How COVID-19 is affecting society

[Beebo Brink]

A Wyoming health official involved in the state's COVID-19 response described vaccines as biological weapons and a plot to spread communism

Igor Shepherd made the baseless and unsubstantiated claims at an event held by the Keep Colorado Free and Open group.

www.businessinsider.com

 

[Beebo Brink]

Joking about stereoptypes like that is commonly considered simple bigotry, but all of you know that. Right?

Yes, we do. But you appear to be going by a set of black-and-white rules to reach your judgment and completely oblivious to the nuances of a community social interaction that remove bigotry from the equation.

Following that basic rule book for your own conversational style is probably your best course of action, given that you're not adept at parsing out context and layers of social cues. Passing judgment on people who ARE more adept at social acrobatics, that's not a good look for you. Scolding people -- when you've completely missed the point -- is just painfully awkward for everyone involved.

So here's the "advanced socializing" rule you're not understanding: In a group of friends who have known each other for years, who have a history of interactions and knowledge of each other on which to draw, teasing and joking have different boundaries from those of public statements among strangers. Context changes the meaning and significance of the interaction. Joking about stereotypes among friends who actually belong to the stereotyped group is not perceived as bigotry. To be fair, it can be risky to do this if one oversteps shared boundaries or if someone is in an especially vulnerable emotional space that day. But because of our very long associations (some of us have been part of this community for over a decade), we can get pretty rowdy with each other and no harm done.

You're new to the community, and you're obviously not familiar with the dynamics at play. This is an excellent opportunity for you to learn, if you're willing to listen rather than preach.

 

[Free]

Although these forums have become pretty homogenized over time, it still might be a good idea for you to indicate the desired response you need when introducing a new topic.

Some people like shitting where they keep trying to eat.

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

It's like people on progressive YouTube channels talking with bad Southern accents to mock political figures. What would happen if they tried using a Black accent in a similar way?

I hope you know the difference between mocking people in power and mocking the oppressed.

 

[Beebo Brink]

I hope you know the difference between mocking people in power and mocking the oppressed.

There's also a difference when people mock their own group. There are several guys on YouTube who regularly poke fun at redneck politics and support of Trump. Their humor is especially scathing because they themselves are rednecks and they know just where to jab.

And of course black comedians can use the n-word, which is (and should be) off-limits to outsiders. Inevitably, of course, you get white people who complain "If he can use it, why can't I?" -- more inability to understand multi-layered context and social norms.

Within the context of my own family, I can tease my wife about Appalachian stereotypes. She can laugh when I ask her to repeat certain words that are spoken with a hill country accent. (I love her accent, btw.) It's not my own group, but I'm allowed a family membership.

 

[Jolene Benoir]

Although these forums have become pretty homogenized over time, it still might be a good idea for you to indicate the desired response you need when introducing a new topic. No laughter- comply, or Laugh- I need to feel hurt and virtue signal.

Whatever you do, Sovereignty, do not listen to this meathead. The usage of "virtue signal" should give you a general idea and this person wouldn't know how to read a room if it bit them in the ass.

Yes, we do. But you appear to be going by a set of black-and-white rules to reach your judgment and completely oblivious to the nuances of a community social interaction that remove bigotry from the equation.

Following that basic rule book for your own conversational style is probably your best course of action, given that you're not adept at parsing out context and layers of social cues. Passing judgment on people who ARE more adept at social acrobatics, that's not a good look for you. Scolding people -- when you've completely missed the point -- is just painfully awkward for everyone involved.

So here's the "advanced socializing" rule you're not understanding: In a group of friends who have known each other for years, who have a history of interactions and knowledge of each other on which to draw, teasing and joking have different boundaries from those of public statements among strangers. Context changes the meaning and significance of the interaction. Joking about stereotypes among friends who actually belong to the stereotyped group is not perceived as bigotry. To be fair, it can be risky to do this if one oversteps shared boundaries or if someone is in an especially vulnerable emotional space that day. But because of our very long associations (some of us have been part of this community for over a decade), we can get pretty rowdy with each other and no harm done.

You're new to the community, and you're obviously not familiar with the dynamics at play. This is an excellent opportunity for you to learn, if you're willing to listen rather than preach.

Yeah, I've spoken of my past here before, some may not remember, but I wasn't offended or upset. It also appears that folks here who live in the south weren't terribly upset, either. Now, had Sovereignty expressed that they live in the south and did not appreciate those types of jokes this entire conversation may have gone differently, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

 

[Beebo Brink]

Now, had Sovereignty expressed that they live in the south and did not appreciate those types of jokes this entire conversation may have gone differently, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

There's always a potential conflict when new members are integrating into a long-standing, close-knit community like SLU/VVO. I remember back many years ago when Siggy showed up on SLU and used the word "cunt." Many people knew him well, but I did not, and my feathers got all manner of ruffled by that word usage. I said something stuffy and pompous and he handed me my head on a platter, so I put him on my asshole list right then and there. It was a long time before I finally developed a deeper understanding of him, not to mention an appreciation for the word "cunt" as used by Australians. It was a learning experience for me, but a bit of a bumpy one I must confess.

 

[Casey Pelous]

...because of our very long associations (some of us have been part of this community for over a decade)...

That's preposterous! I think I count as an oldbie and I've only been here a couple of

SL Rez: 2007
SL Name: Casey Pelous
Joined SLU: February, 2011

Holy crap. How did that happen?

 

[Jolene Benoir]

There's always a potential conflict when new members are integrating into a long-standing, close-knit community like SLU/VVO. I remember back many years ago when Siggy showed up on SLU and used the word "cunt." Many people knew him well, but I did not, and my feathers got all manner of ruffled by that word usage. I said something stuffy and pompous and he handed me my head on a platter, so I put him on my asshole list right then and there. It was a long time before I finally developed a deeper understanding of him, not to mention an appreciation for the word "cunt" as used by Australians. It was a learning experience for me, but a bit of a bumpy one I must confess.

Yep, that one set me off as well. I don't think it was Siggy, but someone from either the UK or Australia. Now, I call it a learning experience, as well; learning about how other countries view and use the word.

There is a HUGE difference between the usage by someone from either of those countries, or other countries that use it, and how it is used here in the U.S. (almost exclusively used to denigrate women). I've even taken to using it for a few select men, e.g. that orange-haired monstrosity.

 

[Free]

[...]

I thought your SLU sign-up was a few years before me? Well how about that.

/me gets out the initiation spanker...

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

Australian here, not comfortable with using "cunt" as a swear. But it was good enough for Bob Hawke so OK.

 

[Free]

This looks important.

Doctor who refused to wear mask has medical license suspended

The Oregon Medical Board suspended the license of an Oregon doctor who said he refuses to wear a mask in his clinic while also encouraging others to not wear masks.

Dr. Steven LaTulippe told a pro-Trump rally in November that neither he nor his staff wears a mask while working in their Dallas, Ore. clinic. That violates a state order requiring health care workers to wear a face-covering in health care settings.

Members of the medical board voted Thursday evening to suspend LaTulippe’s license immediately. According to a statement on the Oregon Medical Board website, the suspension was issued “due to the board’s concern for the safety and welfare of licensee’s current and future patients.”

 

[Innula Zenovka]

 

[danielravennest]

Some parts of the US have had so many people infected that, along with whatever safety measures people are taking, have reduced the reproduction number (R0) below 1, and it is starting to die off in that state. For example, in North Dakota, reported cases are 10.8% of the population. Surveys in other areas show 4-5 times as many people with antibodies as reported cases (i.e. already had an infection). So that means 40-50% of the state has been infected. Even with low levels of safety measures (distancing, masks, work from home, etc.), the number of new cases is dropping off.

This is unfortunately the hard way to beat the disease, with lots of people getting sick and dying. The only positive is that it will take fewer vaccinations to reach herd immunity. I haven't seen anything about what happens to a person who already has antibodies if they then get vaccinated. If the supply of vaccines is limited, it might make sense to test people for antibodies so they can go last, along with people who already tested positive/were sick. They can get it later if a booster turns out to be helpful.

 

[Aribeth Zelin]

Yep, that one set me off as well. I don't think it was Siggy, but someone from either the UK or Australia. Now, I call it a learning experience, as well; learning about how other countries view and use the word.

There is a HUGE difference between the usage by someone from either of those countries, or other countries that use it, and how it is used here in the U.S. (almost exclusively used to denigrate women). I've even taken to using it for a few select men, e.g. that orange-haired monstrosity.

But he lacks the depth and warmth..... /runs

 

[Roxanne Blue]

There's always a potential conflict when new members are integrating into a long-standing, close-knit community like SLU/VVO. I remember back many years ago when Siggy showed up on SLU and used the word "cunt." Many people knew him well, but I did not, and my feathers got all manner of ruffled by that word usage. I said something stuffy and pompous and he handed me my head on a platter, so I put him on my asshole list right then and there. It was a long time before I finally developed a deeper understanding of him, not to mention an appreciation for the word "cunt" as used by Australians. It was a learning experience for me, but a bit of a bumpy one I must confess.

I was fortunate to have a local Aussie friend we met a couple of decades back, and SHE used what we then referred to as the "c-word" pretty much interchangeably (she'd been in the states decades by then) with "bitch". After the shock value ebbed away, we just would say, "Jill, don't be such a cunt and say 'bitch", please. Then, we'd all laugh as though it was the height of humor."

That well prepared me for Siggy (who I met too late to know well, but loved all the same), and to learn that this forum will broaden and enrich your cultural fluency and sensitivity as few other forums ever have for me.

The locals in Key West, who call themselves Conchs, are a very special group of southerners. Occupied all through the Civil War by the US Navy and used as the primary base to prevent gun-running into the Gulf of Mexico, it has an utterly unique history and role in that conflict. You also need to recall that until the 1930s when FDR's WPA program built the original Overseas Highway atop the old roadway and bridges of Henry Flagler's 1912 Overseas Railroad, the only way to get here was by boat. It's only a few generations since they were islanders. Marrying cousins is less rare among islanders.

 

[Aribeth Zelin]

The locals in Key West, who call themselves Conchs, are a very special group of southerners. Occupied all through the Civil War by the US Navy and used as the primary base to prevent gun-running into the Gulf of Mexico, it has an utterly unique history and role in that conflict. You also need to recall that until the 1930s when FDR's WPA program built the original Overseas Highway atop the old roadway and bridges of Henry Flagler's 1912 Overseas Railroad, the only way to get here was by boat. It's only a few generations since they were islanders. Marrying cousins is less rare among islanders.

Pensacola is in a similar spot. Fort Pickens was in a very good spot to block off the portside of the town and so the Union seized the city back early in the civil war. The one civil war monument put in the town was donw after the war on order of the Governor, against the wishes of the locals [according to my local spouse, anyway]

 

[Free]

Hawaii couple arrested after boarded flight knowing they had COVID-19: Health officials

A Hawaii couple has been arrested after they allegedly boarded a flight home while knowing they had tested positive for COVID-19.

abcnews.go.com

A Hawaii couple has been arrested after they boarded a flight home while allegedly knowing they had COVID-19.

Wesley Moribe and Courtney Peterson were flying home to Lihue Airport in Kauai from San Francisco when it was discovered they receive a positive result in a pre-travel test for the virus, according to a statement from the Kauai Department of Health. They have been arrested and charged with second-degree reckless endangerment.

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

That's gonna be an eye opener for dumbass snowbirds who think they're just going to take some Tylenol to bring the fever down and fly home.

 

[Sovereignty]

Is it worth responding? Probably not, but it might go like this.

People from Indiana hate bigotry of all kinds. Unless it deals with Ohio.

I have a very intolerant view of people who view me as a perversion or "against God." As an atheist, I have a certain intolerance for the religious.

"Simple bigotry" is something I don't tend to have problems with. Especially if it's funny.

The joke didn't seem funny. Yes, I have heard jokes that are silly, funny and bigoted. This one was pretty lame.

I hope you know the difference between mocking people in power and mocking the oppressed.

Oh I do. It's just that, for example, the youtube progressives were mocking the language first and the particular people second. That in effect shames an awful lot of people who share the language.

...

The main problem for me was I did not see how the joke was really that funny. That made the hoorah around it quite obscure. Your condescending remarks have not helped either.

I do have a flat affect. In contrast to your appraisal, I'd suggest it means: though I generally understand your nuances perfectly well, my responses may not show it in ways you understand.