The COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Thread

starlalilymoon

I also think I confused people, but I never said Japan was an easy country to get into. I was talking about myself and my move goals. I was recommending Western Europe as a place to get in easily, and mentioned my own goals. Sorry for the confusion.

@Satsuki:

FYI, if you're transgender living in Japan is going to be harder. Count all the yaoi/yuri you want, in daily lives most Japanese aren't very supportive of LGBTQ. All those things are behind closed doors, let alone something like a Pride Parade.

@RoboBlue:

Japan's very difficult to move to even for cis men fluent in Japanese.

I used to know someone who moved there, got married, and ended up moving back to the US because he couldn't earn a living wage despite having a master's degree from MIT.

Yeah, I get it. Actually, even though I'm trans, I prefer that fact to be hidden to be honest. I'm not very open about it even where I am now. So, yeah.

Regardless, I know Japan is hard to get into, that's why I have back-up countries to move to in case that does not work out. I also know Japan… is not good with people who have mental illness either. But yeah, I just really want a quiet life on the countryside away from people lol

Even with obstacles, I will try regardless even if it is hard for me. But this goal of mine won't be for a while since I got other things I need to work on.

@Zeorn:

Yeah, the U.S. just made a historic Supreme Court decision to protect LGBTQ rights but in Japan your career is essentially over if you come out as gay. Trans people would not have a career to begin with. Add being a foreigner on top of that and you're bottom of the barrel. Probably wouldn't give you a job or visa. If you were gay and never came out you could pull it off, although I did know one guy at my company who was gay but I guess he dealt with the foreigner part of the company who didn't care and maybe the Japanese part didn't know.

Though, it's much easier if you a foreigner in being LGBT then a person who is Japanese.

https://allabout-japan.com/en/article/4828/

In a sense, I think as a foreigner here I get a kind of “free pass” sometimes with issues like this. Colleagues regularly ask me about my partner and invite us both to events. I feel, however, that these experiences would be very different if I were Japanese. As a foreigner, I feel like I have more freedom to be myself than some Japanese people may feel, and that seems incredibly unjust. That said, my work environment has been wildly supportive. If someone does have a problem with me for being gay, they haven’t mentioned it to me, and that suits me just fine.

So, I think I be quite fine with being LGBT. I'm more worried about not getting into the country for my mental issues, that's why I'm hoping when that time comes, I will be more mentally stable. They are way more strict with mental illness from my research in the past.

sgamer82

Today's COVID-19 specific news: [https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/19/day-1247/

[h=1]](https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/19/day-1247/)Day 1247: Priorities.[/h]

[h=3]Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~8,560,000; deaths: ~458,000; recoveries: ~4,205,000. (Johns Hopkins University)
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,210,000; deaths: ~119,000; recoveries: ~600,000.

The mayor of Tulsa declared a civil emergency, imposing – but later rescinding – a curfew surrounding the arena where Trump will hold his campaign rally. In his executive order establishing a curfew through the weekend, Mayor G.T. Bynum cited the unrest that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month. Trump later tweeted that the curfew would not be in place after speaking with the city’s mayor. Separately, the Oklahoma Supreme Court rejected a legal effort to stop Trump’s rally over health concerns. Residents and businesses filed the lawsuit over concerns that Trump’s campaign rally could worsen the coronavirus outbreak in the city. They demanded that the arena adhere to the CDC social distancing guidelines or that the event be canceled or postponed. (Associated Press / Washington Post / New York Times / USA Today)
The Trump campaign hasn’t distributed a “health and safety” plan for preventing the spread of the coronavirus at Trump’s rally in Tulsa on Saturday. A spokesperson for the 19,000-seat BOK Center said the venue requested that the Trump campaign provide them with “a written plan detailing the steps the event will institute for health and safety, including those related to social distancing” so it can share the plan with local health officials. The campaign has not provided the plan, but did previously commit to supplying rally-goers with masks and hand sanitizer. The campaign, however, will not require attendees to wear masks or keep attendees six feet apart or require social distancing. Attendees, however, are required to sign a waiver absolving the campaign and venue of liability if they contract COVID-19.(Washington Post / Business Insider)

Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx both advised against Trump’s Tulsa rally. Trump and his campaign advisers, however, claim attendees “assume a personal risk” and “that is part of life.” (NBC News)
Pence has overstated the amount of coronavirus-related medical supplies distributed by a Trump administration through Project Airbridge. Pence claimed the program had delivered more than 143 million N95 masks, 598 million surgical and procedural masks, 20 million eye and face shields, 265 million gowns and coveralls and 14 billion gloves. According to FEMA, however, through June 18 the program had delivered 1.5 million N95 masks, 113.4 million surgical masks, 2.5 million face shields, 50.9 million gowns, 1.4 million coveralls and 937 million gloves – or about one-thirteenth—of the numbers cited by Pence. (Wall Street Journal)

The White House insisted that COVID-19 is “absolutely … still a priority” for the administration. The White House coronavirus task force last held a public briefing on the virus on April 27 – 53 days ago. And, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday that he hadn’t spoken to Trump in two weeks. (CNBC)

sgamer82

Today's COVID News: https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/22/day-1250/

[h=1]Day 1250: "Underwhelming."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~9,037,000; deaths: ~471,000; recoveries: ~4,394,000. (Johns Hopkins University)
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,306,000; deaths: ~121,000; recoveries: ~641,000.
Trump claimed that he told “his people” to “slow the testing down” for the coronavirus, calling testing “a double-edged sword” because the “bad part” is the increase in recorded coronavirus cases. Speaking at a campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday, Trump remarked that “When you do testing to that extent, you’re going to find more people, you’re going to find more cases, so I said to my people, ‘Slow the testing down, please.’” (Washington Post / Axios / BuzzFeed News / Daily Beast)
Trump, Pence, and administration officials all gave conflicting explanations as to what Trump meant when he said he instructed staff to slow down coronavirus testing. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany claimed Trump had not “directed” a coronavirus testing slowdown and that his comment had been made “in jest.” White House trade adviser Peter Navarro claimed that Trump’s comments were clearly “tongue in cheek” and a light moment. Pence, meanwhile, told governors that Trump’s testing comments at the rally were “a passing observation.” Trump, however, wouldn’t directly answer whether he had ordered slowing testing down, saying “If it did slow down, frankly, I think we’re way ahead of ourselves, if you want to know the truth.” Trump also declined to confirm that he was joking about his comment to slow down testing. (Politico / NBC News / Daily Beast / Bloomberg / USA Today / Axios)
Trump referred to the coronavirus in racist terms, calling it both the “Chinese virus” and “Kung Flu” during his rally in Tulsa. In March, CBS News reporter Weijia Jiang, who is Chinese-American, said a White House official referred to the coronavirus as the “Kung Flu” to her face. And then in May, Trump told Jiang to “ask China” about his administration’s efforts to ramp up testing. (BuzzFeed News)
The Trump administration has yet to distribute up to $14 billion in funding authorized by Congress for coronavirus testing and contact tracing. Top Democrats sent a letter to Heath and Human Services secretary Alex Azar demanding to know why the administration has “still failed” to distribute more than $8 billion of the $25 billion Congress set aside in April to expand testing and contact tracing. The letter calls on the White House to “immediately disburse the remainder of the $25 billion in funds to ramp up testing and contact tracing capacity,” including up to $2 billion meant to ensure testing is available to uninsured Americans. (NBC News)
The White House stopped conducting mandatory temperature checks for staffers and visitors entering the grounds. Those who come in close contact with Trump and Pence, however, will still have their temperature checked and be questioned about symptoms. (NBC News)
The World Health Organization said the record number of global coronavirus cases are not the result of more testing. On Sunday, the number of new cases reported to WHO jumped by more than 183,000, “easily” the most in a single day so far, WHO officials said. As of Sunday, the U.S.′ seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases increased more than 24% compared with a week ago, and cases are growing by 5% or more in 25 states across the U.S. (CNBC)

Two members of Trump’s campaign team who attended Saturday’s rally have tested positive for the coronavirus. In total, eight members of Trump’s team involved in the Tulsa rally have tested positive. Hours before Trump was expected to arrive in Oklahoma, six campaign staffers tested positive for the coronavirus. Trump was “particularly angry that before he even left DC, aides made public that six members of team in Tulsa tested positive for COVID-19.” (CNBC / CNN / Associated Press / NBC News)

Fox News poll/ 80% of voters have a favorable view of mask-wearers. Separately, 59% said presidential candidates holding large political events and rallies is a bad idea. (Fox News)

Satsuki

If any of you are feeling bored and twitchy from quarantine, they're offering 450 online courses from Ivy League schools on the Coursera website:
https://orphanum.tumblr.com/post/613955502275215360/for-those-of-you-bored-in-the-quarantine?fbclid=IwAR0ykB4noZekbvvpNuqU-QAi3g08KyNESNx_Qd46ntzXWZv1LvIjZ6rIcZU

Satsuki

I have no word for this but "UGH".

[hide][/hide]

Johnny B. Decent

Any of you lovely European posters here willing to shelter me? I'm cool with sleeping on the couch/in the basement.

RoboBlue

The EU is banning travel from the US indefinitely because of how Trump mishandled COVID here.

pariston_hill

So brazilians can't go to US, americans can't go to EU. But can an american come to Brazil in order to get EU, and vice-versa? Find out in COVID most wanted.

Satsuki

Hmmm, that's one way to do it. Or just as easily go to Canada and then fly to the EU.

@RoboBlue:

The EU is banning travel from the US indefinitely because of how Trump mishandled COVID here.

I don't blame them one bit.

Johnny B. Decent

Is there someone we can bring these up to? I don't want any dumbasses taking advantage to get out of here.

sgamer82

COVID Specific U.S. News: https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/23/day-1251/

[h=1]Day 1251: "Mixed bag."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~9,179,000; deaths: ~475,000; recoveries: ~4,596,000. (Johns Hopkins University)
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,339,000; deaths: ~122,000; recoveries: ~642,000.

Dr. Anthony Fauci: “None of us have ever been told to slow down on testing — that just is a fact. In fact, we will be doing more testing.” White House officials, however, have defended Trump’s comments that he wanted to slow down testing for the coronavirus, calling them “tongue-in-cheek” and a joke. Fauci told the House committee that the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been a “mixed bag,” adding that the increase in cases is “disturbing” and “The next couple of weeks are going to be critical in our ability to address those surges we are seeing in Florida, Texas, Arizona, and other states.” (Politico / Daily Beast / NBC News / Washington Post / New York Times / New York Times / The Hill / Associated Press)
When asked whether he was joking that he asked officials to slow down coronavirus testing, Trump replied: “I don’t kid.” Trump also tweeted that “we did a great job on CoronaVirus” and said “the Fake News refuses to acknowledge this in a positive way.” More than 120,000 Americans have already died as a result of COVID-19, and the total number of confirmed infections nationwide has surged beyond 2.3 million. White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany later told reporters that Trump was making a “serious point, and that’s why he said ‘I don’t kid.’” (CBS News / Politico / Axios)
Dr. Deborah Birx told governors that it was vital to increase coronavirus testing to prevent further community spread. “Hopefully I have left you with the impression that increased testing is good,” Birx said on the call. “We would like to even see it even more. Identifying cases early including your asymptomatic [ones] will really help us protect the elderly and the additional people with comorbidities.” (Daily Beast)
The European Union may block Americans travelers from entering because the United States has failed to control the spread of the coronavirus. European nations are currently negotiating over two potential lists of acceptable visitors based on how countries have managed to control the coronavirus pandemic. The U.S. has, so far, been deemed too risky. A final decision on who can visit is expected early next week, before the bloc reopens on July 1. (New York Times)

Robby

@Satsuki:

Hmmm, that's one way to do it. Or just as easily go to Canada and then fly to the EU.

Canada actually has the borders closed except for essential businesses like shipping supplies, and family. You can't "easily" cross the border right now.

@Satsuki:

I have no word for this but "UGH".

[hide][qimg]https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/103725738_4112732878756134_793074615911983191_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_sid=730e14&_nc_ohc=BsnOSZa3OTsAX8JlTBt&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-1.xx&oh=cdc8cd5b960d1aab4c63c13ab3b0dd54&oe=5F185FD4[/qimg][/hide]

The US has had 2.39M confirmed cases. The entire world has had 9.24M.The US has had 123K deaths, the world has had 477K deaths.

In both cases the US is about 26% of the worldwide total… even though the US has less than 5% of the world population. Such a complete and utter failing.

And thats going to skew worse since the US has apparently just given up in the bible belt.

--- Update From New Post Merge ---

Geebus.

From Rebekah Jones (fired Florida Data Scientist who refused to fudge the COVID numbers) posted June 22
@GeoRebekah

"BREAKING: 1 OF 3: Florida announced yesterday they're not counting the icu bed availability anymore, a key element in keeping things open, so the state can proceed to the next phase by July 4.

BREAKING 2 OF 3 I have multiple sources at DOH who have just told me they have been instructed this week to change the numbers and begin slowly deleting deaths and cases so it looks like Florida is improving next week in the leadup to July 4, like they've "made it over the hump."

BREAKING 3 OF 3 I've independently verified they've deleted at least 1200 cases in the last week.They're only reporting all these cases now so they can restrict reporting next week to make everyone think it's over. I've had two DOH employees in different offices confirm."

How is this not mass premeditated murder?

pariston_hill

@Robby:

How is this not mass premeditated murder?

Ask Bolsonaro, he's been pushing this kind of crap since March.

Monkey King

And kinda following in the EU's footsteps? The entire Tri-State area is going to make anyone coming in from the Covid resurgent states have to quarantine for awhile.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/24/us/new-york-coronavirus-travel-restriction/index.html

Satsuki

FYI guys, do NOT use hand sanitizer made by Eskibiochem. Why? Way too much methanol.
https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-advises-consumers-not-use-hand-sanitizer-products-manufactured-eskbiochem?fbclid=IwAR0XS1TJfGEL4CeBRs04qoj_vY4BT9u1FD8JCeN5TgL5RIXEA7CE21VFOS0

Now I have to double check all my bottles.

sgamer82

COVID News from https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/24/day-1252/

[h=1]Day 1252: "A massive outbreak."[/h]

[h=3]Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~9,331,000; deaths: ~480,000 (Johns Hopkins University)
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,370,000; deaths: ~122,000

1/ Coronavirus cases are accelerating across the U.S. and seven states — Arizona, Arkansas, California, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas — are reporting record-high COVID-19 hospitalizations. On Tuesday, more than 800 people died from the virus — the first time U.S. fatalities have increased since June 7 – and more than 35,000 new coronavirus cases were identified across the United States – the highest single-day total since late April and the third-highest total of any day of the pandemic. Case numbers are rising in more than 20 states. New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut will now require visitors from virus hot spots to quarantine for 14 days. Top federal health officials warn that the surge could worsen without new restrictions. Trump’s administration, meanwhile, plans to end support for 13 coronavirus testing sites across the country at the end of the month, including seven in Texas. Four of the seven Texas sites are in Houston and Harris County, which public health experts say could become the area worst hit by COVID-19 in the country. (Washington Post / Wall Street Journal / Bloomberg / New York Times / NBC News / The Hill)

California reported an additional 7,149 COVID-19 cases since Tuesday – a 69% increase in two days. (CNBC)
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the state is facing a “massive outbreak” in the coronavirus pandemic. For the second straight day, Texas had more than 5,000 new coronavirus cases and more than 4,000 hospital patients with COVID-19. (Houston Chronicle)
Trump plans to ignore New Jersey’s order that requires all visitors from states with high numbers of coronavirus cases to quarantine for 14 days. Trump traveled to Arizona on Tuesday, which has seen a rise in the rate of its COVID-19 cases. Instead, Trump will travel to his golf club in Bedminster, N.J. (CNBC)
Stocks fell on fears that officials would have to reinstate lockdown measures. All three indexes suffered their steepest losses since June 11, with the Dow falling 2.7%, the S&P500 declining 2.6%, and the Nasdaq losing 2.2%. (CNBC / Wall Street Journal / Bloomberg)
The head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers will leave the administration at the end of the month. Tomas Philipson, the acting chairman of the CEA, took over in July 2019 after serving as a member of Trump’s three-person council for almost two years. (Politico)

2/ The Trump administration has considered scaling back the national emergency declared earlier this year to control the coronavirus pandemic. Healthcare leaders said they’re confused by the administration’s unwillingness to publicly commit to an extension of the emergency declarations, one of which is scheduled to expire next month. The declarations have loosened or waived rules and regulations on hospitals and other medical providers to help route needed money to states, allow hospitals to quickly hire more staff, and, in some cases, add beds without going through a lengthy permitting process. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters that Trump is “not looking at lifting the national emergency declarations.” McEnany, however, also claimed that Trump was joking when he said he’d directed aides to slow coronavirus testing. Trump later said he wasn’t joking. [[I]Editor’s note: Who knows even what’s real anymore with these guys.] (Los Angeles Times)
3/ Black Lives Matter protests across the country have not led to an increase in coronavirus cases, according to a new study from the National Bureau of Economic Research. The study looked at protests from more than 300 of the largest American cities and found no evidence that cases of COVID-19 increased in the weeks after the demonstrations. Researchers found that social distancing measures actually went up in the wake of the protests. (CNN)

fedcom

@Robby:

Canada actually has the borders closed except for essential businesses like shipping supplies, and family. You can't "easily" cross the border right now.

The border is so huge it's hard to control exactly. Some time ago a number of American tourists were caught in Alberta and fined.
Though using Canada to get to the EU is quite a leap different.

sgamer82

Today's COVID-Specific News: https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/25/day-1253/ [h=1]Day 1253: "An explosion."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~9,524,000; deaths: ~485,000
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,412,000; deaths: ~123,000
Source: Johns Hopkins University

The CDC estimated that the number of Americans infected with the coronavirus could be as high as 23 million — 10 times the 2.3 million currently confirmed cases. CDC Director Robert Redfield said the estimate is based on blood samples collected from across the country for the presence of antibodies. For every confirmed case of COVID-19, 10 more people had antibodies. Redfield added that between 5% and 8% of Americans have been infected to date. Trump, meanwhile, claimed that “It’s going away.” (Axios / NBC News / Washington Post / Wall Street Journal / New York Times)

Coronavirus cases are up 30% nationwide compared to the beginning of this month. While the Trump administration repeatedly claimed that case counts are up because the U.S. has increased testing, the assertions are not backed up by the data and the increase in positive cases cannot be attributed to the rise in testing alone. (Axios / ProPublica)
Coronavirus cases are rising in states with relaxed policies on wearing masks. In 16 states that recommend, but do not require, that residents wear masks in public new coronavirus cases have risen by 84% over the last two weeks. In 11 states that mandate wearing masks in public, new cases have fallen by 25% over the last two weeks. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Texas halted reopening as hospitals were inundated with “an explosion” of new COVID-19 cases and officials warned there might not be enough beds available. Hospitals in Bexar, Dallas, Harris and Travis counties were ordered to stop nonessential procedures to make sure beds are available for coronavirus patients. (NBC News / Wall Street Journal / Bloomberg / CNBC / CNN)

Dozens of U.S. Secret Service agents who worked at Trump’s rally in Tulsa were ordered to self-quarantine after two of their colleagues tested positive for the coronavirus. The Secret Service field office in Tulsa arranged a special testing session at a local hospital to determine which agents contracted the virus while working at the rally. The number of Secret Service personnel who have tested positive is still unknown because the agency refuses to divulge that information in order to “protect the privacy of our employees’ health information and for operational security.” A law enforcement official, however, said the number of quarantined agents is on the “low” side of dozens. (CNN / Washington Post)
The federal government sent $1.4 billion in coronavirus stimulus checks to over a million dead people. The finding is part of a review of the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic by the Government Accountability Office. While the government has asked survivors to return the money, it’s not clear they’re required to. (NBC News / Associated Press / Washington Post)
Unemployment claims topped one million for the 14th week in a row after nearly 1.5 million workers filed new claims last week. An additional 728,000 workers filed for benefits from Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. Meanwhile, continuing claims fell below 20 million for the first time in two months. (New York Times / Washington Post / Wall Street Journal / Bloomberg / NBC News / CNBC)

Johnny B. Decent

Well, that's great.

Zeorn

It pisses me off when I walk into a business with signs outside saying masks are required by the state for all customers and I see assholes without them inside.

sgamer82

Friday's COVID-Specific News: https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/26/day-1254/

[h=1]Day 1254: "And we have an election coming up."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~9,696,000; deaths: ~492,000
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,454,000; deaths: ~125,000
Source: Johns Hopkins University

The United States set a daily record for new COVID-19 cases for the third time in three days, passing the 40,000 mark for the first time. Five states set new single-day highs and 11 states set their own records for the average number of new cases reported over the past seven days. (Washington Post / NPR / The Guardian / Wall Street Journal)

Florida reported nearly 9,000 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours, surpassing its previous single-day record of 5,511 reported on Wednesday. The coronavirus has now infected 122,960 people in Florida – with 29,163 new cases over the last seven days – and killed at least 3,327 people. The state’s former leading COVID-19 data scientist, meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis of “cooking the books” in an effort to hide the impact of the pandemic. (Miami Herald / CNBC / Axios / The Guardian / New York Times / Politico)
Texas rolled back reopening plans after reporting 5,996 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, which beat Wednesday’s record of 5,551. Gov. Greg Abbott ordered bars to close and restaurants to scale back capacity to 50%. (Texas Tribune / Washington Post / Associated Press / CNBC / Wall Street Journal)

The White House coronavirus task force held its first briefing in two months, as Pence took a victory lap, saying “We slowed the spread, we flattened the curve, we saved lives.” While Pence acknowledged that cases have been rising “precipitously” in some states, he argued that Americans are seeing “encouraging news” despite cases surging because all 50 states – he claimed – “are opening up safely and responsibly.” Pence insisted “this moment is different” than two months ago, suggesting “We’re in a much better place” because “the volume of new cases coming in is a reflection of a great success in expanding testing across the country.” Pence also defended Trump’s decision to resume holding campaign rallies, claiming “The freedom of speech, the right to peaceably assemble, is enshrined in the constitution of the United States […] Even in a health crisis, the American people don’t forfeit our constitutional rights.” He added: “And we have an election coming up this fall.” (NPR / CNBC / Politico / Washington Post / New York Times / CNN / The Hill)

Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that the coronavirus outbreaks largely in the South and West could spread across the U.S. The nation’s top infectious diseases expert pleaded for Americans to practice social distancing and mask wearing, saying “You have an individual responsibility to yourself but you have a societal responsibility.” The Trump administration is also weighing testing groups of people together. “Pool testing” could help officials test more people with fewer resources. (New York Times / Washington Post)

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to invalidate the Affordable Care Act as the U.S. has recorded more than 120,000 deaths from COVID-19, with nearly 2.5 million confirmed cases. In an 82-page brief submitted an hour before the midnight deadline, the Trump administration said that “the entire ACA must fall,” arguing that the individual mandate was rendered unconstitutional after Congress ended the financial penalty for not having health insurance in 2017. If the court agrees, more than 23 million Americans would lose health care coverage. (NBC News / New York Times / Washington Post / Wall Street Journal / CNN / NPR / Politico)

The European Union will block most travelers from the United States, Russia, and other countries considered too risky because they have not controlled the coronavirus outbreak. The U.S. banned most European Union travelers in March, but has not eased its restrictions, even though European infections and deaths have dropped. The ban goes into effect on July 1. (New York Times)
poll/ 76% of Americans are concerned about being infected by the coronavirus – up from 69% in early June. 56% of Americans believe the U.S. is reopening the economy too quickly, while 15% say the economy is reopening too slowly, and an additional 29% believe the economy is being reopened at the right pace. (Ipsos / ABC News)
poll/ 89% of Americans who left their home in the last week said they wore a face mask or a face covering, compared to only 11% who said they did not. (ABC News)

Johnny B. Decent

Trump has given up on this. He's just putting his hands over his ears and going "Na na na I can't hear you!", because he can't handle it.

RoboBlue

@Johnny:

Trump has given up on this. He's just putting his hands over his ears and going "Na na na I can't hear you!", because he can't handle it.

If the GOP has any sense left they'll rush to impeach him before the party's reputation goes down in flames entirely.

There's still time to whitewash their role in enabling Trump's campaign of mass murder.

Johnny B. Decent

@RoboBlue:

If the GOP has any sense left they'll rush to impeach him before the party's reputation goes down in flames entirely.

There's still time to whitewash their role in enabling Trump's campaign of mass murder.

So naturally, he'll get reelected.

RoboBlue

@Johnny:

So naturally, he'll get reelected.

I never said the Democrats were going to help.

Green_vs_Red

@RoboBlue:

If the GOP has any sense left they'll rush to impeach him before the party's reputation goes down in flames entirely.

There's still time to whitewash their role in enabling Trump's campaign of mass murder.

I don’t think Trump is exclusively responsible for such idiocy as this

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/florida-palm-beach-coronavirus-mask-viral-a9586366.html

Or this

https://twitter.com/CBS12/status/1276624213386747904?s=20

Them calling out Trump for his response to Covid would be like Andrea Yates calling our Jeffrey Epstein for being a threat to
children

RoboBlue

@Green_vs_Red:

I don’t think Trump is exclusively responsible for such idiocy as this

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/florida-palm-beach-coronavirus-mask-viral-a9586366.html

Or this

https://twitter.com/CBS12/status/1276624213386747904?s=20

Them calling out Trump for his response to Covid would be like Andrea Yates calling our Jeffrey Epstein for being a threat to
children

He definitely holds a lot of responsibility.

What's more relevant to what I was saying is the fact that the history books are going to place almost all of the blame on him and anyone not publicly fighting back against the mess that the Trump administration has made of our COVID response will be seen as complicit.

pariston_hill

@RoboBlue:

If the GOP has any sense left they'll rush to impeach him before the party's reputation goes down in flames entirely.

I don't think they have any shame since they elected a former western star as president, but alas, they already sat on their hands in the impeachment they obviously won't do it know. After all they can always say that Trump was a bad apple inside the GOP and pretend they were not accomplices with him in pushing their ideologies.

Johnny B. Decent

Well…...they could always secretly poison him and pass it off as a stroke.

Just sayin', it could happen.

pariston_hill

@Johnny:

Well…...they could always secretly poison him and pass it off as a stroke.

Just sayin', it could happen.

Well, it's not like the dark web don't exists, I mean how much could it cost a hit on a tv "celebrity"?

sgamer82

@pariston_hill:

I don't think they have any shame since they elected a former western star as president, but alas, they already sat on their hands in the impeachment they obviously won't do it know.

It's for that exact reason at least one Democrat in Congress said impeaching Barr over his recent actions would be a waste of time.

starlalilymoon

Enjoy people's stupidity in Florida: https://twitter.com/nowthisnews/status/1276288370562523136

pariston_hill

Some proxy science on masks:
Statement 1:

Results:
[hide][/hide]

Statement 2:

Results:
[hide][/hide]

Satsuki

And now COVID-19 has beat heart disease and cancer as the leading cause of death in the US:
https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-leading-cause-of-death.html?fbclid=IwAR1ft0zQTNZVv22Q8T0mtnK3PaQnDfm09tiwqyHI3S8MQnNEuujqqvQjMiU

Fuck.

Johnny B. Decent

Well, at least dumb people can't use that argument of banning fast food for it's role in heart disease now to discredit COVID.

sgamer82

Today's COVID-specific news courtesy of What the Fuck Just Happened Today:

[https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/29/day-1257/

[h=1]](https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/29/day-1257/)Day 1257: "Nobody told me."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~10,200,000; deaths: ~503,000
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,565,000; deaths: ~126,000
Source: Johns Hopkins University

The World Health Organization warned that the coronavirus pandemic is “speeding up” and the “worst is yet to come.” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus’ comments come as the global number of coronavirus cases passed 10 million, with more than 500,000 deaths. The CDC’s principal deputy director added that “this is really the beginning” as the United States surpassed 2.5 million confirmed cases. With more than 100,000 confirmed cases, Los Angeles County health officials warned that conditions were deteriorating as data showed an “alarming increases in cases, positivity rates and hospitalization.” Florida reported 5,266 new cases of the coronavirus Monday, bringing its rolling seven-day average to a record high for the 22nd day in a row. South Carolina set a record on its rolling seven-day average for the 21st day in a row. Arizona saw a record high in hospitalizations and its seven-day rolling average for new cases is 12% higher than it was a week ago. In Texas, coronavirus-related hospitalizations reached a record high for the 16th day in a row, while its rolling seven-day average for cases topped 19 days in a row. Texas Medical Center hospitals stopped updating metrics showing hospital capacity or projections of future capacity after their base intensive care capacity had hit 100% for the first time during the pandemic. And, at least 14 states have paused or rolled back their reopening plans to slow the surge of coronavirus cases. Pence, meanwhile, postponed campaign events in Florida and Arizona “out of an abundance of caution” while White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany played down the spike in cases, saying, “We’re aware that there are embers that need to be put out.” (Washington Post / New York Times / Bloomberg / CNBC / CBS News / Wall Street Journal / NBC News)

Jacksonville will institute a city-wide mask order to stem the spread of coronavirus. The Republican National Committee relocated its August convention to Jacksonville after a battle with North Carolina about restrictions on the event in Charlotte. (Axios / Politico)
The first drug shown to be effective against the coronavirus will cost U.S. hospitals $3,120 for the typical patient with private insurance. Gilead Sciences will charge patients who are covered by government programs like Medicaid will be charged $2,340 for remdesivir. (CBS News / Wall Street Journal / Washington Post / New York Times)
The FBI issued a warning about scammers who advertise fraudulent COVID-19 antibody tests as way to obtain personal information that could be used for identity theft or medical insurance fraud. (New York Times)
The Trump campaign removed thousands of “Do Not Sit Here, Please!” stickers from seats hours before Trump’s rally at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Washington Post / The Guardian)

KageKageKing

Pharma giant Gilead just announced they will charge nearly $2,500 for a COVID-19 treatment called Remdesivir. The thing is US taxpayers invested at least $70 million developing remdesivir while the cost of making the drug is $10 bucks

https://twitter.com/markaprovost/status/1277595179944488961

Robby

Takeaway: The blue states tend to have more cities ( higher population density and international travel.) Hence higher risk. But also took it more seriously once it did hit.

The red states said it was a hoax, the flu, wouldn't wear masks, etc. Had the red states followed CDC reconmendations they could have avoid much of their current crisis

This is also why mcConnel finally officially reversed his position on masks.

Monkey King

What's the deal with the west coast blue states exactly?
The inevitable red state covidpocalypse is finally hitting, but California and I think Washington are starting to suck again also?
Did they take half assed measures too?

Because up here in the Northeast things are genuinely settling down, so it's not like there's some across the board resurgence.

Robby

California has nice beaches and its summer, would be my main guess.

https://laist.com/2020/06/25/why_are_coronavirus_cases_on_the_rise_in_california.php

One factor? People are generally tired of being quarantined and might be letting down their guard, perhaps a little too much.

There's also been a shift in who is getting infected, Cannon says. It's younger people, particularly in Los Angeles County, where 18- to 40-year-olds account for 40% of new infections (a month ago they accounted for 33%). In California, more than 44% of new diagnoses are in the 34 or younger age group, up from 29% a month ago.

Ubiq

Reopenings are bombing everywhere that they've been tried; dine-in restaurants, gyms, and bars are pretty much guaranteeing community spread. So places like New Jersey and New York that are still largely locked down aren't showing the same sort of uptick.

SoCal seems to be a lot worse off than areas like San Francisco and its surrounding counties which have much greater success in getting people to socially distance and wear masks. That said, those measures might just be slowing the spread in Central California and those areas might be just as bad in a few weeks.

Satsuki

Thankfully here in Mass. the line seems to have "flattened", in no small part I'm sure because Gov. Baker still has a mask demand in place. That doesn't mean there aren't idiots who want to take them off anyway, but most at least seem to be holding the line. Will other states take that as an indicator? Probably not. Even we here can't resist re-openings, but I don't know how that much it will affect things.

sgamer82

COVID news from https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/06/30/day-1258/

[h=1]Day 1258: "We're going in the wrong direction."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~10,394,000; deaths: ~509,000
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,624,000; deaths: ~128,000
Source: Johns Hopkins University

Dr. Anthony Fauci warned a Senate committee that the U.S. is “not in total control” of the coronavirus and that infections could more than double to 100,000 a day if the country fails to contain the surge. The nation’s top infectious diseases expert said “we’re going in the wrong direction” and the recent sharp rise in cases, largely in the South and the West, “puts the entire country at risk.” Fauci declined to estimate the number of potential deaths, but said “It is going to be very disturbing, I guarantee you that.” (New York Times / Washington Post / Bloomberg / Politico / NBC News / CNN / CNBC)

A new strain of the H1N1 swine flu virus is spreading on pig farms in China and should be “urgently” controlled to avoid another pandemic, according to a new study. The new strain, known as G4 EA H1N1, has been common on China’s pig farms since 2016 and has characteristics of the 2009 H1N1 virus and 1918 pandemic flu. The H1N1 swine flu emerged in Mexico in April 2009 and infected at least 700 million worldwide and 60.8 million people in the U.S. An estimated 151,700 to 575,400 people died from the virus globally. (New York Times / BBC / CNBC)
South Dakota will not require thousands of people who attend a July 3 event at Mount Rushmore with Trump to practice social distancing. Gov. Kristi Noem said “We told those folks that have concerns that they can stay home, but those who want to come and join us, we’ll be giving out free face masks, if they choose to wear one. But we won’t be social distancing.” (Axios / NBC News)
The European Union formally extended a travel ban for U.S. residents, deeming the American response to the coronavirus pandemic insufficient. (New York Times / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal)
The deadline to apply for the Paycheck Protection Program will end today with more than $130 billion left unused. For many small businesses, the process to receive PPP funding was confusing and some businesses were hesitant to apply as forgiveness guidelines shifted multiple times. (ABC News / Washington Post)

poll/ 71% of Americans say they would get a coronavirus vaccine, while 27% say they probably or definitely would not. According to researchers at Johns Hopkins University, at least 70% will need immunity to the virus to reach herd immunity. (Washington Post)

sgamer82

https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/07/01/day-1259/

[h=1]Day 1259: "It's going to sort of just disappear, I hope."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~10,578,000; deaths: ~513,000
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,659,000; deaths: ~128,000
Source: Johns Hopkins University

The number of confirmed U.S. coronavirus deaths is “a substantial undercount” of the true tally, according to researchers at Yale University. Researchers found that the 781,000 total deaths in the U.S. from March 1 through May 30 were about 19% higher than what would normally be expected. And, the number of excess deaths from any cause were 28% higher than the official tally of U.S. COVID-19 deaths during those months. In 45 states, seven-day averages of new infections are higher than they were a week ago and more than 800,000 new cases were reported in the U.S. in June — led by Florida, Arizona, Texas and California. The World Health Organization, meanwhile, warned that some countries might have to reimplement lockdowns to curb the spread of the coronavirus. (CNBC / CNBC / Washington Post / New York Times)

The Federal Reserve raised concerns in June about a surge in coronavirus infections and how a second wave could disrupt the economic recovery, trigger a spike in unemployment, and prolong the recession. When this Fed meeting concluded on June 10, there were 20,456 new coronavirus cases in the United States. On Tuesday, the U.S. reported 44,474 new cases. (Washington Post)
U.S. companies added fewer jobs than expected in June. Businesses’ payrolls increased by 2.37 million in June, while economists predicted a 2.9 million rise. (Bloomberg)
The Treasury Department lent $700 million in coronavirus stimulus funds to a trucking company that warned in May it was in danger of going out of business. The Treasury – aka U.S. taxpayers – will take a 29.6% equity stake in the company, YRC Worldwide, whose stock had fell 27% this year and was worth $70 million. In 2018, the Justice Department sued YRC for allegedly overcharging the Pentagon millions of dollars for shipping. (CNN / Wall Street Journal / Washington Post)

Trump said he’s “all for masks” and would have “no problem” wearing one in public but thinks coronavirus will “disappear” someday. He then added: “At some point.” While coronavirus cases surge to all-time highs and states reverse reopening plans, Trump told Fox Business that “we are going to be very good with the coronavirus” because “it’s going to sort of just disappear, I hope.” Trump also said he thought he “looked OK” the one time he was seen wearing a face mask and that he thought he resembled the “Lone Ranger.” (CNN / Daily Beast / Associated Press / Washington Post)
The U.S. bought nearly the entire global stock of one of the drugs proven to work against COVID-19, leaving the rest of the world unable to purchase it for at least the next three months. Remdesivir, which has been shown to help people recover faster from COVID-19, is the first drug to be approved by the FDA to treat the disease. The Trump administration bought more than 500,000 doses of remdesivir, which is Gilead’s entire stock for July and 90% of the supply for August and September. (The Guardian)

onemoment

Holy shit Trump is hopeless and delusional. I mean, I knew that already but seeing him say that over the pile of corpses that is this pandemic hits like a metal bat to the gut.

Satsuki

Massachusetts officially has zero new COVID deaths for the first time!
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/06/30/nation/mass-reports-zero-new-coronavirus-deaths-first-time-months/?fbclid=IwAR1xLaEPlf03bE6n4IiCjidgayq5DExLxRE-U9bUOUtZhlEvrvOuZ_2gV5k

It's small, but I'll take it.

KageKageKing

Alabama students attend 'COVID-19 parties,' gamble on who gets sick first.

https://nypost.com/2020/07/02/alabama-students-gamble-on-who-gets-sick-at-covid-19-parties/?utm_source=NYPTwitter&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_medium=SocialFlow&__twitter_impression=true&__twitter_impression=true

CosmicDebris

It's not the CA beaches that is spreading COVID, the virus doesn't spread easily outdoors. It's all the bars, restaurants, gyms, and salons that reopened. Which are now being rolled back. Basically everyone was really good about socially distancing for the first month, then everyone got bored and the small minority of Kevins and Karens went protesting and spreading misinformation about how it's all overblown and masks are actually bad for your health and our freedoms are being taken away, yadda yadda.

sgamer82

COVID-Specific News: https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2020/07/02/day-1260/

[h=1]Day 1260: "We are not flattening the curve right now."[/h]

[h=3] Dept. of “We Have It Totally Under Control.”[/h]
Global: Total confirmed cases: ~10,781,000; deaths: ~519,000
U.S.: Total confirmed cases: ~2,725,000; deaths: ~129,000
Source: Johns Hopkins University

The United States set a single-day coronavirus case record for the fifth time in eight days after reporting more than 50,000 new cases on Wednesday – the largest single-day total since the start of the pandemic. “We are not flattening the curve right now,” said Adm. Brett Giroir, the government’s coronavirus testing coordinator. “The curve is still going up.” Dr. Anthony Fauci added: “I think it’s pretty obvious that we are not going in the right direction.” At least 23 states have paused reopening plans ahead of the holiday weekend. (Washington Post / New York Times / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / CNN / CNBC)

Coronavirus cases in the U.S. rose by nearly 50% in June, led by states that tried to reopen their economies first. (Washington Post)
Herman Cain was hospitalized with COVID-19. The former 2012 Republican presidential candidate was at Trump’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, last month, and was photographed sitting in close proximity with other attendees, none of whom appeared to be wearing masks. At least eight Trump advance team staffers at the Tulsa rally also tested positive for coronavirus. (CNN / CNBC)
More than 40 Bay Area school principals were exposed to coronavirus during in-person school reopening planning meeting. The superintendent insisted the meeting was necessary. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Texas issued a statewide mandate requiring face masks in public in any county with 20 or more positive COVID-19 cases. Gov. Greg Abbott previously opposed attempts by mayors and local officials requiring people wear face masks while in public, but reversed course after the state reported a record of more than 8,000 new cases on Wednesday. Florida, meanwhile, reported 10,109 new cases on Thursday, marking a new single-day record for the state and the 25th consecutive day that Florida has set a record high in its seven-day rolling average. And in California, where hospitalizations are up more than 40% from two weeks ago, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the mandatory closure of bars, indoor restaurants, movie theaters, zoos, and museums in 19 counties where 70% of the state’s population lives. (CNBC / New York Times / Washington Post / Wall Street Journal)

The Franky Tank

So much fun living in a hot spot and seeing people being terrible about this whole situation. I went to the store the other day and while they require masks I saw multiple people who decided after entering uncover their mouth and nose and leave it around their chin area. You only have to wear it while in the store, get your stuff then take it off once in the car, it's not that hard. I understand it sucks but I have to wear a mask my entire work shift so the short time shopping should be nothing.

Other fun part is how after sheer incompetence of the Texas Government masks are being required and places are being shut down now, and then seeing reactions of people who feel that this is the end of freedom, or what really annoys me, is complaints that beaches get shut down but people are still free to protest. Oh yeah, also lots of people talking about how wearing masks don't 100% protect you, so what's the point in wearing them.