We didn't flatten the curve, we suppressed the stupid

[RAB910]

[FarPoint]

1. I totally agree...

So, we who have established a " COVID-19" supply...hand sanitizer, disinfectant, masks..... Keep doing what we have been doing since March..Always be aware of your environment, what you touch, hand sanitize after ASAP, maintain social distancing...quick, in-out store trips...

[RAB910]

2. Try to find KN95 or better yet N95 masks

they can protect you from stupid people better than surgical masks or cloth face coverings

[FarPoint]

3. I have some but are saving them for more direct, 1:1 face to face contact.

I tend to double up my surgical mask style...reverse sides to create a bit of improved filter...

The N95 Masks are very difficult to find...

[Arkansas Granny]

5. I have been able to find KN95 masks online. Apparently, the 'K' indicates

they were manufactured in China, but have the same properties as the N95.

I did a Google search and found several suppliers in the US so it just took a few days for them to arrive.

[FarPoint]

6. I say....

it is time to stock up....I think we will be having another surge...maybe by July....so, no loss if it doesn't happen...

[Arkansas Granny]

8. That's my plan.

[FarPoint]

11. This is good discussion...

We who sense this is far from over need to validate our feelings...With everything opening up....we sometimes shake our heads ...ask ourselves, " Is this really as dangerous now as it was in March"?

Yes, if not worse because we have piss poor testing in-place, no action plan guidelines for hot-spots...masks are minimal and becoming a " target" for we who wear them...no true tacking system of this virus and deaths are being minimized...Now, assume everyone has COVID-19 and you can essentially protect oneself...it is everywhere...is my guess.

[Arkansas Granny]

13. I think we're going to be dealing with this for a long time.

I'm not hoarding, but I don't want to find myself in the position of not being able to find so much as a 2 oz. bottle of hand sanitizer.

[FarPoint]

14. Me too...

I have purchased a gallon of isopropyl alcohol back in early March...made hand sanitizer...looking for more alcohol for this...I'm a nurse, ( Infusion Home Care) so I really need it...employers are " tight with it". I share what I have made with patients who do not have any...

Stocked up the freezer and pantry...I'm a good cook, bake bread etc...

[RAB910]

9. To clarify

The N-95 masks meet the NIOSH standard and are the gold standard

The KN-95 meets the Chinese standard that is similar

The FDA pulled emergency approval of many of the KN95 masks because they don't work as advertised


That said, in my professional opinion (and my background pretty much makes me an expert on PPE) the KN95 is superior to anything else consumers can get these days even if they are not perfect.

[Arkansas Granny]

10. Thanks for the info. I would prefer the N95, but they are not to be found.

[LisaL]

26. And some of the companies who make masks are calling their masks N95 but

they are not up to any such standard.
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/usernotices/counterfeitResp.html

[LisaL]

25. Apparently a lot of those KN95 are fake. So you have to be careful.

[Arkansas Granny]

27. Yes, I just read an article about that. The ones I received have ear loops, which makes them suspect

At any rate, they are a barrier and I expect they are at least as effective as the disposable masks I've been using.

[LisaL]

28. Yes, they are probably still better than homemade masks. Hopefully.

[Arkansas Granny]

7. I have a COVID bag that I keep in my purse. I carry extra masks, gloves and sanitizer every time

I leave the house.

[FarPoint]

15. Excellent...

using the hand sanitizer is essential in my opinion.

[luv2fly]

19. Wipes?

More than two months into this, and still can't get disinfectant wipes at the store. It's ridiculous.

[Igel]

21. Get a roll of paper towels.

And a bottle of 90% isopropanol from the drug store.

Find an empty coffee container (#10 can works fine). Buy a designer bin at a container store if necessary or use a flour bin that seals fairly tightly. A waterproof plastic bag works, too, just not as well.

Cut the roll in half so you have two shorter cylinders.

Empty the alcohol into the container. Then plop in a half-roll of paper towels.

If you want scents or emollients, you can add those, too, before you put in the paper towels. A drop or two of essential oils or fragrance and you can have your own designer patchouli-cucumber-pistachio or mocha-almond-petunia wipes (or whatever).

If you want smaller ones, don't use a roll of paper towels. Get a pack of cheap napkins like you'd find in a fast food place, use those. They can even be recycled napkins. Still too big, cut them in half before you soak them.

1. No depending on others to provide your wants; be resourceful.
2. A lot cheaper; donate your savings to feed to the poor.
3. You control the end product so it only contains what you want.
4. You proudly and loudly say you're actually being eco-friendly by reducing the amount of packaging the wipes would come in and reusing the container. The isopropanol bottle is high density polyethylene and is easily recycled (if there's demand, might not be these days--but I use one for squirting cooking oil, others can hold homemade salad dressings, etc.--just be sure to let the bottle stand open, preferably in the sunshine, for a few weeks to a month to let the isopropanol leach out of the plastic).

[luv2fly]

23. Thank you

Rubbing alcohol is also impossible to find locally. I keep looking.

[Historic NY]

4. The plan the dumb blonde was waving around said

had the days need to flatten the curve were not even there .

[magicarpet]

12. You hammer away and hammer away to to inject some common sense and,...

.... and thoughtful deliberative action to beat back the death knell of the Covidvirus,....

Then along comes Typhoid Donnie - King of the Pandemic Fuck Ups with his stupid, irrational, incoherent comments and remarks about the virus.

He riles the Fascist storm troopers - his base and glee club to undo careful plans to keep the public safe from the virus until a vaccine becomes readily available to all.

TrDump will bring on a second wave of Covid deaths if he does not take a responsible approach to reopening the market place and returning the national economy to warp speed overdrive.

With out Covid testing in place, they will open the economy,... create 500,000 more needless deaths,... then be forced to again close the economy because they did not take a reasonable and responsible approach to reopen.

Temperature readings,... Temperature readings,... and more temperature readings.

Test,.. test,.. more testing.

Confine to quarantine/rehab areas those who are infected immediately so this can be contained. No short cuts,... no fooling around,... no fabricated lies and/or promises or propaganda. Get down to the serious business of CONTAINING this virus - stay ahead of the curve - take a professional measured well thought out approach and plan of action with concrete results. No pie in the sky bullshit.

No trDumpie penis envy,... my dick is bigger than yours,... I can pee further than you,... pResidential approach to combating a deadly nouveau virus. Fiddling away as America burns in an inferno of unnecessary and needless deaths.

Grow up,... act like an adult,... not a three year old child. Absent that ability step aside and get the fuck out of the way.

THIS IS SERIOUS BUSINESS !!!

AMERICA NEEDS LEADERSHIP RIGHT NOW.

[Thekaspervote]

16. Coronavirus can enter thru the eye. Consider getting some cheap plano glasses to wear as well

If you are not wearing glasses

[tecelote]

18. I've wanted to ask that.

I thought that you could catch a virus through your eyes more than nose or mouth.

[Igel]

22. Better yet get safety goggles.

Google "lab safety goggles". You can buy cheap ones for under $5 (not including shipping).

They fit over most glasses. Not Lady Gaga or '70s glasses, but most glasses for the last 20 years.

If they have vent holes on the side, good. The particulates might get in, but the size of the holes won't produce much by way of airflow so what gets in won't be much. Unlike the case with eye glasses, where every head gesture produces eddies behind them, pulling in new air and what's in that new air. Remember--this isn't a ritual purity exercise, where part of a leg from a flea in the bread in your turkey stuffing renders the entire meal unclean and unable to be eaten. "Exposure" doesn't lead to infection because sufficient virus has to be involved at a given time. The body (and random events) prevent too little virus from actually infecting you.

But remember why we're wearing masks anyway--your mask isn't there to protect you. Most particles that you'd encounter wouldn't be stopped by a normal surgical mask (just the mid- and large-sized droplets). Your mask is there to protect others. A lot of those smaller particle start off as mid-sized droplets and become smaller as they dry out, leaving just a small bit of dry stuff real quick. So your mask is there to stop what comes out of your mouth. Masks are altruistic--like the actual meaning of what the media call "case counts" it's often said and seemingly even more often forgotten. Or perhaps it's just not understood.

(So, yeah, we can say that people not using masks are showing blatant disregard for others, but since most people here have trouble with the idea that the masks they're wearing is to protect others and not themselves, to make that claim requires asserting that "those people" are both more malicious than a lot of DUers but also much smarter. I don't think they're smarter; I also don't think they're malicious. I also think fundamental attribution errors are bad.)

[tecelote]

30. Great explanation!

"your mask isn't there to protect you."

Thanks for reminding me of this. It's not as well known as it should be.

[Sunlei]

17. worse is not enough testing, & for first time in usa history-hiding the death numbers.

That's not stupidity problems, some of the general public are ignorant of danger. America has no real Leadership and worse- Leadership that lies and deceives people.

[LEW]

20. I do agree with you all...

I live in Illinois and yesterday crossed the river to St Louis, NO to get something. I was the only one within miles wearing a mask and gloves in the store. Kept just shaking my head got what I needed and went home. Your post today is great. "but there is too much and it can't be held back".......

[Blecht]

24. You should provide the link to anybody's Twitter post you use

Here it is:

Link to tweet

?s=20

[Hortensis]

29. Cute, but many are ALIVE today because case curves were flattened

so that when they needed admission beds were available. We're going to do more flattening in future because those who aren't too stupid, left and right, far outnumber the noisy "worst (who) are full of passionate intensity."

And we outnumber those fallen into the trap of seeing this as a partisan issue. The issue is how to combine both actions to best meet all critical needs. We need testing so we can determine where in our huge nation opening can be accomplished for whom and for how long, and where and when it can't.

Millions of jobs will not be coming back that could have been saved. Their businesses are destroyed or will be. It not only never had to be this way, it's a tragedy that shouldn't be.

[Initech]

31. That 90,000 is going to be double by July 4th.

Triple by Labor Day if the MAGAs keep it up.

[oasis]

32. Right on!