Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #74

[10ofRods]

We should all take medical advice from Peru.

Why not?

 

[CSIDreamer]

I can only speak to what I've heard on various online platforms, which is that if a place had a rent moratorium and there could be no evictions, tons of people just didn't pay rent.

For example, there were long discussions about this on some RVer forums (use rent money to go travel, how much would it cost, how long a trip could they plan, etc). I know some young people who didn't pay rent (even though they could have) because they didn't have to. They may now face eviction. Some younger people didn't realize what "moratorium" meant and heard it as "we live rent-free for now!"

A friend who works at a local sporting goods store says people have been explicit about spending their rent (or mortgage!) money on tons of fancy camping equipment.

Letters to the editor in a few newspapers show puzzlement when people use their freed-up rent money to put a down payment on a new car.

There have been panicked discussions on reddit when people found out there UI is taxable.

In short, many people thought this was a fine deal: extra money, no rent or mortgage to pay and are now facing eviction and saved nary a dime. The idea was supposed to be that only people who weren't getting UI would use the free rent/mortgage exemption. Even then, most mortgage companies were permitted to either demand the money later or extend the mortgage (let's hope for everyone's sake that the latter is more common).

Tents under L.A. freeways have blossomed in the past month. People in my neighborhood have gotten their RV's out of storage and parked them on the street (not legal but I don't think there's enforcement right now - and I don't think most of us would call them in). Relatives are living there. Mostly CA license plates, but some out of state people living in campers on stilts on a driveway or in RV's right on the street (tons and tons more cars in my neighborhood than usual). Moving vans bringing belongings of adult children back home...

I completely believe this. Its on these people who didn't bother paying rent or budgeting. Its called being irresponsible. Jmo

 

[Simply Southern]

And the way to an education is to get out of poverty. Because of CoVid, Canadian policy makers have looked back to the 1970s, when Canada did some experimentation with a minimum income. The experiment was called ‘Mincome’, and it had been designed by a group of economists who wanted to do something to address rural poverty. Once it was implemented, it had real results: over the four years that the program ended up running in the 1970s, an average family in Dauphin, the rural town selected for the experiment, was guaranteed an annual income of 16,000 Canadian dollars ($11,700 USD, £9,400).

The purpose of the experiment was to see whether a guaranteed basic income for those below the poverty line could improve quality of life..

Back in 1974, Canadian policy makers were inspired by a wave of social reforms, which had been rolled out throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, including the introduction of universal health insurance across Canada in 1972. So, having garnered the support of Canada’s federal and provincial governments, University of Manitoba economist Derek Hum, along with Manitoba civil servants Ron Hikel and Michael Loeb, created a scheme in which Dauphin’s poorest residents could apply to receive monthly cheques to boost their existing income.

At the time it was the most ambitious social science experiment ever to take place in Canada. It saw rates of hospitalisations fall, improvements in mental health, and a rise in the number of children completing high school.

In fact, over the course of those four years, students in families that had enrolled in the minimum income experiment were more likely to graduate than students from the city of Winnipeg . In 1976, 100% of the students from Dauphin enrolled for their final year of school.

The article I am quoting is interesting. It's been featured in the BBC news for a while. More here: Canada’s forgotten universal basic income experiment

I agree and am familiar with the experiment.

In the US we have many grants, loans for those seeking a better way of life. Yes, its tuff and lots of hard work, sweat and tears to pull out of poverty.

But we also have some that poverty is generational and living off government benefits is a way of life.

Every year as senior start to graduate, we see an increase in SS disability claims. Many 18 year old, head to sign up for "my check". No plans for a trade school, college, or a job. It's very difficult to explain you must be disable to receive SSDA. They don't understand...mama gets a check and I want one,too.

O/T I hired a guy from Russian for a low level position. He walked off a ship from Russia in NYC and gained asylum. He spoke NO English. He said folks are waiting at the ship's offering cash jobs and housing for those seeking entry into the US. He lived in a 3 room apartment in NYC with 20 men, slept on the kitchen floor, painting housing for cash. He purchased a Russian/English translation dictionary and started his journey.

After just a few months, he had a work visa, enrolled in free classes to learn English. At 6 months he made a plan to leave NYC and to seek an education. He rode a bus to Roanoke, VA, found a job (me), rented a room, not an apartment and enrolled in the community college at night.

He only owned 2 changes of clothing purhased at Goodwill, by CHOICE and cooked on a hot plate. By the first year he had saved over 25k.

He taught me so much !!! He would say everyday....

In Russia we work very hard just to say alive and not starve. In America, I work very hard and will be successful.

He now owns a large accounting business, with 20 employees, married a girl I introduced him to and is truly a testament to the opportunities in America.

There is opportunity here, for those that choose to make a better life.

Moo

 

[CSIDreamer]

If we're funded to do so. Right now, I don't see what any school can do. We are required to follow FERPA, hasn't been suspended, and we don't do testing.

It's supposed to work starting with the testing. But my good friend who works for County Health (and is technically a contact tracer) says they didn't get training until 2 weeks ago and were barred from going into several hotspot situations (for reasons I'd be happy to go into if this weren't a public forum).

What any school can do is watch over their charges. Assign seats everywhere. Classrooms, cafeteria, bus. Then if a student tests positive you contact other students who spent time in "x" radius of that student. And put them on a 2 week e learning quarantine.

 

[10ofRods]

I think that Ireland is allowing Americans but they have to quarantine for 14 days after arrival. Tour operators are asking to see their passports for date of arrival and proof that they had done the quarantine. Some say they were unaware of that condition, but immigration are telling them as they come through.

Sadly, those of us on the West Coast have no direct flights.

Are Irish airports checking passports when people fly to another EU nation from Ireland? I wonder.

 

[10ofRods]

What any school can do is watch over their charges. Assign seats everywhere. Classrooms, cafeteria, bus. Then if a student tests positive you contact other students who spent time in "x" radius of that student. And put them on a 2 week e learning quarantine.

The assigned seat idea is great and hopefully that's what we'll do when we reopen in 2021.

All of this works only if either the child's parents or the testing bureau tells the school right away that a kid has CoVId. We're so slow with testing right now, it might be a week's worth of disentangling where that child was the whole time. Maybe longer.

You could, in fact, assign kids to "pods" and let them be 6 feet away in the classroom, but play briefly together in small groups on the playground.

I am very strongly in favor of as much outdoor education as possible - for all kinds of reasons. Utilize every part of the school. Ask for volunteers to help supervise if necessary. All the adults in PPE (although it's said there's no PPE for teachers in California and that we're facing, once again, a nationwide PPE shortage).

We'll also have a lot of brand new teachers in the mix in 2021, with so many retirements (which stings the state budget, again).

 

[SouthAussie]

Fire, looting.
(Bushfires)

It's more than quarantine. We are experiencing financial devastation, social unrest, riots, rebellions and possible martial law.
It more about surviving what could/may happen than quarantine and protecting their families from physical harm.

Moo....

The bunkers are ridiculous against covid. Australia is not experiencing riots, rebellions, martial law, looting. The bunkers are being sold in Queensland. The people there are going to the beach, going surfing, going out to eat, going shopping, going to work.

The 'inquirers from Victoria' are under stage three lockdown - not a tough lockdown.

Most people in Melbourne wouldn't have enough room in their city backyards for a bunker. They too are not experiencing looting, riots, rebellions, martial law. They are into Day Nine or so of a tighter 6-week lockdown. By the time a bunker arrived and was installed, the lockdown will be over. Their numbers are definitely on the decrease, and things are starting to look quite good for them.

It is a stupid sales tactic. Unless a person is a rare (to us), illogical, conspiracy theorist, I can't imagine anyone here would want a bunker.

Even in a bushfire, you wouldn't want to be trapped in one of them. Smoke pouring in through the ventilation system, choking anyone inside. Even the fire crews have to wear heavy masks when combatting a bush fire, due to the intense heavy smoke.

 

[MimosaMornings]

40% of people with COVID-19 have no symptoms. Might they be the key to ending the pandemic? — The Washington Post

“When researcher Monica Gandhi began digging deeper into outbreaks of the novel coronavirus, she was struck by the extraordinarily high number of infected people who had no symptoms.

A Boston homeless shelter had 147 infected residents, but 88 percent had no symptoms even though they shared their living space. A Tyson Foods poultry plant in Springdale, Ark., had 481 infections, and 95 percent were asymptomatic. Prisons in Arkansas, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia counted 3,277 infected people, but 96 percent were asymptomatic.”

 

[mickey2942]

This whole Covid thing is so crazy. I have a stupid summer cold, sneezing, runny nose, sore throat. It is nothing. A slight dry cough. It is NOT Covid!

Are we supposed to think that every aliment is Covid now?!

 

[Simply Southern]

If we're funded to do so. Right now, I don't see what any school can do. We are required to follow FERPA, hasn't been suspended, and we don't do testing.

It's supposed to work starting with the testing. But my good friend who works for County Health (and is technically a contact tracer) says they didn't get training until 2 weeks ago and were barred from going into several hotspot situations (for reasons I'd be happy to go into if this weren't a public forum).

In Virginia providing an education for the working has fallen to many non profits. They are using church community halls, community center, even empty stores in shopping centers to provide meals, internet access, educational support and safe social distance. Businesses are donating large spaces rent free.

These groups have little to no money but have hearts of gold and lots of experience running licensed daycare. They've read the CDC guidance, know the guidelines better than some school board members.

My school board received 4.5 million dollars for 7,455 students, for 4 schools. That's over a million per school. The schools added hand sanitizer stations, hands free doors, PPE and all teachers got new laptops. They used thousands to let teachers work from home over the summer, but no one know what kinda work they did. Virginia has a state wide virtual school program, so they weren't preparing lesson plans.

Our school board members say....We let them use it as they saw fit. Now everyone's wondering how private schools and non profits with little to no money are able to safeguard our kids, in licensed childcare centers.

We have a couple of daycares that provides daycare for medial personal children only. You would think they would have experience an outbreak. Nope, not one kid since March 15th in these daycares has become infected.

Many are starting to ask questions....how can licensed day cares like YMCA/churches do this with a proved zero track record and our schools can't.


Did CA not appropriate any CARES money to schools?

I'll have to go look, not sure if money was earmarked at the congressional level for schools or if it was up to each state.

Moo...

 

[10ofRods]

I completely believe this. Its on these people who didn't bother paying rent or budgeting. Its called being irresponsible. Jmo

Totally agree. It never occurred to my daughter (who was on UI) to not pay rent. That's the first thing they do with their money. Then the utilities. She's saved money on gas (about $100 a month) and she got a little bit more money on UI than she did in an average month substitute teaching. They stopped eating out and she's a frugal cook.

Just got back from the pharmacy and saw 2 moving vans outside the apartments nearest us - people loading them, not unloading them.

I look at the cost of all the bikes and RV's at Sturgis and wonder how so many people found spare cash for those things. Same in my neighborhood - SO many large RV's. Most under 3 years old.

At least they have spare room for their returning family (and possibly friends, at one house).

 

[LadyL]

I can't keep up so sorry if already posted.

Crazy scenes on beaches in England as thousands soaked up sunshine

 

[Bravo]

Trump abruptly ends Coronavirus Briefing. Stops mid sentence. WH on Lockdown. Per CNN

 

[tresir2012]

Sadly, those of us on the West Coast have no direct flights.

Are Irish airports checking passports when people fly to another EU nation from Ireland? I wonder.

Yes. All EU passports have to be shown on flights so they know you are an EU citizen. How would they know otherwise? Ireland and UK are not in the Schengen area which some other EU nations with land borders are. It is (was I guess I should say before Covid) possible to drive across some EU land borders without showing a passport.

 

[Bravo]

Virus briefing has resumed per CNN. Some details have been stated. Carry on.....

 

[10ofRods]

This whole Covid thing is so crazy. I have a stupid summer cold, sneezing, runny nose, sore throat. It is nothing. A slight dry cough. It is NOT Covid!

Are we supposed to think that every aliment is Covid now?!

Well...how would you know that it's not? I've had a dry cough since December, but if it had started in March, dunno. I probably would have gotten tested.

Since you're keeping yourself safe, you're almost certainly right (it's not CoVid). My DH starts his internal CoVid clock running each time he runs out for an errand (about once a week). We also do a socially distanced meeting with our kids about once a week - I don't regard it as possible that I'd get it from them.

I don't know what I'd do if I had new symptoms! Anyway, keep an eye on it.

In Virginia providing an education for the working has fallen to many non profits. They are using church community halls, community center, even empty stores in shopping centers to provide meals, internet access, educational support and safe social distance. Businesses are donating large spaces rent free.

These groups have little to no money but have hearts of gold and lots of experience running licensed daycare. They've read the CDC guidance, know the guidelines better than some school board members.

My school board received 4.5 million dollars for 7,455 students, for 4 schools. That's over a million per school. The schools added hand sanitizer stations, hands free doors, PPE and all teachers got new laptops. They used thousands to let teachers work from home over the summer, but no one know what kinda work they did. Virginia has a state wide virtual school program, so they weren't preparing lesson plans.

Our school board members say....We let them use it as they saw fit. Now everyone's wondering how private schools and non profits with little to no money are able to safeguard our kids, in licensed childcare centers.

We have a couple of daycares that provides daycare for medial personal children only. You would think they would have experience an outbreak. Nope, not one kid since March 15th in these daycares has become infected.

Many are starting to ask questions....how can licensed day cares like YMCA/churches do this with a proved zero track record and our schools can't.


Did CA not appropriate any CARES money to schools?

I'll have to go look, not sure if money was earmarked at the congressional level for schools or if it was up to each state.

Moo...

It's up to each state. Right now, California is laying off about 10% of its educational employees due to budget shortfalls created by CoVid. College budgets are slashed 10% as well. Some of these layoffs are teachers. I don't know how we expect to get class sizes smaller (as recommended both by CDC and California public health authorities) if we are 10% short in money. But the federal CARES funds are being used mostly for personnel, as I understand it.

By January, I expect some hand sanitizer stations will be installed, but there's no rush as there are no students in schools.

Medical personnel daycare centers are a good bet. But daycare centers that cater to the entire public would be quite different (and there are definitely cases inside daycare centers here in California - just not very many and possibly started by staff).

North Carolina has had a daycare cluster (and 1 death):

Daycare worker who died from COVID-19 is NC’s first childcare center death

And another in South Carolina:

https://www.thestate.com/news/coronavirus/article244807627.html

The daycare center where one of my nurse friends used to leave her child is actually in the hospital (she works on the CoVid ward), and it is at ⅓ capacity as most of the staff do not wish to leave their children there - so there's quite a smaller number than would occur if all children in California got their usual daycare pre- and post- school.

Licensed daycare centers like YMCA and churches are closed here, so we have no data. We do know who the adults are, who have tested positive for CoVid, and many have children. But those children are not in daycare right now.

What happens when everyone goes back? Food packing employee children right next to nurse's children? And they are all 2-5 years old?

We'll see CoVid among daycare staff, is my prediction. But the US's most populous state has not yet run this experiment (nor have NY or NJ). So there's no way of knowing at this point.

Would I risk my toddler? Only if I had access to the medical daycare system, which I've observed and admire.

Anyway, we have to have more teachers if we're going to lower classroom size...there are no calls for new teachers, there's no hiring going on yet.

 

[Simply Southern]

The assigned seat idea is great and hopefully that's what we'll do when we reopen in 2021.

All of this works only if either the child's parents or the testing bureau tells the school right away that a kid has CoVId. We're so slow with testing right now, it might be a week's worth of disentangling where that child was the whole time. Maybe longer.

You could, in fact, assign kids to "pods" and let them be 6 feet away in the classroom, but play briefly together in small groups on the playground.

I am very strongly in favor of as much outdoor education as possible - for all kinds of reasons. Utilize every part of the school. Ask for volunteers to help supervise if necessary. All the adults in PPE (although it's said there's no PPE for teachers in California and that we're facing, once again, a nationwide PPE shortage).

We'll also have a lot of brand new teachers in the mix in 2021, with so many retirements (which stings the state budget, again).

We have got to push schools to step up and figure this out, other counties have.

Virginia has given schools a free pass. No SOLs, don't have to worry about accreditation, don't have to attend or have a passing grade, everybody moves up to the next class regardless of knowing the material. . What kinda of lesson does this teach to our kids. You can do a bad job or not try and still get the reward.

This is setting the US up for major failure for our future adults.

My granddaughter a 4.4 grade point student has 4 classes this semester. School is over at 12 each day, the afternoons are for teacher planning and conferences. What planning time do they need they are using a predesigned state program thats been available for years.

She is so disheartened, as 4 classes is the maximum allowed. Grandson, again 4.4 GPA is in the same boat, entering middle school with 4 classes, he won't obtain enough credit for HS, if this doesn't change.

Yes, I would be petrified if my grandkids were attending in person class, but I am becoming more fearful of their future.

These kids are smart, participate in many programs, have won academic state and national awards, competitions. They have bright futures, somethings got to change. as I don't see the virus leaving in the next year, many longer.


Moo...

 

[tresir2012]

Trump abruptly ends Coronavirus Briefing. Stops mid sentence. WH on Lockdown. Per CNN

What has happened? Is it an emergency?

ETA

Trump evacuated from briefing room due to shooting outside White House premises

“Do I seem rattled?” he said.

That bit made me laugh and made me think of a UK comedienne's famous catchphrase.
"Am I bovvered?"

 

[LadyL]

dbm
already posted

 

[tmar]

There's not a place in the US that should not be social distancing and wearing masks in public. If there's actually a clean county out there, it won't be for long if people don't start social distancing and masking up now. I live in the back of beyond - 300 people total in my township - and I mask up to go in the PO.

If all folk had your great attitude, Covid numbers would definitely not escalate as they have been in so many areas.