How COVID-19 is affecting society

[Spirits Rising]

Trump can't risk a fair election. If he loses, he's immediately subject to law enforcement action and an avalanche of lawsuits. I was previously of the opinion he'd just let it happen and then call it rigged and refuse to leave after - but now I think he will attempt to cancel it and senatorial elections indefinitely.

At which point he can be removed by force and suffer far worse consequences. Yes, he can try to suspend them but short of taking over the military to enforce such an action, he has no say/power in that regard. At all.

That is on top of that self-same military likely being used against him.

So sure - if he wants to risk being a splatter on the wall, he can make the attempt.

 

[Dakota Tebaldi]

 

[Aribeth Zelin]

It is my fervent hope that this kills capitalism and we go forward to post scarcity. And this is from someone who will likely inherit some real money in another 10-20 years, but a post-scarcity economy means that people have plenty to get by on - and its not like, as this shows, it isn't -there-, if not for greed.

 

[Eunoli]

At which point he can be removed by force and suffer far worse consequences. Yes, he can try to suspend them but short of taking over the military to enforce such an action, he has no say/power in that regard. At all.

That is on top of that self-same military likely being used against him.

So sure - if he wants to risk being a splatter on the wall, he can make the attempt.

I think this is not as simple a statement as you would think. He's been replacing key people for a long time and ruining the lives and careers of others who have stood up to him. You have to find actual brave and patriotic people in the military to stop it - and there's a good chance that Mitch McConnell will be right there supporting him.

 

[Pamela]

I think this is not as simple a statement as you would think. He's been replacing key people for a long time and ruining the lives and careers of others who have stood up to him. You have to find actual brave and patriotic people in the military to stop it - and there's a good chance that Mitch McConnell will be right there supporting him.

If despite his efforts to suppress votes he manages to lose, the military May have to hlp remove him. And although the majority of the military have supported him, his firing of respected leaders may have shaken their faith enough they would not follow illegal orders from him.

 

[Free]

Here's a weird one.

Coronavirus May Have Caused the Earth to Stop Vibrating so Much

With a third of the population now under lockdown, the subsequent drop in industry and transport appears to have led to a drop in the planet's "seismic noise."

www.newsweek.com

Seismologists have said that since measures to curb the spread of the virus were put in place, there has been a noticeable drop in the planet's "seismic noise." This is the persistent vibration of the ground as a result of a multitude of factors, including human activity.

These vibrations are recorded by seismometers—instruments that measure ground motion that are normally used to monitor events like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The background seismic noise has to be taken into account when scientists are studying geological events.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Some conspiracy theorists in the UK have been linking 5G sending towers with the spread of the coronavirus. So some towers have been burned by idiots believing those theories.

British 5G towers are being set on fire because of coronavirus conspiracy theories

A growing disinformation campaign is targeting 5G in the UK

www.theverge.com

 

[bubblesort]

It looks like Zoom is winning the new streaming / video conference platform war right now, but they are having some growing pains.

The local city council zoom meeting was invaded by greifers posting pornography and hate speech. There has to be a video of this out there somewhere, LOL

Also, yesterday, Cryptome linked to this mailing list conversation, where crypto experts seem to agree that Zoom's end to end encryption claims are bullshit.

Schneier warned us a year ago that Zoom can be used for hijacking your web cam. Yesterday, he doubled down on his analysis, saying that Zoom does not take security seriously, and added that Zoom does not take your privacy seriously.

 

[Fionalein]

I've read vac bags contain fiberglass, which plays merry hell on the lungs. So skip those, please. Also, it's not the virus which needs ro be blocked, it's the water droplets containing them - a much bigger target. The link bubblesort states that, and the use of polyproylene to repel water which is readily and cheaply available.

Water repellant masks? Sounds like a good idea, water droplests will just not adhere to them and just slip through,... did they think through this at all?

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Some conspiracy theorists in the UK have been linking 5G sending towers with the spread of the coronavirus. So some towers have been burned by idiots believing those theories.

British 5G towers are being set on fire because of coronavirus conspiracy theories

A growing disinformation campaign is targeting 5G in the UK

www.theverge.com

 

[Fionalein]

If despite his efforts to suppress votes he manages to lose, the military May have to hlp remove him. And although the majority of the military have supported him, his firing of respected leaders may have shaken their faith enough they would not follow illegal orders from him.

I admire but do not share your high hopes for integrity in a military force - these days military live is all about "no tough decisions" and "just following orders". Even if the usually more independent officers class agrees on removing an unlawful president they would still have to win over the ordinary service personal wich will have conflicting loyalities.

 

[bubblesort]

Water repellant masks? Sounds like a good idea, water droplests will just not adhere to them and just slip through,... did they think through this at all?

It works because the material is negatively charged, which captures the water molecules. That's why N95 masks are made of polypropylene. The pores in polypropylene are something like 0.4 microns large (much larger than coronavirus particles, which are 0.14 microns). This allows you to breathe through it while trapping the water particles with the negative charge.

This negative charge breaks down with time and heat, though, which is why you should never iron it or launder it (use alcohol instead). It's also why medical N95 masks have expiration dates on them.

Here is a video demonstrating these properties of polypropylene.

Even cotton, silk, and linen are effective at stopping 70-350 micron sized water droplets, and reducing viral load. You don't need polypropelyne to make a good mask. It's just the material of choice, if you can get it.

Why you should wear a mask, how to make masks, and the effectiveness of various mask materials

How to make an effective mask for going out in public during the COVID19 pandemic.

timeslipped.wordpress.com

 

[Isabeau]

Grocery stores are now closed on Sundays starting today here, to give a rest to employees, etc. There was some grumbling from a minority

At this point, I would think most have had ample time to stock up.

Is it the same elsewhere?

 

[Fionalein]

Grocery stores are now closed on Sundays starting today here, to give a rest to employees, etc. There was some grumbling from a minority

At this point, I would think most have had ample time to stock up.

Is it the same elsewhere?

Yes, why did you allow them to open sundays anyways?

 

[Sid]

Grocery stores are now closed on Sundays starting today here, to give a rest to employees, etc. There was some grumbling from a minority

At this point, I would think most have had ample time to stock up.

Is it the same elsewhere?

Not over here. Business as usual.
Supply trucks are allowed to start delivery earlier in the morning than usual. (I'm not happy: First supply trucks arrive at 5 in the morning under my window now)
Some supermarkets are even open longer than usual, because they created a shopping hour for 70+ customers only.

 

[Sid]

Yes, why did you allow them to open sundays anyways?

It is convenient.
It is best to be open when most customers are not at work.
Makes sense somehow.

 

[Kara Spengler]

I had to email my doctor about something fairly routine. At the end I thanked her entire hospital system for what they were doing.

 

[Sredni Eel]

Some conspiracy theorists in the UK have been linking 5G sending towers with the spread of the coronavirus. So some towers have been burned by idiots believing those theories.

British 5G towers are being set on fire because of coronavirus conspiracy theories

A growing disinformation campaign is targeting 5G in the UK

www.theverge.com

They clearly don't know how viruses work.

But I have heard it's super easy to confuse a computer virus with a biological virus.

 

[Casey Pelous]

Some conspiracy theorists in the UK have been linking 5G sending towers with the spread of the coronavirus. So some towers have been burned by idiots believing those theories.

British 5G towers are being set on fire because of coronavirus conspiracy theories

A growing disinformation campaign is targeting 5G in the UK

www.theverge.com

This little ditty by Donald Fagen drifted through my Spotify .... an all-night DJ ("WJAZ, with Jazz and Conversation from the Foot of Mount Belzoni") is taking phone calls:

"So you say there's a race
Of men in the trees.
You're for tough legislation.
Thanks for calling.
I wait all night for calls like these."

 

[Sredni Eel]

You know what about be nifty?
A Covid19 test similar to the test for Heartworm in dogs.
It's a device about the size of a pill cutter that has a receptacle for blood, and then you snap the device down into itself. After a ten minute wait, you get results.

You could make one to test for immunity, and other test to see if you have it. If doctors had a shitload of these, they could get instant results, and tons of tests could be done simultaneously.

Those with immunity would know quickly, and they could go out with the knowledge they can't get it or spread the virus.