Coronavirus in Massachusetts (Boston, Nantucket: clinic, hiring, economy)

[Bridge781]

8 priests in MA now have it.

Wimbledon cancelled.

[mdovell]

Trade is needed. Few farmers grow everything and live off thef land. Farmi g is an industry and requires trade. Otherwise the Chicago Board of Trade wouldnt exist. Pigs, orange futures, corn, etc.

It's nice to do things yourself don't get me wrong. I just rigged up a particle mask from an old t shirt and shoe string. It isn't a n95 though

[id77]

Originally Posted by porterhouse

Based on?

Trending. We've gone from let's contain this to we can keep deaths in the thousands and stop it from being a pandemic to we can keep deaths in the hundreds of thousands and it's a pandemic.

This is not a dig against the medical community, but new data comes in every single day and we don't even have adequate testing months into this. Why should I think that they have this thing firmly understood and can now predict what the damage will be a year from now? Two years from now?

I get they need to balance being honest with trying to communicate hope to the masses who can't cope with anxiety over the unknown, but I think it's causing them to make quick predictions based on limited data. Therefore, I see it being prudent to expect those numbers to continue to change, and the trend so far has been upward.

Am I overanalyzing something here that nobody else is seeing? Or is everyone else so desperate for good outcomes that bad outcomes aren't being given adequate thought?

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by mdovell

Of course the other thing within this is that if the bridge shuts down how does anything even get to the islands. When I was in retail there was one shipper at a high-end that had the Monopoly for shipping anything to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

Not sure what you mean by this? MV has always had FedEx, UPS in addition to USPS. Maybe YOUR retailer only had one shipper?

[redplum33]

Listen to Larry.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCSoHNU38Uk

[Bridge781]

Does anyone think this will be extended beyond May 4?

May the fourth be with you

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by id77

Trending. We've gone from let's contain this to we can keep deaths in the thousands and stop it from being a pandemic to we can keep deaths in the hundreds of thousands and it's a pandemic.

This is not a dig against the medical community, but new data comes in every single day and we don't even have adequate testing months into this. Why should I think that they have this thing firmly understood and can now predict what the damage will be a year from now? Two years from now?

I get they need to balance being honest with trying to communicate hope to the masses who can't cope with anxiety over the unknown, but I think it's causing them to make quick predictions based on limited data. Therefore, I see it being prudent to expect those numbers to continue to change, and the trend so far has been upward.

Am I overanalyzing something here that nobody else is seeing? Or is everyone else so desperate for good outcomes that bad outcomes aren't being given adequate thought?

I think you're conflating things. Experts for months have said that with proper preparation (loading up on tests and medical equipment) and by taking the appropriate steps, we could slow the spread (I've never heard "contain" out of anyone's mouth but the President) and keep the number of infections and the death toll low. It's actually worked well in a number of countries. The U.S., on the other hand, was late to take action and we have found ourselves here. So the "trend" is only changing because of our own failure to act fast and early. Again, other countries have done much better on this front, so it is (or was) clearly possible. It's STILL possible and important to minimize the impact as much as we can. Early indicators or that distancing efforts are working. The problem isn't with medical experts getting it wrong, it's with inaction on our part. And now that we're finally starting to get hints of results, it would be a mistake to change the strategy.

[id77]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I think you're conflating things. Experts for months have said that with proper preparation (loading up on tests and medical equipment) and by taking the appropriate steps, we could slow the spread (I've never heard "contain" out of anyone's mouth but the President) and keep the number of infections and the death toll low. It's actually worked well in a number of countries. The U.S., on the other hand, was late to take action and we have found ourselves here. So the "trend" is only changing because of our own failure to act fast and early. Again, other countries have done much better on this front, so it is (or was) clearly possible. It's STILL possible and important to minimize the impact as much as we can. Early indicators or that distancing efforts are working. The problem isn't with medical experts getting it wrong, it's with inaction on our part. And now that we're finally starting to get hints of results, it would be a mistake to change the strategy.

We're not going to stop the inaction because this is 'murica and we can't tell half this country what to do. I agree it has been a factor, and it will continue to be a factor. This is bringing out the worst in people, and I didn't even think that was possible before this outbreak. In fact, I'd say it is my complete and total lack of confidence in millions of Americans' ability to do the right thing when needed that makes me comfortable with accepting that the reality will be much closer to worst-case than best-case.

I also never said they're getting it wrong; I said they don't have enough data to know yet so they're essentially spitballing numbers based on what little data they do have. Society's pressure to know right here right now is putting them in the unenviable position of speculating. I'd rather they said nothing of numbers or estimates until they have all the data, but that delay would just cause more unnecessary panic than we already have.

[BosYuppie]

You all watch too much Fox News.

[bohemka]

Originally Posted by Bridge781

Does anyone think this will be extended beyond May 4?

May the fourth be with you

Thousands of people will be dying every day on and around May 4, so we'll see.