Many people are outraged by Donald Trump calling it the Chinese Virus. Largely because it stigmatizes an ethnicity and furthers bigotry against Asians. While I can see their point, I am not upset; I've always known that there was a percentage of the white population that was blisteringly racist. Being a white person, you naturally get to hear that stuff from other whites. Black jokes. Asian jokes. Jew jokes. Plus weird crap about food, skin, public pools, crime stats made out of whole cloth, and other things.
No, the Chinese do not deep-fry live dogs. Please think of what would happen if anyone put a whole live animal in a deep-fryer. And remember houses burning down when Thanksgiving rolls around each year. But that person remained unconvinced when I informed him of that. Nor are the Chinese habitually eaters of bats and rats.
I can't remember which city in the Netherlands has the reputation for liking fried rat, based on their WWII experiences, but BTW, the French are frog-eaters, folks in Mississississipi love possum, and Louisianans live almost entirely off reptiles and sautéed flithy swamp things.
Texans eat armadillos, and keep voting for retards.
What I'm getting at is that I cannot be too disappointed in some of my fellow Americans of Caucasian or Black heritage, because I never though better of them anyway. I was told to go the hell back to where I came from in the first year that I was back in the States.
Back. In. The. States.
Look, it's not the majority, but one blistering asshole can ruin someone's day. And most people really aren't prepared to confront assholery when it happens near them, feel embarrassed when the incident is over, and wish they had done something.
The other day on the bus someone told me that because I spoke Chinese to another passenger I stood a higher chance of getting the virus.
But he kept ten feet away when he said that.
I suppose if I spoke French, I'd stand a better chance of getting syphilis. Though probably not as good as all those college kids spring-breaking in Miami right now.
Yes, I wish I had punched his lights out. But ever since I've been put on blood thinners for high blood pressure (and please remember that a VERY LARGE PERCENTAGE of Italians who died of the Trump Virus also had that), I have been a bit more cautious about confronting morons; it wouldn't take much for me to bleed out. Or in any case bleed a whole lot more than the other guy.
[And clopidogrel (Plavix). Nothing clots. One rather minor cut or scrape, and the bleeding goes on for hours. Drip drip drippity drip.]
There's not a whole heck of a lot one can do about in-bred Jed-ism. It happens. But if we just keep objecting to it, and speaking out, eventually the dumbasses in our own slice of heaven, as well as the Aussies, Italians, English, Frenchmen, Texans, and Dutch people will be more hesitant about letting their asses show, and perhaps even stop shagging sheep.
And maybe, just maybe, they'll wash a bit more often.
Gotta remain positive about it all.
AFTERWORD
The Hong Kong Cantonese often casually refer to COVID 19 as 武漢肺炎 ('mouhon feiyim'), which means "Wuhan Pneumonia". But the correct long-winded terms are 嚴重特殊傳染性肺炎 ('yim jung dak sue chuen yim sing fei yim') or 2019冠狀病毒病 ('yi ling yat kau kun jong beng duk beng'), "severe extraordinarily contagious lung inflammation" or "2019 crown-form illness toxin disease" respectively.
I'm fairly certain that my death certificate will say Covid19; pneumonia.
==========================================================================
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LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
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Showing posts with label Wuhan Corona. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wuhan Corona. Show all posts
Thursday, March 19, 2020
Monday, March 09, 2020
THE GREAT TOILET PAPER CAPER
All day at work people mentioned corona virus, and toilet paper. A six month supply of toilet paper. Because, of course, all danger fades when you're sitting on a six month stockpile of soft strong double-ply.
As I suspect several of the boys in the backroom are. Either that, or they invested heavily in toilet paper manufacturing, and are now pleased as all git out; the stockmarket tanking today was just people selling their toilet paper shares before they get all soggy. On the other hand, laxative sales will skyrocket, as folks deal with all their stashed rolls.
Our president probably didn't invest in bumwad in time, and is furious at the missed opportunity.
“But I think, importantly, anybody, right now and yesterday, that needs a test gets a test. They’re there, they have the tests, and the tests are beautiful. Anybody that needs a test gets a test.”
-------Donald Trump
Which, of course, is demonstrable bull-pucky.
Anyhow, what on earth makes you think I can afford the damned test? What is well within the realm of possibilities, however, should I come down with a dry cough, fever, breathing problems, and a headache, is that I go to work every day until I am physically no longer able to do so. At which point I'll drag my sick carcass over to the hospital on public transportation.
A crowded bus. During commute hours.
I may be too feverish to remember the stop at which I should disembark.
Perhaps I should just stumble into the foyer of a highrise.
Hacking, drooling, oozing.
Juices!
“The tests are all perfect, like the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect. This is not as perfect as that, but pretty good.”
--------Donald Trump
“This was something that we were thrown into and we're going to handle it and we have been handling it very well.”
-------Donald Trump
No, you are not handling it well. You, your veep, and your entire damned administration, are doing a fairly crappy job of handling it, and you keep contradicting the experts or muzzling them, because you don't want it to affect the stockmarket, your ratings, or your re-election.
And you didn't invest in toilet paper.
“So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!”
-------Donald Trump
Okay. Twenty two deaths? That's a four percent death rate.
The flu has less than half of a percent, at worst.
Based on lowest number of patients.
And 70,000 fatalities.
Bad figures, Trump.
“It’s fair to say that as the trajectory of the outbreak continues, many people in the U.S. will at some point in time this year or next be exposed to this virus and there’s a good chance many will become sick.”
-------Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) Nancy Messonnier, MD
What that actually means is that almost all of us will be exposed, and very many of us will become sick. Probably sooner rather than later.
Toilet paper manufacturers should invest in vaccine development and patient treatment protocols, even serious research into effective anti-viral strategies against the disease. Because they risk losing up to four percent of their customers. Devoted dumpers, every one of them.
Even if only five percent to twenty percent of the United States population get it, same as with influenza, that will mean 600,0000 to nearly two and a half million less people going through piles of smooch tissue.
President Trump never uses toilet paper.
UPDATE, Tuesday March 10, 8:58 AM
There are 761 confirmed cases in the US, 77 in Canada.
Twenty-seven people have died in the US due to the virus and one person has died in Canada.
[SOURCE: BBC.]
Lower percentage, still far worse fatality rate than the flu.
UPDATE, Wednesday March 11, 8:18 PM
1,135 confirmed cases in the US, 38 deaths.
[SOURCE: BBC.]
UPDATE, Thursday March 12, 8:33 PM
1,663 confirmed cases in the US. 41 deaths.
[SOURCE: CSSE.]
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
As I suspect several of the boys in the backroom are. Either that, or they invested heavily in toilet paper manufacturing, and are now pleased as all git out; the stockmarket tanking today was just people selling their toilet paper shares before they get all soggy. On the other hand, laxative sales will skyrocket, as folks deal with all their stashed rolls.
Our president probably didn't invest in bumwad in time, and is furious at the missed opportunity.
“But I think, importantly, anybody, right now and yesterday, that needs a test gets a test. They’re there, they have the tests, and the tests are beautiful. Anybody that needs a test gets a test.”
-------Donald Trump
Which, of course, is demonstrable bull-pucky.
Anyhow, what on earth makes you think I can afford the damned test? What is well within the realm of possibilities, however, should I come down with a dry cough, fever, breathing problems, and a headache, is that I go to work every day until I am physically no longer able to do so. At which point I'll drag my sick carcass over to the hospital on public transportation.
A crowded bus. During commute hours.
I may be too feverish to remember the stop at which I should disembark.
Perhaps I should just stumble into the foyer of a highrise.
Hacking, drooling, oozing.
Juices!
“The tests are all perfect, like the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect. This is not as perfect as that, but pretty good.”
--------Donald Trump
“This was something that we were thrown into and we're going to handle it and we have been handling it very well.”
-------Donald Trump
No, you are not handling it well. You, your veep, and your entire damned administration, are doing a fairly crappy job of handling it, and you keep contradicting the experts or muzzling them, because you don't want it to affect the stockmarket, your ratings, or your re-election.
And you didn't invest in toilet paper.
“So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!”
-------Donald Trump
Okay. Twenty two deaths? That's a four percent death rate.
The flu has less than half of a percent, at worst.
Based on lowest number of patients.
And 70,000 fatalities.
Bad figures, Trump.
“It’s fair to say that as the trajectory of the outbreak continues, many people in the U.S. will at some point in time this year or next be exposed to this virus and there’s a good chance many will become sick.”
-------Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) Nancy Messonnier, MD
What that actually means is that almost all of us will be exposed, and very many of us will become sick. Probably sooner rather than later.
Toilet paper manufacturers should invest in vaccine development and patient treatment protocols, even serious research into effective anti-viral strategies against the disease. Because they risk losing up to four percent of their customers. Devoted dumpers, every one of them.
Even if only five percent to twenty percent of the United States population get it, same as with influenza, that will mean 600,0000 to nearly two and a half million less people going through piles of smooch tissue.
President Trump never uses toilet paper.
UPDATE, Tuesday March 10, 8:58 AM
There are 761 confirmed cases in the US, 77 in Canada.
Twenty-seven people have died in the US due to the virus and one person has died in Canada.
[SOURCE: BBC.]
Lower percentage, still far worse fatality rate than the flu.
UPDATE, Wednesday March 11, 8:18 PM
1,135 confirmed cases in the US, 38 deaths.
[SOURCE: BBC.]
UPDATE, Thursday March 12, 8:33 PM
1,663 confirmed cases in the US. 41 deaths.
[SOURCE: CSSE.]
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
GO OUT AND MEET PEOPLE!
According to several authoritative sources the number of Americans without health-insurance is twenty seven million. That's twenty seven million people who can't afford much if any medical treatment in case they get the Wuhan Corona Virus, twenty seven million who will have little choice but to circulate among us during their daily lives while sick, twenty seven million who will spray droplets at you when they ask "do you want fries with that".
That's also twenty seven million people for most of whom the concept of "self quarantine" is ab initio a completely ridiculous non-starter.
Mostly in Red States.
The following, from the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), is "interesting".
CITE:
Who are the uninsured?
Most uninsured people are in low-income families and have at least one worker in the family. Reflecting the more limited availability of public coverage in some states, adults are more likely to be uninsured than children. People of color are at higher risk of being uninsured than non-Hispanic Whites.
–
Why are people uninsured?
Even under the ACA, many uninsured people cite the high cost of insurance as the main reason they lack coverage. In 2018, 45% of uninsured adults said that they remained uninsured because the cost of coverage was too high. Many people do not have access to coverage through a job, and some people, particularly poor adults in states that did not expand Medicaid, remain ineligible for financial assistance for coverage. Some people who are eligible for financial assistance under the ACA may not know they can get help, while others have income above the cutoff for financial assistance. Additionally, undocumented immigrants are ineligible for Medicaid or Marketplace coverage.
–
How does not having coverage affect health care access?
People without insurance coverage have worse access to care than people who are insured. One in five uninsured adults in 2018 went without needed medical care due to cost. Studies repeatedly demonstrate that uninsured people are less likely than those with insurance to receive preventive care and services for major health conditions and chronic diseases.
END CITE.
SOURCE: Key Facts about the Uninsured Population
Events soon may bite the Republicans in the ass.
This should prove educational.
Bigly.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
That's also twenty seven million people for most of whom the concept of "self quarantine" is ab initio a completely ridiculous non-starter.
Mostly in Red States.
The following, from the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), is "interesting".
CITE:
Who are the uninsured?
Most uninsured people are in low-income families and have at least one worker in the family. Reflecting the more limited availability of public coverage in some states, adults are more likely to be uninsured than children. People of color are at higher risk of being uninsured than non-Hispanic Whites.
–
Why are people uninsured?
Even under the ACA, many uninsured people cite the high cost of insurance as the main reason they lack coverage. In 2018, 45% of uninsured adults said that they remained uninsured because the cost of coverage was too high. Many people do not have access to coverage through a job, and some people, particularly poor adults in states that did not expand Medicaid, remain ineligible for financial assistance for coverage. Some people who are eligible for financial assistance under the ACA may not know they can get help, while others have income above the cutoff for financial assistance. Additionally, undocumented immigrants are ineligible for Medicaid or Marketplace coverage.
–
How does not having coverage affect health care access?
People without insurance coverage have worse access to care than people who are insured. One in five uninsured adults in 2018 went without needed medical care due to cost. Studies repeatedly demonstrate that uninsured people are less likely than those with insurance to receive preventive care and services for major health conditions and chronic diseases.
END CITE.
SOURCE: Key Facts about the Uninsured Population
Events soon may bite the Republicans in the ass.
This should prove educational.
Bigly.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Sunday, March 08, 2020
IT'S HERE!
After cruising into a news site the other day I am even more confused about the number of people who have Wuhan Corona in the Bay Area than before. But clearly it has reached the city. And people are, justifiably, concerned.
Not the Trumpites I encounter, though.
It's all fake news to them.
Corona is a hoax.
Just in case I'm wiping down every surface they touch.
For everyone else, SFGate answers the real question: Will the Porn Industry Be Disrupted by Coronavirus?
This is serious business. Dozens of people in Northern California are facing the potential loss of a promising career for which they have trained their entire life. Several Bay Area companies have asked their employees to work from home, "unless being in the office is "critical to business continuity".
'An outbreak among adult actors "could be catastrophic".'
Quote:
"In Europe, where COVID-19 has been spreading rapidly (particularly in Italy, which just reported 4,000 cases, and Germany reporting 500), many studios have already placed temporary holds on shooting, prompting the European social network FanCentro, which allows content creators to directly sell social media subscriptions to fans, to issue onboarding guidelines for performers who want to join the platform in lieu of shooting scenes, as well as organize outreach for performers who may be quarantined."
Quote:
"It is not uncommon for performers to travel to Europe, either to shoot for a European production company or to engage in escorting, says Palmer; the threat of coronavirus has rendered them more hesitant to do so. Luna also says that she knows many performers who have decided not to travel to conventions like Exxotica out of concern with interacting IRL with attendees, who fly in from all over the world to meet performers.
In the United States, which has only 233 confirmed cases of COVID-19 (much fewer than in countries like Italy or China), many adult industry members remain sanguine about the threat of coronavirus. “While it is possible that porn sets might be affected by this, I believe it is imperative to remain positive,” says performer Sarah Vandella. “[We should continue] to be as health-conscious as we are while maintaining impeccable hygiene to prevent the spread of germs.”"
End quotes.
[Source: SF Gate.]
Even though I quit college years ago, and never had aspirations of becoming a succesful porn star, I also intend to continue being health conscious while maintaining impeccable hygiene.
The potential loss of revenue is horrifying.
Worse than the stock market disaster.
We all have an interest in porn, but only a few of us invest.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Not the Trumpites I encounter, though.
It's all fake news to them.
Corona is a hoax.
Just in case I'm wiping down every surface they touch.
For everyone else, SFGate answers the real question: Will the Porn Industry Be Disrupted by Coronavirus?
This is serious business. Dozens of people in Northern California are facing the potential loss of a promising career for which they have trained their entire life. Several Bay Area companies have asked their employees to work from home, "unless being in the office is "critical to business continuity".
'An outbreak among adult actors "could be catastrophic".'
Quote:
"In Europe, where COVID-19 has been spreading rapidly (particularly in Italy, which just reported 4,000 cases, and Germany reporting 500), many studios have already placed temporary holds on shooting, prompting the European social network FanCentro, which allows content creators to directly sell social media subscriptions to fans, to issue onboarding guidelines for performers who want to join the platform in lieu of shooting scenes, as well as organize outreach for performers who may be quarantined."
Quote:
"It is not uncommon for performers to travel to Europe, either to shoot for a European production company or to engage in escorting, says Palmer; the threat of coronavirus has rendered them more hesitant to do so. Luna also says that she knows many performers who have decided not to travel to conventions like Exxotica out of concern with interacting IRL with attendees, who fly in from all over the world to meet performers.
In the United States, which has only 233 confirmed cases of COVID-19 (much fewer than in countries like Italy or China), many adult industry members remain sanguine about the threat of coronavirus. “While it is possible that porn sets might be affected by this, I believe it is imperative to remain positive,” says performer Sarah Vandella. “[We should continue] to be as health-conscious as we are while maintaining impeccable hygiene to prevent the spread of germs.”"
End quotes.
[Source: SF Gate.]
Even though I quit college years ago, and never had aspirations of becoming a succesful porn star, I also intend to continue being health conscious while maintaining impeccable hygiene.
The potential loss of revenue is horrifying.
Worse than the stock market disaster.
We all have an interest in porn, but only a few of us invest.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Wednesday, March 04, 2020
BLEACH, TOILET PAPER, AND SOUP
As you would expect, this blogger will discount and poo-poo all the sensible advice from well-informed concerned people and head right into the Chinese quarter today for lunch, risking very likely infection by even seeing Chinese people or touching tables, chairs, and cutlery, in their restaurants. Rather than immediately asking for bitter melon omelette over rice (涼瓜煎蛋飯 'leung gwaa jin daan faan') at one of my favourite chachantengs (茶餐廳) on Stockton Street, I shall demand the dish they never put on the English language menu. Which I am sure that they have.
Because I watch Fox News.
"Bat soup may be delicious to certain people, but unfortunately bats are the worlds greatest reservoir for viruses. What are we gonna do about China? What are we gonna do about a totalitarian dictatorship where it's okay to sell live virus infected bats in open air market places, and then have business travel and tourist travel between that country and the civilized world?"
------ Fox News guest, economist Don Luskin
蝙蝠、葉鼻蝠、狐蝠。
水果蝙蝠湯
Without Fox News I would not know that colloidal silver and gargling with bleach kills the corona virus. And that bat soup may be delicious. Or that the corona virus is all a giant hoax designed in a bio-war lab to make the stock market tank, so that Donald Trump looks bad. But it's all totally under control, you can rest easy. Colloidal silver, bleach gargle, warm weather in April, vitamin C, the keto diet, and only fifteen cases.
"We have contained this, we have contained this. I won't say 'air tight' but pretty close to air tight."
------ White House National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow
Seriously, think about gargling with bleach.
Please don't buy the bargain brands.
They're weak and don't work.
Totally ineffective!
Thankyou Lord Jesus that vice-president Mike Pence is in charge, a decent god-fearing Christian. Because otherwise we'd be screwed.
Don't forget to stock up on apple cider vinegar.
In addition to bleach.
Meanwhile, I'll be finding out if fruitbat soup (水果蝙蝠湯 'seui gwo pin fok tong') is indeed delicious, after I go out to purchase several bottles of high grade bleach, and lots of toilet paper.
"In April it dies with the hotter weather. When you have fifteen people, and the fifteen within a couple of days will be close to zero, we're way ahead with the corona virus."
------ Iranian Health Minister Sayid Namaki
Bat soup may be exquisite. I don't know. I'll find out, and tell you about it. Coconut milk, cherry tomatoes, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and hot peppers. This per the Daily Star, England's most reliable newspaper, trusted by thousands. At least fifteen people.
Never leave home without an extra roll of toilet paper.
It might save your life some day.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Because I watch Fox News.
"Bat soup may be delicious to certain people, but unfortunately bats are the worlds greatest reservoir for viruses. What are we gonna do about China? What are we gonna do about a totalitarian dictatorship where it's okay to sell live virus infected bats in open air market places, and then have business travel and tourist travel between that country and the civilized world?"
------ Fox News guest, economist Don Luskin
蝙蝠、葉鼻蝠、狐蝠。
水果蝙蝠湯
Without Fox News I would not know that colloidal silver and gargling with bleach kills the corona virus. And that bat soup may be delicious. Or that the corona virus is all a giant hoax designed in a bio-war lab to make the stock market tank, so that Donald Trump looks bad. But it's all totally under control, you can rest easy. Colloidal silver, bleach gargle, warm weather in April, vitamin C, the keto diet, and only fifteen cases.
"We have contained this, we have contained this. I won't say 'air tight' but pretty close to air tight."
------ White House National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow
Seriously, think about gargling with bleach.
Please don't buy the bargain brands.
They're weak and don't work.
Totally ineffective!
Thankyou Lord Jesus that vice-president Mike Pence is in charge, a decent god-fearing Christian. Because otherwise we'd be screwed.
Don't forget to stock up on apple cider vinegar.
In addition to bleach.
Meanwhile, I'll be finding out if fruitbat soup (水果蝙蝠湯 'seui gwo pin fok tong') is indeed delicious, after I go out to purchase several bottles of high grade bleach, and lots of toilet paper.
"In April it dies with the hotter weather. When you have fifteen people, and the fifteen within a couple of days will be close to zero, we're way ahead with the corona virus."
------ Iranian Health Minister Sayid Namaki
Bat soup may be exquisite. I don't know. I'll find out, and tell you about it. Coconut milk, cherry tomatoes, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and hot peppers. This per the Daily Star, England's most reliable newspaper, trusted by thousands. At least fifteen people.
Never leave home without an extra roll of toilet paper.
It might save your life some day.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Sunday, March 01, 2020
THIS MASSIVE COUNTRY!
Dang it, my dastardly scheme to make millions off substandard face masks has failed! Clever people, the best people, in fact, have seen through the hoax of corona virus, and established that it's all a Democrat plot to make the Dow tank, and harm Trump. Which, of course, was obvious from the beginning.
Real Americans will not be fooled.
"Now the Democrats are politicizing the Corona virus. Corona virus, they’re politicizing it. We did one of the great jobs, you see, how’s President Trump doing?
"Russia, Russia, Russia."
"That was a perfect conversation. They tried everything. They tried it over and over again. They lost. It is all turning. Think of it. And this is their new hoax."
"But you know we did something that has been pretty amazing. We have 15 people in this massive country, and because of the fact that we went early, we could’ve had a lot more than that."
"So a statistic that we want to talk about. Go ahead. Say, USA. It’s okay, the USA.."
"The USA.."
"So a number that nobody heard of, I was shocked to hear of it, 35,000 people on average die each year from the flu, did anyone know that?"
"And so far, we have lost nobody to Corona virus in the United States. Nobody. "
There's this source for asbestos fibre pads, see, which are permeable enough that with a bit of effort one can breathe through them, even when sleeping, which would have been perfect for surgical masks.
But our infallible leaders have seen through the pretense.
The biggest health danger we face is foreigners.
Fifteen people. Only fifteen. 15.
A massive country
The proof, of course, is in the pangolins and bats. We have no pangolins or bats in this country, they're not native, the people bringing them in are all foreigners trying to kill us.
We have possums, raccoons, and armadillos.
Not pangolins or bats.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Real Americans will not be fooled.
"Now the Democrats are politicizing the Corona virus. Corona virus, they’re politicizing it. We did one of the great jobs, you see, how’s President Trump doing?
"Russia, Russia, Russia."
"That was a perfect conversation. They tried everything. They tried it over and over again. They lost. It is all turning. Think of it. And this is their new hoax."
"But you know we did something that has been pretty amazing. We have 15 people in this massive country, and because of the fact that we went early, we could’ve had a lot more than that."
"So a statistic that we want to talk about. Go ahead. Say, USA. It’s okay, the USA.."
"The USA.."
"So a number that nobody heard of, I was shocked to hear of it, 35,000 people on average die each year from the flu, did anyone know that?"
"And so far, we have lost nobody to Corona virus in the United States. Nobody. "
There's this source for asbestos fibre pads, see, which are permeable enough that with a bit of effort one can breathe through them, even when sleeping, which would have been perfect for surgical masks.
But our infallible leaders have seen through the pretense.
The biggest health danger we face is foreigners.
Fifteen people. Only fifteen. 15.
A massive country
The proof, of course, is in the pangolins and bats. We have no pangolins or bats in this country, they're not native, the people bringing them in are all foreigners trying to kill us.
We have possums, raccoons, and armadillos.
Not pangolins or bats.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Friday, February 28, 2020
TIME TO ZOMBIE-APOCALYPTIZE!
Because of Wuhan corona virus, three issues have gained prominence more than they used to have: self-isolation, medical deductibles, and paid medical leave. The best way to self-isolate is to go over to the affluent suburbs and deliberately associate with people who wouldn't give you the time of day. Medical deductibles as well as medical insurance are too high, and stalwart Republicans don't want you to have affordable coverage anyhow ... so rather than getting tested, head on over to the Supermarket in that affluent suburb and cough all over the produce. Paid sick leave? Yeah, no. Go ahead, greet, hug, and act all palsy-walsy with clients, customers, coworkers, and damned well everybody who visits the building. America's Republicans have decided that doing so is more cost-effective and fair to them than paying you to stay home when ill. And again, ALWAYS think of the affluent suburbs.
Seeing as most people in the United States can't afford to get tested, and won't be able to pay for the eventual vaccine anyhow, but can still own guns, the future in those affluent suburbs with their Republican inhabitants may be quite interesting.
Admittedly, the nearest affluent suburbs for Kentucky and Tennessee are in adjacent areas, like Maryland, Washington D.C., and Delaware, but just load your entire infected family into the station wagon, with your hunting riffles (for any chance-met gated communities), and head across the border.
If you're in North Florida or Mississipi, remember all those retirement homes, country clubs, and the Cuban exiles in Miami-Dade.
Don't forget Texas.
SELF-ISOLATION, MEDICAL DEDUCTIBLES, PAID MEDICAL LEAVE
The best thing for you, if you catch ill, is to patronize Starbucks, Chipotle, and Health Clubs. And to get close to people wearing yoga pants. You are never more alone than when you're surrounded by people wearing yoga pants or talking on their cell-phones.
And ALWAYS think of the affluent suburbs.
Yoga pants.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Seeing as most people in the United States can't afford to get tested, and won't be able to pay for the eventual vaccine anyhow, but can still own guns, the future in those affluent suburbs with their Republican inhabitants may be quite interesting.
Admittedly, the nearest affluent suburbs for Kentucky and Tennessee are in adjacent areas, like Maryland, Washington D.C., and Delaware, but just load your entire infected family into the station wagon, with your hunting riffles (for any chance-met gated communities), and head across the border.
If you're in North Florida or Mississipi, remember all those retirement homes, country clubs, and the Cuban exiles in Miami-Dade.
Don't forget Texas.
SELF-ISOLATION, MEDICAL DEDUCTIBLES, PAID MEDICAL LEAVE
The best thing for you, if you catch ill, is to patronize Starbucks, Chipotle, and Health Clubs. And to get close to people wearing yoga pants. You are never more alone than when you're surrounded by people wearing yoga pants or talking on their cell-phones.
And ALWAYS think of the affluent suburbs.
Yoga pants.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Wednesday, February 26, 2020
NYP, YELLOW JOURNALISM, AND STEVEN MOSHER
An opinion piece appeared in the New York Post that, under present circumstances, may be less than helpful, and might actually fuel anti-Chinese hysteria. Which one suspects could be welcomed by the author. Who to me seems to be a fringe-figure making a good living by being a shit-disturber and ideologue. The New York Post should have known better than to publish the piece, but they are a tabloid, and can barely be taken seriously. At least they spell-checked it.
Though they didn't run it past scientists.
The coronavirus may have leaked from a lab - By Steven W. Mosher
Steven W. Mosher is well-known as a far-right campaigner and propagandist at odds with the Chinese government, whose main drift seems to be as an angry anti-abortion agitator (per Wikipedia: "according to the Los Angeles Times, Mosher successfully lobbied the George W. Bush administration to withhold $34 to $40 million per year for seven years from the United Nations Population Fund, the largest international donor to family planning programs").
Several phrases in his short opinion piece show that this is pure speculation (examples: "Xi didn’t actually admit", "evidence emerged suggesting", "it sure sounds", "does that suggest to you", "may have", "this little-known fact") and he presents no sourced evidence other than that. Add to that the mention of rats being eaten, and given his known biases, I have to suspect that Steven W. Mosher is doing nothing more than shit-disturbing as part of a vendetta against the Chinese and on behalf of his compadres in the Christian anti-abortion agitator community.
Crucially, he provides no actual data, and his article is rife with pointed suspicion-mongering that seeks to blame the Chinese government.
I'd write off his article as opportunistic anti-Chinese and anti-Chinese government agit-prop by a religious rightwing whackjob, intent on using anything to create hysteria and racialist suspicions. A predictable development, given the rightwing's xenophobic slant.
The New York Post claims to be a newspaper, even though it's part of Rupert Murdoch's empire and caters to a low common denominator. I would have expected better. Thankfully they had the good grace to label Steven W. Mosher's essay an "opinion".
A FORCE FOR EVIL
From Wikipedia:
The Post has been criticized since the beginning of Murdoch's ownership for sensationalism, blatant advocacy, and conservative bias. In 1980, the Columbia Journalism Review stated "New York Post is no longer merely a journalistic problem. It is a social problem – a force for evil."
[CUT]
Perhaps the most serious allegation against the Post is that it is willing to contort its news coverage to suit Murdoch's business needs.
[CUT]
In The New Yorker, Ken Auletta writes that Murdoch "doesn’t hesitate to use the Post to belittle his business opponents". He goes on to say that Murdoch's support for Edward I. Koch while he was running for mayor of New York "spilled over onto the news pages of the Post, with the paper regularly publishing glowing stories about Koch and sometimes savage accounts of his four primary opponents."
[CUT]
Critics say that the Post allows its editorial positions to shape its story selection and news coverage.
[CUT]
According to a survey conducted by Pace University in 2004, the Post was rated the least-credible major news outlet in New York, and the only news outlet to receive more responses calling it "not credible" than credible (44% not credible to 39% credible).
End cites
Casting blame at the current time probably suits an administration which, per Business Insider, "spent the past 2 years slashing the government agencies responsible for handling the coronavirus outbreak".
Scapegoating. We've seen that before.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Though they didn't run it past scientists.
The coronavirus may have leaked from a lab - By Steven W. Mosher
Steven W. Mosher is well-known as a far-right campaigner and propagandist at odds with the Chinese government, whose main drift seems to be as an angry anti-abortion agitator (per Wikipedia: "according to the Los Angeles Times, Mosher successfully lobbied the George W. Bush administration to withhold $34 to $40 million per year for seven years from the United Nations Population Fund, the largest international donor to family planning programs").
Several phrases in his short opinion piece show that this is pure speculation (examples: "Xi didn’t actually admit", "evidence emerged suggesting", "it sure sounds", "does that suggest to you", "may have", "this little-known fact") and he presents no sourced evidence other than that. Add to that the mention of rats being eaten, and given his known biases, I have to suspect that Steven W. Mosher is doing nothing more than shit-disturbing as part of a vendetta against the Chinese and on behalf of his compadres in the Christian anti-abortion agitator community.
Crucially, he provides no actual data, and his article is rife with pointed suspicion-mongering that seeks to blame the Chinese government.
I'd write off his article as opportunistic anti-Chinese and anti-Chinese government agit-prop by a religious rightwing whackjob, intent on using anything to create hysteria and racialist suspicions. A predictable development, given the rightwing's xenophobic slant.
The New York Post claims to be a newspaper, even though it's part of Rupert Murdoch's empire and caters to a low common denominator. I would have expected better. Thankfully they had the good grace to label Steven W. Mosher's essay an "opinion".
A FORCE FOR EVIL
From Wikipedia:
The Post has been criticized since the beginning of Murdoch's ownership for sensationalism, blatant advocacy, and conservative bias. In 1980, the Columbia Journalism Review stated "New York Post is no longer merely a journalistic problem. It is a social problem – a force for evil."
[CUT]
Perhaps the most serious allegation against the Post is that it is willing to contort its news coverage to suit Murdoch's business needs.
[CUT]
In The New Yorker, Ken Auletta writes that Murdoch "doesn’t hesitate to use the Post to belittle his business opponents". He goes on to say that Murdoch's support for Edward I. Koch while he was running for mayor of New York "spilled over onto the news pages of the Post, with the paper regularly publishing glowing stories about Koch and sometimes savage accounts of his four primary opponents."
[CUT]
Critics say that the Post allows its editorial positions to shape its story selection and news coverage.
[CUT]
According to a survey conducted by Pace University in 2004, the Post was rated the least-credible major news outlet in New York, and the only news outlet to receive more responses calling it "not credible" than credible (44% not credible to 39% credible).
End cites
Casting blame at the current time probably suits an administration which, per Business Insider, "spent the past 2 years slashing the government agencies responsible for handling the coronavirus outbreak".
Scapegoating. We've seen that before.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Saturday, February 22, 2020
COMFY TOILET PAPER
There were two chocolate bars in the kitchen. My apartment mate does not particularly like dark chocolate, so I left the milk-chocolate caramel one for her, and ate the other one for breakfast. I do not quite understand why she disfavours dark, which is just one of many things in this world I do not understand.
The tweaking fellow on the bus. Why is he here? Why did he have his ears pierced and stretched for disks? Why is he fussing neurotically with cans? Why are his pants ripped?
The dude crossing the street without looking because he's on his cellphone; why is he still alive?
Why is that old woman looking at me so villainously?
Elderly drunks at the bus stop.
The near-emptiness at the place where I had lunch Friday.
Salt fish and chicken fried rice (鹹魚雞粒炒飯 'haam yü gai naap chaau faan'), which was delicious. Why so empty? Yeah, I can understand white people staying away, they're scared of Chinese people and Chinese food even at the best of times, which these aren't, and they're terrified of catching the Wuhan plague just by looking at a Chinese person. But even the regulars were largely absent. No table full of boisterous Toishanese salts of the earth, none of the little old grannies, or middle aged couples .....
Teapot Uncle was there. But he left early.
The fear of infection is rather illogical. There are over ten million people in the Bay Area. Of which a dozen, more or less, may have Wuhan corona. Of the diagnosed cases world-wide, approximately three percent will snuff it. Max. Cases outside China are few, largely quarantined, and under observation. Wuhan Corona Virus is spread mostly by air-borne droplets, far less by contaminated surfaces. So the chance of getting it by looking at Chinese people or eating Chinese food is altogether negligible.
Approaching zero, in fact.
Wash your hands. Clean your surfaces. Enjoy your fried rice. It's delicious with a spoonful of hot sauce, the bowl of pork and lotus root soup was very nice, and the small dinner roll was hot enough to melt all the butter and nearly burn my lips. I thoroughly enjoyed the Hong Kong milk tea afterwards.
Wuhan is cut-off from the outside world. There is no regular travel inside the city or out. For the foreseeable future that situation will be maintained. There are two small pockets in Korea, among members of a seriously nut-ball Christian sect, and people may also have been exposed to the Wuhan virus in the Iranian holy city of Qom. Hong kong has a few cases.
Even if you are a nut-ball Christian or Shia Muslim, you have little to fear.
If you run out of toilet paper in Hong Kong you may panic.
Apparently people are hoarding it.
My apartment mate keeps us well-stocked with toilet paper, the comfy kind, so I am not particularly worried.
Need more chocolate.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
The tweaking fellow on the bus. Why is he here? Why did he have his ears pierced and stretched for disks? Why is he fussing neurotically with cans? Why are his pants ripped?
The dude crossing the street without looking because he's on his cellphone; why is he still alive?
Why is that old woman looking at me so villainously?
Elderly drunks at the bus stop.
The near-emptiness at the place where I had lunch Friday.
Salt fish and chicken fried rice (鹹魚雞粒炒飯 'haam yü gai naap chaau faan'), which was delicious. Why so empty? Yeah, I can understand white people staying away, they're scared of Chinese people and Chinese food even at the best of times, which these aren't, and they're terrified of catching the Wuhan plague just by looking at a Chinese person. But even the regulars were largely absent. No table full of boisterous Toishanese salts of the earth, none of the little old grannies, or middle aged couples .....
Teapot Uncle was there. But he left early.
The fear of infection is rather illogical. There are over ten million people in the Bay Area. Of which a dozen, more or less, may have Wuhan corona. Of the diagnosed cases world-wide, approximately three percent will snuff it. Max. Cases outside China are few, largely quarantined, and under observation. Wuhan Corona Virus is spread mostly by air-borne droplets, far less by contaminated surfaces. So the chance of getting it by looking at Chinese people or eating Chinese food is altogether negligible.
Approaching zero, in fact.
Wash your hands. Clean your surfaces. Enjoy your fried rice. It's delicious with a spoonful of hot sauce, the bowl of pork and lotus root soup was very nice, and the small dinner roll was hot enough to melt all the butter and nearly burn my lips. I thoroughly enjoyed the Hong Kong milk tea afterwards.
Wuhan is cut-off from the outside world. There is no regular travel inside the city or out. For the foreseeable future that situation will be maintained. There are two small pockets in Korea, among members of a seriously nut-ball Christian sect, and people may also have been exposed to the Wuhan virus in the Iranian holy city of Qom. Hong kong has a few cases.
Even if you are a nut-ball Christian or Shia Muslim, you have little to fear.
If you run out of toilet paper in Hong Kong you may panic.
Apparently people are hoarding it.
My apartment mate keeps us well-stocked with toilet paper, the comfy kind, so I am not particularly worried.
Need more chocolate.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Friday, February 21, 2020
THE IMPRESSIVENESS
This morning I scoped out the news of the day, on Thursday I let the tide of ignorant ranting from the boys just slide over me, exercising my right not to dispute needlessly. Remarkably they all had solutions. To everything.
As was entirely to be expected, logic and facts were not the most important elements in their old-school weltanschauungen. By a rather wide margin.
They differ less than they think from the majority.
It's all magic.
"We are deeply saddened and embarrassed by the action of our employee"
------Spokesperson for Super 8 by Wyndham Plymouth, Plymouth, Indiana.
SOURCE: Racist assaults and ignorant attacks against Asians - CNN
We are too, dude. We are too. You know, I thought my country was better than this. Apparently we are precisely like the Italians and the French.
Or the Ukranians. Remarkable people, those Ukies.
"Whenever I get a flu shot, I always get the flu"
and ""I never go to the doctor, they lie."
------Cigar smoker who shall remain nameless, a happy go lucky fellow.
Besides insanity and addiction, diseases were hardly mentioned yesterday.
There is better access to knowledge in this era than even a few years ago. But there is less common sense. Or at least it often seems that way.
Rather than despairing over my dumb-ass fellow man on a day off, I shall sometime today head over to Chinatown for something nice to eat, plus a cup of Hong Kong milk tea, and a stroll around the alleyways with my pipe filled with a lovely tobacco mixture. It's quite safe there, and no one ever asks me where I'm from because of my accent.
At present I have no desire to visit France, Italy, the Ukraine, Indiana, or New York. Despite their beeindruckende sehenswürdigkeiten.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
As was entirely to be expected, logic and facts were not the most important elements in their old-school weltanschauungen. By a rather wide margin.
They differ less than they think from the majority.
It's all magic.
"We are deeply saddened and embarrassed by the action of our employee"
------Spokesperson for Super 8 by Wyndham Plymouth, Plymouth, Indiana.
SOURCE: Racist assaults and ignorant attacks against Asians - CNN
We are too, dude. We are too. You know, I thought my country was better than this. Apparently we are precisely like the Italians and the French.
Or the Ukranians. Remarkable people, those Ukies.
"Whenever I get a flu shot, I always get the flu"
and ""I never go to the doctor, they lie."
------Cigar smoker who shall remain nameless, a happy go lucky fellow.
Besides insanity and addiction, diseases were hardly mentioned yesterday.
There is better access to knowledge in this era than even a few years ago. But there is less common sense. Or at least it often seems that way.
Rather than despairing over my dumb-ass fellow man on a day off, I shall sometime today head over to Chinatown for something nice to eat, plus a cup of Hong Kong milk tea, and a stroll around the alleyways with my pipe filled with a lovely tobacco mixture. It's quite safe there, and no one ever asks me where I'm from because of my accent.
At present I have no desire to visit France, Italy, the Ukraine, Indiana, or New York. Despite their beeindruckende sehenswürdigkeiten.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Tuesday, February 18, 2020
THE WHITE PEOPLE ARE SCARED
Dinner: Fish and potato in a curry sauce over rice (咖哩石班飯 'gaa lei sek paan faan'). Hot sauce (是拉差 'si laa chaa') in lieu of sambal. Hot milk tea. It was a delicious meal, very enjoyable. There were over two dozen other customers in the place. And, other than myself, no white people. Because white people are too scared that they will catch the Wuhan virus, simply from being within a few feet of a Chinese person.
You know, I am really disappointed in my fellow Caucasians.
On the one hand, I do like eating a delicious dinner where there are no confused white folks taking up the wait person's time with inane questions ("does it also come with potatoes, or is rice obligatory?"), on the other hand, this fearful sh*t is really absurd.
Yes, over two dozen Chinese people. I am certain not a single one of them had Wuhan fever. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that none of the many people of Chinese ancestry around me today have it.
Everyone at my bank was Chinese.
So were the bus passengers.
Chinatown pedestrians.
That fish curry was exceedingly nice. I heartily recommend it.
By the way: my apartment mate, a Chinese American who does not have Wuhan disease, is thinking of getting a weird spiritual white folks massage at a spa that caters primarily to "woke" white people. If she can keep a straight face long enough. Makes you feel centered in Mother Earth, nurtures your immune system, balances your energy.
She received a generous gift card.
One more by the way: she can't pronounce Wuhan in her parental version of Chinese, and would have a difficult time locating that place on the map. None of her relatives have ever been there. No one she knows has.
Later this evening I'll be in Chinatown again. As well as tomorrow.
And on Friday, my third day off.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
You know, I am really disappointed in my fellow Caucasians.
On the one hand, I do like eating a delicious dinner where there are no confused white folks taking up the wait person's time with inane questions ("does it also come with potatoes, or is rice obligatory?"), on the other hand, this fearful sh*t is really absurd.
Yes, over two dozen Chinese people. I am certain not a single one of them had Wuhan fever. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that none of the many people of Chinese ancestry around me today have it.
Everyone at my bank was Chinese.
So were the bus passengers.
Chinatown pedestrians.
That fish curry was exceedingly nice. I heartily recommend it.
By the way: my apartment mate, a Chinese American who does not have Wuhan disease, is thinking of getting a weird spiritual white folks massage at a spa that caters primarily to "woke" white people. If she can keep a straight face long enough. Makes you feel centered in Mother Earth, nurtures your immune system, balances your energy.
She received a generous gift card.
One more by the way: she can't pronounce Wuhan in her parental version of Chinese, and would have a difficult time locating that place on the map. None of her relatives have ever been there. No one she knows has.
Later this evening I'll be in Chinatown again. As well as tomorrow.
And on Friday, my third day off.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Friday, February 14, 2020
XENOPHOBIA IS THE NEW NORMAL
It was probably entirely predictable that hysteria should arise over Corona virus fears, seeing as everyone in the United States is medically educated to a fare-thee-well, thanks to the internet. Examples of which are the campaign against vaccinations, as well as the thoroughly well-founded fact that if you get a flu shot, you will get the flu. For which the anecdotal evidence is overwhelming.
[Important disclaimer: I've had all my vaccinations, damned glad I did, as well as flu shots, of which I'm equally glad, that's a few strains of influenza right there I shan't be catching, thank you, and anti-vaxers are boneheads, bless their hearts. Complete effing boneheads.]
Like most Americans in the suburbs I run around in a panic because I might catch the plague, leprosy, blackness, syphilis, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, the autism, witchcraft, or the Wuhan Corona Virus, omg.
Cooties!
Quote:
"Anxiety and misinformation related to the virus have fuelled anti-Asian prejudice, Los Angeles authorities said at a press conference."
Quote:
"Flyers with counterfeit seals for the World Health Organization (WHO) -- advised residents to avoid Asian-American businesses like Panda Express because of the coronavirus."
Quote:
"In the - Alhambra area, 14,000 people have signed a petition urging school closures over the virus."
Quote:
"A Los Angeles Asian-American schoolboy accused by bullies of having the virus was taken to the hospital after being beaten."
Quote:
"And in a now-deleted Instagram post on "managing fears and anxiety", the University of California, Berkeley health services department listed xenophobia as a "normal" reaction amid a virus outbreak."
[Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51506732.]
The skills of reading and writing are wasted on a lot of people.
Your chances of contracting "Wuhan Pneumonia" are roughly the same as influenza and the common cold, if, AND ONLY IF, you are in contact with people who actually have it. And you have not taken precautions. Such as facemasks, sterilized surfaces, and regular handwashing. There are over a billion people of Chinese ancestry who are NOT from Wuhan, have not ever visited Wuhan, and have been nowhere near Wuhan. And of those, less than a miniscule fraction of one thousandth of one percent are infected. Statistically, you have a better chance of winning the lottery.
[Yes, I play the lottery, despite those chances. If you don't play, you can't win.]
If, contrary to all odds, you did get infected, you stand a very minor chance of kicking the bucket because of it anyway. Your greatest danger here is an overburdened medical establishment, such as currently exists in Wuhan, parts of Europe, and the entire friggin' Third World.
Plus Mississippi, Georgia, and the Carolinas.
In cities with large East Asian populations like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Alhambra, your chance of catching Wuhan Pneumonia is far less than getting into a fight with a violent drunkard or addict, getting killed by someone experiencing a psychotic episode, being shot by the cops if you're black, or becoming involved in a pyramid scheme or anti-vax cult.
So. Get your damned flu shots, wash your hands, and stop being racist bigoted morons. And vaccinate your damned kids.
Here's some useful information: Virus survival outside a host.
Oh, and get rid of that damned 'yoni egg'.
Gloop is garbage.
Update: Another useful article here: UCSF, How the New Coronavirus Spreads and Progresses – And Why One Test May Not Be Enough.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
[Important disclaimer: I've had all my vaccinations, damned glad I did, as well as flu shots, of which I'm equally glad, that's a few strains of influenza right there I shan't be catching, thank you, and anti-vaxers are boneheads, bless their hearts. Complete effing boneheads.]
Like most Americans in the suburbs I run around in a panic because I might catch the plague, leprosy, blackness, syphilis, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, the autism, witchcraft, or the Wuhan Corona Virus, omg.
Cooties!
Quote:
"Anxiety and misinformation related to the virus have fuelled anti-Asian prejudice, Los Angeles authorities said at a press conference."
Quote:
"Flyers with counterfeit seals for the World Health Organization (WHO) -- advised residents to avoid Asian-American businesses like Panda Express because of the coronavirus."
Quote:
"In the - Alhambra area, 14,000 people have signed a petition urging school closures over the virus."
Quote:
"A Los Angeles Asian-American schoolboy accused by bullies of having the virus was taken to the hospital after being beaten."
Quote:
"And in a now-deleted Instagram post on "managing fears and anxiety", the University of California, Berkeley health services department listed xenophobia as a "normal" reaction amid a virus outbreak."
[Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51506732.]
The skills of reading and writing are wasted on a lot of people.
Your chances of contracting "Wuhan Pneumonia" are roughly the same as influenza and the common cold, if, AND ONLY IF, you are in contact with people who actually have it. And you have not taken precautions. Such as facemasks, sterilized surfaces, and regular handwashing. There are over a billion people of Chinese ancestry who are NOT from Wuhan, have not ever visited Wuhan, and have been nowhere near Wuhan. And of those, less than a miniscule fraction of one thousandth of one percent are infected. Statistically, you have a better chance of winning the lottery.
[Yes, I play the lottery, despite those chances. If you don't play, you can't win.]
If, contrary to all odds, you did get infected, you stand a very minor chance of kicking the bucket because of it anyway. Your greatest danger here is an overburdened medical establishment, such as currently exists in Wuhan, parts of Europe, and the entire friggin' Third World.
Plus Mississippi, Georgia, and the Carolinas.
In cities with large East Asian populations like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Alhambra, your chance of catching Wuhan Pneumonia is far less than getting into a fight with a violent drunkard or addict, getting killed by someone experiencing a psychotic episode, being shot by the cops if you're black, or becoming involved in a pyramid scheme or anti-vax cult.
So. Get your damned flu shots, wash your hands, and stop being racist bigoted morons. And vaccinate your damned kids.
Here's some useful information: Virus survival outside a host.
Oh, and get rid of that damned 'yoni egg'.
Gloop is garbage.
Update: Another useful article here: UCSF, How the New Coronavirus Spreads and Progresses – And Why One Test May Not Be Enough.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
CHICKENS
One of the most noticeable things about the new Corona virus (CoVid-19, 武漢肺炎) is the ignorance; people just don't do the necessary reading, but react according to preprogrammed biases. Things to remember: you cannot catch it just by proximity to Asians, eating Chinese food will not infect you, and if it was that easy to catch, we'd all be dead now.
Someone wearing a mask is not a carrier.
An article on SFGate shows the effect of stupidity:
"We have had emails from concerned volunteers, parents, citizens of the city and the Bay Area, asking, ‘Why do you insist to continue on with this parade where we’re going to gather a big group of Asians; where we could get infected?’ Those fears are unfounded – just because it’s a big Asian event doesn’t mean you’re going to get infected."
[William Gee]
And:
"Because the coronavirus is from China, and most people in Chinatown are Chinese, people are kind of afraid to come in."
[James Cheh]
And:
"Contrary to some bizarre online hearsay, though, coronavirus cannot be passed through food."
[Source: Has coronavirus scared people away from SF's Chinatown? -- SFGate.]
While on the one hand I've been enjoying a quieter and more peaceful lunch or teatime in Chinatown, on the other hand I'm rather pissed at the racism, xenophobia, and sheer dumb-assedness, that's at the root of that.
It's affecting some of my favourite places.
On the third hand, you can indeed catch syphilis from being anywhere near a bistro or a French-speaker. It's absolutely rife over there, they practically invented it, and the Paris Metro is the epicentre.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Someone wearing a mask is not a carrier.
An article on SFGate shows the effect of stupidity:
"We have had emails from concerned volunteers, parents, citizens of the city and the Bay Area, asking, ‘Why do you insist to continue on with this parade where we’re going to gather a big group of Asians; where we could get infected?’ Those fears are unfounded – just because it’s a big Asian event doesn’t mean you’re going to get infected."
[William Gee]
And:
"Because the coronavirus is from China, and most people in Chinatown are Chinese, people are kind of afraid to come in."
[James Cheh]
And:
"Contrary to some bizarre online hearsay, though, coronavirus cannot be passed through food."
[Source: Has coronavirus scared people away from SF's Chinatown? -- SFGate.]
While on the one hand I've been enjoying a quieter and more peaceful lunch or teatime in Chinatown, on the other hand I'm rather pissed at the racism, xenophobia, and sheer dumb-assedness, that's at the root of that.
It's affecting some of my favourite places.
On the third hand, you can indeed catch syphilis from being anywhere near a bistro or a French-speaker. It's absolutely rife over there, they practically invented it, and the Paris Metro is the epicentre.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF PASTA AND MEATBALLS
In the same way that Rome is known for dysentery, Venice for the black plague, Paris for crotch rot and syphilis, Shenzhen for Sars, now Wuhan is known for the new and improved respiratory ailment similar to the common cold. A pity, really, because unlike Paris, one cannot travel to Wuhan.
And now I really want to got there.
楚菜
From Wikipedia:
"Hubei cuisine emphasises the preparation of ingredients and the matching of colours. It specialises in steaming techniques. Its style is influenced by the cooking methods of the cuisines of neighbouring provinces such as Sichuan and Hunan. As a result, Hubei cuisine also uses dried hot pepper, black pepper and other spices to enhance the flavour of dishes."
"Wuhan style, which specialises in soups. Wuhan is also known for its noodle dishes, such as hot dry noodles. Additionally, Wuhan is famous for its dry pots, which are similar to hot pot but without the soup base."
End quote.
An internet search for 武漢餐廳 ("Wuhan restaurant") pulls up a map which is, for the foreseeable future, totally useless. The images that result are mostly uninteresting, though searching for 武漢菜 ("Wuhan cuisine") is infinitely more rewarding. Several beautiful photos.
Wuchang Fish, steamed buns, steamed fish, steamed pork, steamed meatballs, steamed shrimp balls.
And many delicious looking noodle dishes.
The regionym "Chu" (楚 'cho') applies to both Hubei and Hunan (湖北 and 湖南 respectively) and dates back three millennia. It plays a prominent role in the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period. The character means 'distinct, clear, obvious', as well as a bush that is bracken-like. Other words particularly associated with that place: 嬭 ('naai'; milk, titty, mommy) 酓 ('yim'; bitter, sip) 芈 ('me'; bleat, baa) 熊 ('hung'; bear, brilliant).
At least for the next several days, researching Wuhan cuisine through the internet may be an obsession. Particularly noodles. And steamed pork.
Results might be posted.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
And now I really want to got there.
楚菜
From Wikipedia:
"Hubei cuisine emphasises the preparation of ingredients and the matching of colours. It specialises in steaming techniques. Its style is influenced by the cooking methods of the cuisines of neighbouring provinces such as Sichuan and Hunan. As a result, Hubei cuisine also uses dried hot pepper, black pepper and other spices to enhance the flavour of dishes."
"Wuhan style, which specialises in soups. Wuhan is also known for its noodle dishes, such as hot dry noodles. Additionally, Wuhan is famous for its dry pots, which are similar to hot pot but without the soup base."
End quote.
An internet search for 武漢餐廳 ("Wuhan restaurant") pulls up a map which is, for the foreseeable future, totally useless. The images that result are mostly uninteresting, though searching for 武漢菜 ("Wuhan cuisine") is infinitely more rewarding. Several beautiful photos.
Wuchang Fish, steamed buns, steamed fish, steamed pork, steamed meatballs, steamed shrimp balls.
And many delicious looking noodle dishes.
The regionym "Chu" (楚 'cho') applies to both Hubei and Hunan (湖北 and 湖南 respectively) and dates back three millennia. It plays a prominent role in the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period. The character means 'distinct, clear, obvious', as well as a bush that is bracken-like. Other words particularly associated with that place: 嬭 ('naai'; milk, titty, mommy) 酓 ('yim'; bitter, sip) 芈 ('me'; bleat, baa) 熊 ('hung'; bear, brilliant).
At least for the next several days, researching Wuhan cuisine through the internet may be an obsession. Particularly noodles. And steamed pork.
Results might be posted.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Sunday, February 09, 2020
WUHAN PULMONARY DISEASE
So after a long delay, and with due pomp and gravitas, the World Health Organization announced a name for the Wuhan disease: "Novel Corona". Novel, as in 'new'. Yeah, guys? Everyone is calling it something else. The English-speaking world says 'Wuhan Corona Virus', the Chinese-tongued world calls it 武漢肺炎 ('mou hon fei yim'; "Wuhan pneumonia").
What part of the world do you-all live in?
Oh, yeah..... to quote from one of the people at WHO: "The main reason for this declaration is not what is happening in China but what is happening in other countries."
Dead people in China? NOT really important, internationally.
Dead people elsewhere? An emergency according to WHO.
Maybe people outside of China don't die very often.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
What part of the world do you-all live in?
Oh, yeah..... to quote from one of the people at WHO: "The main reason for this declaration is not what is happening in China but what is happening in other countries."
Dead people in China? NOT really important, internationally.
Dead people elsewhere? An emergency according to WHO.
Maybe people outside of China don't die very often.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Friday, February 07, 2020
LEI MAN LEUNG KAI
Back in December a Chinese doctor noticed an alarming pattern of disease in the city where he worked, and posted a message to a medical chat group regarding those cases. December 30. Four days later public security hauled him in and forced him to sign a letter admitting that his actions had disturbed the public order.
Because, of course, public security officials know medicine better than doctors.
On 10 January he began coughing, the next day he had a fever and two days later he was himself hospitalized. One month after his public order disturbing chat group post, he was diagnosed.
30 January.
On Wednesday February 5, he passed away.
Which public security officials initially tried to deny. Because, of course, public security officials know more about death than doctors.
From December 30 till today, an increasing number of security measures have been taken. Some were firm, some were wise. There is concern that this newly discovered disease may harm the public order.
In response to the crisis, China has introduced more restrictive measures to try to control the outbreak. They are confident that they are capable of defeating the epidemic.
TRENTON ALLEY, CHINATOWN
Opposite the hospital where my doctor works is an alleyway I particularly like. When the afternoon sun hits just right, it is peacefull and pleasant to the eyes, soothing to the soul. After I see my doctor or have had medical tests done, I often end up there enjoying a quiet smoke, and observing the activity at the stores on the corner, elderly grandparents and little tykes after school, housewives hurrying home with groceries for family dinner. Currently it is named after the capital city of New Jersey (Trenton).
I have no idea why.
不如 ... 李文亮醫生如街
Sure, you may want to keep a name, which recalls the beautiful capital city of a state on the East Coast, with which it has no connection, but I think it would be rather a splendid idea to rename it as Li Wen Liang Street, so that Doctor Li will not and cannot be forgotten ... as public security officials might want to happen. Which will indeed have happened several years hence, when the authoritative account of this new medical crisis is finally written, filled with plauditory mention of the measures taken to control the outbreak. And maintain public order.
How appropriate if a street leading to a hospital were to be named after a doctor who did the right thing.
He was thirty four years old when he died.
He left behind a wife and child.
His wife is expecting.
Li Wen Liang Street.
It has a ring to it.
AFTER WORD
This is just a thought, I have no idea how to bring it to the attention of public officials. Like David Chiu, London Breed, Scott Wiener, Aaron Peskin, et al.
Other than posting it in a chat group.
A medical chat group.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Because, of course, public security officials know medicine better than doctors.
On 10 January he began coughing, the next day he had a fever and two days later he was himself hospitalized. One month after his public order disturbing chat group post, he was diagnosed.
30 January.
On Wednesday February 5, he passed away.
Which public security officials initially tried to deny. Because, of course, public security officials know more about death than doctors.
From December 30 till today, an increasing number of security measures have been taken. Some were firm, some were wise. There is concern that this newly discovered disease may harm the public order.
In response to the crisis, China has introduced more restrictive measures to try to control the outbreak. They are confident that they are capable of defeating the epidemic.
TRENTON ALLEY, CHINATOWN
Opposite the hospital where my doctor works is an alleyway I particularly like. When the afternoon sun hits just right, it is peacefull and pleasant to the eyes, soothing to the soul. After I see my doctor or have had medical tests done, I often end up there enjoying a quiet smoke, and observing the activity at the stores on the corner, elderly grandparents and little tykes after school, housewives hurrying home with groceries for family dinner. Currently it is named after the capital city of New Jersey (Trenton).
I have no idea why.
不如 ... 李文亮醫生如街
Sure, you may want to keep a name, which recalls the beautiful capital city of a state on the East Coast, with which it has no connection, but I think it would be rather a splendid idea to rename it as Li Wen Liang Street, so that Doctor Li will not and cannot be forgotten ... as public security officials might want to happen. Which will indeed have happened several years hence, when the authoritative account of this new medical crisis is finally written, filled with plauditory mention of the measures taken to control the outbreak. And maintain public order.
How appropriate if a street leading to a hospital were to be named after a doctor who did the right thing.
He was thirty four years old when he died.
He left behind a wife and child.
His wife is expecting.
Li Wen Liang Street.
It has a ring to it.
AFTER WORD
This is just a thought, I have no idea how to bring it to the attention of public officials. Like David Chiu, London Breed, Scott Wiener, Aaron Peskin, et al.
Other than posting it in a chat group.
A medical chat group.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
Thursday, January 30, 2020
FAIR FOOTERS!
The World Health Organization has declared the Coronavirus a global health emergency. Per the BBC, "At least 213 people have died in China, with almost 10,000 cases of the virus." And "Trump official: Coronavirus may boost US jobs". "US Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross, has said the outbreak could "accelerate the return of jobs to North America".
"The main reason for this declaration is not what is happening in China but what is happening in other countries."
------ WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
So. The asshole quotient just went through the roof. It's good for jobs, and it doesn't matter that there are 213 people dead in China. Y'all ought to be ashamed of yourselves, you're vultures.
Oh, and those folks in France who are now discriminating against people of Chinese ancestry, ces gens peuvent tous aller se faire foutre.
Furthermore, get your damned flu shots.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
"The main reason for this declaration is not what is happening in China but what is happening in other countries."
------ WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
So. The asshole quotient just went through the roof. It's good for jobs, and it doesn't matter that there are 213 people dead in China. Y'all ought to be ashamed of yourselves, you're vultures.
Oh, and those folks in France who are now discriminating against people of Chinese ancestry, ces gens peuvent tous aller se faire foutre.
Furthermore, get your damned flu shots.
==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================
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GRITS AND TOFU
Like most Americans, I have a list of people who should be peacefully retired from public service and thereafter kept away from their desks,...
