Mad_Machine76
Mad_Machine76's JournalExactly
Him doing absolutely nothing would probably be an improvement at this point. But he's got his supporters out in the streets protesting governors whom are trying to handle things competently and then he's got his Attorney General harassing them as well with threats of legal actions for any orders that his holiness feels "goes too far" And if all of that isn't bad enough, they're stealing supplies designated for states and McConnell and his Senate crew are dividing the country in terms of States they deem as "givers" and others as "takers", taking their attacks on public to a whole new State-by-State level. And Trump is now trying to mix his hard-core racist immigrant policies into requests for aid. All of this is making an already bad situation inestimably worse.
Eli Lilly Antibody Survey Study (Asymptomatic Individuals)
Central Indiana Residents can sign up to participate in a research study being done through May by Eli Lilly to test for COVID-19 antibodies if anybody is interested, they can go here to get information and a number to call to sign up and see if you qualify for the study. I just went today for my test. AMA.
https://www.info.lillycovid19testing.com/
I don't know what he's referring to
but life has remained fairly normal for us, at least in terms of being able to move about as needed, albeit more carefully. We don't attend Church or practice any religion, so maybe it's a bit of a rub to people who do to not be able to attend Church services in person, but most Churches have gone online for right now and the people I know who do attend Church are not particularly worked up over it, nor do they feel like their constitutional rights have been abridged. I mean, I'm sure it sucks for everybody that we can't go out and move about as freely as we used to and that some establishments are currently shuttered due to the pandemic, but the groundwork has not yet been laid for many things to open safely at the moment. Maybe if Barr's boss had done a better job responding to the pandemic initially, we'd be in a much better place by now? Just a thought.
I'm pretty much finished with them
It's not our job to try to inspire or make them feel enthusiastic about Joe Biden. If getting rid of Trump and/or making sure that a Democrat selects Ginsburg's replacement or even that we have a sane government that can finish dealing with whatever is left of this Pandemic and the subsequent recovery by the time next January rolls around isn't enough for them, nothing ever will be. But, like some people have said, most hardcore Sanders supporters are not actually Democrats. They seem to be largely left-wing Independents whom were only interested in Bernie's candidacy through the Democratic Party and were probably never going to be sticking around for anybody else. But they may feel a little different as things move along. We wrapped up the primary very early this year, so there will be plenty of time for them to re-think their position on voting Democratic in November. I feel like they don't understand that you don't have to necessarily like or love a candidate for public office (and nobody is perfect anyway) but just have a belief that they can do a better job than the other person. And, on the merits and qualifications, there is absolutely NO comparison between Trump and Biden.
I wish somebody nearby
could grab him and shake it into him to STOP THINKING ABOUT THE DAMNED ECONOMY AND FOCUS ON PEOPLE GETTING SICK AND DYING FROM THIS VIRUS! I'm by no means apologizing or defending Trump AT ALL, so please don't misunderstand but:
1. Trump is NOT to blame for this virus/pandemic. He IS to blame for his part in how he responded. He can't change what has already happened. That is "baked in" at this point but he can and should do a better job today, tomorrow, and for however long as this continues.
2. The bad economy and the subsequent shutdowns are a direct result of the virus. While I have long questioned the credit given to Trump about the economy, he's not necessarily to blame for what has happened to the economy and that is not necessarily what most average Americans are worried about. What we're worried about is not dying- or having loved ones dying- or anybody dying (though we know there will continue to be cases and deaths for the foreseeable future).
All this being said, somebody needs to flat out tell him that JOB NUMERO UNO is to ensure the health and safety and well-being of every man, woman and child in this country and get everybody in every state all of the supplies, equipment, testing kits, etc. that the federal government can marshal and look for ways to increase capacity and to support means of treating and eliminating the virus.
People will forgive Trump- just like I'd hope that they would forgive any other President in a similar situation- for a (now) rotten economy. He needs to let it go for five seconds and just keep people from getting sick and dying. He will be rewarded or reviled on the basis of how he does THAT job. The economy can be rebuilt and while I don't think Trump is the person to do it in the long-term (i.e. after January 2021), he will be (or should be) judged specifically how well he handles this. He just needs to stop worrying about the economy as it relates to his re-election. People won't and shouldn't vote for a Mad Hatter who just lets people get sick and die just so megacorps can make a few more bucks.
I know that Trump won't hear this or read this and probably nobody who advises Trump will either, but I am saying my peace here.
At some point
He's going to have to face the reality that no business is actually going to want to reopen and no worker is going to feel safe going back to work without widespread testing or some other unforeseen developments that ensure everybody's safety. Whatever damage he's going to sustain over his handling of things is already "baked into the cake" at this point. What he *can* do now is keep things from getting worse. Right now, he and many Republicans want to just blow past the mitigation phase and more or less return to "normal" even though we:
A. Don't have effective treatments (sorry his wonder drug doesn't seem to be panning out)
B. Don't have a vaccine
C. Don't have widespread testing to know who has it, who's immune, who's fully recovered from it and unlikely to infect others
It is impossible for anybody to believe that they're safe and/or that other people are safe from them until at least one or (preferably) more of these things happens.
Moving forward without any of those things is a recipe for another tidal wave of cases and deaths to come crashing down on us and we're barely through this first wave, which has been mitigated by stay-at-home orders and social distancing.
Are all of these handmade cloth masks people are making useful?
I know that they are nowhere near professional use quality PPE, but are they helpful at all? Or are they just better than nothing? I hear a lot of conflicting information. And some states are starting to require them (mine isn't yet) but what's that based on?
So, how safe are "Drive-In" Church services?
Our good friend Barr has decided to intervene in a religious dispute sparked by fines on a Mississippi Church during a drive-in service (can't these people just get their services livestreamed already? It's 2020), claiming that the city that issued the fine (but now will not collect due to the outrage generated) is a violation of people's religious rights (naturally)
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-religion/u-s-justice-department-sides-with-church-in-covid-19-religious-dispute-idUSKCN21W2OR
Points about banning abortion during COVID-19
1. Abortions do not require significant PPE. If Abortions are really causing a shortfall in PPE, that is a problem that has NOTHING to do with Abortions and more to do with outside factors.
2. Births/Deliveries require significant PPE. If the point of this is to prevent a shortfall in PPE, then forcing women to carry unwanted pregnancies to term actually EXACERBATES the problem, in addition to the initial problem of forcing women to carry unwanted to pregnancies to term, which is bad enough.
3. Abortions cannot just be "delayed" like other medical procedures, especially thanks to the raft of restrictions and burdens that states like Alabama have placed on the procedure.
4. This is about right-wing Republican-controlled states taking advantage of a serious medical crisis to achieve a goal they're seeking, specifically banning all abortions in open defiance of Roe V. Wade without demonstrated evidence of a substantial benefit to public health or safety.
The last impeachment was over Ukraine
This is, of course, a much different (and dire) issue. I don't see any sign that Trump is course-correcting on anything. If anything, he just keeps making it worse.
I understand that two Impeachments in a year probably isn't viewed by most as politically feasible but it seems like we are getting to a point where Trump's malign incompetence is literally causing a critical public health safety threat IMHO, especially if he decides he's going to try to bully State Governors into voiding their public health emergency orders or purposely withhold critical supplies for everybody other than his allies.
Profile Information
Name: Mara Alis ButlerGender: Female
Hometown: Indianapolis, Indiana
Home country: USA
Current location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Member since: Sat Feb 28, 2004, 01:13 AM
Number of posts: 24,407
