coronavirus discussion

[Great68]

Ah, so that's back to my original comment. I have faith and believe our BC Health officials are looking at the data and making the correct decisions based on that or things would still be mandated.
If you think the decisions are politically motivated, then you're removing all credibility of our health officials.

[SkinnyPupp]

Originally Posted by Great68

Ah, so that's back to my original comment. I have faith and believe our BC Health officials are looking at the data and making the correct decisions based on that or things would still be mandated.
If you think the decisions are politically motivated, then you're removing all credibility of our health officials.

Why else do you think the rules are, as you put it, counterintuitive or straight up conflicting?

Science should be intuitive and non conflicting..

[Great68]

So then who's right? Which side is more politically charged?

[westopher]

Originally Posted by Great68

If you think the decisions are politically motivated, then you're removing all credibility of our health officials.

I don’t agree with that at all. They are reading public reaction to their rules and suggestions with the understanding that an angry, spiteful public will make it far more difficult to impose or suggest any health restrictions moving forward.
It’s an understanding that you can only disrupt public life so substantially for so long before the pushback makes people cut off their nose to spite their face, especially in todays political climate where people seem to value freedom over quality of life in many aspects.
Although I don’t believe that necessarily makes it politically motivated. It’s an important look at the psychology of making things most effective.

[SkinnyPupp]

Originally Posted by Great68

So then who's right? Which side is more politically charged?

Not sure what you mean by who is right? Who as in who?

Maybe Westopher is on the right track, and this is being done mostly to prevent bus drivers and passengers from getting spit on or physically assaulted. Maybe the truckers won after all? I have no idea

[Great68]

Originally Posted by westopher

I don’t agree with that at all. They are reading public reaction to their rules and suggestions with the understanding that an angry, spiteful public will make it far more difficult to impose or suggest any health restrictions moving forward.
It’s an understanding that you can only disrupt public life so substantially for so long before the pushback makes people cut off their nose to spite their face, especially in todays political climate where people seem to value freedom over quality of life in many aspects.
Although I don’t believe that necessarily makes it politically motivated. It’s an important look at the psychology of making things most effective.

One can certainly hold that opinion. I do not, and say it's not politically motivated or our that would just remove all confidence in our health professionals. All along the messaging that we got from our BC officials is that people not following the order were idiots, that this province was not going to be looking at other provinces or the federal government to make its decisions and plot it's own course. It would be quite the about-face if at the end of it all they just decided to cave to public pressure.
Unless you can produce actual evidence that what you say is what led the decisions they made... Maybe there's a tape of a heated discussion between Horgan and Henry on this decision, and Hulk comes out "Dammit Bonnie, people can't handle this any longer, this is how it's going to be".

[Great68]

Originally Posted by SkinnyPupp

Not sure what you mean by who is right? Who as in who?

The federal side or the provincial side

[MarkyMark]

Well if hospitals were still completely maxed out would they have removed mask mandates just because people are upset about masks? I doubt it. I imagine someone with more information than us looked at the numbers and made a decision that isn't likely to affect the health of most citizens.

[westopher]

No they wouldn’t of, of course. They look at reasonable concessions to make, and make them. There is obviously a risk assessment involved.
It’s not black and white yes or no question. You balance decisions on multiple factors. If it was just safe or unsafe, they’d say yes or no, not, yes with caveats and suggested courses of action.

[MarkyMark]

I do believe their choices have been dictated more by science than public pressure. It's all risk assessment, and the risk just isn't what it used to be. I can't imagine they just decided to say fuck it based on a random bus attack.

I had more support for masks when it was mandated everywhere. At least then it made sense, if you're around people you're wearing a mask. This whole "mask here, no mask here" phase we've entered just seems sloppy, and I can't imagine it's working too well to slow the spread of a highly contagious virus.

[SumAznGuy]

Originally Posted by MarkyMark

Well if hospitals were still completely maxed out would they have removed mask mandates just because people are upset about masks? I doubt it. I imagine someone with more information than us looked at the numbers and made a decision that isn't likely to affect the health of most citizens.

Alberta did that last summer and pretty much declared covid over just as the science was showing Delta infections were starting to increase.

I believe every decision is politically/financially motivated. Not for what's best for the people, but what minimizes financial loses, not letting the medical system crash, while staying in people good books and hopefully get re-elected on the next election.

[westopher]

All I’m really trying to say, is public support is also part of the science.

[68style]

Ask anyone in Alberta if Jason Kenny was making decisions based on science or re-election chances lol

Canadian version of Ted Cruz... who is also sort of Canadian, embarrassingly enough

[Hondaracer]

With how “poorly” Alberta handled the whole thing they saw only 1000 more deaths than BC through the entire thing.

While people will go off about that being significant, I’d say over a 2 year period it’s not that bad considering restrictions were essentially lifted twice as often as other places.

Quebec has double the population of Alberta yet they had almost 3.5 times as many deaths as Alberta. No one seems to bring up Quebec who also seemed to have more severe restrictions etc. did they do a “good” job?

[westopher]

Lol Alberta’s restrictions were way harsher than ours most of the time but they went with a model of massive restrictions followed by none. 25% more deaths, 30% less population, indoor dining closed for months on end. They did an objectively much worse job of handling it.
Quebec did an absolutely garbage job as well. Same model as Alberta. That plays well into my theory of taking public opinion into consideration as well. Nobody would tolerate what was happening in Quebec with the absolute bullshit restrictions like curfews. That’s why everyone was just hanging out with other people in their homes with no consideration for the rules and driving infections.

[Hondaracer]

Than BC, yes.

BC basically walked this tightrope and it worked out. I’ll give them credit for it

[68style]

1000 more deaths with 700,000 less population is a lot... and they also had way MORE restrictions than us at times to clamp back down on being stupid lifting things too early a couple times.

Basically 1000 more people died so Kenney could get some votes.

Even when he had to hammer restrictions back on worse than BC's, he blamed it totally on his version of Bonnie Henry (sorry I forgot her name)... that poor woman ate so much shit for him.

[mikemhg]

Just came back from Phoenix yesterday, boy it was refreshing.

I'm out of the loop here, you guys still arguing about masks?

TSA has scrapped their mandates, along with most companies (Uber days ago).

It's a moot point now. I can acknowledge I was very much on the left when it came to COVID mandates back in 2020, my opinion has evolved over time -- it's a shame that some of us have attached our own identity to the subject as an extension of one's self, that rigidity some are carrying begets common sense at this point.

[Gumby]

To me (this part is important, as everybody is different), common sense dictates that I should wear a mask in a variety of situations. Yes, it can be a hassle, but I don't find it uncomfortable, so why not decrease the chance (even by the tiniest bit) of me passing germs to others, or others passing germs to me?

Kind of like wearing a seatbelt. Besides the chance of getting a no seatbelt ticket, why do you wear a seatbelt? How likely are you going to get into a severe accident?

Edit: I’ll concede that mask vs seatbelt is a bad comparison.

[MarkyMark]

No seatbelt and a bad accident is for going to fuck you up or kill you. No mask and catching Covid at this point I'm most likely getting a runny nose if I even have any symptoms at all. Not the best comparison.

[GS8]

I just wear a portable airbag when I'm pushing dat samosa and tadka filled buggy around the Newton Walmart

[Hondaracer]

I’d say it’s more akin to wearing a helmet while driving as opposed to your seatbelt.

[J____]

Originally Posted by SkinnyPupp

That's fucking hilarious

The news here has been:

Govt plans to do universal testing over 9 days. Everyone tested 3 times, then RAT daily, and positives go into isolation

China wants them to do full lockdown during this time. What this means, nobody knows, but most likely it'd basically be like a typhoon lockdown, something we do 1-3 times a year. Grocery stores, pharmacies, etc would remain open.

Govt leaked these 2 stories with 2 different dates to the press (March 17 and March 27), and people lost their shit and started panic buy. Most grocery stores were cleared out of fresh and frozen food. Still lots of canned food and snacks and rice. We had to buy frozen chicken breasts for instance

Experts have been saying universal testing is pointless during the peak, they already missed their shot at it having any effect. They'd essentially find over a million positives and tell them to stay home.

So the universal test is on hold for now, but they may use it to kill off the wave once it starts to die on its own. Experts keep saying it's pointless except in specific scenarios, but China really wants them to appear as if they're doing something. They still do building lockdowns, and when they do they find between 10-20% of the residents are positive.

They are still building isolation facilities, a new one in a shipping port with thousands of isolation pods that look like prison cells (complete with barred windows)

Man oh man, after more than a month in Shanghai lock down, looking at your old post makes that cell seem like heaven haha. It was and still is an absolute shit show. Unbelievable how political opposition and turmoil can turn a "world class" mega city into a shit show. Everyday you'd see and experience shit that you would not imagine can ever happen. Just yesterday the morgue went to a retirement home and hauled away a old woman, she was all covered and zipped up, then while loading into the truck one of the retirement home workers realized she was still alive and moving haha. They then bring her back out and back into the home... A lot of the quarantine places are nasty AF and impossible to get rest as you are all sealed up with hundreds of people in a communal room, all snoring, lights always on, no showers. Even with that a lot of people in the early weeks was begging to go because they couldn't get any food to feed themselves. It's so crazy...

[quasi]

I got back from Vegas yesterday, was starting to feel run down, getting winded from 1 set of stairs. Tested when I got home, positive. Who would have thunk playing poker in a room with 5,000 other people. Feel worse today for sure.

I wonder what percentage of people at WSOP end up with it? Over/under 25% ? Less than 2% masked would be my guess if you're curious.

[MarkyMark]

I mean at this point if you're going out daily or traveling you've accepted that you're going to get Covid or you've probably already had it.