Mark Steyn: Taking Sensible Precautions Against COVID-19 Pretty Much Makes Us ISIS
What on earth happened to Mark Steyn?
Filling in for top talker Rush Limbaugh on Monday, guest host Mark Steyn said that the wearing of masks in public and limiting public musical performances show the United States is adopting a form of Sharia law during the pandemic response. He did not blame President Donald Trump, who is the president, for that trend.
“You know the last time I was writing about societies banning music it was ISIS and the Taliban,” said Steyn of pandemic measures that involve limiting public events such as concerts. “I’m creeped out by the fact that we’re basically adopting ISIS/Taliban policies on music.”
“They actually beheaded a bunch of musicians, I think it was on the Libyan coast, ISIS did, when they caught them with their cellos. Why are we adopting ISIS policies on music?” Steyn asked. He did not give any examples of Americans beheading cellists.
Was everyone in this movement always this crazy? Or have they become crazy/crazier? I keep wanting to say it has to be the latter, because if it’s the former I displayed very bad judgment in listening to and reading them for years.
After absorbing that bit of idiocy from Steyn, all I can say that the terrorists have won.
Paul Montagu (b3f51b) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:24 amI suppose it never occurred to Steyn that wearing masks and/or keeping an appropriate distance these days is a social courtesy, like using turn signals.
Steyn drank the T-rump train kool-aid. It’s a terrible, toxic brew that deforms the drinker such that they are unrecognizable when compared with their former selves. What a tragedy.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:32 amSteyn has always been this extreme, only his data points were more connected to reality before now.
Kishnevi (385fa4) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:36 amthirty five million unemployed, lets not look at the buggy codes of the ferguson model, the rules he couldn’t be bothered to abide by, but you’ve signed on with hockey stick 2.0
narciso (7404b5) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:38 amOther than your straw man deflection, do you agree with Steyn or not, narcisco?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:47 amit does little go, and it impairs normal human interaction, other than that, those who are more susceptible should use then, but the rest,
https://www.cato.org/blog/stores-reopen-face-ada-compliance-puzzles-5
narciso (7404b5) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:49 amThis isn’t extreme….it’s just a stupid analogy. No, restricting public gatherings to limit the transmission of an aggressive virus is NOTHING like an authoritarian regime banning music for religious/philosophical reasons. I understand “talkers” have to talk….and inevitably “dumb” will occasionally come out…but come on…this will drive some idiots out there to gather in public….to somehow show “the man”….well…..LIBERTY! I get it…people are anxious…it weighs on people psychologically…people want human interaction….but playing on these anxieties is just wrong.
AJ_Liberty (ec7f74) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:53 amSteyn has always been this extreme, only his data points were more connected to reality before now.
Remember, that all these guys, from Scott Adams to Steyn to Limbaugh and others sundry, have to compete with Trump these days for their nosepicker audience. So they dial it up to eleven to steal a few minutes from Trump’s Twitter feeder and Faux News.
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:53 amI meant Twitter feed, but since I’ve come to suspect Stephen Miller is the one who is really tweeting under Trump’s name because Trump probably cannot spell even his own name anymore, Twitter feeder works too.
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:56 amWe must destroy the nation to save it.
1. Make everyone unemployed and dependent on government.
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:56 am2. Get Trump out of office and elect a socialist.
3. ???
4. Winning!
it does little go[od], and it impairs normal human interaction, other than that, those who are more susceptible should use then, but the rest,
Your Cato piece didn’t say that, or anything like that.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:57 amYou mean like if we don’t lock down society and keep everyone inside we’re all gonna die?
That kind of playing on anxiety?
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:57 amRob, your post is as nonsensical as Steyn’s blather.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:58 amif needs must
https://www.aier.org/article/masked-lockdowns-are-unamerican/
narciso (7404b5) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:04 amOther than your straw man deflection, do you agree with Steyn or not, narcisco?
Same question.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:06 amAnd why shouldn’t Allah have visited the coronavirus on the Chinese atheists, the Western debauchees, and the apostate Believers? If I were ISIS, I could very well believe that.
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:06 amTaking “sensible” precautions against CoViD-19 is dumb, but I defend a person’s right to be dumb as I hope others would defend mine. Enforcing “sensible” precautions against CoViD-19 while forcing economic suicide, all on pain of fine and/or imprisonment, is about as blatantly unamerican as it comes.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:08 amSome believe embracing such theories occurs because of a “need to find order (security) in a confusing world.” Some just profit from it.
DRJ (15874d) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:09 amGryph, how’s Gryph’s Sandwich Slingery coming, where the meat’s always tainted and the water is never hot?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:10 am19. GFY Raggy.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:10 amSo, Gryph, not so good?
See, the health inspectors that have for decades ENFORCED health law will shut you down.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:12 amGryph, no insult intended but how is requiring masks in retail spaces different then prohibiting outdoor burning on dry windy days?
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:12 am22. Burning things outdoors is dangerous. Refusing to wear a mask is not. No offense taken. Next question?
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:13 am21. I have been unemployed for over a month thanks to this CoViD-19 cowardice and I said I worked at a sandwich shop. You assumed (incorrectly) that I owned one. So once again, GFY.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:14 amNo, no, Moana. I made no such assumption. My example was to show you how stupidly false your assertion that health laws are “unamerican”.
Besides, it’s fun!
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:17 amIt was an exceedingly stupid and extreme analogy. Now, if the police were near your front door and heard Beethoven or Grateful Dead music from the stereo, busted in and arrested you, then Steyn would be spot on. However, they aren’t, they are not concerned and aren’t even issuing citations. I’ve enjoyed Steyn in the past but this level of hyperbole benefits no one.
Angelo (d9ada5) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:17 am26. To say “we are living in a police state” is not hyperbole. It’s a demonstrable fact.
25. Since the laws forcing wearing masks and social distancing benefit no one’s health, I reject the premise of your argument. Once again, GFY.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:20 am27. Nobody cares what you, as a demonstrated fringe nutter, “reject”.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:22 amPlease don’t anyone tell the Deep State that I listen to music every single day!!
Radegunda (39c35f) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:26 amLOL
Angelo (d9ada5) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:28 amas long as it’s not nickelback,
narciso (7404b5) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:29 amSteyn’s comments are the flip side of the same coin used by the progressive left when they condemn the U.S. as being a oppressive fascist state.
It’s disappointing to see how far off the trail Steyn has gone.
Dana (0feb77) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:30 amWe are assuming that these ban on public gatherings are indeed “sensible.” If the government is saying these bans are sensible, then they should tell the public when they will no longer be needed. Just a few short months ago, the governments said social distancing and shutdowns and masks were needed to flatten the curve and ensure health systems were not overwhelmed.
If the curves are flattened and health systems are not overwhelmed, then maybe people can enjoy congregating in public. Those who are at most risk can stay at home.
If you – or the governments – are going to argue that shutdowns have to stay in place until COVID is gone, or a vaccine is found, or to avoid a second surge, then you are conducting a bait and switch that is leaving millions without jobs and an economy in ruin. Then ask yourself how many will die due to that.
Hoi Polloi (dc4124) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:31 amIt can be dangerous. It can also be totally fine. Just like the risks of transmitting CV19. In both cases our system of government permits public officials to assess the risks and impose fines based on non-compliance. I get that you don’t agree with the determination. That’s fine, but it’s not cowardly/un-american/police state tactics.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:33 amYou can’t just bop into any VA hospital or clinic anywhere in the US.
Of course, the people making the determination of what restrictions are responsible and knowledgeable.
They don’t want to kill or disable vets.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:35 amdetermination of what restrictions to impose are…
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:36 amIf you – or the governments – are going to argue that shutdowns have to stay in place until COVID is gone, or a vaccine is found…
Please tell us who’s making that argument.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:39 amI said “going to argue” not “are arguing.”
Hoi Polloi (dc4124) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:42 am#37
If you look at this map it shows that only 2 states are still fully closed down. MI and IL. Michigan has started allowing some businesses to go back to work and is allowing dining and retail in low population areas starting on Friday. That will leave just 1 state fully closed down.
The argument that “They want to keep us closed forever” is just no born out by the facts. Nor is the argument “They want to re-open and kill poor people so the rich aren’t inconvenienced.”
Looking at SIP orders and re-opening orders I think the balance of the data supports the assertion that everyone wanted to mitigate risk and that there was wide variation on what was reasonable and necessary.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:46 amshould have directed that at Hoi Polloi at 33, not Rags at 37.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:49 am34. Oh, but it is. If you don’t think that it is, I guess whatever helps you sleep at night is fine. But it most certainly is.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:50 am‘Was everyone in this movement always this crazy?’
Yes.
DCSCA (797bc0) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:50 amWhat happened to you not Mark Steyn? Mask don’t work for Covid -19and most know the right fit.
Charlie Kirk
If masks actually work—why don’t we just give prisoners masks instead of releasing them back into society?
Jim (4c234f) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:50 am28. And I don’t really give a s**t what you, as a demonstrated coward and police-state apologist, think about me. So there is that.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:51 amMasks
https://regenexx.com/blog/does-your-face-mask-fit-right-to-protect-you-probably-not/
Jim (4c234f) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:52 am#39 – correct.
Rates are falling across the nation. Seems as if it is time to open up the economy, with an eye out to ensure we don’t see a spike in the death rate.
Arguing against the sane opening of the nation and the economy at this point can come across as a bit draconian.
Hoi Polloi (dc4124) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:52 amSimple Respiratory Protection—Evaluation of the Filtration Performance of Cloth Masks and Common Fabric Materials Against 20–1000 nm Size Particles
https://academic.oup.com/annweh/article/54/7/789/202744
Jim (4c234f) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:52 amSteyn’s comments are hyperbolic, but not that far off when you have DeBlasio the avowed communist declaring that he will have the cops pull people out of the ocean if they dare frolic without government sanction.
Can anyone explain the benefits of a healthy person wearing a mask outdoors? I do know the harm in trying to run with one while exercising.
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:53 amI think it’s quite possible that the government doesn’t really know yet, when they won’t be needed. The high rate of contagion and the novelty of the virus make it difficult to project too much out into the future, and when we see Fauci and Birx and other specialists constantly reiterate that the reopening of the country must move slowly, then I suspect they are leaning toward the err on the side of caution line, rather than ok, the curve is flattened, healthcare supplies and preparations are on schedule, so let’s party side of the line.
And while it’s true that those who are at most risk can stay home, that does not mean that everyone else does not pose a health risk to those in close proximity around them. They could be asymptomatic.
Dana (0feb77) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:53 amWhy does Ragspierre continually get a pass when he just openly insults people over and over again?
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:54 amMasks don’t work. oops you forgot to protect your eyes
https://regenexx.com/blog/corona-episode-20-whats-the-deal-with-masks/
Jim (4c234f) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:55 amBut, Moana, you haven’t demonstrated…and can’t demonstrate…either.
I’ve demonstrated, with your ample assistance, that you are a fringe nutter.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:55 amRob, I said your comments were nonsensical. Why you confuse that with an “insult” is apparent. You’re playing Eddie Haskell here.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:01 amI’m a big Steyn fan. He exposed Michael Mann, who sued him years ago but ever since has been doing everything he can to never go before a judge.
_
As to Steyn’s view of the lockdown, there’s a lot to agree with:
“ Even without governors terrorizing those tavern-keepers or hairdressers who defy them, the lockdown has exaggerated the contradictions: The state wants open borders for “migrants” but a security perimeter around the homes of its citizens. Maybe the absurdities become so obvious that there is widespread rejection of them. Or maybe, one by one, the poor put-upon over-surveilled citizenry take a cue from their undocumented non-brethren.”
The Permanent Emergency
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/0520/steyn051820.php3
harkin (8f4a6f) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:02 am_
Steyn is usually more sensible than this. He seems to have gone off the rails here.
No one has banned music — you can listen to whatever you want in your house or back yard. A guy down the street from me has music equipment, and he sometimes plays music for the whole neighborhood, everyone listening from their own houses/yards.
Bored Lawyer (56c962) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:07 amReally, harkin? I can’t see much to agree with, even given that Steyn is a polemicist.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:08 amI just don’t really see people making this argument. The argument I see is around when / how fast.
I also see a lot of caution. Seems like most Pols have made the decision that opening too fast will be worse for them then opening too slowly.
Time123 (66d88c) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:09 amPublic Service Announcement: As a moderator, it’s difficult to keep up with who is insulting who. I just don’t have time to read every comment to determine who started the spat, and who lobbed the first insult.
Ragspierre and Gryph (and whoever else is prone to make personal insults): Your choices are to follow Patterico’s commenting rule and knock off the personal insults toward each other. If you can’t resist doing that, then stop engaging with each other, or find another place to play. I really don’t have time to try and figure out who started it, and I don’t like playing hall monitor, but our host has made it clear that personal insults are not allowed. Thank you.
Dana (0feb77) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:10 amRagspierre,
I just saw your comment at 53. Consider my PSA at 58 a general reminder.
Dana (0feb77) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:12 amWhy does Ragspierre continually get a pass when he just openly insults people over and over again?
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:54 am
I don’t think the comment sections are moderated that closely. I also don’t think they pay much attention to him. I’d grab a few of his comments and email them to Patterico if you feel they cross the line. FWIW I agree he can be very insulting, not sure if he’s lawyer compliant to the rules or what.
Time123 (66d88c) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:12 amSeems like most Pols have made the decision that opening too fast will be worse for them then opening too slowly.
And most people agree, according to polling. You can take off the official restrictions, and the majority of Americans will still observe them.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:14 amI’ll note in passing that Time and NJRob have never once complained about Gryph’s frequent GFY or calling anyone who disagrees with him cowards, etc.
Not. Once.
Dana, were NJRob’s comments up-thread nonsensical or not?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:20 amRagspierre, You’re right. I didn’t call out Gryph’s comment. I probably should have to be to fair. I focused on what NJRob said because in previous threads he’s been fair and polite to me even though we disagreed so I tend to pay attention to his comments. Sorry to be one sided.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:27 am“ Really, harkin? I can’t see much to agree with”
That’s what people were saying about him when he took on the hockey stick. Same with freedom of speech in Canada.
More people came around after ‘A Disgrace To The Profession’ and getting Mann to remove claims he won a Nobel prize, but it took a while. Same with the repeal of Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act.
In my book he fights the good fight.
harkin (8f4a6f) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:30 am_
I have a solution for the deniers. We can do it today! The steps:
1. A database.
2. Deniers go and register with their name, address, DOB, and SSN.
3. They waive any and all right to treatment for COVID-19 from any medical provider or emergency service, for any illness or injury, not only COVID-19*, or admission to the premises of any other place open to the public.
4. They get a certificate that they can carry around with them in case somebody tries to enforce lockdown/mask rules against them.
5. The database is made available to everybody on the internet who has the denier’s identifying information (which will not otherwise be public).
* A denier with a broken leg, for example, can also be infectious.
Sound fair, friends and compatriots?
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:30 am#47 heaven forbid government entities make decisions based on actual data and analysis
1DaveMac (16cd0f) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:32 am62. Why make a mod police you guys like a middle school teacher? Just don’t be insulting. If you were insulted take the high road. My 2 cents as a super casual reader (who btw agrees with you politically 99% of the time.)
JRH (52aed3) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:36 amGoing by the Crash Davis Rules of Civility, it’s a violation of the commenting rules to call NJRob a c*cksucker, but it’s within the rules to say that he made a c*cksucking comment. The former is a personal attack and the latter is a criticism of the comment, not the commenter personally. It would be helpful going forward to be aware of these distinctions and comment accordingly.
Paul Montagu (b3f51b) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:42 am#65 definition of a police state.. The Chinese communist party appears to have already implemented such a policy.
1DaveMac (16cd0f) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:56 amIt’s easy to express disagreement without constantly trying to insult and provoke someone. You do it well which is why, even when we disagree, we can have a reasonable discussion and try and express our points of contention. When people don’t even attempt to do that, it’s tiresome and feels like a way to destroy the conversation and turn it into a shouting match. As we know, there’s no use in wrestling a pig. Both of you get dirty and the pig likes it.
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:56 amDenier? Holocaust allusion? ACGW allusion? Same remarks trying to equate people who argue that the cure is worse than the disease to those who claim the disease doesn’t exist?
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 10:59 amPaul,
using foul language is a violation period as you knew which is why you used an asterisk to get around the block.
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:00 amThat’s what people were saying about him when he took on the hockey stick. Same with freedom of speech in Canada.
Which 1) made sense, and 2) I was totally behind.
That balderdash you quoted was just hyperbolic crap. (Can I say any of that?)
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:10 amSame remarks trying to equate people who argue that the cure is worse than the disease to those who claim the disease doesn’t exist?
Well, there isn’t a cure. And nk was not tying you to Gryph. Or any fringe nutter you might be thinking of.
But if you were to claim that the efforts to stem the deadly and debilitating effects of the disease are worse than the disease, nk has a strong argument.
Wouldn’t you say?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:16 amFalse. Per the commenting rules, there is no “no profanity” rule, but I do believe Patterico employs language filters. The asterick is a customary work-around and within the guardrails. Nevertheless, someone telling you to “go f*ck yourself” is a violation (personal attack), but “f*ck yeah” is not.
Paul Montagu (b3f51b) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:26 am58. My holding out of mask-wearers and social distancers as “cowards” is not a personal insult unless some here choose to take it as such. That said, I thought that Raggy’s behavior was an indication that the “no personal attacks” rules had been suspended. I stand corrected.
But on the other hand, does that mean I need to dig up the numerous times in the last several weeks that Raggy has called me “Moana” and otherwise insulted me as a “fringe nutter?” I mean, come on. It’s pretty obvious that someone here has utterly given up on policing this site…
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:29 am#65 definition of a police state.. The Chinese communist party appears to have already implemented such a policy.
Nope. You’ll note on a reading of nk’s brilliant suggestion that it is a totally voluntary system. Nobody is compelled by any government actor to register.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:32 amWhy is he calling you Moana anyway? I don’t get that one.
I assumed you were calling everyone who thinks masks are an effective and reasonable safeguard a coward, but some of these things cut close. I’ll make observations about some/many trump supporters to leave room that not all trump supporters are included in the observation. I don’t know if all of the trump supporters who read that think it’s a meaningful distinction.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:39 amCan anyone explain the benefits of a healthy person wearing a mask outdoors? I do know the harm in trying to run with one while exercising.
The point of the mask is to keep any germs you breathe out away from others. So theoretically you should be wearing one anytime you’re within germspreading distance of anyone else, inside or outside. That seems to be 6 feet, but running or other exercise can actually increase it (heavier breathing=increased velocity of breath=germs travel further). So in theory you should wear a mask anytime you’re outside and may come within 6 feet of another person, especially if you’re jogging.
By “harm during exercise” I assume you mean it’s harder to breathe. Can’t help you there. I adhere to the Dorothy Parker school of fitness: Whenever I get the feeling I should exercise, I go lie down until the feeling passes.
Kishnevi (a992d1) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:42 amI thought that Raggy’s behavior was an indication that the “no personal attacks” rules had been suspended. I stand corrected.
You have been identified by several here as a liar. I’ve been told (using your childish insult) to GFY when I merely make a point, as above. This is an example of why people refer to you as “someone who tells falsehoods”.
But on the other hand, does that mean I need to dig up the numerous times in the last several weeks that Raggy has called me “Moana”…
And I’ll do that every time it suits me after you fail to address me as Ragspierre.
…and otherwise insulted me as a “fringe nutter?”
You and I have shown that’s what you are. If you find that observation insulting, don’t be that.
I mean, come on. It’s pretty obvious that someone here has utterly given up on policing this site…
You mean to your liking, right?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:42 amWhy is he calling you Moana anyway?
Because of his standard b!tching and moaning about having his gawd-given rights trampled by cowards paralyzed by fear over a disease that’s neither deadly OR debilitating, and purposeful politicians, naturally.
Hence, Moana.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:48 amDoes it bother you when i refer to you as ‘rags’ because I’m being lazy?
Time123 (66d88c) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:48 am“He did not give any examples of Americans beheading cellists.”
– Caleb Howe
The amount of understated scorn packed into this little sentence is… perfect.
Leviticus (b3a900) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:49 amand otherwise insulted me as a “fringe nutter?”
Sorry, Gryph, when you say people are cowards if they wear masks or socially distance, it is insulting and it is evidence you are indeed a “fringe nutter”.
If you want to argue we don’t need those things, bring all the evidence you want. But there is no cowardice and much reason to think they do work.
Kishnevi (a992d1) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:50 amHow many times have you told me to GFY or called be a coward or police-state apologist, Time?
Context and a course of dealings count.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:52 amThere’s also the Gryph revelation that the entire world’s medical and public health professions are combined in an enormous conspiracy WRT CV19.
I thought that a bit fringe-y and nutter-y. That’s just me…
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 11:56 amThat comment is not the kind of comment I want to see on this site.
Patterico (115b1f) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:13 pmMaybe it’s an indication that the owner of the blog was working. Using another’s bad behavior as an excuse to engage in your own bad behavior is not welcome.
Patterico (115b1f) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:15 pm*group elbow-bump*
Dave (1bb933) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:32 pmI keep wondering the same thing in regard to dishonesty.
Dave (1bb933) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:35 pmKishnevi,
No it doesn’t. Just because you disagree with his opinion it doesn’t make him a fringe nutter anymore than your refusal to exercise makes you one.
NJRob (783b88) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:46 pm@90, think Trump has made Republicans less honest by repeatedly forcing them to either agree that Democrats were right or defend obvious lies. After picking and justifying ‘lies’ enough times it becomes normal.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:48 pmApart from violating the rules (which I will let the Mods deal with), these insults are childish and unenlightening. Challenge the ideas, not the person, and that will advance the discussion.
And if you consistently find someone to be stupid, just ignore him. (Except for Trump, as President you cannot just ignore him. The way I use to ignore the crazy loons on the subway, before I stopped going into work.)
Bored Lawyer (56c962) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:52 pmGryph, how’s Gryph’s Sandwich Slingery coming, where the meat’s always tainted and the water is never hot?
That comment is not the kind of comment I want to see on this site.
The point in the comment was that Gryph has always lived with health laws, and he couldn’t open a place serving food in violation of those laws and expect to stay open.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:57 pmRob, by saying it’s cowardly to wear a mask he’s saying wearing a mask is 1)the result of irrational fear and 2) the sign of a character trait not found in mature individuals. 1 is not true, since there is a highly rational argument to make to wear one. 2 is insulting in and of itself.
Kishnevi (de48de) — 5/19/2020 @ 12:59 pmKishnevi,
Depending on where you live it can be an irrational fear. If you live in NYC, I understand being cautious. If you live in South Dakota, they’re handling this virus without ever shutting down. I understand both points and I also know mask totalitarians can be annoying by demanding everyone follow their lead.
How about some moderation?
NJRob (783b88) — 5/19/2020 @ 1:11 pmRob, if by moderation you mean setting rules based on location I think that’s fine. Rural Texas has no cases and warm weather masks probably aren’t needed.
Time123 (235fc4) — 5/19/2020 @ 1:16 pmIf by moderation you mean let people decide for themselves in NYC? I’m not convinced that’s good policy.
Agree. The comment section has become nothing but pointless drivel and personal attacks. Much like the politicians these days on ALL sides. I’m tired of the complaints, the attacks, the “you’re doing it wrong” disagreements when no substantial ideas are offered to counter what the complaint is about. If you don’t have reasonable solutions to offer and real contributions you should go sit at the kiddie table.
I for one am concerned about the pseudo police state we have seemed to have stepped into and how many so-called conservative/never-Trumpers are not bothered by it simply because they see it as a way to jab at Trump. The testing out of this police state has gone quite well and many are following along like sheep to the slaughter. I am tired of the fear mongering. I am offended that those in government have deemed people non-essential while sitting in their safe home offices while pulling a paycheck and not worrying about being laid off.
I also am in disbelief at how many people think that relief checks and stimulus bail-outs are the answer as though they think money literally grows on trees. I look at the debt being piled up and do have great concerns because I believe there are people in government that are looking at yours and my money as their ticket to getting what they want. A socialist country. To them it isn’t fair that someone has worked for 40 years and saved money so they can retire when their neighbor has not been thrifty and has made bad decisions, different career choices and run up his credit cards. These people believe we need to even the field, make everyone the same… so “Mr. A you have to give your savings to the government to manage…. oh we aren’t going to take it, but we will manage it for you and by the way, you can only have $x per month to live on because it just isn’t right that you have more than your neighbor.” Anyone who thinks their 401k is safe in this current environment and the pc-movement of equality has been smoking something.
So what do I do about it? What all of you should be doing if you really care. Call and write your Representatives and your Senators. Be vocal in places other than comment sections of blogs and biased news articles.
Lastly I’m tired of being virtue lectured by people who have no idea who I am and no right to do so.
P.S. – Californians can stay in California. Please don’t move to Texas. Every Californian I know that’s moved here has brought their failed leftist agenda with them and it’s ruining Texas.
Marci (405d43) — 5/19/2020 @ 1:37 pmEmergency measures are unsustainable when they continue long past the time when many people think the emergency is over. The idea of emergency powers is to fill the time between the event and the time that the legislature can meet and pass new laws. When the stopgaps become the new normal, resistance is at least useful, if not patriotic.
That doesn’t mean that Steyn has all his oars in the water, of course, but I’ve heard much stupider (e.g. 5G caused Covid).
Kevin M (ab1c11) — 5/19/2020 @ 2:00 pmCalifornians can stay in California. Please don’t move to Texas. Every Californian I know that’s moved here has brought their failed leftist agenda with them and it’s ruining Texas.
As many Californians as Texans voted for Trump, even thought they all knew they couldn’t win. And that realization has got many of them leaving CA.
NOBODY leaves the infinitely nicer climate, food and entertainment options of California for hot, humid Texas because they like CA’s politics. They leave because they cannot stand it any more.
Kevin M (ab1c11) — 5/19/2020 @ 2:10 pmPoint taken. Unfortunately I haven’t met any of them, I seem to only meet the leftists.
I will admit that California has lovely weather. I’m sitting here sweltering in 98 degrees but thankfully our humidity is quite low at 45%. I’ll take it over the 100+ at 80%+ humidity that is coming later this summer….
Marci (405d43) — 5/19/2020 @ 2:28 pm86. Except that I never said that. I defy you to show me where I did.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 2:32 pm88. Bad behavior abounds on this site lately, from Rags and several others. I didn’t think you were the only one with moderation power, so please don’t take that as a personal attack or a personal excuse. I meant it to be neither.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 2:59 pm98. —
It’s very unlikely that many people are wearing masks and foregoing various conveniences and pleasures and losing opportunities just so they can “jab at Trump.”
In general, those who say that other people are just out to “get Trump” for no good reason tend to be excessively concerned about whether anything helps or hurts Trump.
Radegunda (89f220) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:01 pmEveryone has been short-tempered lately, although some more than others. It is not helpful to anyone but Donald Trump, who applauds how we have learned to live by his low standards.
DRJ (15874d) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:02 pm35. Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 9:35 am
No, they’re not.
As has been said (delphically) by none other than former president Barack Obama:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/16/us/obama-hbcu-speech-transcript.html
He wasn’t talking about Donald Trump!
1. He used plural language “many of the folks”.
Donald Trump is one person.
2. “Pull back the curtain,” means like in the movie “The Wizard of Oz”
While President Donald Trump, in one tweet one time, maybe seemed to be describing himself like he was the Wizard of Oz, the same cannot be said for anybody else in his administration. But the people making these disease prevention recommendations, they are like the Wizard of Oz.
Finally, Obama uses this to make the point that they (the graduates of historically black colleges) should not defer so much to the people who tell them what to do, but be bold and “seize the initiative. Nobody can tell you anymore that you should be waiting your turn.”
The initiative to be president, or the initiative to challenge conventional wisdom? He;s speaking to new college graduates.
Which makes more sense?
And you can’t say this has to do with other issues because Barack Obama specifically related the pulling back of the curtain and the revelation that they don’t know what they are doing to the pandemic.
Barack Obama is saying that the people telling them what to do don’t know what they’re doing. (though not just about the coronavirus. It’s just that the coronavirus, according to Obama, “finally” exposed (the fallibility of the experts.)
While they may be right about nor drinking Clorox, it is no special credit to them to be right about that…and they were wrong actually there to worry about people being stupid, and they also misrepresented, or the media did, what Donald Trump actually said. He asked a stupid question, revealing his ignorance about one thing, that’s all.)
Not even the second sentence in that quotation can be applied to Donald Trump.
First, again he is using plural language: “A lot of them.”
Secondly, while you might relate this to President Trump, who, after claiming to be in charge, deferred to the Governors, he’s only doing that because in fact he is not in charge there.
Third, it is really true there are people who are abdicating responsibility.
As Dr. Scott Gottlieb wrote yesterday in a Wall Street Journal Op-ed piece:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/cut-through-the-fog-of-coronavirus-war-11589738903
Sorry, I can’t give you a secret Obama decoder ring, to go along with a secret Trump decoder ring. There is none, and none should be necessary.
You have to understand also another thing:
In some matters, Obama is deliberately somewhat distorting the truth.
Sammy Finkelman (07f19d) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:17 pm#98. “The comment section has become nothing but pointless drivel and personal attacks.”
I wouldn’t say “nothing but” but it does seem like the invective level has gone way up recently. And it is tiresome to read. One reason I read this blog is to learn things, both from the host and from a lot of the commenters who are obviously knowledgeable and smart about lots of things where I’m ignorant or clueless. But harsh rhetoric and barely-disguised insults are a real turnoff, no matter who it comes from.
Without going all Kumbaya-ish, here’s a thought — if someone you usually disagree with says something that you do agree with, or at least think is a significant point worth considering, it’s OK to let them know that. It won’t detract from your commitment to your point of view or your credibility, and might even enhance the latter. And the overall tone here might improve.
RL formerly in Glendale (40f5aa) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:26 pmI am offended that those in government have deemed people non-essential while sitting in their safe home offices while pulling a paycheck and not worrying about being laid off.
Very true… and it goes for the public sector, in general.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:41 pm102. Except that I never said that. I defy you to show me where I did.
210. The reports that suggest the disease is “deadly” and “debilitating” are lies. It’s that simple. And if you don’t believe that, I am simply beyond understanding.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/17/2020 @ 3:58 pm
Gryph, why would these scientists and doctors make up such lies?
Dana (0feb77) — 5/17/2020 @ 4:53 pm
To which you responded…
253. Let me answer a question with a question: What is it about scientists and doctors that make you believe they are above reproach? Even assuming they don’t suffer from the universal human desire for power, money, and fame, are they any less likely to make mistakes than the rest of us?
Gryph (08c844) — 5/17/2020 @ 4:56 pm
So, they aren’t engaged in an enormous conspiracy…with those purposeful politicians…but all over the world, medical people and public health professionals are all just wrong.
But Gryph knows best.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:44 pmI’ve lived here since 1956, but we’ll be leaving California in 2021. In the last 30plus years of my career, I traveled to/from Texas on business many times, had many Texan colleagues and enjoyed working with all but two of them. I enjoyed spending time in Dallas Metro Area, San Antonio and Austin, good food and great company.
As tempting as many things in the Plus Column are, we don’t want to live there.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 5/19/2020 @ 3:55 pmthe protocols decided were too draconian, based on a dubious model, it crushes economic and social liberties while not truly protecting the vulnerable, and the consequences are severe and likely long lasting I fear, it has empowered little tyrannies in lansing, pittsburg, Albany and sacramento,
narciso (7404b5) — 5/19/2020 @ 4:16 pm“Was everyone in this movement always this crazy”
Infotainment requires taking things up a notch to be entertaining. However, because they got very popular and people took on their ideas and moved up the notch as well, they then had to take it up another notch. So they are always a little extreme, but a little extreme now vs a little extreme then are very different things.
Nic (896fdf) — 5/19/2020 @ 4:59 pm109. Damn skippy I know what’s best for me. And if that bothers you as much as it appears to, you are welcome to shun me.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 5:53 pm#77 Strange, but I don’t see the word “voluntary” anywhere in the post. Second, if the proposed system were voluntary, it would be completely ineffective as few would volunteer to put their names in such a database, which could easily be abused. Lastly, I am sure nk is capable of defending his post without your help.
1DaveMac (16cd0f) — 5/19/2020 @ 5:57 pmI have no interest in defending the post. Language is not only denotative, it is also connotative, and when it rises to the level of art (as all my brilliant comments here do), evocative as well. People will understand the post as they will.
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:22 pm@97
NYC officialdom has been a font of bad health policy, such as requiring long-term care (ie. nursing homes w/ the elderly) to house recovering COVID patients that have been moved out of hospitals. This has hugely increased NYC death rate for the most vulnerable and dependent adults.
Why would an NYC citizen witnessing that horror, trust their gov to generate good policy? Or is trust not required, only compliance?
JSinAZ (41ede5) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:43 pm114. You REALLY don’t read all that well, huh?
2. Deniers go and register with their name, address, DOB, and SSN.
3. They waive any and all right to treatment for COVID-19 from any medical provider or emergency service, for any illness or injury, not only COVID-19*, or admission to the premises of any other place open to the public.
The only reading of that making any sense is the system is voluntary. It never says, hints, or implies “deniers are taken…”
To be effective, any waiver has to be voluntary and informed.
I’ll defend any-damn-body I like.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:44 pm116. Given that the “deniers” look at the same data that the “non-deniers” do, I don’t see how you could consider “voluntary” consent to be informed, as well.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:45 pmI doubt you can see much of anything regarding the issue. Everyone around the world who deals in medicine or public health is wrong, according to Gryph.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:52 pm118. Not all people who deal with medicine or public health agree with you, Raggy. In fact, one thing that most “experts” agree on at this stage in the game is that the Imperial College model foisted on us by Neil “The Graduate” Ferguson, is an utter crock of s**t unworthy of serious consideration as a basis for policy. And yet, here we are.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:57 pmI don’t blame you at all. Texas is fine, but it’s not paradise geographically like Cali is. It’s also a more complex situation whether it’s well governed or not. Austin is less safe and frankly less pleasant and beautiful than it was ten or twenty years ago. Many cities are like that, Dallas included though Dallas has never been beautiful.
I have a good friend who retired from LAPD and moved to Austin. Lives like a king thanks to the economics involved in home ownership there versus here. But you can move to a lot of states and live like a king. The thing that makes Texas good is the people, the skepticism of government is part of that but not a huge part in my opinion.
I have pals who moved to Texas from Chicago, New Jersey, and California. None of them are liberal. In fact, almost all of them are Trump supporters. Texas’s shift purple is due to changes in the Republican party and the demographic changes in the state.
Dustin (d59cff) — 5/19/2020 @ 6:59 pmNot all people who deal with medicine or public health agree with you, Raggy.
No, Moana, you are right. There are fringe nutters who will aver that CV19 is neither deadly or debilitaing, even among those populations.
But the vast majority know reality where you deny it, and lie about it.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:11 pmPat writes, as dishonestly as possible:
STEYN HAS CHANGED HES GONE ROUND THE BEND HE’S SOLD OUT HE’S CRAY-CRAY
But it turns out that, oh wow, the original article gives useful context to the fact that the reason an editorialist who spends and spent much of his lifetime writing about musicals and public art hates the massive new rules are, indeed, mainly aesthetic:
To a man whom all the world’s a stage and us the actors, masking and distancing are socially creepy and enervating! Who’d-a thunk it!
And given that Steyn has always chafed under just about any officious authorities of any type, be they the Canadian Climate Coolies or the National Review Online comment section, the fact that he’s chafing under this one is generally to be expected. Especially when about a month or so ago masks were NOT EFFECTIVE BECAUSE YOU’RE NOT MEDICALLY QUALIFIED TO PUT ONE ON, STOP READING THOSE KOOKS WHO CLAIM YOU SHOULD.
Pat is sunk in his political failures and, as such finding excuses to DECLARE ANATHEMA the various happy warriors who really haven’t changed their outlook on life since they started. Mark Steyn’s opinions are welcome and valuable, being generally unique, informed, and offered in a spirit of friendliness inquiry rather than officiousness. Pat’s are not, because they are prosaic, ill-informed, dishonestly framed, contextually barren, and almost certain to have been offered by several other liberals previously.
I’VE READ THIS MAN FOR YEARS AND SOMEHOW NEVER FIGURED OUT THAT HE WAS AN AESTHETE OR A THEATER-LOVER is the doublespeak of the day. What more shall we see before the week is out!
Steyn the GOAT (b5e05c) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:13 pmLike Mr. President Donald Trump has said, Mark Steyn should go back to the sh!thole country he came from and fix things there first and then come back here and tell Americans what to do.
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:24 pm121. And there you go again, calling me a liar, Karen. And a “fringe nutter.” Well you keep playing with that chicken, Karen. Whatever helps you sleep at night.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:27 pmAnd so should you, Mr. Steyn the GOAT (snicker).
nk (1d9030) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:27 pm122. ZING!
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:28 pmThe context makes Steyn seem even wackier than the original quote. Wearing a mask equals denying the First Amendment? Public music is gone forever?
Kishnevi (41758f) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:36 pm127. Kish, I think the point of Sockpuppet Steyn’s post was to point out that anyone surprised by the real Steyn’s reaction to all this hasn’t really been paying attention.
Gryph (08c844) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:52 pmPoint taken. He’s always been an extremist, but this is the first time he wrote something that’s completely untethered to reality.
Kishnevi (41758f) — 5/19/2020 @ 7:56 pmA prediction published online on Tuesday March 17, nine weeks ago just about when the shutdowns began in the United States:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/opinion/coronavirus-1918-spanish-flu.html
I think that by the word “containment” e means be confining it to a geographical area, which he says but that failed in China, and by “suppression” he means elimination (using the word supression the way it used when describing fighting fires)
His prediction is that this won’t work, He doesn’t venture to say what happens after that in his scenario, except that the goal should be aggressive mitigation, until therapeutics arrive. Says it needs to be voluntary to work, and to do that you need to tell the truth.
I have his book, “The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History”. It ranges all over history before and after, and has many interesting tidbits and a good index but overall, it’s a disorganized mess. Randomly collected research, some of which he doesn’t fully understand and some of which he doesn’t explain. What was the Tuft’s vaccine rushed to San Francisco mentioned in passing? (except we can guess it didn’t work because they had the wrong pathogen)
And he doesn’t write that much about ow the flu was experienced, escept fr some famous people. It’s too distant in time for him.
If you read it sequentially, you would have no idea what he’s going to write about next. It’s like 120 disconnected chapterlets, albeit many of them are on the same theme. The progress of medical research is one thing interesting to him (and to me.) He says one medical scientist probably cost himself the Nobel Prize by publishing something new and bold. (Oswald Avery, about 1945)
Sammy Finkelman (07f19d) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:26 pmhttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/06/arts/music/1918-flu-pandemic-coronavirus-classical-music.html
Yuhave to read asides in things focsing on something es to find out what happened.
The stdw=ownswere done by localities, and they didn’t last that long. Thesitdowns lasted less long than this has lasted so far.
Sammy Finkelman (07f19d) — 5/19/2020 @ 8:34 pmSteyn rocks it. Get over yourselves. You people will vote for biden and the wicked biotch from michigan.
mg (8cbc69) — 5/20/2020 @ 1:13 amyou people are losers.
You’re complaining about dishonest framing?
When there was an N95 mask shortage, we needed people to stop hoarding crap so the hospitals could have them. Why is this so hard to understand? I’m sure someone said masks don’t work at all, and hell, you’re implying it, but obviously they make a difference.
Oh no, liberals wash their hands, if you wash your hands too you’re an evil librul! Own the libs!
This fear you have that you might accidentally agree with the wrong person, leads you necessarily to some idiotic extremes like supporting Trump.
It’s terrible that Rush’s sizeable audience is being programmed to resist being decent people. It’s sad that Team R is building a brand of being obnoxious and nasty, as though that’s some kind of glorious powerful thing.
Because Trump won a single election? Everyone loses a choice between Hillary and Trump. You guys sure are cocky about how important y’all are for being on the winning side given what is probably going to happen in a few months.
Dustin (d59cff) — 5/20/2020 @ 2:26 amAn extremist like thomas paine, or galileo ee the michael mann fraud.
Narciso (7404b5) — 5/20/2020 @ 6:46 amDo you subscribe to Steyn’s ISIS comparison, narcisco?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/20/2020 @ 7:03 amI’d call it the fatal hockey stick
Narciso (7404b5) — 5/20/2020 @ 7:14 amI call it inane and without connection to reality.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/20/2020 @ 7:46 amWhen the government encourages neighbors to turn in neighbors for not following the rules does it not sound like how the religious wackos rule?
“Snitches Get Rewards”
BillPasadena (e482e2) — 5/20/2020 @ 8:04 amhttps://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2020/03/31/coronavirus-los-angeles-eric-garcetti-snitches-get-rewards/
Uh…no. How many stonings and beheadings have you seen in LA?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/20/2020 @ 8:10 amNo not really
https://mobile.twitter.com/JamesTodaroMD/status/1263119520241246209
Narciso (7404b5) — 5/20/2020 @ 8:15 amSo, Narciso, protect the nursing homes only…means quarantining anyone who works in a nursing home indefinitely and rigorous screening of anyone who delivers supplies or makes service calls, which means in effect quarantining them and anyone who lives with them….
IOW, to protect the nursing homes effectively you have to lockdown everyone else. They don’t exist in their own little pocket universes.
Kishnevi (165c19) — 5/20/2020 @ 8:52 amNarcisco likes magic thinking. There’s a lot of that going around.
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/20/2020 @ 9:54 amAbsurd. The employees get their temps taken regularly, they wear masks, if they have symptoms they stay home.
Why does the rest of the world need to stop if they take the precautions you demand on everyone else??
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/20/2020 @ 11:14 amRob, did you read the post you’re trying to respond to (ineffectively)?
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/20/2020 @ 11:18 amAbsurd. The employees get their temps taken regularly, they wear masks, if they have symptoms they stay home.
Meantime, those employees get to infect everyone else in the facility during the 5-10 days they are contagious but not showing any symptoms.
The point is, this world is too interconnected. There are multiple avenues of transmission for anyone who’s not a hetmit. You can’t just isolate people in a facility to protect them.
Kishnevi (0a3941) — 5/20/2020 @ 12:00 pmhttps://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2020/05/midweek-in-pictures-hump-day-edition.php
Narciso (7404b5) — 5/20/2020 @ 12:08 pmRush used to stand for common sense. At least I thought so. His guests were never as insightful but I usually agreed with them. This Mark Steyn analogy is whacky. A temporary restriction to prevent the spread of a deadly…. never mind…. it isn’t worth arguing.
Rush, Sean, Laura and the rest now make up the Trump echo chamber. The President will not relent until everyone at FoxNews does the same. Whatever Trump said yesterday… is the new gospel. And it’s just plain bizarre.
noel (4d3313) — 5/20/2020 @ 12:31 pmTrump misstates Michigan mail-in ballot policy, threatens federal funding
…..
“Breaking: Michigan sends absentee ballots to 7.7 million people ahead of Primaries and the General Election,” Trump tweeted. “This was done illegally and without authorization by a rogue Secretary of State. I will ask to hold up funding to Michigan if they want to go down this Voter Fraud path!”
He then followed up with another message mentioning the official Twitter accounts for acting White House budget director Russ Vought, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and the Treasury Department. Hours later, the president deleted his original tweet and re-sent a similar tweet that said “absentee ballot applications” without noting his original mistake.
RipMurdock (d2a2a8) — 5/20/2020 @ 1:35 pm…..
Responding to the president, the secretary tweeted that “I also have a name, it’s Jocelyn Benson,” and noted her office was sending applications “like my GOP colleagues in Iowa, Georgia, Nebraska and West Virginia.”
…..
It is unclear who the president thinks needs to authorize Michigan’s decision; Republicans in Congress for years have resisted efforts to inject federal oversight into state and local elections.
…..
The president similarly threatened Nevada later Wednesday morning, tweeting: “State of Nevada ‘thinks’ that they can send out illegal vote by mail ballots, creating a great Voter Fraud scenario for the State and the U.S. They can’t! If they do, ‘I think’ I can hold up funds to the State. Sorry, but you must not cheat in elections.”
…..
“We as Republicans have a distinct, different philosophy on what the federal government’s role in elections should be. We believe that the states and localities are the best ones to get their voters to the polls and recognize what’s going to give everybody an opportunity to cast a vote,” Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), the ranking member of the House rules committee, told POLITICO last week.
…….
GOP fronts ‘pro-Trump’ doctors to prescribe rapid reopening
Let’s see, there’s Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil, Dr. Laura (even though she’s dead, that just makes her more qualified), Dr. Drew, ……
RipMurdock (d2a2a8) — 5/20/2020 @ 1:49 pmPresident Trump Says America’s 1.5 Million Coronavirus Cases Are ‘Badge of Honor’ for Testing
President Donald Trump said it’s “a badge of honor” that the U.S. has more than 1.5 million cases of coronavirus — the highest number of infections globally — saying the total is simply a reflection of a successful testing regime.
“I view it as a badge of honor, really, it’s a badge of honor,” Trump told reporters during a cabinet meeting at the White House on Tuesday. “It’s a great tribute to the testing and all of the work that a lot of professionals have done.”
RipMurdock (d2a2a8) — 5/20/2020 @ 2:16 pm……
133. Dustin (d59cff) — 5/20/2020 @ 2:26 am
There as an artiifical shortage, based on the idea that they should be used on;y one time and then discarded. However, they can be cleaned and sterilized any number of time, using hydrogen peroxide vapor, and a machine that does that is present in virtually every hospital.
https://tuttnauer.com/blog/hydrogen-peroxide-vapor-sterilization-respirator-face-masks-reuse
This was certainly preferable to shortages or making nurses keep them on.
Because they didn’t go too much out of their way to explain it that way.
In order to get people not to hoard they also argued they weren’t of much use outside a hospital setting.
From the New York City Department of Health, before March 18, 2020:
The laminated flyer (printed piece of paper) containing that is still posted in the elevator of my building, and on the first floor.
I think that flyer entitled:
was probably online, but I can’t find it in the wayback machine. It may be there, I just don’t know where to look in nyc.gov/health/coronavirus. It may have a somewhat different URL.
Another thing there on that page was:
They obviously said “any virus” because that was good advice whatever it was you had. I guess they didn’t say Kleenex or handkerchief because many people wouldn’t have them.
Sammy Finkelman (07f19d) — 5/20/2020 @ 2:49 pm151, I mentioned the laminated flyer that’s posted in my building that says, in part:
and noted I couldn’t find it on the web at the address n the flyer: http://www.nyc.gov/health/coronavirus, neither there (I wouldn’t expect it to be still there i any case) or in the wayback machine (although you can click on links in the wayback machine) and speculated it had been on the web but had a different main URL.
Well, I looked at the ones in my building, and at tiny print at the bottom there;s an RL printed, indicating where it was taken from.
But it is not in my picture taken March 18.
After scrutinizing it (no, it wasn’t washed by a flash) and thinking and looking at the picture and the picture times of the the pictures taken before and after – no it’s impossible I got back to the building so fast – I realized (and then remembered) I ad not taken the picture of the flyer in my building but had taken it in a subway station – because it was the same poster and I had an opportunity then to take a picture then – and thought maybe it is better even, to take a picture of it where it is out in public like that.
The URL was: https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/hpd/images/content/pr/coronavirus-factsheet.jpg
But when you get to it now (and Google gives you trouble unless you enter te URL piecemeal) it says:
and some choices.
Neither is it in the Wayback Machine. It;s too deep in the nyc.gov website for someone to have pt it there.
But nyc.gov/health/coronavirus is archived any number of times. although they changed the URL to use the term Covid. It rolls over to https://www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/covid/covid-19-main.page
Sammy Finkelman (07f19d) — 5/20/2020 @ 8:40 pmTis is the CDC afact sheet:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/2019-ncov-factsheet.pdf
It advises people to wear a “cloth face covering” It also says
COVID-19 is primarily spread from person to person. AND
• You may also be able to get it by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it, and
then by touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.
They’re covering all bases.
Sammy Finkelman (07f19d) — 5/20/2020 @ 8:57 pm• You may also be able to get it by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it, and
then by touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.
Yes, a mask could save a nosepicker’s life, but they don’t appreciate it.
nk (1d9030) — 5/20/2020 @ 9:01 pmSo the solution is to enslave the world forever till some hypothetical vaccine?
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/20/2020 @ 10:28 pmSo the solution is to enslave the world forever till some hypothetical vaccine?
Yup, Rob, that’s it. You’re a slave for life now. And, look, just get used to it because…vaccine or not…you are a slave now. That was the plan all along. Enslave Rob. Oh, and your kids, too!
/sarc
Ragspierre (d9bec9) — 5/21/2020 @ 4:44 amThere he goes again.
NJRob (4d595c) — 5/21/2020 @ 6:23 amThe problem with coronavirus conscientious objectors (deniers for short) is the same as with all the other anti-social elements, from drunks and dopers to muggers, rapists and murderers. They will hurt a lot of other, innocent, people and waste a lot of societal resources on their path to Hell, and it might be a long path strewn with a lot of victims.
nk (1d9030) — 5/21/2020 @ 6:52 am