Coronavirus, Monkeypox, and Other Contagious Diseases

[LFC]

This story out of the school district in Cobb County, GA (fairly red suburb of Atlanta) is horrifying. They simply refuse to allow a mask mandate and are using softer quarantine procedures than recommended by the CDC or Georgia. The mother who wrote it managed to get their kids into a virtual school but here's the finish to show just how ingrained the forces are that cause school officials to bury bad COVID news.

Over a 12-day period between my children’s school open house and Aug. 9, the second Monday of school, Cobb County and much of the rest of Georgia and the South saw rapid growth in coronavirus infections. In Cobb, cases per 100,000 nearly doubled in that time and the positivity rate went up, as well, a sign that the virus was spreading rapidly.

On Aug. 10, Memark, the Cobb-Douglas public health director, told the Cobb County Board of Commissioners that child cases had grown by 60 percent in the past week — the first week of school — for kids between the ages of 5 and 17. On Aug. 8, Georgia’s seven-day average number of cases among 5- to 9-year-olds reached a peak higher than at any previous point in the pandemic. As of Wednesday, it was higher still.

That first week of school, instead of posting pictures of the kids’ first day and sitting each afternoon in the carpool pickup line, my husband and I tried to come up with a schedule to fill their days in advance of virtual school starting later in the month.

I also attempted to turn off the notifications from my elementary school chat group. But for some reason, I kept getting them.

On Aug. 6, an alert popped up. A mom wanted us to know that her kindergartner, whose sibling is in the classroom where my second-grader would have been, tested positive. She said she doubted the school would notify us.

The next morning, another mother confirmed that she herself had tested positive; her kids were negative so far.

The day after, another family’s three-year-old tested positive. Their school-aged child remained negative.

That night, a fourth mother’s friend was rounding out a 24-hour hospital stay with her kindergartner who’d tested positive. So had multiple classmates.

“If you have a little one in that class,” she wrote, “I suggest you get them tested.”

It's now up to parents to inform each other if their children have potentially been endangered. The school seems to want little part of it.

[Rue Bella]

Honestly, I'm ok with just wheeling them to the parking lot and leaving them there.

This reflects a growing sentiment I am now hearing from vaccinated friends towards the willfully unvaccinated. Sure, it was a hassle to initially find and get the vaccine, or letting those in more need get it first. But now? It's your fault alone for not having had it. (excluding special health cases, of course).  Your choice, your cement bed. Thoughts and prayers, chump. 

[LFC]

The Nation’s Largest Teachers’ Union Just Backed a Vaccine Mandate. Schools Are Already in Chaos.

[LFC]

Mississippi's health care system is bordering on collapse.

Mississippi has become the latest state to issue an urgent pandemic distress call to the federal government. Public-health official Jim Craig confirmed Wednesday that state leaders have asked the Biden administration to send a U.S. military hospital ship—such as the USNS Comfort—in a last-ditch attempt to prevent the state’s hospital system from falling into a complete collapse. The plea came after the dean of University of Mississippi Medical Center said the facility was treating 127 COVID-19 patients—including 26 children—with 90 percent of patients unvaccinated. Dean LouAnn Woodward warned: “The Mississippi hospital system will fail within the next five to seven or 10 days if the current trajectory continues.” UMMC has reportedly set up a federally staffed field hospital in its parking garage to help with the sudden overflow of COVID patients.

[Bact PhD]

A piece ran in my local rag today concerning how private schools, including the one to which we send Dear Son, were proceeding WRT delta. The bottom line, mask mandates seem to be the rule, rather than the exception, in the private schools that talked to the paper. So much for the theory that anti-mask parents are going to up and switch to private schools en masse.

[Rue Bella]

The bottom line, mask mandates seem to be the rule, rather than the exception, in the private schools that talked to the paper. So much for the theory that anti-mask parents are going to up and switch to private schools en masse.

 Interesting. I don't have kids in school, and haven't been following school/mask issues, but I would have thought it would be pro-mask parents switching to private schools - at least to private schools iwth mask mandates.  But then I never thought Trump ever would be elected or still have a significant following after his loss.

[Rue Bella]

www.axios.com/cdc-unauthorized-boosters-safety-c445092f-91b5-4d24-aec7-a2109d6e711d.html

Bold mine.

Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warned Thursday that Americans getting unauthorized booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine undermine the CDC's safety monitoring of recipients.

Why it matters: With booster shots a near inevitability, many Americans are eager to know when they will be able to get one. Some are now circumventing official CDC guidelines and getting a third shot.

Driving the news: More than 1 million people in the U.S. have received unauthorized booster shots of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, ABC News reported Tuesday.

The big picture: Many of the unauthorized third doses are "occurring in the context of people who may believe they are merited another shot, may be severely immunocompromised," Walensky said at the White House COVID-19 briefing.

"The one thing I want to highlight in the context of this is that it does undermine our ability to monitor safety," she added, urging people to adhere to official CDC guidelines.
At the briefing NIAID director Anthony Fauci reiterated that while booster shots are being considered for immunocompromised people, but not for healthy individuals.

"The one think we're doing is preparing for the eventuality of doing that. If the data shows us in fact we do need to do that, we'll be very ready to do it and do it quickly," Fauci said of general booster shots.
Of note: Asked whether private insurances and medicare are covering the administration fees for the unauthorized boosters, Walensky said officials are "doing an evaluation" of the issue.

[goldenvalley]

Aug 13, 2021 0:46:56 GMT Rue Bella said:

www.axios.com/cdc-unauthorized-boosters-safety-c445092f-91b5-4d24-aec7-a2109d6e711d.html

Bold mine.

Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warned Thursday that Americans getting unauthorized booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine undermine the CDC's safety monitoring of recipients.

Why it matters: With booster shots a near inevitability, many Americans are eager to know when they will be able to get one. Some are now circumventing official CDC guidelines and getting a third shot.

Driving the news: More than 1 million people in the U.S. have received unauthorized booster shots of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, ABC News reported Tuesday.

The big picture: Many of the unauthorized third doses are "occurring in the context of people who may believe they are merited another shot, may be severely immunocompromised," Walensky said at the White House COVID-19 briefing.

"The one thing I want to highlight in the context of this is that it does undermine our ability to monitor safety," she added, urging people to adhere to official CDC guidelines.
At the briefing NIAID director Anthony Fauci reiterated that while booster shots are being considered for immunocompromised people, but not for healthy individuals.

"The one think we're doing is preparing for the eventuality of doing that. If the data shows us in fact we do need to do that, we'll be very ready to do it and do it quickly," Fauci said of general booster shots.
Of note: Asked whether private insurances and medicare are covering the administration fees for the unauthorized boosters, Walensky said officials are "doing an evaluation" of the issue.

This is all so f#%*d up. People who should get the initial vaccinations aren't.  People who wouldn't feel they need a booster are sneaking around getting them because of the people who aren't vaccinated.  And across the world are large numbers of people who have no opportunity to get the vaccines at all.  

[AnBr]

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[Bact PhD]

Aug 12, 2021 22:33:35 GMT Rue Bella said:

The bottom line, mask mandates seem to be the rule, rather than the exception, in the private schools that talked to the paper. So much for the theory that anti-mask parents are going to up and switch to private schools en masse.

 Interesting. I don't have kids in school, and haven't been following school/mask issues, but I would have thought it would be pro-mask parents switching to private schools - at least to private schools iwth mask mandates.  But then I never thought Trump ever would be elected or still have a significant following after his loss.

The thing here is that The Supreme Emperor of Flori-DUH and his minions took great pains earlier this week to make a certain type of public-tax-money-to-private-school voucher (usually employed in cases of extreme bullying) available to parents whose offspring were being subjected to "Anti-mask bullying," including but not limited to anti-mask mandates, the theory being that the snowflakes would send their junior snowflakes to mask-free learning environments, helping to accomplish another long-time reactionary goal of defunding public education.

TBH, in the case of Dear Son's school, it wouldn't surprise me to find that your theory is the dominant one. I have no doubt word has gotten around how, with an abundance of communication and strong buy-in to mitigation measures, we were able to conduct live classes and a full athletic schedule with minimal hiccups last year. For the first time since we've been at the school, much of the middle school has a waitlist, as do a couple of the primary grades.

[AnBr]

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[Deleted]

Someone wearing a surgical mask to protect himself and others from a respiratory disease while smoking a pipe is a bit much. It seems an assertion of his rights without acknowledging his responsibility. The moralizing is worthy of finding a place in the Andy's daily dyspeptic detritus thread.

[Deleted]

[Rue Bella]

[Rue Bella]

www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2021/08/13/florida-teachers-die-covid/4641628868336/

Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Four teachers in South Florida have died of COVID-19 in the span of three days amid a major surge in cases statewide and a growing political fight by the state's governor against mask requirements in schools.

Three teachers and an assistant teacher in Broward County all died within a 24-hour period earlier this week, the Broward Teachers Union said.

Nothing to see here. Take off your mask and move along...

[pnwguy]

Aug 13, 2021 19:31:00 GMT Rue Bella said:

www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2021/08/13/florida-teachers-die-covid/4641628868336/

Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Four teachers in South Florida have died of COVID-19 in the span of three days amid a major surge in cases statewide and a growing political fight by the state's governor against mask requirements in schools.

Three teachers and an assistant teacher in Broward County all died within a 24-hour period earlier this week, the Broward Teachers Union said.

Nothing to see here. Take off your mask and move along...

If you are a DeSantis MAGAt, you weren't wearing a mask to begin with. 

Now Florida just needs the Westboro Baptists to come and protest at their funerals.  

[pnwguy]

I weep for our nation....

[Rue Bella]

[goldenvalley]

Aug 13, 2021 21:08:40 GMT pnwguy said:

I weep for our nation....

Smug, wasn't she?   Has it all figured out.  So why are all those people dead?  So many in excess of the average number of deaths per year?  They didn't die in wildfires, earthquakes, or hurricanes.

[goldenvalley]

Aug 13, 2021 21:09:57 GMT Rue Bella said:

Before COVID people in Northern CA were seeking N95 masks to filter out the particulates from smoke from the fire that burned through Paradise. Fire stations in my part of the city were offering them for free.  There was no "mandate", just people seeking some sort of protection. 

[pnwguy]

Aug 13, 2021 21:20:23 GMT goldenvalley said:

So why are all those people dead?  

They were people who were trying to expose the Satan-worshiping pedophiles, and Hunter Biden worked with Killary to have them eliminated.  Hey, if they can make 800,000 kids disappear, what's 620,000 "plandemic" deaths to fake?

[Rue Bella]

Aug 13, 2021 21:24:39 GMT goldenvalley said:

Aug 13, 2021 21:09:57 GMT Rue Bella said:

Before COVID people in Northern CA were seeking N95 masks to filter out the particulates from smoke from the fire that burned through Paradise. Fire stations in my part of the city were offering them for free.  There was no "mandate", just people seeking some sort of protection. 

I had N95 masks from previous fires too. A decade or so there were a few local fires that created ash falls and smoke so thick the sun was blood red in the middle of the day. Various agencies were giving away masks too.  I had purchased a big box back then, and those are still what I'm using, plus some prettier cloth ones. 

We're south of Pt. Conception and haven't been getting much smoke from the NCal. fires this time, thank goodness. Just one day with a bit of smelling smoke in the air. 

[andydp]

We all know Sen Rand Paul's story he conveniently "forgot" to mention his wife had done a stock deal:

Rand Paul Failed to Mention His Wife’s COVID Treatment Stock Purchase

Kelly Paul, Senator Rand Paul’s wife, bought shares in remdesivir, the COVID therapeutic drug made by Gilead, very early in the pandemic. And the senator didn’t mention the purchase until this week — 16 months after the fact. Per the 2012 STOCK Act, he was supposed to disclose such a transaction within 45 days.

nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/08/rand-paul-failed-to-mention-wifes-covid-drug-stock-purchase.html


BUT look who else has a stake in remidisvir which is a way more expensive treatment than getting a free COVID inoculation.

Gov. DeSantis announces new shipments of remdesivir

LAKE MARY, Fla. - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Saturday announced the state has received new shipments of a promising drug remdesivir.


www.fox35orlando.com/news/gov-desantis-announces-new-shipments-of-remdesivir

I read a short blip about Gilead having a track record of funny donations, and the linking of Gov DeSantis to Gilead.

ED NOTE:  If someone wants to research this feel, free to add the info here

[goldenvalley]

Aug 13, 2021 21:48:14 GMT Rue Bella said:

Aug 13, 2021 21:24:39 GMT goldenvalley said:

I had N95 masks from previous fires too. A decade or so there were a few local fires that created ash falls and smoke so thick the sun was blood red in the middle of the day. Various agencies were giving away masks too.  I had purchased a big box back then, and those are still what I'm using, plus some prettier cloth ones. 

We're south of Pt. Conception and haven't been getting much smoke from the NCal. fires this time, thank goodness. Just one day with a bit of smelling smoke in the air. 

There's no way to prove or disprove this, but I doubt a mask mandate imposed back then would have engendered the BS liberty talk that we see in connection with disease.  Why?  Because smoke is easily perceived...the smell, the appearance, the ash floating around, the eyes burning even though you can't see the particulate matter that is most damaging.  But a virus can't be seen or perceived until the person is already symptomatic.

[Bact PhD]

Aug 13, 2021 22:23:16 GMT andydp said:

We all know Sen Rand Paul's story he conveniently "forgot" to mention his wife had done a stock deal:

Rand Paul Failed to Mention His Wife’s COVID Treatment Stock Purchase

Kelly Paul, Senator Rand Paul’s wife, bought shares in remdesivir, the COVID therapeutic drug made by Gilead, very early in the pandemic. And the senator didn’t mention the purchase until this week — 16 months after the fact. Per the 2012 STOCK Act, he was supposed to disclose such a transaction within 45 days.

nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/08/rand-paul-failed-to-mention-wifes-covid-drug-stock-purchase.html


BUT look who else has a stake in remidisvir which is a way more expensive treatment than getting a free COVID inoculation.

Gov. DeSantis announces new shipments of remdesivir

LAKE MARY, Fla. - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Saturday announced the state has received new shipments of a promising drug remdesivir.


www.fox35orlando.com/news/gov-desantis-announces-new-shipments-of-remdesivir

I read a short blip about Gilead having a track record of funny donations, and the linking of Gov DeSantis to Gilead.

ED NOTE:  If someone wants to research this feel, free to add the info here

Not only that, the Supreme Emperor of Flori-DUH is pushing the Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment, per WaPo:

www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/08/13/desantis-regeneron-florida-covid-antibodies/

How much ya wanna bet on campaign contributions from Regeneron honchos, Mrs. DeSantis made a big stock purchase a few months ago, or both?