OT: LOCAL COVID19 - PART IV... Seriously, local only

[DaveMatthew]

COVID is currently running rampant and we have no public health measures in place to counteract it. Instead, the Western World has conciously decided to let hospitals and vulnerable people take the brunt of it. Although COVID is visible through the windshield and side windows, we are already pretending we only see it through the rear-view.

What? We have vaccines and boosters. 86% of Canadians above the age 5 are fully-vaccinated. COVID poses no serious risks to them.

The elderly are still at risk. But guess what? The elderly are at risk from everything. They're elderly. Eventually, people pass away. It'll happen to all of us when we get old. The unvaccinated are still at risk. But guess what? That's their own fault. You can't cure stupid.

COVID is in the rear-view for everyone who's vaccinated and under 70, there's just a small minority of people on the internet screaming as if it's still March 2020. The problem is these people will never stop screaming.

 

[Oscar The Grouch]

What? We have vaccines and boosters. 86% of Canadians above the age 5 are fully-vaccinated. COVID poses no serious risks to them.

The elderly are still at risk. But guess what? The elderly are at risk from everything. They're elderly. Eventually, people pass away. It'll happen to all of us when we get old. The unvaccinated are still at risk. But guess what? That's their own fault. You can't cure stupid.

COVID is in the rear-view for everyone who's vaccinated and under 70, there's just a small minority of people on the internet screaming as if it's still March 2020. The problem is these people will never stop screaming.

Masks. No reason to get rid of masks when we know a wave is incoming. We are got rid of masking at the expense of burning out hospitals. Every health care worker I know is trying to get out of their field because they feel abandoned by the government. Is that a healthy indicator for our health care system?

Vaccines. Your use of the term "fully-vaccinated" is another great example. "Fully-vaccinated" as defined by the government = 2 doses. Most people got their 2nd dose last summer. Science has shown that has since waned. The government has done a terrible job of marketing boosters to the public. Just terrible.

A Plan. We all want COVID in the rear-view mirror but that's just wishful thinking. Science does not support the idea that the next strain won't be more dangerous, but somehow the general population accepts this myth. I want our government to tell us their plan if a more dangerous strain emerges.

Three reasonable slam dunks. Instead, the government announces it will BEGIN booking vulnerable people for a 4th shot when we are almost already in the peak of a wave. A 4th shot that will provide immunity once the wave has already subsided.

But tell me I'm being hysterical. These are easy asks. Instead, we have all decided that if ICUs aren't at capacity, we are ok.

 

[JD1]

No it’s a dumb take, wearing a mask inside a public space , has nothing to do with a 30 year old living on his own lol. No one wears a mask inside their own house.

You sure about that?

I see people in their cars by themselves with masks on. I see people walking on the sidewalk by themselves with masks on.

 

[DaveMatthew]

Masks. No reason to get rid of masks when we know a wave is incoming. We are got rid of masking at the expense of burning out hospitals. Every health care worker I know is trying to get out of their field because they feel abandoned by the government. Is that a healthy indicator for our health care system?

Vaccines. Your use of the term "fully-vaccinated" is another great example. "Fully-vaccinated" as defined by the government = 2 doses. Most people got their 2nd dose last summer. Science has shown that has since waned. The government has done a terrible job of marketing boosters to the public. Just terrible.

A Plan. We all want COVID in the rear-view mirror but that's just wishful thinking. Science does not support the idea that the next strain won't be more dangerous, but somehow the general population accepts this myth. I want our government to tell us their plan if a more dangerous strain emerges.

Three reasonable slam dunks. Instead, the government announces it will BEGIN booking vulnerable people for a 4th shot when we are almost already in the peak of a wave. A 4th shot that will provide immunity once the wave has already subsided.

But tell me I'm being hysterical. These are easy asks. Instead, we have all decided that if ICUs aren't at capacity, we are ok.

You are being hysterical.

We didn't abandon masking. We stopped making it mandatory. But if you so choose, you can still wear a mask. I still wear a mask. 75% of the people I see in stores are still wearing masks.

Boosters are widely available, and almost 60% of people over 18, in Canada, have received a booster. 2 doses provides significant protection. 3 doses is even better. We're in a fantastic spot from a vaccine perspective. There's a small group of anti-vaxxers who won't get it no matter what. What more do you want?

A plan for the unknown? "Science doesn't support the idea that the next strain won't be less dangerous". Okay? It also doesn't say it will be. Governments in Canada have been pretty clear about what their toolkit contains for any future variants - mandatory masking, vaccination passports, lockdowns. Maybe we'll get to a point where we need to take a step back and reimplement one, or more, of those measures. We're not there.

It sounds like you don't think we'll ever be okay. That's on you. Stay home and get your groceries delivered. That's your call.

We accept risks in every facet of life. COVID is no longer a risk that requires broad and extraordinary measures. That's what the "science says".

It's funny how quickly we went from "trust the science" to "trust only the scientists that echo my exact views on Twitter". I'm fine continuing to listen to Kieran Moore, Theresa Tam, etc.

9 months ago when those experts were saying we needed to lock down, there was a group of people who'd jump down the throat of anyone who questioned them. Now, just a short time later, that same group is questioning them because they've eased restrictions.

 

[YouGotAStuGoing]

Boosters are widely available, and almost 60% of people over 18, in Canada, have received a booster. 2 doses provides significant protection. 3 doses is even better. We're in a fantastic spot from a vaccine perspective. There's a small group of anti-vaxxers who won't get it no matter what. What more do you want?

Out of curiosity, where are you getting this number? The latest estimate I could find was this one from CTV:

Despite having enough doses for all, just 35 per cent of Canadians boosted

Canada has enough supply of COVID-19 vaccines to offer booster doses to all who are eligible, though so far just 35 per cent of Canadians have received their third shot, according to the federal health minister.

www.ctvnews.ca

 

[DaveMatthew]

Out of curiosity, where are you getting this number? The latest estimate I could find was this one from CTV:

Despite having enough doses for all, just 35 per cent of Canadians boosted

Canada has enough supply of COVID-19 vaccines to offer booster doses to all who are eligible, though so far just 35 per cent of Canadians have received their third shot, according to the federal health minister.

www.ctvnews.ca

COVID-19 vaccination coverage in Canada - Canada.ca

COVID-19 vaccination coverage across Canada by demographics and key populations. Updated every Friday at 12:00 PM Eastern Time.

health-infobase.canada.ca

"Fully-vaccinated with an additional dose" - 56.82% of those 18 and older.

 

[DueDiligence]

At least 2 people died in the time it took you to type out that post. If people obsessed over real world statistics like they did "covid" statistics they'd curl up into little quivering balls like ants under the sun.

Emotional blackmail is not 'sound' reasoning - it is not truth. It is used to control thought and to control action.

There are already enough "normal" ways to die why exacerbate the problem by ignoring things like Covid and drunk driving. Both of their effects can be mitigated with some precautions and common sense.

 

[Knave]

Anyone know about registering for fourth dose for 60+ tomorrow? I have two elderly parents I might need to help get registered. Wondering if it opens at 8am as it has in the past?

I keep trying the news articles but it always ends with medical experts telling me why the focus shouldn't be on fourth doses. I mean great... but how can I register CBC or CTV or Global or literally any f***ing news outlet titling their piece "here's what you need to know about fourth doses"? They really need to add the bolded to their titles "here's all you need to know about fourth doses except how to get registered to get one".

 

[DaveMatthew]

There are already enough "normal" ways to die why exacerbate the problem by ignoring things like Covid and drunk driving. Both of their effects can be mitigated with some precautions and common sense.

How can anyone say we're ignoring COVID? 85% of people in Canada have gotten vaccinated, close to 60% are boosted, most people are still wearing masks, and we just spent 2 years with rolling lockdowns. Rapid tests are everywhere.

Precautions and common sense is exactly what we are, and have been, doing for 700+ days, but that's not enough for some.

You don't want people to just wear seatbelts and drive sober. You want driverless cars on the 417 with a speed limit of 5km/hr.

 

[YouGotAStuGoing]

COVID-19 vaccination coverage in Canada - Canada.ca

COVID-19 vaccination coverage across Canada by demographics and key populations. Updated every Friday at 12:00 PM Eastern Time.

health-infobase.canada.ca

"Fully-vaccinated with an additional dose" - 56.82% of those 18 and older.

Thanks — glad to see this. Maybe not as fast as we'd like, but nice to see vaccination moving in the right direction.

 

[FunkySeeFunkyDoo]

....

A Plan. We all want COVID in the rear-view mirror but that's just wishful thinking. Science does not support the idea that the next strain won't be more dangerous, but somehow the general population accepts this myth. I want our government to tell us their plan if a more dangerous strain emerges.

Three reasonable slam dunks. ...

But tell me I'm being hysterical. These are easy asks. Instead, we have all decided that if ICUs aren't at capacity, we are ok.

I disagree that "A Plan" for a more dangerous strain emerging is a slam dunk or an "easy ask".

To me people always want "a plan" that tells them that by some deterministic date all of COVID will eradicated or something like that.... almost by definition, that's impossible to supply and would really be a bad idea if the government did so.

 

[Oscar The Grouch]

You are being hysterical.

We didn't abandon masking. We stopped making it mandatory. But if you so choose, you can still wear a mask. I still wear a mask. 75% of the people I see in stores are still wearing masks.

Boosters are widely available, and almost 60% of people over 18, in Canada, have received a booster. 2 doses provides significant protection. 3 doses is even better. We're in a fantastic spot from a vaccine perspective. There's a small group of anti-vaxxers who won't get it no matter what. What more do you want?

A plan for the unknown? "Science doesn't support the idea that the next strain won't be less dangerous". Okay? It also doesn't say it will be. Governments in Canada have been pretty clear about what their toolkit contains for any future variants - mandatory masking, vaccination passports, lockdowns. Maybe we'll get to a point where we need to take a step back and reimplement one, or more, of those measures. We're not there.

It sounds like you don't think we'll ever be okay. That's on you. Stay home and get your groceries delivered. That's your call.

We accept risks in every facet of life. COVID is no longer a risk that requires broad and extraordinary measures. That's what the "science says".

It's funny how quickly we went from "trust the science" to "trust only the scientists that echo my exact views on Twitter". I'm fine continuing to listen to Kieran Moore, Theresa Tam, etc.

9 months ago when those experts were saying we needed to lock down, there was a group of people who'd jump down the throat of anyone who questioned them. Now, just a short time later, that same group is questioning them because they've eased restrictions.

I'm hysterical because I want the government to market boosters better, not be so quick to eliminate the EASIEST mitigation strategy available, in masks, and give us a plan on how the healthcare system will be reinforced and resist attrition to deal with a new normal when it comes to occupancy. LOL.

Approx 78% of Canadians 60+ got the 3rd booster. That sounds high but as we saw in Hong Kong, Omicron finds the unvaxxed. This government could have been much more aggressive with the booster campaign. They also could have started it much earlier, as science suggested, but waiting until December. This caused needless death.

You've been in this thread for two years pretending to be a "reasonable" voice of the middle-ground but you've been on the wrong side of science. Would be interested to see who you follow on Twitter. I stay away from the Fismans and prefer pure scientists like Eric Topol. And I'm not championing lockdowns.

This is a great post summarizing why you're out of your depth here. Made as Omicron was taking off in December:

OT: - LOCAL COVID19 - PART II... Seriously, local only

And I fully expect the narrative to shift again. When the spike in hospitalizations does not come, it'll no longer be about the the immediate complications form Omicron. It'll be about "long COVID".

As predicted, the spike in hospitalizations came. Not sure why you think it wouldn't but your opinion wasn't rooted in science.

 

[Oscar The Grouch]

I disagree that "A Plan" for a more dangerous strain emerging is a slam dunk or an "easy ask".

To me people always want "a plan" that tells them that by some deterministic date all of COVID will eradicated or something like that.... almost by definition, that's impossible to supply and would really be a bad idea if the government did so.

By plan, I mean I want to hear that the government is listening to health care workers and hospital admins and will make real investments to keep them motivated. If the plan is to let the current stressed out system deal with never-ending, rapid spikes in occupancy, we are in trouble.

 

[DaveMatthew]

I'm hysterical because I want the government to market boosters better, not be so quick to eliminate the EASIEST mitigation strategy available, in masks, and give us a plan on how the healthcare system will be reinforced and resist attrition to deal with a new normal when it comes to occupancy. LOL.

Approx 78% of Canadians 60+ got the 3rd booster. That sounds high but as we saw in Hong Kong, Omicron finds the unvaxxed. This government could have been much more aggressive with the booster campaign. They also could have started it much earlier, as science suggested, but waiting until December. This caused needless death.

You've been in this thread for two years pretending to be a "reasonable" voice of the middle-ground but you've been on the wrong side of science. Would be interested to see who you follow on Twitter. I stay away from the Fismans and prefer pure scientists like Eric Topol. And I'm not championing lockdowns.

This is a great post summarizing why you're out of your depth here. Made as Omicron was taking off in December:

OT: - LOCAL COVID19 - PART II... Seriously, local only



As predicted, the spike in hospitalizations came. Not sure why you think it wouldn't but your opinion wasn't rooted in science.

The initial fear-mongering predictions on Twitter for Omicron had a 1.5% hospitalization rate. We didn't get close to that.

Luckily, health leaders and experts realized the lessening risk (due to a less serious mutation and strong vaccination rates) and moved relatively quickly to ease restrictions and now, we're in a pretty darn good spot where people can live normally while still taking reasonable precautions. While vigilance is important, things are good.

You're still freaking out.

 

[DueDiligence]

How can anyone say we're ignoring COVID? 85% of people in Canada have gotten vaccinated, close to 60% are boosted, most people are still wearing masks, and we just spent 2 years with rolling lockdowns. Rapid tests are everywhere.

Precautions and common sense is exactly what we are, and have been, doing for 700+ days, but that's not enough for some.

You don't want people to just wear seatbelts and drive sober. You want driverless cars on the 417 with a speed limit of 5km/hr.

The Covid comment was for those minority which ignored the protocols. And I'm not sure why you have to stray to the ridiculous on your "driving" take. But it's not the first time today I've seen an over the top response from you either.

 

[ACLEVERNAME]

There are already enough "normal" ways to die why exacerbate the problem by ignoring things like Covid and drunk driving. Both of their effects can be mitigated with some precautions and common sense.

You view death as a "problem"? It's sad and sucks but it's just as important in the grand scheme of things as birth. Life is a cycle. In balance and harmony with itself.

It can be hard to accept but somethings are just out of your control, brah.

 

[Xspyrit]

While we're young, healthy and vaccinated, it's still our responsibility to not put others at risk. Every time there'll be a possibility that I have caught the virus, I'll test myself before going out and spreading it like a madman. I'll still wear a mask in closed spaces with population density (based on common sense). I just don't want to be responsible for a death. It's pretty much like driving and texting resulting in killing/hurting somebody in the street. It was preventable, it's not just an "accident"

Seriously, you don't need any government to tell you to do what's right. You should be empathetic enough to understand by yourself. Governments are just here to take people by the hand, those who need it.

The Covid comment was for those minority which ignored the protocols. And I'm not sure why you have to stray to the ridiculous on your "driving" take. But it's not the first time today I've seen an over the top response from you either.

Humanity spends a lot of time, resources, money, energy on trying to prevent as many deaths as possible. What is wrong about this? Science has given me the opportunity to meet and spend time with several members of my family that I wouldn't have had the chance to meet or know in the past.

You want people to have a long healthy life, like my grandmother. She's 84 and walks miles everyday. They have their own condo, he drives, she does groceries, she cooks, she cleans, she does laundry, etc. She has all her head and I have very nice conversations with her. I am very grateful that she is alive and that a vaccine has been protecting her (although she never got Covid, vaccine saved other older people I know)

It's natural if people make a big deal with just one death, one murder or one terrorist attempt that killed "only" 6 people so of course, Covid freaking 19 is a big deal. I have been to so many burials in my life. Death is a big deal for people in grief

People care about deaths, only robots would say otherwise

 

[JungleBeat]

delete

 

[Golden_Jet]

You sure about that?

I see people in their cars by themselves with masks on. I see people walking on the sidewalk by themselves with masks on.

Positive, you talked about a 30 year old living on his own, cars and sidewalks aren’t the same as a 30 year old in their house lol.

 

[guyzeur]

What? We have vaccines and boosters. 86% of Canadians above the age 5 are fully-vaccinated. COVID poses no serious risks to them.

The elderly are still at risk. But guess what? The elderly are at risk from everything. They're elderly. Eventually, people pass away. It'll happen to all of us when we get old. The unvaccinated are still at risk. But guess what? That's their own fault. You can't cure stupid.

COVID is in the rear-view for everyone who's vaccinated and under 70, there's just a small minority of people on the internet screaming as if it's still March 2020. The problem is these people will never stop screaming.

And what about those being immunocompromised? I'm not old at 58 and I'm at a greater risk with some people not wearing mask - I have been immunocompromised since the age of 23, that's 1986.

Not wearing a mask is like having drunk drivers on the road, you may wear a seat belt but you're still at risk because of drunk drivers.

--------------------

note: You would think that a pharmacy would fall in the same category like clinics and hospitals regarding mask mandates but no.
You can't go to these clinics without a wearing a mask:

• Vaccination clinics
• Dental clinics
• Sexual health clinics :
  • birth control counselling
  • free confidential sexually transmitted infections (STI) testing and treatment
  • low-cost birth control
  • Supervised consumption services
  • pap testing
  • urine pregnancy testing
  • low-cost birth control
  • needle exchange programs

note 2: Yes, I'll be going for my 4th boosters Monday morning.

 

[Sensmileletsgo]

So we're bickering about masks now. Well, I suppose that's better than bickering about whether we should impose lockdowns, curfews, and vaccine passports.

 

[JD1]

Positive, you talked about a 30 year old living on his own, cars and sidewalks aren’t the same as a 30 year old in their house lol.

Ummm... It wasn't me you were debating about 30 year olds

 

[Golden_Jet]

Ummm... It wasn't me you were debating about 30 year olds

Um ok , then I guess your response was out of context. Thanks.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

Roll call!