Scroll down to the end for the latest.
update: 1-22-2021: Looks like we have peaked. Health care workers have all been offered the vaccine but they still won't tell us the truth about the N95 masks that all unvaccinated people need to be protected.
Original article from December:
We have been very misled about so many things regarding the COVID pandemic.
They still insist that there was no evidence that thousands of shouting protesters sandwiched together(millions in total) spread COVID(they would not even allow contact tracers to ask a person if they were at a protest-because that would have provided the evidence), while telling us the truth........ that small groups of family members can spread it.
Covering up massive COVID being spread from protests-8/8 update below
29 responses |
Started by metmike - July 30, 2020, 7:28 p.m.
https://www.marketforum.com/forum/topic/57070/
No wonder people are so dang skeptical of the so called experts. COVID doesn't care about your political party or what the cause might be. But most of this could have been prevented if they had told us the truth about the cloth masks(not protecting us well) and not wasted most of the good, N95 masks, while telling people to NOT buy them.
Yes, they have been intentionally misleading and even lying to us about masks. Giving people the impression that cloth masks protect us and that we should save all the N95 masks for the healthcare workers.
If they told us the truth, everybody would get rid of their cloth masks and be wearing an N95 mask right now..........at least those following the science who want to actually reduce their chances of getting COVID because, other than staying completely clear of other people, that's the only way to do it.
Of course washing your hands and social distancing is still important too but THE ONLY mask that works to protect you effectively is the N95 mask. There have been enough of them made this year in this country, that everyone could have a couple right now.
Why isn't that the case?
Its time to stop the bs about saving them for health care workers. Health care workers have all started getting the vaccine for one thing(many months before the rest of us can get it and we have to wait twice as long because the flawed protocol is for them is to get 2 shots, while others wait months to get their first shot).
I have interviewed several people in healthcare about mask use recently and was astounded. One in particular in Indiana insists there is no shortage in masks or difficulty in them getting as many N95 masks as they need.
Currently, production in the US is something like 90 million/month.....from just 1 company.
What is happening is actually VERY sad. The masks are being squandered. Healthcare workers in many places are using a new mask every day and disposing of the last one. The scientific fact is that COVID can not survive on a mask for a week. If these same workers were issued 7 masks, to use continuously, they could use 1 N95 mask for each day of the week and each mask would be sterile after sitting out for a week. Unfortunately, I am told, there would be no way to verify that workers were applying this properly(some people might wear the same mask 2 days in a row for instance), so instead of doing the smartest thing by far..........they do what would be the easiest to verify. New N95 masks everyday for everybody.
So after 14 weeks, a typical healthcare person might use 70 N95 masks.
They could be doing it the smart way, using just 7 total for those days. Just 1 for each day of the week would have done the same exact job, every bit as effectively. Doing it by the current method, means that after 14 weeks, the healthcare worker has thrown out 63 masks that could have gone to non healthcare workers for REAL protection.
I've used many of my N95 masks 50 times. They seem to still be working fine. One had the rubber strap break.
It's understandable that in a medical setting and wearing them all day long that mask integrity might deteriorate well before 50 uses, especially if the mask had blood or other fluids on it. Of course many masks should be replaced much sooner under those conditions.
But for most situations, using the mask AT LEAST 10 times for instance vs just once seems reasonable which would result in the so called mask shortage becoming a mask surplus immediately.
Many hundreds of millions of masks were thrown away this way in 2020...........while at the same time, the average Joe is walking around with a not quite but almost worthless cloth mask. Being told that they are protected and that they need to save the N95 masks for healthcare workers(so they can mostly get thrown in the trash every day) ....causing the average Joe to catch COVID by following the rules.
Have you noticed that all the counties in the US,...........places with cloth mask mandates........ thousands of counties, in 40 states since the Summer are having massive COVID outbreaks too?
That would NOT be the case if everybody had been wearing N95 masks. The science is indisputable. N95 masks work. The 95 stands for it being able to filter out 95% of the COVID sized virus particles........and up to 99% effective at preventing the wearer from getting COVID.
Cloth masks let almost all of it in, with the exception of the virus on large aerosols of water vapor(tiny amount). There would still be COVID in the counties with mask mandates but it would be a fraction of what there is now if they were wearing N95 masks.
We keep hearing that its entirely from people not wearing masks. Some of it is but the truth is its almost entirely from people not wearing N95 masks!
I believe that if they were honest with us and encouraged us to get N95 masks, we would have far more compliance. A lot of the non compliance is from people rebelling against being told what to do. However, alot of it is because they know that cloth masks don't work.
If people knew they were doing something that REALLY protected them from COVID, they would be much more inclined to do it.
Go online right now and buy several N-95 masks. Ideally, 7...... 1 to wear each day of the week. They should last the average person for 3+ months and possibly 6 months if you are not hard on the masks.
Consider this. Even an old, somewhat deteriorated N-95 mask, worn, let's say 25 times is far better than a brand new cloth mask.
You can always replace them sooner than that but you need these masks by.............yesterday!
One can be certain that the COVID cases would just a fraction of what they are today if we had all been wearing N95 masks.
I agree that the science is clear that the N95 is the best way to protect yourself, but it is also proven that wearing masks of many varieties protects others from you. Evidence is clear. Just look at the data from China, Japan, S. Korea, Hong Kong.... Their cases/hospitalizations/deaths are WAY, WAY, WAY Better than the US.
Community.
joj,
I understand that cloth masks keep a coughing or sneezing person with COVID that doesn't know they have it from projecting COVID 10+ feet away from them.
This is a really good thing!
Instead, almost all the COVID still gets out but just doesn't travel as far. A person wearing a mask, in close proximacy does not filter any of the contaminated air in their cloth mask, so they still breath in most of whatever COVID particles that are in the air surrounding them them.............cloth mask or not.
We have had a mask mandate here in Vanderburgh Country IN (July) and in Wayne Country MI(Detroit) since the Spring...........but both places and almost every where else is having massive outbreaks.
You are not allowed in places without a mask. Many outdoor activities required a mask.
We keep hearing "if people just wore masks, it wouldn't be so bad"
The real world observations here in most counties of the US with mask mandates tell a different story. If only these people were wearing N95 masks.
If only they were not told they were protected by cloth masks.....and got COVID anyway.
If only the healthcare industry was not throwing away all their masks after 1 use.
The rest of us would not have the crisis this bad that we have right now.
I think that it doesn't matter that we might disagree a bit on cloth mask effectiveness(but mostly agree on much of it).
Many hundreds of counties with mask mandates in place for months are having severe outbreaks. So whether the cloth masks reduced it 5% or 15%............. or increased it in some cases(many people who think that cloth masks protect them will go out into crowds(like a protest) because they think that they are protected by the cloth mask....when they aren't and get COVID because of it.
We can agree that N95 masks filter out 95% of the virus(and are up to 99% effective at preventing COVID). There is evidence that its the concentrated plumes of virus that are breathed in without a mask or with a cloth mask that are getting most people infected. Those come from Super Spreaders that are shedding a massive amount of virus.
Even in that environment, an N 95 mask is likely to cut down on the amount of virus the wearer would breath in and protect them from getting infected.
Go online and buy N95 masks right now to protect yourself if you don't have them.
I always wondered why as of late officials seen in public wear the N-95 mask
The biggest point to be made here, goes beyond the stratospheric damage that has been done already because of this.
If everybody, from this point forward would buy N95 masks and wear them, COVID numbers would plunge.
Early on in the pandemic, when the N95 masks were in short supply, most healthcare workers were reusing the same masks. This was not good to use the same one every day of course but just having 3 of them and using the same ones every 4th day is extremely effective.
It was not until there was an overabundance of supply, that they changed the usage policies to throwing them out after just 1 use............because it was easier to keep track of and they have had enough to do that.
All the while, allowing 95% of the general population to walk around in not quite worthless cloth masks, when there could have been plenty of N95 masks for everyone.
Time to stop that bs and stop the spread of COVID damage from wearing just cloth masks.
Healthcare workers are great people risking their lives and just following procedure and not for a minute, would I suggest anything that would increase their risk 1 iota.
But they are all getting vaccinated(started already earlier this month) have more than enough masks and its time to start making smart decisions to fight the pandemic's spread in the general population, since the general population is going to have to wait twice as long to get vaccinated because the health care and others in high risk will be getting 2 shots, to be SUPER protected before anybody else gets their first shot.
How dumb is it, to spend almost all of our resources on around 15% of the population most at risk and none of it on the other 85 to 90% until over a year after the pandemic started?
People in nursing homes and healthcare worker are not causing the pandemic. They are at a higher risk to others around them but the pandemic is being caused by the 85-90% of people who have almost no protection because they are wearing cloth masks and will still have to wait 6 months or longer for their COVID shot.
At least advise them/us to use N95 masks and ask the vaccinated healthcare workers to stop throwing all of those good masks away every day!
I had/have a box of 40 industrial N95 masks-for dust, that work just as well, with 30 left this Spring. My wife and I have been using those since the Spring and I still have more than 20 left.
She hates them because they are hard to breath thru. It took me forever to convince her to wear them. If they were not that way, they would not work. The more filtering that is being done, the harder it is to breath thru that filtering.
Buy an N95 mask ASAP. I feel bad for not expressing this earlier but only recently got confirmation that healthcare workers are using a new one every day.................and now they will be protected with the vaccine.
The rest of us need protection too!
The brown colored states on the top map have mandatory mask orders in place, where the vast majority of people are wearing CLOTH masks. Most of these orders have been in place for numerous consecutive months, in many cases for 6+ months. So the number of cases on the map below have evolved with strict mandatory mask orders in place for a very long time.....or no mask orders in place for the non brown colors.
In map 2, the colors represent the reported cases of COVID. Note an interesting correlation. Most of the dark red states with the highest incidence of COVID have had mandatory mask orders in place for a long time. Note also that the states with the lowest incidence of COVID have not had mandatory mask wearing orders in place this year.
Can this be? States wearing cloth masks have highest COVID numbers? States not wearing masks, the lowest rates?
Turns out that most of this is related to population density but there has been no evidence to show that states or counties with mandatory cloth mask mandates have COVID rates lower than those with no restrictions. And there shouldn't be..............because cloth masks don't protect you from getting COVID, only N95 masks protect you!
12-23-20 update:
I added an even better map at the bottom, thanks to joj's NYT article. The source of this top map was also the NYT. It shows hospitals filling up. With the exception of an area around Memphis TN, most of the dark reds/beds filled areas have had cloth mask mandates for a long time.
Source: NY Times
Mask mandates by state as of Nov. 17, 2020.
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MM (keep an open mind here): You might have the cause and effect backwards regarding the comparison of maps above. In NY, which got hit hard early before anyone knew what was going on, most of the spread came early on and, as a result, the mask wearing (not mandatory except indoor businesses) subsequently became common place. I know this to be true in NY. I do not know about the rest of your map locations.
Today, The NY Times using data from Health and Human Resources posted maps of November's rise (week by week) in ICU use by county. It looks very different from the maps you posted. The northeastern states are doing pretty well and the southern states not so good.
I think you can see the map if you open a window "incognito". I pay the subscription because the journalism is so valuable and I don't steal it (even though I could with incognito).
so you all now think a mask that will not stop a virus did in fact stop a virus that 80% of the people will show no symptoms and 96% recover but its till ok to shut down America? Strange days, almost like the people have fallen for an other Russia hoax
McFarm,
For the 20th time:
Wearing a mask does NOT equal shutting down the economy. Shelter in place is shutting down the economy.
Did your mother teach you to cover your mouth when you sneeze? If so, how unpatriotic of her.
I actually get a NY Times email every morning. The top graph above came from them. I did not include the link because they were using it to make a case for the effectiveness of cloth masks. I think that they are wrong and has been a huge part of the problem.
Some of their data often completely contradicts what the article they write claims.
For instance, in this latest article, I added their graph to my graph page and described what the data actually shows which seems to be different than how you are perceiving it.
Places with long lived strict mandatory cloth mask mandates are just not seeing significantly lower cases because of it.
And if you just use the science of how a cloth mask works...........this makes complete sense. Almost all the COVID gets out of the infected mask users mask............almost all the COVID gets thru and breathed in by the exposed mask user.
That is the science of the mask.
All a cloth mask does is keep an infected person's sneeze or cough from being projected a long distance from them.
MOST of the COVID virus particles still get out.
If most of the COVID was the result of an infected persons sneeze that gets people 15 feet away, then cloths masks would be very effective.
How often, when you are in public do people around you sneeze?
Or coughing without covering their mouths?
During a normal year, I coach 200 kids doing chess at 5 schools. It's not real unusual that a young kid might cough without covering their mouth(although most do).
The situations that a cloth mask has saved people from getting COVID are low.
To be fair, I will add another potential benefit of the masks. If you are maintaining social distancing and are stationary for some time, the periphery of the COVID plume surrounding an infected person is likely to be a bit closer distance from them.
And on the other side of the coin. People convinced that cloth masks are effective(there are many) will get closer to people and go into riskier settings JUST BECAUSE the masks makes them feel safer. In these cases, more people get infected BECAUSE of the masks. There will never be data to support this because a conclusion that found this would not be allowed and would be censored. This is just human nature and me observing the behavior of people in the real world. And again, counties with long lived cloth mask mandates have some of the highest rates of COVID.
An N95 would have cut that down by a massive amount. We could have opened things up everywhere, if only people were wearing N95 masks. But they were actually told NOT to because those masks were to be saved for the health care workers.
And the biggest reason for the health care workers to need the N95 masks..........BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY WORK!
This is the comment that I added above:
https://www.marketforum.com/forum/topic/63115/#63140
12-23-20 update:
I added an even better map at the bottom, thanks to joj's NYT article. The source of this top map was also the NYT. It shows hospitals filling up. With the exception of an area around Memphis TN, most of the dark reds/beds filled areas have had cloth mask mandates for a long time.
joj,
To use NYC as an example is very cherry picking.
The epicenter of the worst location (in the country) of the first outbreak in the Spring...........they wore cloth masks.........and now its not as bad. So it must have been the cloth masks.
You will find that many hundreds of counties, possibly over a thousand, with long lived cloth mask mandates are NOT better.
mcfarm,
If everybody had been wearing N95 masks, almost everything could be open.
There are some places, like bars and restaurants that require you to take off the mask to imbibe but I think that rates would be so low overall, if we had all been wearing N95 masks, that this would have been well tolerated.
Many people don't want to wear masks but when its mandated, as it is in most places right now, you don't have much choice.
People convinced that cloth masks are working, don't realize that many people who don't wear them realize they don't help much.
Biden says that as soon as he takes office, he will make it a national mandate to wear cloth masks for 100 days.
WTHeck! Most places already have this, especially the worst ones.........and it isn't helping.
But cheerleaders think "If only Trump had done this, COVID wouldn't be so bad"
1. States make their own COVID decisions based on the Constitution....most chose to make cloth masks mandatory.
2. Wearing cloth masks is not the answer. The facts/data prove it. The science is also clear.
3. Making it mandatory for cloth masks everywhere as your first action as president to fight COVID, tells us he is just as clueless as Trump was.
https://www.statnews.com/pharmalot/2020/12/21/biden-trump-covid19-coronavirus-pandemic-mask-vaccine/
"The poll found that 75% of the public supports the idea of mandating a mask and a similar number believe people should be required to get tested if they feel sick. At the same time, two-thirds of Americans think President-elect Biden should ban gatherings involving more than 10 people. Nearly as many — just under 60% — said the administration should temporarily close nonessential businesses such as restaurants and gyms, and mandate vaccination.
However, while Democrats were overwhelmingly in favor of each of those mandates, a majority of Republicans registered their support only for mandatory mask wearing and testing, according to the survey, which queried 2,002 people online between Dec. 11 and Dec. 13."
metmike:
1. More than 75% of Americans already live in counties that have had long lived mask mandates!
2. So what if people are for or against this.............it doesn't work. We are spending all of time and resources battling and discussing whether or not we should impose something that is already imposed in most places and DOES NOT WORK!
And the bad thing is that the gatekeepers of the messages keep telling us that cloth masks work and that's why we should wear them..........and most people are but COVID is raging out of control..............and they just keep telling us, the same things as COVID spikes higher, blaming it on everything except the real reason.
People are not wearing N95 masks and are being told to NOT buy them. Save them for the ones that............have now started to be vaccinated/physically protected, who throw out the N95 masks they get after 1 use.
This is the recipe to make a pandemic worse.
After Biden has been in office for a while and Covid is still a problem, we'll hear "Well Trump had things so screwed up..."
Actually, we'll hear explantions for just about all/all of Biden's shortcomings start that way. Mark my words.
But at least he'll sound nice and thats what the majority voted for.
COVID will be peaking soon Tim.
With the implementation of the vaccine, then the peak of Flu/COVID season by around early March, earlier with luck, things will be improving greatly.
And where will we be next year at this time?
We have vaccines for the flu. But the flu mutates. We have a mutation of covide in the UK.
You can debate the similarities/differences between flu/covid all you want, but Covid, like the flu, will never go away. The biggest change we'll see will be in press coverage.
What if we were told the truth in numbers?
1. The 95 in N95 masks is because they have been scientifically tested/proven to filter out 95% of the COVID sized virus particles. The N means Not resistant to oils.
2. Cloth masks should be called N00 masks to reflect them tested to filter out near 0% of the actual COVID sized virus particles.
We have been encouraged to wear the N00 masks for the past 10 months. Places with strict, long lived mask mandates in place this year, are having some of the deadliest COVID numbers right now.
https://www.rd.com/article/what-does-the-n95-stand-for-in-n95-masks/
Why Aren’t We Wearing Better Masks?
Cloth masks are better than nothing, but they were supposed to be a stopgap measure.
https://www.pnas.org/content/118/4/e2014564118
"Another study looked at the difference between US states with mask mandates and those without, and found that the daily growth rate was 2.0 percentage points lower in states with mask mandates"
metmike: This study is very biased and poorly done. Many of those same states above with mask mandates that had a tiny bit lower rate, also had much stricter rules and more shut downs/less places open during the period they used for the study, early in the pandemic. When you have several contributing variables like they do and completely ignore all of them except the one that you want to try to prove in your paper...............you are big time BIASED.
Since 8 months have passed after they gathered this data, we have seen most places with mask mandates having similarly very high rates(in some cases higher) than those without mask mandates. The real world proves them wrong. Cloth masks don't protect you.
Fact is, nobody how many times they repeat to us and try to convince us how great cloth masks work to protect us, they give us almost 0% protection. They do slightly protect other people from us if we have COVID and are sneezing and coughing/shedding tons of virus.
Much of the confusion around masks stems from the conflation of two very different uses.
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/04/dont-wear-mask-yourself/610336/
"If you feel confused about whether people should wear masks and why and what kind, you’re not alone. COVID-19 is a novel disease and we’re learning new things about it every day. However, much of the confusion around masks stems from the conflation of two very different functions of masks.
Masks can be worn to protect the wearer from getting infected or masks can be worn to protect others from being infected by the wearer. Protecting the wearer is difficult: It requires medical-grade respirator masks(metmike-95), a proper fit, and careful putting on and taking off. But masks can also be worn to prevent transmission to others, and this is their most important use for society."
metmike: Stop with all the mumbo jumbo, confusing language, misleading studies, and covering up of AUTHENTIC facts/science with justification bs.
TELL PEOPLE THE TRUTH. CLOTH MASKS DO NOT PROTECT YOU. THEY CAN'T FILTER OUT ANY VIRUS SIZED PARTICLES. N95 MASKS FILTER OUT 95% OF THE COVID!
If we had all been wearing N95 masks instead of cloth masks, I would venture to guess that we might have less than half the current COVID numbers, possibly much less than that if most people were compliant.
N95 masks are more uncomfortable because of their tight fit and especially because they impede air flow.......which is by design and why they work. When you are filtering the air to limit only particles smaller than a virus to get in/out(O2 for instance) the flow rate of those smaller particles is also impeded a bit.
Exercising with an N95 mask for instance, is a bit more challenging(but possible) because respiration requirements are higher.
https://www.marketforum.com/forum/topic/64353/#64365
I don't believe this was done intentionally (but one has to wonder) If it had been, this would have been the recipe to maximize the damage............actually telling people to NOT get N95 masks.
This would be like, with heavy rain forecast, telling people to not use an umbrella or rain coat..........save those for the people that really need to stay dry.
Or when out in the Summer sun.............save the sunscreen for the people that really need to be protected from UV radiation.
Get and wear an N95 ASAP if you have not already.
Get vaccinated ASAP.
I go tomorrow with my 85 year old mother in law.
Do this, even though it looks like the numbers have peaked. We have a long way to go.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/states-reopen-map-coronavirus.html
President Biden pledged to act aggressively to get the coronavirus pandemic under control, and he used his first two days in office to issue some limited mask mandates that his predecessor had long resisted. Yet it remains largely up to state and local officials to determine what restrictions, if any, to impose to slow new infections.
The resulting nationwide patchwork of rules for businesses and residents reflects months of trial and error as governors have closed sectors they reopened after earlier lockdowns, or have reopened others as infection rates dropped. In some states, leaders wary of an ailing economy have resisted any closures, opting instead for capacity limits or mandating mask use in public.
The New York Times is tracking coronavirus restrictions at the state level, including what businesses are open or closed — and whether officials require masks or recommend or order staying at home. Stricter local orders may also be in place, and local conditions may not always reflect state requirements.
Many states offer exceptions to broader rules, for example allowing bars to operate if they also serve food. Nearly all states limit capacity or require social distancing measures for businesses that are allowed to open.
This page will be updated regularly.
Get and wear an N95 mask ASAP if you have not already.
Get vaccinated ASAP.
I go today with my 85 year old mother in law.
Do this, even though it looks like the numbers have peaked. We have a long way to go.
metmike: Read the quote below, underlined and in bold: Some experts say it is time to buy the highest-quality KN95 or N95 masks that officials hoping to reserve supplies for health-care workers have long discouraged Americans from purchasing.
WTheck, 26,000,000 have had COVID, hundreds of thousands have died after almost a year and now, we finally hear that "some experts" FINALLY are saying its time to start using the only masks that work?
What is wrong with these science experts and gate keepers of information??????
+++++++++++++++++++++
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/01/27/double-mask-variants-guidance/
Wear your mask is becoming wear your masks.
The discovery of highly transmissible coronavirus variantsin the United States has public health experts urging Americans to upgrade the simple cloth masks that have become a staple shield during the pandemic.
The change can be as simple as slapping a second mask over the one you already wear, or better yet, donning a fabric mask on top of a surgical mask. Some experts say it is time to buy the highest-quality KN95 or N95 masks that officials hoping to reserve supplies for health-care workers have long discouraged Americans from purchasing.
What you need to know about the coronavirus variants
As with other parts of the pandemic response, the United States lags behind other parts of the world when it comes to masks. Several Asian countries, including Singapore and South Korea,have mass-produced high-quality masks to send directly to residents. In recent weeks, European countries have begun mandating medical-grade masks in public settings as the virus strain first identified in the United Kingdom threatens to ravage communities. British scientists estimate it could be as much as 70 percent more transmissible.
“The existence of more-transmissible viruses emphasizes the importance of us upping our game and doing not more of the same but better of the same,” said Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Frieden has called for people to wear higher-quality masks. “Yes, that is confusing to people, but the key is to share what we know when we know it and be frank about what we don’t know.”
Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease expert, touted double-masking during a Monday appearance on the “Today” show, saying two layers “just makes common sense that it likely would be more effective.”
But on a Wednesday town hall appearance on CNN, Fauci appeared to reverse course and instead stressed following CDC guidance, which does not call for wearing two masks or N95s. New CDC Director Director Rochelle Walensky, appearing alongside Fauci, also warned that N95 masks are uncomfortable to wear and may dissuade consistent use if expanded to the general public.
The CDC encourages Americans to choose well-fitting masks with “two or more layers of washable, breathable fabric” and to avoid surgical masks and other face coverings meant for health-care workers.
President Biden has embraced masks as a core strategy for ending the pandemic, mandating face coverings on planes, in airports and in all federal buildings. But he has not called for a medical-grade-mask mandate or mass production of high-quality masks.
The CDC and White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Some public health experts said the federal government should have prioritized certifying or manufacturing better masks earlier so Americans do not have to fend for themselves to avoid counterfeits or upgrade their own.
The Trump administration in March coordinated with underwear makers to send five masks to every household, officials told The Washington Post, but the plans fell apart because of logistical concerns and other issues, including complaints that the masks looked like underwear or jockstraps.
Abraar Karan, a physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School has, since last spring, called on government and industrial leaders to mass-produce comfortable, effective masks. He said the country could have avoided its current situation, with Americans learning how to better protect themselves largely alone.
“This seems just like the rest of our covid tragedy: We just don’t have answers, we just put out fires constantly, and we are asking people to do things on their own,” Karan said. “You’ve always needed better masks. We needed better masks from the start.”
Linsey Marr, a Virginia Tech engineering professor who has researched mask effectiveness, said the public has better tools to reduce viral loads getting into the air and into bodies.
Without a medical-grade face covering, Marr said, people can get the best, simplest protection by wearing a cloth mask tightly on top of a surgical mask. They can also make a three-layer mask by cutting a high-efficiency filter, such as a vacuum bag, to place between two tightly-woven fabric masks.
Dr fauci and the CDC have been changing their recommendations quite often, since February 2020.
This doctor here tells the truth...
"...“This seems just like the rest of our covid tragedy: We just don’t have answers, we just put out fires constantly..."
So, the country's top experts had to learn on the job how to deal with this... they didn't have the correct answers last year.... and they are still in the learning stage.
Yet, we are blaming that real-estate developer in the White House for not knowing what to do, when the crisis started last February, and blame him for all the deaths.
And when I say "we", I don't mean "us" here on this forum... I am referring to the politicians who are leading the country now.
"A December survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that more than 70% of Americans report wearing masks."
No shirt Sherlock, that's what I've been saying for months. The almost worthless cloth masks are not helping much!!!!! People have been wearing them for many, many months with the numbers soaring much higher in counties with mask mandates. Biden's cloth mask mandate is retarded science but he is only doing what he's been told to do. His science advisors and everybody that has not recommended an N95 that should have known better and has been in a position to strongly advise them............but failed to to so........ is complicit.
So it took him almost a year to figure this out (wear 2 masks instead of 1) and he still hasn't figured out that if he had been telling everybody to wear the masks that actually work, the N95 masks(95 is for it proven to filter out 95% of particles the size of COVID) that our COVID numbers would be MUCH, MUCH lower than they are.
Seriously, I am wondering if some to much of this is intentionally trying to NOT stop the pandemic.
They have violated too many scientific no brainers that they just can't be this dumb.
So it sure looks like we peaked 2 weeks ago and par for the course, Biden came out and told us the exact opposite!!
Post election, Biden says "Nothing will change the trajectory of covid over the next several months"
17 responses |
Started by TimNew - Jan. 23, 2021, 2:37 p.m.
COVID new cases and hospitalizations peaked 3 weeks ago:
I realize it is anecdotal but I have had occasion to visit with elementary teachers and parents. This school mandates masks for all in the building (yes, mostly cloth) restricts entry, clean the rooms throughly and trace kids that have been tested positive with a quarantine period. Mask compliance is nearly 100%.
Every single teacher has remarked on the lack of missed days due to student illness. No constant coughing, snorting, sniffling, sneezing and hacking from half the class. If you were to visit an elementary classroom in past years you would understand the change. They can be petri dishes of respiratory infections.
I remember many times delaying an exam or project because of the number of students absent due to illness. This time of year the teachers would always put out a call for parents to send tissues. Not this year, tissue boxes are nearly unused.
So, obviously the measures we are taking are having an effect. If we could have had mask compliance early we wouldn’t have had to harm the economy as we did. But instead we had leaders who destained mask wearing and called the whole thing a hoax. Leaders who made not wearing masks a sign of loving freedom, and followers who gladly lapped it up.
I predict much of what we have learned and the changes made will carry on into the future. Those who see these common sense measures as some sort of infringement of their delicate freedoms will fade into the past. But then some folks are just programmed to say no, regardless.
Mike- are you a “Queens Gambit” fan ? I imagine you are. Did you ever look into the “No Stress Chess” game?
mcfarmer,
Seeing you post here is a wonderful gift to the forum and especially to me!!!
One of my favorite posters ever!
Thanks for the report from your location in Iowa!
I remember your rec of No stress chess and appreciate that.
It's a wonderful game, especially for young children that don't have an adult that understands chess to teach them. Adults that don't actually understand chess could actually learn from it.
The reason that I did not push it with my 5 schools is that the younger kids, who are just learning, get lessons from me the first 2 meetings, using my instruction board that teach them to play.
In other words.............they have a chess coach, which is much better than this teaching game in most cases.
However, where I do see using this.............and thank you for bringing it up again, is when we have chess again next year(cancelled from COVID this year), the little ones struggling could benefit.
I might buy a couple of them and send them home with little kids having a hard time catching on!!!
For the absolute beginner, there’s no better way to learn than with No Stress Chess!
https://www.chess-site.com/chess-sets/no-stress-chess/
On the Queen's Gambit, I usually have 200 kids from 5 schools and don't get into specific opening moves very often, which the more elite players could understand..............just teaching basic principles on opening moves and developing pieces, which help almost all the kids.
I give them as many opportunities to play, especially in competitive tournaments, the biggest one in Indiana, (with 200 players) other than the ones from Scholastic Chess of Indiana is run by me.
This guy is REALLY REALLY good!
I think that I might pass on some chess videos for our chess families, since this came up and we have no chess this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtsabsZ4wG4
Man, did we ever get lucky with our chess tournament last year on March 7th, 2020!! Just days before everything shut down
Wonderful Chess Tournament
14 responses |
Started by metmike - March 2, 2020, 4:17 p.m.
https://www.marketforum.com/forum/topic/48387/
So mcfarmer,
I'm guessing, based on knowing you, that you are in the local schools helping as a volunteer, correct?
I know all about sitting across a chess board with a coughing kid but have an overactive immune system(autoimmune disorder) that causes issues but keeps me from ever getting sick.
I didn’t make myself clear. I was referring to this:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Queen%27s_Gambit_(miniseries)
That's pretty funny mcfarmer! I didn't even know about that Queen's Gambit but it sounds like a good show.
I watch CNN and FOX for news, then local ABC/network news when my wife is not home(other than a few sports events).
Then give her complete control of the clicker when she is here.
Rand Paul obliterates Fauci's junk science"theatre"
Started by metmike - March 18, 2021, 1:44 p.m.
COVID-Apr. 14-pause in big drop-still(mostly)BEAT COVID!
46 responses