-contact screenings, and 211 other screenings.

    Kuala Lumpur reports 173 local cases: two in clusters, 75 close-contact screenings, and 96 other screenings. Negeri Sembilan reports 110 cases: three in clusters, 71 close-contact screenings, and 36 other screenings.

    Perlis reports 51 cases: 21 close-contact screening and 30 other screenings. Putrajaya reports 18 cases: 10 close-contact screenings and eight other screenings. Labuan reports no new cases today.

    12 new cases today are imported: five in Selangor, three in Kuala Lumpur, two in Terengganu, and two in Melaka.

    The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) administered 269,465 doses of vaccine on 26th September: 117,196 first doses and 152,269 second doses. As of midnight yesterday, the cumulative total is 42,375,862 doses administered: 22,834,060 first doses and 19,633,681 second doses. 69.9% of the population have received their first dose, while 60.1% are now fully vaccinated.

  18. 18.

    satby

    @Baud: Last night, John’s thread.

    I try to provide value in my comments by linking to useful info or out of some expertise I have, only to waste my time entirely. And it amazes me that people can’t see the parallels between their own “ew, chemicals, scary!!” and an antivaxxer’s “we don’t know exactly what’s in those shots do we”. Not on here, but once someone actually said to me that she didn’t like all the chemicals in something and then read off her example: NaCl. If I had had a gun, I would have blown my own brains out to make it stop.

  19. 19.

    boatboy_srq

    Drug-resistant infections have increased in hospitals during the pandemic. Resistant bacteria thrive on reused medical equipment, such as intravenous lines & ventilators. The problem is widespread & also involves resistant fungi that colonize equipment

    This is one of the other things COVIDiots conveniently forget. Hospitalizations at this level are going to be breeding grounds for all sorts of nasties, not just rhinoviruses. And these wingnuts in their idiocy will be spreading all manner of beasties besides the one virus they still think is a hoax.

  20. 20.

    boatboy_srq

    @Baud: I like to think our voices carry some weight. I can’t be the only alum scared BLEEPless about a weekend in Florida in High Pandemic season.

  24. 24.

    NotMax

    Locally,

    With 10 new deaths reported by the state Sunday, Hawaii has seen some 175 COVID fatalities in the past 30 days. This is despite a downward trend[*] in daily cases reported and hospitalizations.

    Lt. [Gov.] Josh Green believes the fatalities will also drop, but not until mid-October.

    “That has always been a lagging indicator — two to three weeks. So we’ll continue to see the cases decline and the hospitalizations decline but it will take another two or three weeks before the fatalities drop off,” said Green. Source

    *Downward from the highest during the entire pandemic case numbers recently, but still approximately 5 times more than only a few months ago, when the state was daily reporting double digit case numbers, not the current triple digits.

    Sept. 26, 2021 COVID-19 Update: 372 New Cases in Hawai‘i, 10 Deaths
    [snip]
    Statewide, there were 249 people hospitalized with COVID-19 on Sunday (Down 44% from a peak of 448 on Sept. 4), according to Lt. Gov. Josh Green. This is still up +51% from the 165 hospitalizations reported on Aug. 5, 2021. The state’s positivity rate is now at 4.5%. Source

  25. 25.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    My chicken coop-keeping neighbor is usually a complete dipshit, but that whole family is vaxxed. He told me yesterday that the 18 year old son has it, probably from his job at the local Wal-Mart, which is overrun with spreadnecks. Kid has a cough, some nasal congestion, and has lost his senses of taste and smell. The poor kid had tickets for the “Louder Than Life” heavy metal  festival this weekend, and couldn’t unload his tix.

    Worse, the neighbor’s dad is in congestive heart failure with low O2 sat numbers already and is in extreme depression because he is facing a foot amputation. His mom’s of course at wits’ end, but nobody can visit dad OR mom because of COVID exposure – which includes my neighbor’s brother, who’d been ferrying the neighbor kid to work.

  27. 27.

    MomSense

    @boatboy_srq:

    Covidiots are seemingly incapable and/or unwilling to consider the consequences of their actions to anyone outside of themselves.  Every time I feel remorse at how much I loathe them, I remember that they do not care at all who they harm.

  29. 29.

    MomSense

    @NotMax:

    LOLOL!  I know we live in an Idiocracy because of all the products labeled gluten free at the grocery store.  Did you know salmon is gluten free?!?!

  30. 30.

    MagdaInBlack

    @satby: Late in life I am learning to keep my knowledge to myself, because its fkn annoying to be 2nd, 3rd, and 4th guessed at something you’ve been doing most of your life ?

  31. 31.

    J_A

    Re Alaska cases

    Am I the only one that has seen on TV the Alaska governor’s tourism commercial, where, after praising the state’s beauty and amenities, he ends by telling the viewer that if they come to AK, they will have the opportunity to get a free COVID vaccine?

    Every time I watch it I keep thinking: “What the fish, Governor? Are you talking about the chance to get a COVID vaccine, or just to get COVID?”.

    As an aside, in April or so, when vaccinations  were ramping up in the USA and still months away in Latin America, Miami started offering vaccines to tourists.  I know several people from different countries that actually traveled there to get it.

  32. 32.

    satby

    Yeah, it sounds funny. I should just laugh and move on, right?

    But it capped off a week when I also had to tell the 32 year old in our practice to start using fluoride toothpaste instead of the woo-woo charcoal one to save what’s left of her teeth after they remove 8(!!), and tell another person that diluted vinegar water doesn’t “sanitize” or disinfect at all. Because both fluoride and bleach have been demonized as dangerous; rampart tooth decay and surfaces crawling with germs are a-ok.

  33. 33.

    Matt McIrvin

    @J_A: New Hampshire was one of the first places to open up vaccination to out-of-staters. It was a fairly savvy move because a lot of people from Massachusetts have second homes there or spend time in NH on vacation. But it happened at the same time that the vaccines became copiously available in Massachusetts, so they may not have gotten many takers–and NH has never achieved the level of vaccination in its own state that the other New England states have, though it’s high by national standards.

  34. 34.

    eclare

    @satby:   That is stunning…I know it’s anecdotal, but growing up we had well water for about three years.  I had multiple cavities.  Once we got back on fluoridated water, none.

  35. 35.

    MomSense

    @satby:

    Oh my god.  It’s exhausting.  Our office manager drinks Sovereign Silver for her immune health.  My kids have nicknamed her smurfette and really hope she turns blue. She was telling one of the interns how great it is and how it’s all natural.  I kind of joked that so is petroleum.  It comes out of the ground! I’ve given up trying to talk to them about anything.  When you’ve decided to take your medical advice from some guy on Facebook, I think you’re going to be tough to reason with.

  37. 37.

    satby

    @MomSense: When I’m really pissed off, I also point out that petroleum is organic.

    It is fucking exhausting, and the annoying thing is I know no one even read the link before jumping in to argue with me.

  38. 38.

    Ken

    @MomSense: Did you know salmon is gluten free?!?!

    Some meat products are injected with a solution of sugar, salt, and soy and/or wheat byproducts. This is allegedly to improve flavor; that it also increases the weight by squirting what is basically water into the meat is another byproduct. So the label does have meaning.

  39. 39.

    Ken

    @J_A: Miami started offering vaccines to tourists.  I know several people from different countries that actually traveled there to get it.

    We’re going to find out that Florida’s apparent high rate of vaccination is because, other than the over-60 set, everyone who got vaccinated in Florida was from out of state, aren’t we?

  40. 40.

    rikyrah

    So,

    I have possibly been exposed.

    Got an email from Peanut’s school -someone in her class has tested positive.

     

    Just made my appointment for a test ?

     

    Phuck the lying unvaccinated ?, and their phucking parents who won’t get their children vaccinated.

    Vaccine should be mandated for ages 12-17 in the schools TODAY ?

  43. 43.

    sab

    @MomSense: satby wants suzanne to bugbomb her house, although she lives with a with a toddler and a husband with asthma. Some of us said mild flea outbreaks can be controlled with Frontline and more rigorous vaccuming. She threw up her hands and told us to go use essential oils.

    I think she is mischaracterizing the discussion, but that’s just me.

  45. 45.

    satby

    @Ken: I’ve had people tell me that they can’t use soap with oatmeal because they’re sensitive to gluten. First: celiac is a digestive disorder, not a skin disease; and second you’re hopefully washing with it, not eating it. Someone really invested in the bullshit (because they never actually have celiac disease) then pulls out their rhetorical coupe de grace: “skin is the largest organ in the body”. And at that point I have no fucks left to give, so I point out it may be, but it’s not part of your digestive system.

    You have no fucking idea how bad it is.

  46. 46.

    MomSense

    @sab:

    I’d be more concerned about fleas for baby than bug bomb.  Yes, chemicals can be overused or not used appropriately, but fleas are much more dangerous than people realize.

  47. 47.

    satby

    @sab: no, you’re mischaracterizing it. I gave links to some information and a flea spray (not bug bomb) that’s effective for hard surfaces like floors, since Suzanne was upset at the thought of daily vacuuming. You can all do whatever the fuck you want, I provided information and a followup about relative safety.

    And it was the second time I’ve noticed that you decided to directly contradict me based on your own anecdotal experience. Get back to me when you’ve been doing animal rescue for 40 years and have had literally hundreds of animals.

  50. 50.

    Cermet

    @boatboy_srq: Far worse on this front, apparently fungi are one of the leading causes of resistance and there are all of three drugs available in the world for treatment. Worse, no new drugs are being developed to date, and far worse, these existing drugs are losing their effectiveness. The requirement for steroids enable fungi to get a foothold in people being treated for covid so its a double whammy. A perfect storm (for fungi.)

  51. 51.

    Cermet

    @Baud: Not sure on that because in large studies people with high salt intake lived longer than people on low salt intake. Also, except for about 5% of the population, salt absolutely does not cause/increase blood pressure.

  52. 52.

    satby

    @MomSense: yeah, that would be me, but sab and WG vacuumed and it was fine. Oh and WG is allergic, so we all shouldn’t use what she’s allergic to.

    And I have severe asthma, BTW. I used a mask when I sprayed the floors and area rugs, opened the windows, and went for a walk. Came back when they were dry and it was fine. But whatever. So done with it.

    And some fleas have developed immunity to Frontline (that’s why you can buy it OTC now).

  53. 53.

    Skepticat

    Yesterday, I didn’t answer a call because I didn’t recognize the number. When I searched, it showed as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention doing a survey about vaccines, so I read the site and answered when they called again. It was quite a long survey, almost ten minutes, and some of the focus was on children in the household, though it’s only me and the cats. Most of the questions apart from those about demographics gauged my attitude about the vaccine’s importance and safety, though they also asked whether none, some, most, or almost all of my friends and family were vaxxed. I was happy to be able to say almost all. After my first shot, I also did an online survey about my physical response.

  54. 54.

    Cermet

    @debbie: I disagree totally; science is taught at all public schools – even if the quality isn’t the best the kids are heavily exposed to science. The issue is religion and how polarized those total idiots have become and created a country of true fellow idiots. Religion is the enemy of all intelligent people.

  57. 57.

    Cermet

    @Baud: Most MD’s haven’t. This issue is just like if someone (me) is sensitive to iodine, they think you can’t eat seafood – again, not true; but seaweed, on-the-other hand, is another matter – lol.

  58. 58.

    sab

    @satby: I had no problem with the capstar suggestion. It was the link to the site with fleaspray I had an issue with. So yes you did too suggest she spray her house with a toddler in it.

  60. 60.

    satby

    @sab: spraying is directional, it goes where you point it. A bug bomb is a fogger, it goes everywhere because it fills the room with aerosol. I specifically said *I* had good luck with that spray. And again, I don’t GAF what you, WG, Suzanne, or anyone decides to do in their own home. I was making a case for an expedient way to get rid of a flea infestation; just as I (and a vet!) previously made a case for a dog not being a suitable match for a beginner. And both times you keep going out of your way to fight with me about it. Fuck off.

  61. 61.

    Robert Sneddon

    Scotland — 2,069 new cases reported today. The test positivity rate is 9.5%. There was one new death reported overnight (noting that Register Offices are now generally closed at weekends). ICU bed occupancy numbers are 76, down two from yesterday while hospitalisations are 1,023, up 19.

    There were over 7,500 vaccinations carried out in Scotland yesterday (Sunday) with over 60% of these being first vaccinations. 91.3% of 16+ adults are now vaccinated with their first dose and 84.2% are fully vaccinated. 70.9% of 16 and 17-year-olds have now received their first vaccination, up 0.3% from yesterday.

  62. 62.

    ab_normal

    @MomSense:

    Sorry, as the resident celiac I have to push back on gluten-free labeling. A lot of meats have injected solution to plump them up, and I like the assurance that it doesn’t include gluten.

  63. 63.

    sab

    @satby: I did not disagree with you about the dog being unsuitable for a beginner. I explicitly said that it seemed to be a bad choice for a beginner.

    If anyone who comments on a thread that you are commenting on is thereby challenging you and your expertise, then we have a problem with the whole concept of Balloon Juice.

    I do have a problem with commenters who got pissed off in a prior thread coming back a day later and rehashing the whole thing completely out of context with people who haven’t read the previous thread.

    I resent you implying that I am a Covidiot, an anti-vaxxer, anti-science and anti-flouride simply because I suggested a slightly milder approach to flea control that has worked for me.

  64. 64.

    Sloane Ranger

    Just come from having my flu jab.

    Anyway, Sunday in the UK we had 32,417 new cases. This is an increase of 15.4% in the rolling 7-day average. Normal weekend warnings apply. New cases by nation,

    England – 25,538 (down 2549)

    Northern Ireland – 1020 (down 100)

    Scotland – 2556 (down 705)

    Wales – 3303 (includes Saturday’s cases).

    Deaths – There were 58 deaths within 28 days of a positive test yesterday. This is a decrease of 3.8% in the rolling 7-day average. 37 deaths were in England, 6 in Northern Ireland, 2 in Scotland and 13 in Wales, but this figure also includes deaths in Wales that occurred on Saturday).

    Testing – Not updated at weekends.

    Hospitalisations – Not updated at weekends.

    Vaccinations – As of Saturday, 25 September, 48,722,414 people had received the 1st shot of a vaccine and 44,739,473 had had both. This means that, as of that date, 89.6% of all people in the UK aged 16+ had had 1 shot and 82.3% were fully vaccinated.

    Personal – Northamptonshire has just gone purple on the case map, meaning that we have a rate of between 400-799 cases per 100,000 people. Perhaps this is not surprising as I have just checked our vaccination rate, which is massively below the national average, at 63.4% 1st shot and 57.4% 2nd. Of course, we also voted overwhelmingly for Brexit so perhaps I shouldn’t be so surprised.

  66. 66.

    Chris T.

    @Cermet:

    Also, except for about 5% of the population, salt absolutely does not cause/increase blood pressure.

    Huh, I thought it was closer to half salt-sensitive, half not. Just curious as to whether you have some sources for these statistics.

    Side note on fluoride / fluoridation: it’s a good idea for most, it converts a little bit of the apatite in the enamel to fluorapatite, which is a more durable mineral. But overdoing it produces dental fluorisis, which is mainly considered unsightly.  Some places have sufficient fluoride content in groundwater (well water) that there’s no need for fluoridation, but most do not. When a water deliverer chooses to fluoridate the water, they can opt for the cheap and nasty stuff: fluorosilicic acid. Most do. It’s fine when handled correctly, but personally I’d be happier if they went for the more expensive additives, which are easier not to get wrong. :-)

  67. 67.

    Chris T.

    @Freemark: I heard a story about someone who started eating the lube at the auto shop (in small quantities, I hope…). It works fine as a laxative and if you are carefully moderate, apparently it results in a… smoother bathroom experience?

    (Can’t say I’ve tried it msyelf.)

  68. 68.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    MSNBC via Anne Laurie @ Top:

    “This is death by anti-science and a lot of this has been coming out of the nighttime Fox News,” Dr. Peter Hotez says about the widespread Covid-19 vaccine misinformation.

    So when do we start calling it Fox Flu?

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