Formerly DT: COVID-19 - Featuring Lots of Politics, now CR because political talk not going away

[Anastasis 23,481]

3 minutes ago, Sawbonz said:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4532578/Florida-man-not-guilty-oral-sex-murder-case.html

Defense lawyer Ken Padowitz (right) hit out at the prosecutor, saying Sapak was not qualified to make the determination a person can only choke on an erect penis.

Fucking lawyers. 

[Anastasis 23,481]

17 minutes ago, StruggleBus said:

I’d intubate her airway 

Food in sweden generally sucks, but I bet that broad makes a mean ass sandwich. 

[washparkhorn 9,939]

1 hour ago, GRHorn said:

I assume he works for a standard group in Houston too. Either he works in the most hyper vigilant setting

There was an early case of Covid after an injection that raised alarms and heightened vigilance. Correlation is not causation and we have some evidence now that injections with heightened safety protocols work. That allowed injections to continue for patients with objective evidence of a pain generator.
 

More importantly from the business side, injections are a lucrative source of income for the providers and facilities involved. Carriers imposed their own safety requirements to continue coverage for the flow of income and treatment with a vulnerable population. 
 

Having said all that, the malpractice scheme in Texas ensures incentives for patient safety are reduced and negative externalities are shifted to taxpayers, which may explain the differing standards of care within Texas and and outside the State. Texas attorneys understand the cost-shifting that emerged with tort reform in Texas. 
 

tldr - patient safety first, please. 

Edited December 20, 2020 by washparkhorn

[Sawbonz 27,580]

1 hour ago, GRHorn said:

I get more stuff like her showing me a picture of her niece’s rash and I say I don’t know it is.

A few years ago wife gets suckered into adopting a kitten that was basically a stray. About a week later one of my boys gets a rash. She asks me what it is. Doesn’t look like ringworm but we just let an alley cat into our home so probability is 90% it’s ringworm so I say it’s ringworm. She takes son to a friend of ours who is family medicine doc. He puts him on an antibiotic for cellulitis and it gets worse. I say put some antifungal cream on it. She takes him to his pediatrician who puts him on a different antibiotic and it gets worse. Then she gets the same rash. I tell her it’s fucking ringworm what else could it be?

She goes to the dermatologist, he does a scraping, sends it to the lab and it comes back

 

 

ringworm. Only now they’ve had it over a week each and need oral antifungal instead of OTC cream

 

$1000 “free” cat

[Enchubben 5,510]

3 hours ago, GRHorn said:

 I married a hot nurse 

Follow whatever rules you want at work, but this is surly good man. Rules are to be followed here.

[GRHorn 105]

29 minutes ago, washparkhorn said:

There was an early case of Covid after an injection that raised alarms and heightened vigilance. Correlation is not causation and we have some evidence now that injections with heightened safety protocols work. That allowed injections to continue for patients with objective evidence of a pain generator.
 

More importantly from the business side, injections are a lucrative source of income for the providers and facilities involved. Carriers imposed their own safety requirements to continue coverage for the flow of income and treatment with a vulnerable population. 
 

Having said all that, the malpractice scheme in Texas ensures incentives for patient safety are reduced and negative externalities are shifted to taxpayers, which may explain the differing standards of care within Texas and and outside the State. Texas attorneys understand the cost-shifting that emerged with tort reform in Texas. 
 

tldr - patient safety first, please. 

Greenspoint protocols have nothing to do patient safety. They’re, if true, to protect himself. Which is fine if one provider is a psycho about it. But there’s no way a hospital in a major metropolitan area is paying for all anesthesia providers to currently do that. There’s too much cost in money and wasted time (which leads to OR staff overtime) for any of this stuff to be happening. 

[Sawbonz 27,580]

50 minutes ago, washparkhorn said:

There was an early case of Covid after an injection that raised alarms and heightened vigilance

We were doing that in April for all cases. We have learned a lot since then. The only way what he is describing could be happening in a facility as protocol now  is if it’s a teaching hospital and the faculty surgeons are required to bring their cases there and it’s an exclusive anesthesia contract. In any other setting that anesthesia group would have zero cases booked after one day of the surgeons putting up with that kind of unnecessary delay, or the facility itself would have no cases for the same reason

[InkaUtexas 26,026]

Well shit.... 

Belgium and Netherlands ban flights from UK over variant

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55385768

Meanwhile a bar in my town held a drag queen Christmas concert last night. 

[Parliament 14,278]

57 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

Meanwhile a bar in my town held a drag queen Christmas concert last night. 

Did you win?  Pics?

[MNLonghornFUKM 8,817]

Did you win?  Pics?

[InkaUtexas 26,026]

9 hours ago, Parliament said:

Did you win?  Pics?

Nah, was not allowed to enter due to COVID protocols. Your dad did real well I hear. 

[MNLonghornFUKM 8,817]

North Dakota with its first sub par 100 case day since early September.

Granted not very many tests but a positive % was under 5

[Hate 20,130]

Meanwhile a bar in my town held a drag queen Christmas concert last night. 

Stupid Trumpkins.

[Bevo 13,592]

On 12/19/2020 at 9:15 PM, Sawbonz said:

A few years ago wife gets suckered into adopting a kitten that was basically a stray. About a week later one of my boys gets a rash. She asks me what it is. Doesn’t look like ringworm but we just let an alley cat into our home so probability is 90% it’s ringworm so I say it’s ringworm. She takes son to a friend of ours who is family medicine doc. He puts him on an antibiotic for cellulitis and it gets worse. I say put some antifungal cream on it. She takes him to his pediatrician who puts him on a different antibiotic and it gets worse. Then she gets the same rash. I tell her it’s fucking ringworm what else could it be?

She goes to the dermatologist, he does a scraping, sends it to the lab and it comes back

 

 

ringworm. Only now they’ve had it over a week each and need oral antifungal instead of OTC cream

 

$1000 “free” cat

Back when I was a kid, we were quail hunting in South Texas and hit a deer on the way to dinner. My dad (who was a surgeon) said the deer was dead and put it our dog cage in the back of the SUV. We ate dinner and went back to the car and all hell had broken loose. Guess he called it a little too soon. The funniest part was figuring out how to get the buck out of the car without getting hurt. Of course, that ended up being my job.

[Cheeseweasel 26,438]

[StruggleBus 3,922]

So what's the deal with all of this UK mutation shit? Nobody knows? Nobody cares? Fuck it, I probably already had it anyway? 

[Anastasis 23,481]

4 hours ago, Bevo said:

Back when I was a kid, we were quail hunting in South Texas and hit a deer on the way to dinner. My dad (who was a surgeon) said the deer was dead and put it our dog cage in the back of the SUV. We ate dinner and went back to the car and all hell had broken loose. Guess he called it a little too soon. The funniest part was figuring out how to get the buck out of the car without getting hurt. Of course, that ended up being my job.

wut. 

[Anastasis 23,481]

 

[atomheartbevo 89,771]

18 minutes ago, StruggleBus said:

So what's the deal with all of this UK mutation shit? Nobody knows? Nobody cares? Fuck it, I probably already had it anyway? 

It's actually freaky as shit, and when they announced the US Army was looking into whether it was resistant to the vaccines that are out now, on top of this being a current photo out of London.....

[Hate 20,130]

I just got word that my 100 year old Grandpa has been diagnosed with Covid. He’s a tough old SOB, so I wouldn’t put it past him to shake it off. We’ll just have to wait and see.

[GRHorn 105]

6 hours ago, MNLonghornFUKM said:

North Dakota with its first sub par 100 case day since early September.

Granted not very many tests but a positive % was under 5

So did ND try to do restrictions or not? My understanding was their population DGAF. 

[Bevo 13,592]

56 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

wut. 

Oh, it was much worse than described. We had a trailer hitch on the back of the SUV with a 2-dog kennel. The dogs were going crazy in the back. The dog crate inside the car was bent to hell and there was blood everywhere. Meanwhile, we were within the city limits of whatever small South Texas town and were dressed for dinner so it wasn't like we could take care of things in the parking lot.

[MNLonghornFUKM 8,817]

So did ND try to do restrictions or not? My understanding was their population DGAF. 

About November 18th they mandated masks for 30 days, governor extended it at the deadline through i think mid January.


Bars and restaurants are open but close at 10pm. Not sure what the occupancy percentages they are allotted.

In Fargo masks are nearly compliant everywhere. The rural areas it likely isn’t much at all. Can’t speak for the western side of the state but it’s pretty conservative over there so.

[MNLonghornFUKM 8,817]

[Lurch 5,931]

So what's the deal with all of this UK mutation shit? Nobody knows? Nobody cares? Fuck it, I probably already had it anyway? 

Doesn’t appear to be any more virulent, but is much more contagious. It is believed the vaccines are just as effective against it. This per Dr Leana Wen (who is fantastic imo) on CNN earlier today.

[Lurch 5,931]

If you’re interested in vaccine history, I caught this great podcast on NPR this weekend about a man that some believe is the greatest scientist ever... yet few of us know his name

https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/articles/great_vaccinator

[Hate 20,130]

And now I just heard that my mom's best friend has it.  My mom is 73, a former smoker of 40+ years, and a diabetic.  I'll be shocked if she survives this if she does get it. 

[washparkhorn 9,939]

57 minutes ago, Lurch said:

If you’re interested in vaccine history, I caught this great podcast on NPR this weekend about a man that some believe is the greatest scientist ever... yet few of us know his name

https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/articles/great_vaccinator

Cool podcast. Great format. Funny, Thanks.

It like a character in a Cormac McCarthy novel. 

[Sawbonz 27,580]

12 hours ago, Bevo said:

Oh, it was much worse than described. We had a trailer hitch on the back of the SUV with a 2-dog kennel. The dogs were going crazy in the back. The dog crate inside the car was bent to hell and there was blood everywhere. Meanwhile, we were within the city limits of whatever small South Texas town and were dressed for dinner so it wasn't like we could take care of things in the parking lot.

[Parliament 14,278]

About November 18th they mandated masks for 30 days, governor extended it at the deadline through i think mid January.


Bars and restaurants are open but close at 10pm. Not sure what the occupancy percentages they are allotted.

In Fargo masks are nearly compliant everywhere. The rural areas it likely isn’t much at all. Can’t speak for the western side of the state but it’s pretty conservative over there so.

Western North Dakota doesn't wear masks. And South Dakota's case level has tracked similar to ND.

[Bevo 13,592]

56 minutes ago, Sawbonz said:

In my defense, he had already died once.

[BrazilHorn 6,627]

Just got note from AISD

will either be 100% remote post holiday break or they’re shutting district down altogether. 

This is provided current cv19 trends continue. (Which they will)

jeez. 

[bolverk 29,705]

From the AP:

US deaths in 2020 top 3 million, by far most ever counted

NEW YORK (AP) — This is the deadliest year in U.S. history, with deaths expected to top 3 million for the first time — due mainly to the coronavirus pandemic.

Final mortality data for this year will not be available for months. But preliminary numbers suggest that the United States is on track to see more than 3.2 million deaths this year, or at least 400,000 more than in 2019.

U.S. deaths increase most years, so some annual rise in fatalities is expected. But the 2020 numbers amount to a jump of about 15%, and could go higher once all the deaths from this month are counted.

That would mark the largest single-year percentage leap since 1918, when tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers died in World War I and hundreds of thousands of Americans died in a flu pandemic. Deaths rose 46% that year, compared with 1917.

COVID-19 has killed more than 318,000 Americans and counting. Before it came along, there was reason to be hopeful about U.S. death trends.

The nation’s overall mortality rate fell a bit in 2019, due to reductions in heart disease and cancer deaths. And life expectancy inched up — by several weeks — for the second straight year, according to death certificate data released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But life expectancy for 2020 could end up dropping as much as three full years, said Robert Anderson of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC counted 2,854,838 U.S. deaths last year, or nearly 16,000 more than 2018. That’s fairly good news: Deaths usually rise by about 20,000 to 50,000 each year, mainly due to the nation’s aging, and growing, population.

Indeed, the age-adjusted death rate dropped about 1% in 2019, and life expectancy rose by about six weeks to 78.8 years, the CDC reported.

“It was actually a pretty good year for mortality, as things go,” said Anderson, who oversees CDC death statistics.

The U.S. coronavirus epidemic has been a big driver of deaths this year, both directly and indirectly.

The virus was first identified in China last year, and the first U.S. cases were reported this year. But it has become the third leading cause of death, behind only heart disease and cancer. For certain periods this year, COVID-19 was the No. 1 killer.

But some other types of deaths also have increased.

A burst of pneumonia cases early this year may have been COVID-19 deaths that simply weren’t recognized as such early in the epidemic. But there also have been an unexpected number of deaths from certain types of heart and circulatory diseases, diabetes and dementia, Anderson said.

Many of those, too, may be related to COVID. The virus could have weakened patients already struggling with those conditions, or could have diminished the care they were getting, he said.

Early in the epidemic, some were optimistic that car crash deaths would drop as people stopped commuting or driving to social events. Data on that is not yet in, but anecdotal reports suggest there was no such decline.

Suicide deaths dropped in 2019 compared with 2018, but early information suggests they have not continued to drop this year, Anderson and others said.

Drug overdose deaths, meanwhile, got much worse.

Before the coronavirus even arrived, the U.S. was in the midst of the deadliest drug overdose epidemic in its history.

Data for all of 2020 is not yet available. But last week the CDC reported more than 81,000 drug overdose deaths in the 12 months ending in May, making it the highest number ever recorded in a one-year period.

Experts think the pandemic’s disruption to in-person treatment and recovery services may have been a factor. People also are more likely to be taking drugs alone — without the benefit of a friend or family member who can call 911 or administer overdose-reversing medication.

But perhaps a bigger factor are the drugs themselves: COVID-19 caused supply problems for dealers, so they are increasingly mixing cheap and deadly fentanyl into heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine, experts said.

“I don’t suspect there are a bunch of new people who suddenly started using drugs because of COVID. If anything, I think the supply of people who are already using drugs is more contaminated,” said Shannon Monnat, a Syracuse University researcher who studies drug overdose trends.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,516]

Read this article in the Atlantic yesterday about the proposed benefits of quality sleep against COVID infections, and the idea that melatonin could help with symptoms as it helps with sleep. This reminded me how years ago I used melatonin to combat insomnia.

At the grocery store afterwards, so why not buy melatonin supplements. I took half a tablet last night to test it out. Woke up late for work 10 hours later.

Feel overly energized and ready for work. I guessing at least 20 posts on Surly today.

[BradInATX 9,208]

10 minutes ago, bolverk said:

From the AP:

US deaths in 2020 top 3 million, by far most ever counted

NEW YORK (AP) — This is the deadliest year in U.S. history, with deaths expected to top 3 million for the first time — due mainly to the coronavirus pandemic.

Final mortality data for this year will not be available for months. But preliminary numbers suggest that the United States is on track to see more than 3.2 million deaths this year, or at least 400,000 more than in 2019.

U.S. deaths increase most years, so some annual rise in fatalities is expected. But the 2020 numbers amount to a jump of about 15%, and could go higher once all the deaths from this month are counted.

That would mark the largest single-year percentage leap since 1918, when tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers died in World War I and hundreds of thousands of Americans died in a flu pandemic. Deaths rose 46% that year, compared with 1917.

COVID-19 has killed more than 318,000 Americans and counting. Before it came along, there was reason to be hopeful about U.S. death trends.

The nation’s overall mortality rate fell a bit in 2019, due to reductions in heart disease and cancer deaths. And life expectancy inched up — by several weeks — for the second straight year, according to death certificate data released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But life expectancy for 2020 could end up dropping as much as three full years, said Robert Anderson of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC counted 2,854,838 U.S. deaths last year, or nearly 16,000 more than 2018. That’s fairly good news: Deaths usually rise by about 20,000 to 50,000 each year, mainly due to the nation’s aging, and growing, population.

Indeed, the age-adjusted death rate dropped about 1% in 2019, and life expectancy rose by about six weeks to 78.8 years, the CDC reported.

“It was actually a pretty good year for mortality, as things go,” said Anderson, who oversees CDC death statistics.

The U.S. coronavirus epidemic has been a big driver of deaths this year, both directly and indirectly.

The virus was first identified in China last year, and the first U.S. cases were reported this year. But it has become the third leading cause of death, behind only heart disease and cancer. For certain periods this year, COVID-19 was the No. 1 killer.

But some other types of deaths also have increased.

A burst of pneumonia cases early this year may have been COVID-19 deaths that simply weren’t recognized as such early in the epidemic. But there also have been an unexpected number of deaths from certain types of heart and circulatory diseases, diabetes and dementia, Anderson said.

Many of those, too, may be related to COVID. The virus could have weakened patients already struggling with those conditions, or could have diminished the care they were getting, he said.

Early in the epidemic, some were optimistic that car crash deaths would drop as people stopped commuting or driving to social events. Data on that is not yet in, but anecdotal reports suggest there was no such decline.

Suicide deaths dropped in 2019 compared with 2018, but early information suggests they have not continued to drop this year, Anderson and others said.

Drug overdose deaths, meanwhile, got much worse.

Before the coronavirus even arrived, the U.S. was in the midst of the deadliest drug overdose epidemic in its history.

Data for all of 2020 is not yet available. But last week the CDC reported more than 81,000 drug overdose deaths in the 12 months ending in May, making it the highest number ever recorded in a one-year period.

Experts think the pandemic’s disruption to in-person treatment and recovery services may have been a factor. People also are more likely to be taking drugs alone — without the benefit of a friend or family member who can call 911 or administer overdose-reversing medication.

But perhaps a bigger factor are the drugs themselves: COVID-19 caused supply problems for dealers, so they are increasingly mixing cheap and deadly fentanyl into heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine, experts said.

“I don’t suspect there are a bunch of new people who suddenly started using drugs because of COVID. If anything, I think the supply of people who are already using drugs is more contaminated,” said Shannon Monnat, a Syracuse University researcher who studies drug overdose trends.

 

I heard they counted a skydiving accident as a Covid death because he tested positive two weeks earlier

[Cheeseweasel 26,438]

15 minutes ago, bolverk said:

“I don’t suspect there are a bunch of new people who suddenly started using drugs because of COVID

Depression makes people do strange things. What could be more depressing than losing your employment and getting $600 bucks as compensation?

[Guest Lobo]

5 minutes ago, BradInATX said:

 

I heard they counted a skydiving accident as a Covid death because he tested positive two weeks earlier

Not only that, they counted the dead skydiver's vote in Georgia as well! 

I heard he was parachuting over Macho Grande.  

[Cheeseweasel 26,438]

9 minutes ago, Lobo said:

Not only that, they counted the dead skydiver's vote in Georgia as well! 

I heard he was parachuting over Macho Grande.  

Over Macho Grande?

[bolverk 29,705]

4 minutes ago, Cheeseweasel said:

Depression makes people do strange things. What could be more depressing than losing your employment and getting $600 bucks as compensation?

I don't disagree, because I've been there and have suffered from severe depression during a time of unemployment and nearly spiraled into a full-blown state of chronic, debilitating alcoholism. Hell, working full-time alone at home is depressing enough. So, yeah, I understand and also agree that $600 is a paltry sum as compensation for so much suffering. There were many in Congress who had been advocating for a larger amount and proposed a bill all the way back in May as a second stimulus package. It's too bad that others were opposed, held it up for seven months, and ended up reducing that sum. Now, just imagine where we'd be if we had full compliance for 100% mask-wearing at in-door public places and proper social distancing to help mitigate the spread and the loss of life thereby lowering the number of people who are depressed. 

[C-Man 27,242]

Over Macho Grande?

I’ll never get over Macho Grande

[Cheeseweasel 26,438]

1 minute ago, C-Man said:

I’ll never get over Macho Grande

[tbone_ 14,140]

So did ND try to do restrictions or not? My understanding was their population DGAF. 

Doesn’t matter. They are all in Arizona for the winter now.

[GreenspointTexas 9,662]

https://abcnews.go.com/US/man-died-collapsing-united-flight-covid-19-coroner/story?id=74868916&cid=clicksource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_twopack_hed
 

 

What.a.fucking.moron.

[Hate 20,130]

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

[Brisketexan 105,190]

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

Damn. Sorry to hear it. I hope he won’t mind if he’s one of the folks I think of as I raise a glass of whiskey tonight.

[strangulation! 1,716]

15 minutes ago, Hate said:

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

so sorry to hear that. grandpas are the best

[InkaUtexas 26,026]

19 minutes ago, Hate said:

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

Sorry to hear this man. Will raise a glass to him this evening. 

 

[Zepol87 9,189]

44 minutes ago, Hate said:

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

Sorry to hear that. 

[BradInATX 9,208]

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

Bad ass that he made 100. Gotta be a little lucky and tough as nails. Sorry for your loss.

[South Austin 52,535]

7 hours ago, Hate said:

I just learned that my Grandpa passed away peacefully last night. He had just celebrated his 100th birthday a few weeks ago. He was the best Grandpa anyone could ever have. I will forever cherish the memories of him teaching me how to fish, shoot, and drive. There was nothing better than when Grandpa would ask if you wanted to help him set up a trot line. He’ll never ever know just how much I loved him and I’ll miss him every day for the rest of my life. 

What a great tribute. You were damn lucky to have him.