Althouse: At the Blue Sky Café...

March 21, 2020

At the Blue Sky Café...

795CCA0E-CBDC-44BB-87C5-1816066ED40A_1_201_a

... you can talk all night.

110 comments:

Ken B said...: You back yet Farmer? How's your dad?; 3/21/20, 9:24 PM
gspencer said...: So Biden will step into the fray in a day or two, once they get all those record players up and running and he goes to get some Esso gas and then stops by the A&P to get some Brylcreem for his plugs, followed up with a few splashes to his face with some Aqua Velva.

Now, seriously, what is Biden gonna say that’s meaningful? The only purpose of this is to get Biden some air time. But that carries great risk.

People will get to “see the Big Board.” They’ll get to see the real Biden who is certain to forget, stumble, and be generally wrong about everything.

Remember what Robert Gates said about Biden, six years ago, “I think he has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.”; 3/21/20, 9:24 PM
Ken B said...: Oh jeez another moderated cafe. More fun than kissing your maiden aunt!

Reading an old murder mystery with locked room murders, Death From a Top Hat, Rawson. Available in Kindle and maybe on some Hoopla. Fun for thems as likes such things.; 3/21/20, 9:27 PM
mockturtle said...: Hope Farmer makes it home OK. Praying for you, Farmer, and your father!

Also, we haven't heard from buwaya lately and he's living in Spain now which is going through a bad siege of Wuhan virus.; 3/21/20, 9:34 PM
narciso said...: about as sharp; 3/21/20, 9:35 PM
FullMoon said...: So Biden will step into the fray in a day or two, once they get all those record players up and running and he goes to get some Esso gas and then stops by the A&P to get some Brylcreem for his plugs, followed up with a few splashes to his face with some Aqua Velva.

Now, seriously, what is Biden gonna say that’s meaningful? The only purpose of this is to get Biden some air time. But that carries great risk.

I am curious as to Biden's venue. Networks giving up time for a news conference would be ridiculous. So, gonna be youtube or reddit? Be an eye opener for ol' Joe who has never seen either.; 3/21/20, 9:36 PM
narciso said...: Hes like max headroom but less self aware.; 3/21/20, 9:39 PM
Stu Grimshaw said...: I hear Keith Olbermann’s bedroom pillow fort studio is available.; 3/21/20, 9:46 PM
madAsHell said...: Oh my blue sky,
you're my sunny day
Lord, knows it makes me high
When you turn your love my way
Turn your love my way,
yeah,
yeah

Eat a Peach!!; 3/21/20, 10:19 PM
narciso said...: what will monday look like; 3/21/20, 10:20 PM
mockturtle said...: Eat a Peach!!

Do I dare?; 3/21/20, 10:22 PM
narciso said...: Why the hell are we really doing this, we want to gut out economy like a stuck pig, then what?; 3/21/20, 10:26 PM
walter said...: https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2020/03/20/fauci-love-letter-to-hillary-clinton-surfaces/

From: Fauci, Anthony (NIH/NIAID) [E] [mailto:AFAUCI@niaid.nih.gov]
Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2013 6:10 PM
To: Mills, Cheryl D
Subject: Today's performance
Cheryl: Anyone who had any doubts about the Secretary's stamina and capability following her illness had those doubts washed away by today's performance before the Senate and the House. She faced extremely difficult circumstances at the Hearings and still she hit it right out of the park. Please tell her that we all love her and are very proud to know her. Warm regards, Tony Anthony S. Fauci, MD Director National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Building 31, Room 7A-03 31 Center Drive, MSC 2520 National Institutes of Health Bethesda, MD 20892-2520 Phone: (301) 496-2263 FAX: (301) 47-4409 E-mail: afauci The information in this e-mail and any of its attachments is confidential and may contain sensitive information. It should not be used by anyone who is not the original intended recipient. If you have received this e-mail in error please inform the sender and delete it from your mailbox or any other storage devices. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) shall not accept liability for any statements made that are the sender's own and not expressly made on behalf of the NIAID by one of its representatives.; 3/21/20, 10:29 PM
narciso said...: i have a question; 3/21/20, 10:34 PM
walter said...: 1/23/13 was Benghazi hearing
AKA:
"With all due respect, the fact is we had four dead Americans," Clinton said. "Was it because of a protest, or was it because of guys out for a walk one night who decided they'd go kill some Americans? What difference at this point does it make?; 3/21/20, 10:37 PM
Mark said...: March 22 (GMT)
2618 new cases and 43 new deaths in the United States

March 21 (GMT)
4824 new cases and 46 new deaths in the United States

March 20 (GMT)
5594 new cases and 49 new deaths in the United States.

March 19 (GMT)
4530 new cases and 57 new deaths in the United States

March 18 (GMT)
2848 new cases and 41 new deaths in the United States

March 17 (GMT)
1748 new cases and 23 new deaths in the United States

March 16 (GMT)
983 new cases and 18 new deaths in the United States.

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/; 3/21/20, 10:43 PM
madAsHell said...: Do I dare?

You'll enjoy it. We'll stream it pay-per-view!!; 3/21/20, 10:45 PM
Mark said...: Why the hell are we really doing this, we want to gut out economy like a stuck pig, then what?

We still need to go a little while longer, but the numbers are hopeful that we won't need to lock-down for several months, like those who insist on doom have been saying.

Of course, it still could all go to hell. But we could also all get hit by a bus the first day the doors are opened.; 3/21/20, 10:46 PM
Sebastian said...: Question: how are "new deaths," presumably deaths "due to" Wuhan Virus, measured and recorded?

Example: 80-year-old has heart trouble. Gets infected. Has trouble breathing. Stress! Heart gives out. Ergo: killed by "the virus"?; 3/21/20, 10:47 PM
walter said...: Pretty good, 'sitter.
I mean, he didn't go on about his leg hair or love of children in his lap..but pretty good.; 3/21/20, 10:49 PM
Mark said...: One of the problems with opening the federal spigot is that a lot of employers will be more likely to dump their employees onto the public dole, (temporarily) firing them in order to save some money.; 3/21/20, 10:50 PM
narciso said...: Of course theres the trek episode, with rytalin and rigelian fever, thats the one with flint (who had been a spectator to the plague in constantinople in 1344); 3/21/20, 10:51 PM
Mark said...: Everyone all across the economic sector is going to have to be able to chill and be able to pick up when this "timeout" ends and we go back to "game on."; 3/21/20, 10:53 PM
Francisco D said...: I hope all goes well with Farmer and his Dad. Hopefully we will find out son.

We tend to argue a bit, but we also appreciate and respect each other as individuals, for the most part.; 3/21/20, 10:54 PM
Mark said...: You might have already changed rooms, narcisco, but as I was saying, in all the times I've seen it, I've never really understood the whole thing about the Medusan ambassador. What's so great about him/her/it, that hardly anyone can interact with him/her/it without going insane?; 3/21/20, 10:56 PM
walter said...: I'm a little concerned the guy heading up our "___" virus knockout effort thinks Benghazi Hil' embodied knocking it out of the park.

Paul Sperry
@paulsperry_
·
4h
Elitist, naysaying, Hillary-loving bureaucrats like Dr. Fauci of NIH are gumming up the works & we don't have time for their tsk-tsking. Let's roll out these new treatments ASAP, especially for COVID-19 patients with worsening pneumonia. Like POTUS says, what do we have to lose?; 3/21/20, 10:58 PM
Mark said...: And if the Medusans are non-corporeal energy beings, how did they construct ships and be able to able to interact with the physical world in the first place? Who built their carrying boxes and who put them in them?; 3/21/20, 10:59 PM
narciso said...: They are like the guild navigators in dune, that seems to be their purpose, it doesnt really make sense.; 3/21/20, 11:01 PM
fleg9bo said...: We went for a walk along the mighty Willamette River in the beautiful sunshine of this spring day. There were folks about, courteously giving one other wide berths and mostly smiling and walking dogs. It was very civilized.

Then we went to the Safeway to pick up a few things. The TP and paper towel shelves were empty, as expected. An employee told us that they get shipments of those items in most days but sell out quickly upon opening. Apparently the hoarding market has not yet been saturated (nor satiated). If we want any of that stuff (we're already well stocked), we should return on Tuesday morning at 7am when at-risk folks are specially accommodated. We are at risk only in the sense of being 71 and 72 years old. We are healthy and take no medications for anything.

I have occasion to take a morning bus into downtown Portland from time to time. Usually there are only three or four empty seats when I get on. This past week there was only one passenger. Very Twilight-Zone-ish.; 3/21/20, 11:03 PM
Mark said...: Weren't we talking about The Invaders, a Quinn Martin Production, being on just a couple of days ago?

Time flies when you're in societal lock-down.

Tonight's episode: The Leeches; 3/21/20, 11:03 PM
narciso said...: Victor buono, guess starring i think.; 3/21/20, 11:04 PM
Narr said...: What's with Farmer's dad? I keep seeing comments.

Narr
I'll check back in the morning; 3/21/20, 11:05 PM
Mark said...: They were crowding the Tidal Basin today with people looking at the cherry blossoms. The Park Service wasn't too happy about it.; 3/21/20, 11:05 PM
Bay Area Guy said...: Vic Davis Hansen hammers the ChiComs for their virus-induced duplicity. .; 3/21/20, 11:06 PM
Mark said...: Special guest star: Arthur "Wildfire" Hill.; 3/21/20, 11:07 PM
narciso said...: It was a premise later seen on the x files dark skies, then atar gate and first wave to varying degrees, but i never caught on to that show.; 3/21/20, 11:08 PM
narciso said...: Dark skies is retro x files with thr whole majestic hoax in the early 60s.; 3/21/20, 11:11 PM
walter said...: Reverend Al Sharpton
@TheRevAl
·
Mar 20
This week, in the spirit of unity, I made a moral appeal to the @WhiteHouse
to consider the homeless & incarcerated amid #COVID19. To my surprise, @realDonaldTrump
called me to discuss it. If Trump can call a critic like Al Sharpton, we can *all* find it in us to come together.
--
Yep.
Worst racists ever.
Jesse Jackson praises and thanks Donald Trump for a lifetime of service to African Americans; 3/21/20, 11:12 PM
narciso said...: Maybe there is more sanity than we give tgem credit, not so much to the political class; 3/21/20, 11:18 PM
Roger This said...: Narr,
What's with you always adding a comment after your name. Is that your shtick? For some reason it is annoying.

Roger,
I will check back in the morning.; 3/21/20, 11:28 PM
walter said...: Apparently the political class around the world partakes?; 3/21/20, 11:28 PM
Mark said...: Washington Post trying its hardest to traumatize everyone.; 3/21/20, 11:36 PM
Anonymous said...: @Roger This

I'm not authorized to speak for Narr, but yes, that seems to be what Narr does, and I'm a fan of Narr. His final comment is usually quite pithy and of very few words.

--Rt1Rebel; 3/21/20, 11:39 PM
walter said...: So no guv "relief" to private sector in other covidite countries?; 3/21/20, 11:48 PM
walter said...: Somewhere in the analysis there should be recognition of where the dough for gov sector comes from.; 3/21/20, 11:51 PM
Mark said...: Cached version -

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:mYo6DE6CUwIJ:https://medium.com/six-four-six-nine/evidence-over-hysteria-covid-19-1b767def5894&client=firefox-b-1&hl=en&gl=us&strip=1&vwsrc=0; 3/21/20, 11:52 PM
walter said...: Berno wants guv to provide 2k/mo to every American for duration.; 3/21/20, 11:55 PM
Mark said...: https://twitter.com/aginnt/status/1241576251954991110

Link says the article has been reposted at
https://www.zerohedge.com/health/covid-19-evidence-over-hysteria; 3/21/20, 11:56 PM
chickelit said...: walter said...Berno wants guv to provide 2k/mo to every American for duration.

Fine. We'll pretend to work and they'll pretend to pay us. For how long?; 3/21/20, 11:58 PM
narciso said...: Says the supporters that want to spends ten s of trillions and then garrote the golden goose.; 3/22/20, 12:05 AM
walter said...: Here in WI, kinda concerned about the lack of Illinois' ability to pay for their public sector obligations. They keep raising their taxes, driving exodus.

"Then it’s the tax payers that vote that pay."
Not when it's Dem pols and Public Sector unions turning elections.; 3/22/20, 12:13 AM
Mark said...: George needs glasses, but won't wear them. Gracie thinks it's because he thinks he won't look good in them. So she buys three dozen pair for friends and family to wear so he will see they don't look that bad.; 3/22/20, 12:20 AM
StephenFearby said...: In other news of the day...

NY Post

‘Naturally antibacterial:’ Sex doll companies trying to cash in on coronavirus

Sex doll companies have an important public service message: Self-isolating can be fun and safe at the same time.

Abyss, the maker of sex robots RealDolls, assured potential buyers that its dolls are free of COVID-19 in an Instagram post.

“Self-isolating doesn’t have to be the worst! All RealDolls are made from Platinum Grade Silicone and are naturally antibacterial and nonporous! Want one?” The company’s caption reads...'

https://nypost.com/2020/03/21/naturally-antibacterial-sex-doll-companies-trying-to-cash-in-on-coronavirus/; 3/22/20, 12:24 AM
Mark said...: One of the neat things about Burns and Allen is when George would go into the other room and watch the show they were filming on TV.; 3/22/20, 12:25 AM
Yancey Ward said...: Mark, is that the guy who was also Brahms?; 3/22/20, 12:25 AM
Yancey Ward said...: Flint, I mean.; 3/22/20, 12:26 AM
narciso said...: Among other peoplein other eras (a ridiculous conceit) followed up in the highlander and even forever knighr series.; 3/22/20, 12:27 AM
Nichevo said...: Dear adSs,

I would read, and maybe try to respond to, your hebephrenia, but as Meadehouse has dropped the banhammer on you, this is not allowed. If I can't interact with the Notorious M.E.G., a fortiori/kal v'chomer, not you.

As everybody is invoking ST:TOS lately,

Let This Be Your Last Battlefield

...er, post.; 3/22/20, 12:31 AM
chickelit said...: I'm guessing that the Soros coffers needed replenishing, whence all the recent market turbulence. Never forget that Soros's dearest business partner is Jim Rogers, a ChiCom aficionado.

I'm OK with it morally because I know that the last unrepentant, unmolested Nazi on earth will die unhappy and unfulfilled.; 3/22/20, 12:37 AM
walter said...: Sitter,
California has unfunded/future liabilities of its own.
I'm less concerned about 1st responders (if accurately defined) than more run of the mill "public servants" juicing through double dipping.
My concern over Il is the dynamic of having a state just across our border go to shit, to some degree sending Dem voters North to tip our scales to similar distress over time.; 3/22/20, 12:40 AM
Mark said...: Flint was played by James Daly, who starred in Medical Center and Dr. Honorius, the prosecutor in Planet of the Apes.; 3/22/20, 12:47 AM
Mark said...: "Take yer stinkin' paws off me, you damned dirty ape!"; 3/22/20, 12:53 AM
chickelit said...: Nich, It seems like I’m unbanned. That’s the third unbanning over almost a dozen years.

No silly, you're just unbanned until tomorrow.; 3/22/20, 1:01 AM
chickelit said...: I could have sworn that there was somebody in this thread bitching about being banned.; 3/22/20, 1:02 AM
chickelit said...: But he should be banned, because of bad faith.; 3/22/20, 1:02 AM
walter said...: Latest ban I'm aware of is Ritmo Toilet Papered Shoe Up Ass.; 3/22/20, 1:06 AM
walter said...: I'm really sorry I missed that moment.
Anywho..; 3/22/20, 1:19 AM
walter said...: (But as a sub-grifter, you made yourself subject to MeadeHouse terms); 3/22/20, 1:23 AM
Yancey Ward said...: I don't favor bans, but if Meade has to waste his time on them, then definitely Ritmo followed by Chuck. Eliminating those two would be the most bang for the buck.; 3/22/20, 1:55 AM
Ken B said...: Hoyt, Driscoll, martin have turned instapundit into a garbage heap.; 3/22/20, 2:42 AM
Meade said...: When people are dishonest, they truly do hurt our country. Said someone who is doing his best to save this country. People who are cynically using this crisis, to hurt Trump or Althouse or many of the fine commenters here, should be ashamed of themselves. They aren't ashamed because they have no shame. But they are truly a disgrace to themselves and their forbears.; 3/22/20, 5:01 AM
sinz52 said...: Giant Microbes is a company that manufactures plush, cute, cuddly dolls in the shape of various microbes. You can give the dolls to very young children for educational purposes or to other adults as gag gifts.

For example, they sell a Neisseria Gonorrhoeae (gonorrhea microbe) doll. You can say to your spouse, "Honey, guess what? I just gave you gonorrhea!" And when she's shocked, you show her the doll.

https://www.giantmicrobes.com/us/products/clap.html

So as you would expect, they are going to produce a COVID-19 coronavirus doll too.

https://www.giantmicrobes.com/us/products/coronavirus.html; 3/22/20, 5:21 AM
Marcus Bressler said...: May you all be safe and healthy when we come out on the other side.

THEOLDMAN

Seize the Day! TP Update: Gave away another 6 rolls to a young lady at a recovery meeting last night. We all sat 6 feet apart. Began with 96 ct. 84 rolls left to go.; 3/22/20, 5:28 AM
stevew said...: Thinking and hoping all is well for Farmer and his father. Had noticed he wasn't commenting, didn't know why. God speed.

The number of deaths in MA doubled since Friday from 1 to 2. The first was very old, the second a person in their 50's with other (multiple) serious health issues. Reviewing these and other deaths I see that I and most of my loved ones are at low risk of death. One of my sisters that was first diagnosed with Lupus when she was 15 (40 years ago) is at very high risk. She is isolated and not going out. My son, 35 yrs old, married father of two, has a cough and a low grade fever. He and his family are quarantining themselves. He has not been tested and does not plan to be unless the symptoms become more severe.

Mrs. stevew and I went for a nice walk at Plum Island yesterday. The sun was shining, it was quite windy and cool. The surf was up a bit following the mild storm that came through Thursday and Friday. Glorious. There were several families out there as well, I suspect getting themselves and their kids a little break from being in the house all week. Lots of foul weather predicted for the coming week.

As everyone is saying at the conclusion of phone calls and conferences: be safe all.; 3/22/20, 5:42 AM
PJ57 said...: Some non oldster awoke in a really bad mood. Or maybe didn't go to bed.; 3/22/20, 6:15 AM
exhelodrvr1 said...: Italy classifies anyone who had covid when they died as a covid death, no matter what the underlying, pre-existing conditions.; 3/22/20, 6:20 AM
exhelodrvr1 said...: Saturday night joke from ace.mu.nu (Ace of Spades):
Suddenly, a cow runs out onto the road, and a limo driving late at night, hits it head on, and the car comes to a stop.

The woman in the back seat, in her usual abrasive manner, says to the Chauffeur, "You get out and check on that poor cow. You were driving."

So the chauffeur gets out, checks, and reports that the animal is dead, but it appeared to be very old. Well, says the woman, "You were driving, so you go and tell the farmer in that lighted farmhouse over there."

Two hours later the chauffeur returns totally inebriated, a full belly, his hair ruffled, and a big grin on his face.

“My God, what happened to you?" asks the nasty woman.

The chauffeur replies, "When I got there, the farmer opened his best bottle of single malt scotch, the wife gave me a meal fit for a king, and the daughter made love to me."

“What on earth did you say?" asks the woman.

Well, I just knocked on the door, and when it opened, I said to them, "I'm Nancy Pelosi’s chauffeur, and I’ve just killed the old cow."

Don’t you just love a story with a happy ending?; 3/22/20, 6:23 AM
stevew said...: This helps improve my mood.

Drive - Volume Up; 3/22/20, 6:56 AM
Browndog said...: Jimi Headstone Qwash • 2 days ago • edited

No Matter which way you slice it leftists....

While the virus raged in China... Leftists and the Media made Americans believe impeachment was the most important thing in their lives.

While the Virus Began to spread to other countries, Leftists and the media made Americans believe Witnesses for impeachment was the most important thing in their lives

While the virus spread to Iran... Leftists and the media Made Americans think that Nancy holding on to the Articles of impeachment was the work of a genius and she held them for 2 precious weeks and
the most important thing in their lives.

While the Virus spread and was killing hundreds in many countries ....Leftists and the media wanted Americans to believe that Having John Bolton testify was the most important thing in their lives....

At the SOTU a day before the acquittal...The President gave the SOTU addressed and shared concern for the Wuhan Virus.... Nancy tore it up

In a nut shell

I bring this up because the two signature accomplishments by the democrats are Obamacare and Impeachment. Oddly enough under Pelosi leadership.

Now, they want to pretend they never happened.; 3/22/20, 7:09 AM
rhhardin said...: Rats, the English language version of Wallander is too fake. Swedish names and English people. The feeling is that some weird history has put the Swedes in charge of England, rather than of Scandinavian noir.

Have to get the Swedish version, which is not easy to figure out the ordering of. Isolated mislabelled DVDs.

Then maybe go back and watch the interpretation of the plots in the Englishized set.; 3/22/20, 7:13 AM
rhhardin said...: The ending of The Tunnel (the British version of The Bridge) is stupid, scriptwriting-wise. The writers congratulate themselves on it in the Extras, which doubles down on stupidity.

It's a series, it can just stop. Not renewed. You'd think that would be obvious.; 3/22/20, 7:21 AM
Browndog said...: We have our first confirmed case of corona in my rural Michigan county. I'd be lying if I said it didn't increase my level of concern on a personal level.

However, my position that you cannot destroy a country in an effort to save it remains unchanged.; 3/22/20, 7:22 AM
Jaq said...: Somebody should tell the Chinese that when they make up data it shouldn’t be *too* perfect. Real world data almost never follows an ideal curve shape.; 3/22/20, 7:29 AM
tcrosse said...: If this madness goes on much longer, we will need either food rationing or a black market, possibly both. Here in the more fashionable side of Las Vegas things like chicken, milk and eggs are unobtainable. The supermarket guys tell me that the deliveries of these items occur as usual, but they sell out immediately.; 3/22/20, 7:40 AM
boatbuilder said...: It seems like the governors of prog states and the mayors of prog cities are hell-bent on following the policies of Italy, where things are worse than anywhere else, by imposing "lockdowns" and confining groups of people indoors in close quarters. Why? I get that big cities have a different dynamic than suburbs or rural areas, but if I understand correctly (and there is a whole lot to misunderstand) the countries and cities which have followed less draconian policies--i.e., social distancing and common-sense quarantining of infected persons, etc.--have fared better.

If I was a cynic I would think they are doing it on purpose.; 3/22/20, 7:40 AM
Jaq said...: There seem to be two different approaches to handing the anxiety from this thing. Denial, and displacement. I have talked about denial too much. Displacement is to move the object of your anxiety onto something less scary and more manageable. For instance, the Democrats successfully moved the fear of terrorism over to a fear of W. The fear doesn’t go away, so it represents a political opportunity. They are doing this with the fear of the ChiCom flu; displacing onto Trump. I can see this with IRL friends who are actually reasonably intelligent, BTW. The need to displace this fear sets them up to readily accept propaganda and to fear looking behind it, discovering it is wrong, and then being forced to face their real fears.

I have a friend who would surely score very well on an IQ test who is convinced that Trump defunded the CDC and abolished the pandemic response function of the NSC. I think she is afraid to find out it’s not true by the way she responds to any pushback. Maybe in 1984, the object of the two minute hate was to redirect the hatred everybody had for The Party.; 3/22/20, 7:41 AM
rhhardin said...: Date with lots of 3's in it tends to be made up. It's the most popular random digit for made-up numbers.; 3/22/20, 7:49 AM
rhhardin said...: Uneasy lies the head that fears the crown.; 3/22/20, 7:53 AM
Jaq said...: "the countries and cities which have followed less draconian policies--i.e., social distancing and common-sense quarantining of infected persons, etc.--have fared better. “

Don’t forget that these are police states that can tell who you have interacted with by following everybody’s phone everywere, and match you up with facial recognition on public security cameras, which also can see in infrared, BTW, so they can be software tweaked to monitor and recognize anybody with a fever.; 3/22/20, 7:55 AM
Jaq said...: I wonder if doing a bad job at faking the ChiCom data is somebody’s way of warning us. LIke when that hostage blinked “T O R T U R E” in morse code.; 3/22/20, 7:57 AM
narciso said...: the first two seasons of the tunnel were good, but the last was too byzantine even for me, it's like david hare's Worricker series, his screed on the war on terror,; 3/22/20, 8:02 AM
Browndog said...: Sunday morning Mass is probably televised, if you're so inclined.; 3/22/20, 8:18 AM
Jaq said...: Here is an interesting graphic on social distancing

https://twitter.com/richardgoals/status/1241700863229526017

Remember, if it’s working, that’s proof we never needed to do it, and it’s just fine to compare old flu data that doesn’t include the social distancing factor with the data from this flu.

Though I am pretty sure that this will give us some amazing data in the future about regular flus, and maybe new treatments that make those flus less deadly in the future.; 3/22/20, 8:31 AM
Marc in Eugene said...: Dawn is gathering her train and about to rise. Am listening to Hector Berlioz' Symphonie fantastique. performed by the Berlin Philharmonic at the end of January. Followed the livestream (beginning at 0300) of Mass celebrated at St-Eugène-Ste-Cécile in Paris, so have been looking forward to the day for a while now. Time for the morning walk.; 3/22/20, 8:37 AM
Marc in Eugene said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 3/22/20, 8:39 AM
stevew said...: My MIL, 88 years old, living in FL, is annoyed at the social distancing regime and nearly angry at the forced cancellation of events she had planned to attend (talks, shows). Quite upset that her weekly reading time visit to the local elementary school is on hiatus. Hosted her book club meeting on Wednesday, 15+ octogenarians, all women. Simultaneously she is getting and forwarding email threads that accuse Trump of not taking the threat from the virus seriously, that say Trump allowed the sale of all our precious test kits to China, that claim that if you can hold your breath for 10 seconds you don't have the virus, and that FEMA will be executing a shelter in place mandate any day now.

Fortunately she only shares this stuff with her daughter. I hear it all second hand. SMH. As some might say, not helpful.; 3/22/20, 9:37 AM
mockturtle said...: Uneasy lies the head that fears the crown.

Well played, rhhardin.; 3/22/20, 10:20 AM
mockturtle said...: Tcrosse observes: Here in the more fashionable side of Las Vegas things like chicken, milk and eggs are unobtainable.

Yesterday at my local Walmart, in a decidedly unfashionable part of SW Arizona, eggs were limited to one dozen per customer. There were hardly any left but I was delighted to find there were plenty of my favorite: Happy Eggs, a [relatively] free-range brand that are absolutely delicious. I assume it was because they are much more expensive. Other than that, I was surprised at the dearth of merchandise.; 3/22/20, 10:27 AM
chickelit said...: "Well played, rhhardin."

Indeed!; 3/22/20, 10:28 AM
Mark said...: Some people are impervious to reassurance, impervious to truth, impervious to reason.

Our family round of texts mentions the "use a bandana in place of a mask" story. I know that if I try to correct the record and reassure, I'm only going to get back scorn accusing me of being a pro-Trump crazy. So I'll just let it go.; 3/22/20, 10:29 AM
h said...: Replying to Mark who posted numbers on number of daily new cases and deaths. Neither of these numbers is especially useful in getting an idea of what is happening. Especially "number of confirmed cases". In order to show up as a confirmed case a person needs to 1. contract the virus; 2. have severe enough symptoms so that person is in touch with the medical profession; 3. Gets tested; and 4. has the test confirm that the virus is present.

There has been trouble with test availablility, and as that constraint is relaxed we see growth in number of confirmed cases, even if there is no spread of the virus (there is of course spread of the virus, but it may not be accurately measured by the growth in number of confirmed cases). Daily number of deaths is almost certainly a much more accurate number since presumably a person who dies of respiratory problems is tested even post mortem for presence of the virus. Conceivably, someone with the virus but no symptoms might die of another apparent cause (say heart attack) and never be tested. The problem with looking at daily deaths is that they lag the presence of the virus by 2-3 weeks. So daily deaths may continue to increase even after the spread of the disease is declining.; 3/22/20, 10:34 AM
BUMBLE BEE said...: Kids, (under 35), today have never lived the "hadta destroy the village in order to save it" thing.; 3/22/20, 10:54 AM
Narr said...: Morning y'all! Yes, the postscript is Narrschtick. If you see "Narr said . . ." at the top you can easily avoid the annoying appendage.

It will only take a single vote from someone else to break the tie of opinion here so-- let us know how you feel about this important issue.

It's cold and cloudy here this morning, and likely to rain again. Enough already.

Anyway, I wish Farmer, Farmer's dad, and everyone here a healthy future.

Narr
I'm recusing myself from the poll; 3/22/20, 11:11 AM
tcrosse said...: You could Google the Vienna Narrenturm, or the ever-popular Narrenschiff.; 3/22/20, 11:30 AM
DavidD said...: I think the postscripts are fine, Narr; I think schticks are fine, too, if that’s a schtick.; 3/22/20, 12:44 PM
Narr said...: You love me . . . you really love me!

Narr
It's an honor to be nominated; 3/22/20, 1:24 PM
walter said...: Narr,
FWIW, the odd postcripts tend to be things that would fit in the body just as well, IMHO. The structure signals otherwise, but haven't seen it.; 3/22/20, 2:29 PM
Michael K said...: There were hardly any left but I was delighted to find there were plenty of my favorite: Happy Eggs, a [relatively] free-range brand that are absolutely delicious. I assume it was because they are much more expensive. Other than that, I was surprised at the dearth of merchandise.

I have conducted a small experiment in Tucson. We usually shop at Fry's market, which is cheap but has good quality, although we tend to buy meat at Costco. Both have been cleaned out all week. We don't usually shop at Safeway because it is more expensive for the same items but I tried this week and, sure enough, got most of what I wanted. It is actually closer.

They had no eggs or butter so I went to AJ's, which is a very expensive market in the Encantada Mall, near our home. It is the Tucson equivalent of Gelsen's in LA. Yup, they had eggs and butter.; 3/22/20, 4:44 PM
Michael K said...: rhhardin said...
Date with lots of 3's in it tends to be made up. It's the most popular random digit for made-up numbers.

Long ago, I took a decision theory class. The instructor, a guest professor, started with a little exercise. He flipped a coin five times and then asked everyone in the class, about 35 of us, to write on a slip of paper our estimates of the coin order, head or tails for each flip.

He collected them and announced that 75% of the papers had the order H,T,H,H,T. The most common approximation of randomness for such a series.; 3/22/20, 4:49 PM
Marcus Bressler said...: Narr, I say do what you wish with your comments. Since I do the postscript schtick 99% of the time, I am biased in your favor.

THEOLDMAN

THIS SPACE LEFT BLANK; 3/22/20, 6:33 PM