Patterico's Pontifications

3/12/2020

Checking Comments Open Thread – Help a Brother Out

Filed under: General — JVW @ 9:50 am



[guest post by JVW]

I am going to be running some experiments with the settings on this blog to see if I can figure out what might be going on. Please do me a favor and make some comments here. Use it as an open thread to discuss whatever you might like.

– JVW

130 Responses to “Checking Comments Open Thread – Help a Brother Out”

  1. First comment, likely headed for moderation.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  2. I did not approve your comment, JVW. Did you, or are comments working again?

    [Unfortunately, no. It went to moderation and I approved it. – JVW]

    DRJ (15874d)

  3. I guess they aren’t working. Mine went to moderation.

    DRJ (15874d)

  4. OK, I just made a tremendously bold move.

    [Dammit. It didn’t do anything.]

    JVW (54fd0b)

  5. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. People are going nuts here.

    NJRob (4d595c)

  6. I am temporarily forcing all comments into moderation — which was already happening anyway — and after a few minutes I will turn that off and see if it provides a reset.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  7. I am so sorry, Rob.

    DRJ (15874d)

  8. Just want to get a few more comments here before I turn off the forced moderation again.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  9. I’m being a good Scout, and supporting our moderators.

    Ragspierre (d9bec9)

  10. I will quit moderating so I don’t mess up your experiment, JVW. Thank you for doing this.

    DRJ (15874d)

  11. I will wait a full ten minutes before turning off automatic comment moderation.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  12. Thank you, DRJ. I expect I will be at this a couple of hours unless we luck into a solution earlier, so feel free to do other things.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  13. Thanks Ragspierre; it is appreciated.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  14. Antidisestablishmentarianism.

    nk (1d9030)

  15. I’ll give it fifteen minutes and try the reset in about three minutes from now.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  16. Test come t

    Nathan (a8854b)

  17. Hello world

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  18. OK, let’s see what happens.

    [Rats. Didn’t help matters any. On to the next test.]

    JVW (54fd0b)

  19. test.

    Dana (4fb37f)

  20. 🙂

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  21. There is nothing to worry about. Most Americans will not eoncounter comments. The comment problem will miraculously disappear once we have warmer weather. Everyone who needs a comment test can have one. Comments from alll of Europe (except the UK) will be foorced into moderation.

    John B Boddie (286277)

  22. Check check.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  23. No email provided for this comment.

    [OK, so for this one it did go into moderation, but I was allowed to submit with an email address after I temporarily turned off that requirement.]

    JVW testing - no email (54fd0b)

  24. My kids are trying to get a flight out of London to come home. They have been there for work. They cancelled a pre-planned trip to Paris. And although American citizens can return stateside, today there is a rush on flights out to the US. Concerns that the UK might go on lockdown.

    Dana (4fb37f)

  25. A test comment:

    Buckeyes are useless nuts; exhibit A: Upper Sandusky, Ohio.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  26. Joe Biden is the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  27. Test, test; would you believe Toledo, Ohio?

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  28. Test, test, test: howzabout Cleveland?

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  29. This one has an email. Last time I was given no notification that my comment was awaiting moderation. Will I be given that notification this time?

    [Answer: yes.]

    JVW testing - with email (54fd0b)

  30. I am testing. I am trying.
    “Moderation” I am sighing.
    But if I were Herr Trump.
    I would be lying.

    Appalled (1a17de)

  31. Here’s another small contribution…

    Ragspierre (d9bec9)

  32. I wonder if by the end of the year we realize that all the prevented flu and cold was actually more than the incidents of coronavirus. I have to imagine everyone using Purell on doorknobs and simply avoiding sick people will yield huge benefits.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  33. That’s such a bummer that their vacation was curtailed, Dana.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  34. My last ‘no email’ comment didn’t go into moderation and it also didn’t appear.

    [Thanks Dustin. I’m trying to see if any of our WordPress settings are being honored. – JVW]

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  35. In the interests of helping out, here are the seven dirty words you can’t say according to George Carlin:

    shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, and tits

    Did that go into moderation?

    [Everything is going into moderation right now, even though I have turned off the swear-word filters. This is the issue I’m trying to figure out. – JVW]

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  36. One more time with no email, just for confirmation’s sake.

    JVW testing - no email (54fd0b)

  37. 24.My kids are trying to get a flight out of London to come home.

    If they can’t land seats to fly direct to the U.S., – what’s the deal on flying to, say, Canada then coming in from Ottawa or Toronto, “eh?” Did Trump block travel in from the Great White North? Just wondering.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  38. I didn’t actually expect that comment to be approved.

    Thanks? JVW

    lol

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  39. I’m thinking that there will be some sort of protocols they’ll have to observe when arriving back home. But everything seems a bit confusing, at best, so who knows what that’ll entail.

    Dana (4fb37f)

  40. I actually meant that as a semi-serious test, with an element of humor, to see if that element of the filters were even doing anything.

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  41. Name and email requirement has been turned back on.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  42. I doubt if this will have any effect at all, but I am temporarily turning off Quicktags.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  43. And now let’s see if anything is different.

    [Answer: No.]

    JVW (54fd0b)

  44. Test. Test

    Dana (4fb37f)

  45. So what are you using for filters? Askimet? Other(s)?

    [My next step is to take a look at the filters. Do you have some experience with this stuff and if so, do you have any advice for me? I can email you privately if you would like. – JVW]

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  46. Just think of this as a 14 day quarantine. In two weeks, all comments will be released, except those comments over 99.5F (the new Fahrenheit 451).

    BfC (5517e8)

  47. As far as I can tell, my comment posted immediatly?

    [When you post it do you immediately see the comment, and if so does it say “awaiting moderation”? I’ve approved a lot of them very quickly. – JVW]

    BfC (5517e8)

  48. JoeyBee doing political presser slamming Trump on coronavirus like he is some kind of expert:

    ‘Avoid handshakes and hugs.”

    Hugs.

    No kidding– he said that. Seriously.

    Idiot.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  49. Throwing the Hail-Mary pass here.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  50. Never mind… Comment is awaiting… I guess the cookies are showing me, my comments.

    BfC (5517e8)

  51. Testing.

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  52. Hugs.

    No kidding– he said that. Seriously.

    Idiot.

    DCSCA

    Come on, you know you laughed. Isn’t laughter the best medicine?

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  53. If they can’t land seats to fly direct to the U.S., – what’s the deal on flying to, say, Canada then coming in from Ottawa or Toronto, “eh?” Did Trump block travel in from the Great White North? Just wondering.

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 3/12/2020 @ 10:25 am
    Dont give him the idea, given his dislike for brownface junior ever since the Melania glance.

    urbanleftbehind (5eecdb)

  54. And a rudimentary check.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  55. OK, I don’t think this issue has anything to do with the WordPress settings, so it’s on to the Plugins.

    [WordPress settings have been fully restored.]

    JVW (54fd0b)

  56. I prefer large checks!

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  57. It uses Akismet and I think that is the problem based on the error messages.

    [Ah-ha! I see what you are saying. Don’t know if I can fix it; it might take P to make the change. But I will investigate. Thanks! – JVW]

    DRJ (15874d)

  58. Have you tried updating Askimet or whatever spam filter you’re using? Or renaming its folder within the pertinent WP directory, thus disabling it, then reinstalling it from scratch?

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  59. 48 – what about sticking your nose into children’s hair for a refreshing whiff?

    https://twitter.com/arostab/status/1238118739087941632?s=20
    _

    harkin (b64479)

  60. Check your email, JVW.

    [Thanks for that. Yep, hopefully it is as simple has making that one fix, though as site owner it might require P’s involvement. – JVW]

    Dana (4fb37f)

  61. I am Joe Biden and I don’t approve of this message.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  62. @52. Yes, but he makes you cry, not laugh.

    He won’t shut-up, either– 15 minutes of blathering, meandering all over the place. And his blatant politicizing of this situation is infuriating.

    And sick.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  63. I have distant, way back experience with Askimet, JVW, enough to guess (apparently correctly) that that’s the problem. However, I have no special insight into how it works. If it was me, I’d uninstall it, then reinstall it fresh and see if that works.

    I would also first google to see if there are any current issues with Askimet people are reporting and/or go to the Askimet blog and see if there is anything about it.”

    But that said, I just checked Askimet’s blog (appropriately named Moderation Queue), and there isn’t. Askimet is provided free by WP and they may have a support forum or email address somewhere too.

    [Many thanks. We think we know what’s up and are trying to get help for the fix. I really appreciate your insights. – JVW]

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  64. I think Patterico will have to handle it but you got everything else cleaned up and ready, JVW. Good job.

    DRJ (15874d)

  65. Ian Sams
    @IanSams
    ·
    If anyone wants to see an actual presidential address, Joe Biden will speak on coronavirus at 1pm ET tomorrow.

    Expect him to base his opinions and plans on science.

    Expect him to put the country above himself.

    Expect him to remind us what real leadership in crisis looks like.
    __ _

    Stephen L. Miller
    @redsteeze
    ·
    Biden’s people are losing their sh*t on mic and using tape to fix their microphones. His speech was supposed to be at 1pm est.
    __ _

    It’s still 2016 apparently
    @jtLOL
    ·
    They’re sitting him down and explaining that he’s running for president.
    __ _

    It’s still 2016 apparently
    @jtLOL

    Biden is showing his leadership by giving the exact same hygiene advice Trump did 16 hours ago.
    __ _

    It’s still 2016 apparently
    @jtLOL
    ·
    “What Trump said, except I’m good and he’s bad” –
    __ _

    Peter Paschal
    @PeterPaschal7
    ·
    Waiting for Biden to call it, COVID14

    _

    harkin (b64479)

  66. @52. Yes, but he makes you cry, not laugh.

    He won’t shut-up, either– 15 minutes of blathering, meandering all over the place. And his blatant politicizing of this situation is infuriating.

    And sick.

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 3/12/2020 @ 10:45 am

    I don’t really disagree at all. Biden’s a creepy guy. Off the teleprompter he is amazingly challenged to speak properly. Makes all those jokes about Dubya seem insane. And yes, of course Biden is making political hay about something that isn’t Trump’s fault.

    On the other hand, Trump was rightfully impeached for trying to screw with Biden, and Trump has been all over the map on coronavirus flip flops. The inability of our nation to trust its leader is a problem in a time of crisis (not that we really are in a crisis right now). This problem is almost entirely mitigated by the plain fact that the lefties are trying really hard to exploit coronavirus to create an economic disaster. I’ve gone from thinking Trump handled it poorly to thinking that many institutions are really maximizing economic damage to emulate the 2008 election year conditions.

    Of course, who do I vote for if I don’t want to support a corrupt politician who makes everything about his own personal needs, and not our nations? Obviously Trump is as bad as it gets (and would happily be helping the democrats just a few years ago with this same effort).

    I couldn’t bring myself to vote for Biden or Bernie in the primary (didn’t vote in the democrat primary at all). Fortunately it was clear by then that Biden was going to win so who cares?

    The real choice will be whether a more conservative judiciary is worth our election endorsing the GOP’s misconduct in the impeachment process, and Trump’s misconduct, and of course the GOP being aligned with our nation’s mortal enemies. This is not a tough call for me.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  67. Thanks everybody. Hopefully we have a full diagnoses of what the patient needs and we will be applying a remedy soon. i appreciate everyone’s contribution here to helping us figure out what was going wrong.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  68. JVW,

    Your contact email looks hopeful. Keep us posted!

    In the meantime, I can help with moderating comments until we hear back from you about the issue.

    Dana (4fb37f)

  69. Backing up the blog and database before doing whatever you do to fix Askimet is an idea (seems like a best practice, if ultimately unnecessary!).

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  70. Now is the time for all good men (and women) to come to the aid of the blog.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  71. And you’re welcome, JVW. I’m all about restoring order.

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  72. It’s still 2016 apparently
    @jtLOL
    ·
    “What Trump said, except I’m good and he’s bad” –

    This is going to be hilarious to watch. Die hard democrats angry at Trump will have to swallow a lot of pride to support Biden, who is as similar to Trump as any democrat… even more than Trump’s long time friend Hillary. They are just so similar.

    OF course… same problem for Trump fans. If Trump was right to warn us about coronavirus, he was wrong to lie it was contained. If he was right to pretend it wasn’t a problem, he was wrong to ban travel. When both these guys shamelessly flip flop all over any issue, and literally do not care about any issue beyond how they look today, it’s really funny watching thin skinned die hard supporters try to attack the other side while also defending the same conduct (and angrily!).

    If critics of political corrupt accept there is no result this year that we’ll like, it will be a great year worthy of much popcorn.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  73. Consider it brought!!! Cascadia Commence!!!

    urbanleftbehind (5eecdb)

  74. “ If critics of political corrupt accept there is no result this year that we’ll like, it will be a great year worthy of much popcorn.”
    _

    Where I was in Nov 2016 when I declined to vote for either candidate. And I’ve been saying ‘2020 gonna be off the hook’ for some time now.

    Biden is making me feel about the same. I really don’t see how they can hide this from the voters for the next seven months:

    https://twitter.com/BenjaminPDixon/status/1237474687279661056?s=20
    _

    harkin (b64479)

  75. I wonder if this incident will help prompt the nation’s universities to stop doing all they can to assist the ChiComs with knowledge transfer and stop accepting a helluva lot of money to sell the country out?

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  76. 74 -should read ‘neither candidate’.

    harkin (b64479)

  77. Did any software get updated? Were any settings changed by the bots?

    Sammy Finkelman (a738e8)

  78. Dustin (9c58b3) — 3/12/2020 @ 11:04 am

    If Trump was right to warn us about coronavirus, he was wrong to lie it was contained. If he was right to pretend it wasn’t a problem, he was wrong to ban travel.

    Well, you see what he did here was try to argue that the policies of “America First” (and English only??) and of there being no subdivisions below the country level (borders) were the right way to go.

    So if you are just unfair and unfeeling enough toward foreigners, but treat all citizens with respect, everything will work out all right for the citizens.

    Sammy Finkelman (a738e8)

  79. Interesting link Harkin. Biden looks very unfit and frustrated.

    His argument in that video, that the Sanders fans are ‘joining Trump’, is somehow familiar to most ‘nevertrumpers’. Biden behaved poorly and rather than own up to a mistake he instead wants us to believe his critics are automatically ‘on the other side’.

    You ask how they can hide it. I agree that they can’t. They tried with Hillary and I think little snippets and memes are a very effective strategy. Trump’s fans but also a lot of Russian bot spam will have an endless stream of little videos of Biden mumbling incoherently. And if someone took a video of every time Aaron Rodgers tripped and a million people watched it, before long everyone would believe he was unable to walk at all. There’s no stopping it, and it doesn’t hurt that Biden actually is totally out of his element.

    The problem is that this won’t be like 2016. The virus will probably be almost gone by June, but the economic consequences of all these closures will tip too many scales. The economy is going to be hurting for the rest of the year. Lots of people will lose their jobs.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  80. The first thing is to figure out what changed.

    If WordPress put all comments into moderation was this:

    A) Something WordPress always did under certain circumstances

    OR

    B) Some change made, accidentally or on purpose, in the settings; perhaps a restoration of the original defaults.

    OR

    C) The result of some upgrade in WordPress.

    There might be something written about it somewhre.

    Sammy Finkelman (a738e8)

  81. I’m not convinced about the spam attack theory. More likely something went wrong with the software and you started *noticing* spam wasn’t automatically being deleted because everything, good comments and spam included, all ended up being thrown into moderation. Usually you wouldn’t even see the worst of the worst spam and it would just be eaten up by Askimet.

    Incidentally, if I include a link in any comment, it doesn’t (or didn’t before this problem, anyway) go directly to moderation: it just disappears entirely, which is what Askimet should do with spam (but should not do with a link to an innocuous YouTube video or the NYT, but does anyway for me).

    I’m including a link in this comment to test my theory that it won’t go to spam, and will go to moderation. If this link does go through, it’s to an excellent piece of instrumental techno, mellow and inspiring all at once, music.

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  82. I don’t think this is a big mystery now that JVW has ruled out a WordPress issue. The spam filter got hit with a lot of spam and now it needs attention. It is telling us what to do, and I am sure P will do it when he can. In the meantime, his dedicated co-bloggers Dana and JVW are spending a lot of time trying to make comments appear promptly. Kudos to them.

    DRJ (15874d)

  83. All while this has been going on, I immediately see the comment, but it says at the end, in italics, after the time stamp:

    “Your comment is awaiting moderation.”

    Sammy Finkelman (a738e8)

  84. There are a lot of comments from me from a few years ago that were stuck in moderation/ I wouldn’t want them trashed. i believe I can see them (or used to) when I log in (by leaving a comment.)

    Sammy Finkelman (a738e8)

  85. “ The virus will probably be almost gone by June”

    That is first I’ve heard this. Do you have a link? I would think they still do not know enough for anyone to venture something so optimistic.

    Considering the timeline of the first cases in China thru where we are now, I would have figured it wouldn’t even peak till at least later in the year or in 2021.

    I sure hope you’re right.
    _

    “ And if someone took a video of every time Aaron Rodgers tripped and a million people watched it, before long everyone would believe he was unable to walk at all.”

    Biden, just like Rodgers on the field, is continually video’d.

    I don’t think you’re considering that Rodgers’ trips are average for a pro QB while Biden’s moments of looking less-than-fully-functional are much more frequent than the other candidates.
    _

    harkin (b64479)

  86. @66. I don’t really disagree at all. Biden’s a creepy guy. Off the teleprompter he is amazingly challenged to speak properly. Makes all those jokes about Dubya seem insane. And yes, of course Biden is making political hay about something that isn’t Trump’s fault.

    Yes. More than creepy.

    On the other hand, Trump was rightfully impeached for trying to screw with Biden, and Trump has been all over the map on coronavirus flip flops.

    Yes. Yes.

    I couldn’t bring myself to vote for Biden or Bernie in the primary (didn’t vote in the democrat primary at all). Fortunately it was clear by then that Biden was going to win so who cares?

    Well, only to the ‘day of’ vote once Clyburn and the party hacks put their thumbs on the scale. JoeyBee was all but dead 12 days ago and the early ‘banked’ vote tallies will show that as they tally up.

    Now Bernie is doing a presser as well- and though it is much more articulate than what Biden spewed out, it remains infurating for any of these politicians– in power or not– nor their spin pundits- to overtly politicize this mess. And taking previoul scheduled recesses from their gigs is unacceptable t a time of crisis.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  87. MLB delays opening day by a few weeks; NHL suspends season; Cuomo limits Broadway shows to audiences of 500 or less.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  88. I don’t think you’re considering that Rodgers’ trips are average for a pro QB while Biden’s moments of looking less-than-fully-functional are much more frequent than the other candidates.
    _

    harkin (b64479) — 3/12/2020 @ 12:21 pm

    LOL

    Point Granted

    But my argument wasn’t that Biden is a victim of misleading information. My point is that it wouldn’t be hard to convince a lot of people he is a bumbling idiot even if he weren’t one. It’s almost a coincidence that Biden happens to be a bumbling idiot.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  89. That is first I’ve heard this. Do you have a link? I would think they still do not know enough for anyone to venture something so optimistic.

    It won’t be gone; there will still be cases. Warm air doesn’t spread respiratory droplets the same as cold air. Warm surfaces are harder for viruses to live on. Bright sunlight is more deadly than cloudy.

    This is why most diseases (cold, flu) peak opposite the summer.

    The same reason why social distancing works similarly favors the summer. You’re not huddled up with others as much when you can go outside.

    If to google ‘coronavirus summer’ you’ll see this is something everyone is talking about. There are no absolutes and of course someone will get the disease in June, but it should get a lot better. But the economic damage will be profound for the rest of the year.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  90. There are a lot of comments from me from a few years ago that were stuck in moderation/ I wouldn’t want them trashed. i believe I can see them (or used to) when I log in (by leaving a comment.)

    Why would you not want comments you made years ago that only you can see trashed? Like seriously.

    Make America Ordered Again (23f793)

  91. “ The virus will probably be almost gone by June”

    That is first I’ve heard this. Do you have a link? I would think they still do not know enough for anyone to venture something so optimistic.

    From NBC:

    “There’s a lot of evidence to suggest that there is seasonal variation and the prevalence of the viruses that cause respiratory infection. So, it’s reasonable to expect that as we move out of winter and into the warmer months that we would see a decrease in total number of cases and transmission. Now, again, this is a novel virus. So, we are using viruses that are related, but not the same to base those conclusions. And, we may or may not be correct about that. But, history would suggest, and evidence would suggest that we see a drop off in virus rates in the summer months.”

    Read the rest:

    https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/how-does-weather-affect-the-spread-of-coronavirus/

    So may be the warm weather will help. Hopefully, but nobody really knows.

    Mattsky (55d339)

  92. test test test

    Time123 (353edd)

  93. When does planned parenthood close shop?

    mg (8cbc69)

  94. I read Omar just got married, is it the 3rd, 4th, or 5th time?

    mg (8cbc69)

  95. thank you for all the techno fixin

    mg (8cbc69)

  96. When the river of money has run dry, mg.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  97. If this was just for government officials and mullahs, it wouldn’t be a bad thing.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  98. Trump should send the IRS home for a year or two.

    mg (8cbc69)

  99. I don’t comment much, let’s see if familiarity etc etc

    Angelo (4a8bcd)

  100. In moderation

    Angelo (4a8bcd)

  101. “ The virus will probably be almost gone by June”

    where it winters in the Southern Hemisphere.

    Some WHO-dude said this bug will be with us in years to come and, as w/other viruses, the mitigating containment solution will be a vaccine, which likely will be ready next year.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  102. Re: Iran Preparations for burial doesn;t mean the number oof dead can actually be expected to be anywhere close.

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  103. I received Census form today. (and it really was supposed to come on March 12)

    I just finished filling out my February survey on March 4.

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  104. That is a worse problem than coronovirus.

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  105. Very confused on projections on how long it will last.

    The 1918 influenza pandemic lasted at least from Jan 1918 thru Dec 1920, that’s three years. A quarter of the world’s population was infected and estimates on the death toll range from 15 to 100 million. One statistic from that one that is striking is the life expectancy in the US dropped 12 years.

    One thing heard about this Coronavirus is that children (so far) are not dying, it’s mostly elderly, those with cardiopulmonary issues and immunity weaknesses.
    _

    harkin (b64479)

  106. “ The virus will probably be almost gone by June”…

    where it winters in the Southern Hemisphere.

    Some WHO-dude said this bug will be with us in years to come and, as w/other viruses, the mitigating containment solution will be a vaccine, which likely will be ready next year.

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 3/12/2020 @ 3:07 pm

    I think the bug will be around for the rest of human history, like flu, and will continue to mutate and evolve new strains. By almost gone, I guess I mean with respect to this pandemic with 100 million infected. The direness isn’t going to be here forever, and it will get better when the weather warms. Over time, some strains will spread faster, and those will be the ones that have less effect (because the people spreading those will not be at home). Over time we will adapt to this. This is why it’s such a problem now.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  107. It’s summer in the Southern Hemisphere. They have CV19 down yonder.

    They have it all across the equator, too. I’m not at all sure it doesn’t like the warmer air…

    Ragspierre (d9bec9)

  108. Well if it kills everybody it will also die down that way, ragspierre.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  109. They have it all across the equator, too. I’m not at all sure it doesn’t like the warmer air…

    Freaking Russia only had six cases as of yesterday.

    Either they created it, or it may like warmer air better. Or both.

    Dave (1bb933)

  110. Freaking Russia only had six cases as of yesterday.

    … and Putin smiled.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  111. I’ll be really bummed if they cancel the Masters. Yes, I like to play and watch golf.

    Paul Montagu (d6528e)

  112. Well if it kills everybody it will also die down that way, ragspierre.

    Sweet Virus Of Death…??? Has sort of a Slovic ring to it.

    Ragspierre (d9bec9)

  113. The spanish flu killed 600,000 – yet there was less panic then today when we’re at 39 deaths.

    rcocean (1a839e)

  114. There was less panic before Trump went on the air this past Wednesday evening and let everybody see for themselves how worthless he is and how little he and his so-called administration can be trusted.

    nk (1d9030)

  115. There was less panic when the world was not all wired together into hive minds and air travel was in its infancy.

    _

    harkin (b64479)

  116. I agree, harkin. I still think this is an important matter, but the panic is not helpful. I just filled a prescription for family and my HEB, which is an absolutely massive and wonderful store, has a clear panic. Police on site. Meat and dairy and fruit almost wiped off shelves. Carts packed to the brim with whatever food the customer could get their hands on, some tugging and pushing two carts with enough food to last six months, the lines for each aisle going clear across the store to the bacon and velvetta, then wrapping to the side in a confusing mess opposite the store. People in the parking lot, which had no empty spaces (!!!) smoking cigarettes like they just survived D-Day, weirdos packing the beds of pickup trucks with gallons of milk they probably can’t consume before it spoils.

    It’s simply bad for society how amped people are about this. It didn’t help that all the schools suddenly shut down this morning with a confirmed case, leaving lots of parents with free time and panic. I’m sure Fox News will sell lots of expensive advertisements as people keep up with minute by minute NEWS but I recommend people keep the TVs off, wash their hands, stay away from crowds.

    Oh that’s the other thing. The local nursing home delivered two buses of residents to the HEB during this mad rush. This is the opposite of common sense.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  117. Also agree with nk though. A great leader would really help right now. Even Trump’s fans who have been shouting this is not even the flu haven’t really believed it, and some will panic harder when they feel they missed their prep window a bit.

    Can’t believe how nutty that store was. I’ve never seen anything like that.

    Dustin (9c58b3)

  118. One good reason, and I mean rational and sensible, to stock up, is to avoid making more trips to the store than you need to. I have already been doing that for my own reasons — once a week to the grocery, once a month to the tobacco store. That’s why I’m mad at all the people who cleaned out all the plain Thomas Bagels, leaving only the cinnamon and “Everything” which I don’t like, and now I’ll have to make an extra trip.

    nk (1d9030)

  119. harkin (b64479) — 3/12/2020 @ 4:14 pm

    One thing heard about this Coronavirus is that children (so far) are not dying, it’s mostly elderly, those with cardiopulmonary issues and immunity weaknesses.

    Also diabetes (which has some immunity issues because blood sugar does not stay low enough long enough) and cancer (probably because the most common treatment (chemotherapy and radiation but not hormones for breast cancer) also reduces immunity. Immunity goes down with age, too.

    And air pollution (like in Wuhan, China) and smoking hurt.

    The fact that it doesn’t impact children so hard means it can’t be too deadly. It’s just new. It is hitting an immunologically naïve population.

    _

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  120. Children are “immunologically naive” so I think you have it backwards.

    DRJ (15874d)

  121. 106. The New York Public Library is closing- also Queens.

    So far not the Brooklyn Public library (which really wants to stay open so people can use it to respond to the Census. They set up a special link on their web page for the Census, and they were planning to set aside computers in each branch just for that .)

    The online census portal works differently for the regular census than for the American Community Survey. In the ACS you can stop and start again provided you remember your pin number. I started it three times (restarted twice)

    In the regular Census everything has to be completed in one shot, or you lose everything.

    Before you log out, I think you will be able to print out a copy of your answers.

    Most people will get just a letter with a link and Census ID. If you don’t respond or do’t complete your survey, or if you are expected for some reason not to respond online, you get a printed form. If you still don’t answer in time you get a postcard.

    Eventually they plan to send along a Census taker. Wages portal to portal – that means you’ll get paid for your commuting time too, $28 an hour.

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  122. The spanish flu killed 600,000 – yet there was less panic then today when we’re at 39 deaths.

    Unless you are over 100, you have no idea how much panic there was in 1918-1920.

    Cripes…!!!

    Ragspierre (d9bec9)

  123. 124. DRJ (15874d) — 3/13/2020 @ 9:46 am

    Children are “immunologically naive” so I think you have it backwards.

    But they can better deal with totally new pathogens.

    Thatis why, as I said, measles is so less serious in chldren than in someone who never gfot it sand never got vaccinated who gets it at the age of 20.

    Polio was a kind of an exception. It hit children harder because the polio virus was a slightly mutated version of an much more common intestinal virus. FDR was born rich and probably never was exposed to many things when he was young. A case at his age (39) was rare. Although some now think he had Guillain–Barré syndrome. (I don’t know if that’s a reasonable conclusion or not. Most people completely recover from Guillain–Barré syndrome if they don’t die. Author Joe heller [Catch-22] had it.)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralytic_illness_of_Franklin_D._Roosevelt

    https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-10-vw-27404-story.html

    Comedian George Carlin said that he and his friends swam in seqage and that’s why none of them got polio.

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  124. Can you explain what the problem was and how it was solved?

    I see some talk about the solution – but didn’t find any explanation.

    Sammy Finkelman (02a146)

  125. The spam filter app stopped working and had to be reauthorized. My guess is it was triggered by an overwhelming amount of spam.

    DRJ (15874d)

  126. When the spam filter stopped working, everything was considered spam?

    Sammy Finkelman (e4c3a1)


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