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Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 (nCoV-2019)

Irishmonk said:
^Backyard vegetable gardens are going to be all the rage this spring/summer. Probably a good idea to order seeds now.
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"Garden centres and nurseries" are essential service providers.

From link.

Food and agriculture service providers​
​
  • food cultivation, including farming, livestock, aquaculture and fishing, and businesses that support the food supply chain, as well as community gardens and subsistence agriculture;
  • food processing, manufacturing, storage and distribution of foods, feed products and beverages;
  • workers essential to maintaining or repairing equipment in food processing and distribution centres;
  • workers, including temporary foreign workers, to support agricultural operations to enhance food security;
  • retail: grocery stores, convenience stores, farmers markets and other establishments engaged in the retail sale or provision of food, pet or livestock supply, liquor, cannabis (including producers), and any other household consumer products, such as cleaning and personal care products. (Includes stores that sell groceries and also sell other non-grocery products, and products necessary to maintaining the safety, sanitation and essential daily operation of residences. such as home supply, hardware, building material stores, pawn brokers, and garden centres and nurseries.)
  • farming supply, including seed, fertilizer, pesticides, farm-machinery sales and maintenance;
  • inspection services and associated regulatory and government workforce and supporting businesses required for slaughter of animals, dairy production and food safety; and
  • businesses that provide for the health and welfare of animals, including veterinarians, farms, boarding kennels, stables, animal shelters, zoos, aquariums, research facilities and other service providers.
Why are the community gardens being closed by the city?

From link.

...the city’s public health guardian, the order will see locked gates, tape and signs warning Torontonians they face prosecution and fines for using playgrounds, basketball and tennis courts, dog parks, outdoor gardens and more.
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Guess we can't grow or make our own food. We'll have to...
lethemeatcake.png

From link.
 
Rate of coronavirus hospitalizations in New York is slowing, governor says

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the rate of hospitalizations for coronavirus cases in the state has slowed, citing the rate of "doubling" of people admitted to the hospital for Covid-19.

Cuomo said the rate of new hospitalizations is now doubling every six days, as compared to every two and three days like last week.

"So, while the overall number is going up, the rate of doubling is actually down," Cuomo said.

www.cnn.com

Rate of coronavirus hospitalizations in New York is slowing, governor says

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the rate of hospitalizations for coronavirus cases in the state has slowed, citing the rate of "doubling" of people admitted to the hospital for Covid-19.
www.cnn.com www.cnn.com
 
What's An Essential Service? Depends On Which Country You're In
In France, it's pastry and wine. In the U.S., golf and guns.

From link.

5e81f4a9220000e211b3af48.jpeg

People wait in a line to enter a gun store in Culver City, Calif., Sun. March 15, 2020. Some U.S. states have declared gun stores an essential service.

The coronavirus pandemic is defining for the globe what’s “essential″ and what things we really can’t do without, even though we might not need them for survival.

Attempting to slow the spread of the virus, authorities in many places are determining what shops and services can remain open. They’re also restricting citizens from leaving their homes. Stay-at-home orders or guidance are affecting more than one-fifth of the world’s population.

This has left many contemplating an existential question: What, really, is essential?

Whether it is in Asia, Europe, Africa or the United States, there’s general agreement: Health care workers, law enforcement, utility workers, food production and communications are generally exempt from lockdowns.

But some lists of exempted activities reflect a national identity, or the efforts of lobbyists.
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In some U.S. states, golf, guns and ganja have been ruled essential, raising eyebrows and ― in the case of guns ― a good deal of ire.

In many places, booze is also on the list of essentials. Britain at first kept liquor stores off its list of businesses allowed to remain open, but after reports of supermarkets running out of beer, wine and spirits, the government quickly added them.

“Recent events clearly demonstrate that the process of designating ‘essential services’ is as much about culture as any legal-political reality about what is necessary to keep society functioning,” said Christopher McKnight Nichols, associate professor of history at Oregon State University.

Countries including India and U.S. states are listing the information technology sector as essential. The world’s dependency on the internet has become even more apparent as countless people confined to their homes communicate, stream movies and play games online to stave off cabin fever.
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Several states where marijuana is legal, such as California and Washington, deemed pot shops and workers in the market’s supply chain essential. For some, the emphasis is on medicinal uses, not enabling cooped-up people to get stoned.

“Cannabis is a safe and effective treatment that millions of Americans rely on to maintain productive daily lives while suffering from diseases and ailments,” Erik Altieri, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said in an email. “It is the very definition of essential that these individuals can still access their medicine at this time.”
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Debate over guns

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont added gun shops to his list of essential businesses, generating shock and dismay among families of gun violence victims. His spokesman Max Reiss said Lamont is trying not to overly disrupt commerce or interfere with legal rights.

Newtown Action Alliance, a group formed after a gunman killed 26 people in 2012 at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, urged Lamont to reconsider, noting a recent surge in gun and ammunition purchases. The group predicted an “increased number of deaths due to unintentional shootings, homicides and suicides.”

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a legal opinion Friday saying emergency orders in his state can’t restrict gun sales.

“If you have a break down in society, well then our first line to defend ourselves is ourselves, so I think having a weapon ... is very important for your personal safety,” Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told a radio interviewer.
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Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf on Tuesday quietly allowed gun shops to reopen, but only by appointment during limited hours if customers and employees comply with social distancing and other protective measures.

There is a lot of variation across the United States because a national stay-at-home order has not been issued, said Benjamin Clark, associate professor of planning, public policy and management at the University of Oregon.

“We end up with places making up the rules that are culturally or geographically specific,” Clark said. “This is why we see so much variation, and potential risk.”

Europe’s rules differ by country

In Europe, the current epicenter of the pandemic, Italy has the most stringent rules, with only essential businesses such as food shops and pharmacies remaining open. The manufacturing sector was ordered shut down on Thursday, though factories that make needed products like medical supplies will continue to operate after making conditions safer for employees.

Britain, which was initially reluctant to shut down business, has issued orders to close nonessential operations. Restaurants and eateries must be shut, but Britons can still get fish and chips and other meals, as long as they’re carry-out.

In France, shops specializing in pastry, wine and cheese have been declared essential businesses.

In a nod to Israel’s vibrant religious life, people can gather for outdoor prayers ― with a maximum of 10 worshipers standing 2 metres (2 yards) apart. Demonstrations ― also allowed ― have occurred outside parliament and the Supreme Court, with participants maintaining social distance.

“In times of uncertainty, institutions and practices that are central to the cultural identities can become really important touchstones ― material markers of certainty, comfort, and mechanisms to persist,” said Aimee Huff, marketing professor at Oregon State University, specializing in consumer culture.

In China, authorities closed most businesses and public facilities beginning in late January but kept open hospitals, supermarkets and pharmacies. Truck drivers delivering food, disinfectant and medical supplies to locked-down cities were hailed as heroes. Now, the ruling Communist Party is relaxing restrictions to revive the economy after declaring victory over the outbreak.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing conditions, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

In the United States, lobbyists have been trying to influence what gets on lists of essential services, so their clients’ businesses can remain open.

“They were absolutely earning their pay″ in Connecticut, said Reiss, the governor’s spokesman. He noted lobbyists for manufacturers and the golf course industry were particularly active.

Despite their efforts, golf wasn’t deemed essential in Connecticut. But Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey included golf courses on his list. Officials in Phoenix encouraged the city’s 1.7 million residents to “get outside, get exercise and practice responsible social distancing” in golf courses, parks and trails.

Mayors of five other Arizona cities pushed back, telling Ducey that including golf courses and payday lenders was taking the definition of essential too far.

Construction essential in California

In California, construction executives and others lobbied state officials to get construction exempted from the stay-at-home mandate, the Sacramento Bee reported. State health officials responded by including all construction as essential.

If construction in America’s most populous state stalls ― as it it did during the Great Recession ― it would be difficult to restart, said Erika Bjork of the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, which advocated for the industry.

“We need to keep this engine humming, so when we come out of this we have housing,” Bjork said.

Like Britain, some U.S. states allowed liquor stores to remain open, including New Mexico, which routinely ranks first in alcohol-related deaths per capita.

State health officials were concerned that shutting them down would result in people with alcoholism seeking emergency medical attention, taking resources away from the coronavirus, said Tripp Stelnicki, a spokesman for New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

In New Hampshire, Gov. Chris Sununu said flower shops are among the essentials.

Asked why, spokesman Ben Vihstadt said they provide essential services for funeral homes.
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MetroMan said:
I think Toronto and Canada in general will be alright but in many US cities where serious measures aren't being taken, when infection rates hit the millions and thousands of people start dying every day, there'll be a societal collapse and looting is inevitable. In Canada, we have to worry about the US being our primary source of food imports. I hope that the government is looking into alternative sources when things break down south of the border.
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You really think the infection rate will hit the millions??
 
Towered said:
You really think the infection rate will hit the millions??
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Without a doubt. There are over 330 Million people in the US. The federal government isn’t taking this seriously. It’s being estimated that 30% of the population will be infected. That’s 99 million people. If the death rate of 3.4% holds, that’s over 2 million deaths.

Nobody wants to believe this number because it’s just unfathomable... until it happens.

But the 3.4% is the worldwide average. Italy hit a 10% death rate. Now look at the US population of which 40% are overweight and 44% suffer from cardiovascular disease. Now add the factor that this is happening in a country with no public healthcare, with a high rate of uninsured who will rather try to get better at home than go broke paying hospital bills.

I’ve been saying for months (since Wuhan) that this is going to be a calamity of biblical proportions if it hits the United States. It’s there now. Hunker down and be glad we’re on this side of the border.
 
MetroMan said:
Without a doubt. There are over 330 Million people in the US. The federal government isn’t taking this seriously. It’s being estimated that 30% of the population will be infected. That’s 99 million people. If the death rate of 3.4% holds, that’s over 2 million deaths.
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Will Americans hold Trump responsible for this in November? I'm not sure.
 
salsa said:
View attachment 238946
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I find it amusing. America has been seen internationally as a loose cannon ever since 9/11. If this was Bill Clinton or Al Gore things would be alot more civilized but unfortunately for the rest of the world it is not.

I would love to see deaths and overflowing hospitals as it will be an indictment of the US healthcare system and how the GOP thinks universal healthcare is bad.

I would love to see tanks on the street and force being used against US citizens because it will show just how far gone the US actually is.

I am glad that this is an election year because the GOP really bungled this one.
 
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PinkLucy said:
Really? You would LOVE to see millions of deaths? Give your head a shake.
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Perhaps I was being too extreme, the point I was trying to make is that if this goes really badly it will only show the shortfalls in the US healthcare system resulting from years of inaction by the GOP.
 
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