This is a perfect example in the difference in judgement and leadership in a crisis.

Link to a BBC graphic:


https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-52066105/coronavirus-us-death-rates-v-china-italy-and-south-korea

I monitor one of the large US gun forums as a method of taking the temperature of the other side. It is a tough job sometimes. I used to post there, trying to insert a reality check on some of the nuttiest rants, but gave that up. These folks, with few exceptions, are the right of the right. They are, again, for the most part, hateful, gun slinging, red hat wearing, Hilary hating, foaming at the mouth Trump worshipers. I have been following this forum for nearly ten years and I know the way a lot of individuals think from their frequent posts.

Up until about ten days ago, the silly comments about the virus, jokes and funny cartoons were the overwhelming response to the virus.

The last few days, they have been getting more and more serious, and seemed to accept that we really do have a serious crisis on our hands. The most offensive naysayers have shut down, and adults are starting to control the conversations. There is still no indication that they blame our president for the way he blundered his way through this; that would be too painful for them. What has disappeared, almost entirely, is the word "hoax." But, who knows, once they start thinking and evaluating, instead of listening, with a religious faith, to the right-wing media, they may come to realize what a line of bullshit they have been getting from Fox and the President.


It will be interesting, going forward, to see the reactions if they come to the conclusion that they have been played for suckers for years. It will never be a majority of them because they have too much emotional energy invested, but I think I see some splitting from the herd. Those that do have a change or heart are probably going to be awfully angry when they realize the truth.

Worried about the spread of disease? Don't go to the drug store.

My wife and I are old, we both have health issues. For the last 13 days we have been totally isolated on our property. If I get the virus, I will get the morphine instead of a ventilator, so I am taking this damn seriously. Today, I needed to go get my wife's insulin refilled, and at the same time, we needed an OTC med. It required stops at two pharmacies. (Walgreens and CVS)

I go through the drive thru at both places. The pharmacies were very busy with lines inside and at the drive thru. Patiently waiting I finally got to the windows. I had a complete view of the pharmacy area of the stores. The clerks serving the drive thru was back and forth between the inside counter and the window. Nobody in the areas were wearing masks or gloves. There was no hand washing between customers. I had to sign for the meds by reaching into a filthy plastic basket to use a filthy ink pen, that all of the people ahead of me had been handling. I drove up 15 feet and bathed in alcohol and still felt dirty. I came home, took the meds out of their outside packaging, trashed the packages and scrubbed up again.

When the virus raises its head in this community, the pharmacies will be the number one spreaders.

And this is why the USA will not get a handle on this virus, it is just not being taken seriously until scores of people, locally, start dying and it is too damn late.

Sometimes I wonder if the whole damn country isn't on dope.

Why was it necessary for social distancing for the last two weeks, but now, with cases exploding, it is not necessary?

Were you wrong then, or are you wrong now?

Fist it was a hoax, then it was a national emergency, not it is not a big enough problem to keep people out of work. So, at the time where infections are rising at an exponential rate, Trump wants you to go back to work with sick people. Just wash your fucking hands already.

Headline: This is a health crisis first, an economic problem second! The economy will only come back when the people are confident that health of the nation is secured. Are these people leadership positions goddamned idiots, or are they so blinded by greed that nothing but making money matters?

As other Republicans have declared, it makes perfect sense to sacrifice the old and sick for the economy. It is brings to mind Hitler's policy emptying mental hospitals and killing the insane and handicapped people as burdens on society. Apparently our elderly Americans are nothing but a burden to be eliminated through neglect. Now that is a nice clean final solution to an age old, or an old age problem.

Folks, this is the wages of installing Fascism masquerading as a Representational Democracy.

MAGA

Two things have happened to get the traders excited.

They know that they are about to be handed a windfall of other people's money to gamble with,(nothing is more fun than speculating with other people's money, knowing that they take the hit or you get the gravy) and Donald Trump has announced that he is willing to sacrifice a large portion of the American people to get the economy back on its feet again.

It is all a part of Making America Great Again

Trumps rally today should be a fun and exciting trip through fantasy land.

I have no economics background and am totally ignorant as to how macroeconomics work.

The government is about to flood the economy with money. I understand that they are trying to do good in a time of crisis and it sounds good to me as a high school educated tradesman. I understand that people are desperate after losing their paychecks, an I have a very charitable heart for workers, and it seems like the only right thing to do.

In my personal situation, I am retired, and live off of a small savings and a small pension, backed up by Social Security. I have been confident that I have enough resources to get by, in the modest lifestyle I am accustomed to, for the few years I have left, unless the value of my savings, home and income are wiped out by inflation.

Is this flood of money going to cause hyperinflation when the virus ends, or is it "chump change" to the government? It is my understanding that the government went into this deep in "credit card debt" and has virtually no "savings account." Has Uncle Sam been hiding trillions of dollars under the mattress or are they buying paper and green ink by the trainload, essentially counterfeiting money? Is the National government's going to go bankrupt because the government got sick without having enough savings or insurance to pay the hospital's debt collector?

I remember seeing photos of people in the Wiemar Republic, following WWI, buying bread with wheelbarrows full of cash. (which paved the road to the rise of the Nazis) Of course there are some people in this country who will have wheelbarrows full of cash to burn through, they will be fine come what may. In fact, it opens opportunities for those folks to buy up everything.....What happens to the rest of us?

I know some folks will say that during a medical crisis, it is not time to worry about such issues, and perhaps they are right. There may not be a damn thing we can do about it anyway. I am a "planner" (worrier) I have gotten through life by planning for things before they happen so I have to think about this kind of stuff.

I think that this would be something good to bring back for the victims of Trump's Virus.

In the battle to portray himself as the hero of the Coronavirus. Every time he goes before the public bragging about the great job he has done, his lies and failures to act in time, needs to be rebuffed by Democrats. If he is able to continue pounding his message of how great a fantastic he is doing the public will follow. If a thousand people die, he will claim that because of him and his team he saved ten thousand from dying. If the markets go below ten thousand it will be because of Trump's heroic and beautiful actions that they did not fall to five thousand. Biden and Bernie need to be myth busting as hard as they can go rather than throwing rocks at each other.

Of course the Republicans would cry foul and be wringing of hands an pulling of hair, "at at time when we should be putting partisanship aside" while they continue boldly pushing a Hollywood fiction as the truth. If there is ever a time when Trump's failures need to be in the spotlight, it is now.

It is time for an all out offensive against this administration.