Strangest COVID-19 stuff you have witnessed

[quixoft]

3 hours ago, AustinBike said:

The world is pretty simply falling into two buckets:

The "we bucket" that believes we have a huge global pandemic and it is not getting better. We are all in this together and when you piss in the pool I swim in your piss.

The "me bucket" that believes this is somehow overblown or not happening. I can decide where I want to piss and you can't say anything about it.

Neither side is going to change, don't waste your time trying to convince anyone to change their position. Just keep yourself as safe as possible and vote in November.

It's not that black and white. I'm currently in the "we" bucket but there is a point where I will switch to the "me" bucket. I'm not quite there yet but I can see it on the horizon if more lockdowns come around with more job and economic loss. It's a sliding scale, not a boolean.

As an extreme example, if one of my kids had the antibodies to completely defeat the virus and save the world but had to die for it or live life in a lab getting their body used(I've been watching "The 100" lately, good show), I would tell the world to fuck off and die as my kids are more important to me than all of you. I understand that is 100% selfish of me but I don't care at that extreme. I fully expect any parent to make the same decision.  If it were me that had to live in a lab and donate blood for life, I may or may not do it. I don't know. I would donate some for sure, but at the expense of my life? I don't know.

I like ridiculous hypothetical thought experiments.

Also, the majority of people that say they've never pissed in a pool in their life are liars! 🙂

Edited July 7, 2020 by quixoft

[Tree Magnet]

1 hour ago, quixoft said:

It's not that black and white. I'm currently in the "we" bucket but there is a point where I will switch to the "me" bucket. I'm not quite there yet but I can see it on the horizon if more lockdowns come around with more job and economic loss. It's a sliding scale, not a boolean.

As an extreme example, if one of my kids had the antibodies to completely defeat the virus and save the world but had to die for it or live life in a lab getting their body used(I've been watching "The 100" lately, good show), I would tell the world to fuck off and die as my kids are more important to me than all of you. I understand that is 100% selfish of me but I don't care at that extreme. I fully expect any parent to make the same decision.  If it were me that had to live in a lab and donate blood for life, I may or may not do it. I don't know. I would donate some for sure, but at the expense of my life? I don't know.

I like ridiculous hypothetical thought experiments.

Also, the majority of people that say they've never pissed in a pool in their life are liars! 🙂

This is definitely an extreme example but let's run with it.  I think that most humans would tell the world to fuck off if they had to die or live life in a lab to save the rest of humanity.  However, back off the extreme case and see what happens.  If I had to give blood once a month and it would save 1M people each time, I'd do it.  If I had to wear a mask when I go outside and it could save 1 person, I'd do it.  If I had to walk everywhere instead of drive and it would make the air cleaner so asthmatics could play disc golf, I probably would still end up driving most of the time.  Dick move?  If you're an asthmatic disc golf player or you know one, yes.  There is definitely a sliding scale as you've mentioned before but the math is different for everyone. 

There is an argument to be made that giving blood right now saves lives but not all of us give blood on a regular basis (me included).  I'd like to be a better human and make that small sacrifice on a regular basis but I don't because of all the things that go with giving blood (needles, nurses, no exercise after, etc.)  I should totally redo the math on that equation and I know that I'd be giving blood more often.

[RidingAgain]

On 7/4/2020 at 2:40 PM, ATXZJ said:

Like it or not, masks are now mandatory. Figured if I'm gonna have to wear one, at least it should offer me some protection as well as others. Have a handful of these N95s that I've been using. After a while, it gets a little funky and then there's also the issue of contamination. Found some hacks online and we shall see. So far the mask does smell better, and that's already a win as far as im concerned🤣

https://www.fastcompany.com/90521484/how-to-decontaminate-an-n95-mask-in-just-3-minutes

 

 

 

Hey... Just saw these guys and wondered, since you have some experience with different types of masks, what you think of them...

https://publicusehealth.com

Edited July 7, 2020 by RidingAgain

[ATXZJ]

that mask is probably the worst thing you could choose. The spandex offers no protection for the wearer, or the people around them due to the diaphragm exhaust valves.

[quixoft]

21 minutes ago, Tree Magnet said:

This is definitely an extreme example but let's run with it.  I think that most humans would tell the world to fuck off if they had to die or live life in a lab to save the rest of humanity.  However, back off the extreme case and see what happens.  If I had to give blood once a month and it would save 1M people each time, I'd do it.  If I had to wear a mask when I go outside and it could save 1 person, I'd do it.  If I had to walk everywhere instead of drive and it would make the air cleaner so asthmatics could play disc golf, I probably would still end up driving most of the time.  Dick move?  If you're an asthmatic disc golf player or you know one, yes.  There is definitely a sliding scale as you've mentioned before but the math is different for everyone. 

There is an argument to be made that giving blood right now saves lives but not all of us give blood on a regular basis (me included).  I'd like to be a better human and make that small sacrifice on a regular basis but I don't because of all the things that go with giving blood (needles, nurses, no exercise after, etc.)  I should totally redo the math on that equation and I know that I'd be giving blood more often.

I've given blood a few times in my life but it's been probably 20 years. Mainly because I'm highly active and the oxygen generating cells don't fully replace the donated 10% for 4-6 weeks. Ever tried exercising a week after donating whole blood? It's definitely noticeable. I'm also AB+ which means 97% of the population can't use it so I don't feel too bad for not donating in recent years. It's the O- folks that are generally wanted to donate more since everyone can use their blood.

Edited July 7, 2020 by quixoft

[The Tip]

1 hour ago, quixoft said:

As an extreme example, if one of my kids had the antibodies to completely defeat the virus and save the world but had to die for it or live life in a lab getting their body used(I've been watching "The 100" lately, good show), I would tell the world to fuck off and die as my kids are more important to me than all of you.

I'll discuss this too. My knee jerk reaction is to agree with you. But millions of parents HAVE sacrificed their kids for the greater good by sending them off to die in all the wars throughout history. And usually, at least they say, proud to do it.

[quixoft]

5 minutes ago, The Tip said:

I'll discuss this too. My knee jerk reaction is to agree with you. But millions of parents HAVE sacrificed their kids for the greater good by sending them off to die in all the wars throughout history. And usually, at least they say, proud to do it.

Those kids choose that path because they were adults. If my 19 year old chose to sacrifice himself for the greater good, that would be his choice and I would be very proud of him. If people tried to force us to sacrifice our 4 year old grandson, there would be a whole lot of blood and death before they took him.

I should have been more specific with age.

Edited July 7, 2020 by quixoft

[mack_turtle]

On that note, I finally gave blood for the first time a few weeks ago. it was quick and the worst part was getting my finger pricked at the beginning for the (hemoglobin ?) test. my wife didn't have enough iron in her blood to donate, so she took a lot of iron supplements and went back a week later. I gave a pint of whole blood. went on a hard bike ride 36 hours later and felt no affects. I didn't understand the big deal. We Are Blood even gave me a free Whataburger coupon that I promptly gave to a panhandler. I'll try to make that a regular thing.

 

edit—also learned my blood type: O+

Edited July 7, 2020 by mack_turtle

[quixoft]

11 minutes ago, mack_turtle said:

On that note, I finally gave blood for the first time a few weeks ago. it was quick and the worst part was getting my finger pricked at the beginning for the (hemoglobin ?) test. my wife didn't have enough iron in her blood to donate, so she took a lot of iron supplements and went back a week later. I gave a pint of whole blood. went on a hard bike ride 36 hours later and felt no affects. I didn't understand the big deal. We Are Blood even gave me a free Whataburger coupon that I promptly gave to a panhandler. I'll try to make that a regular thing.

Maybe I'll try again. When I was swimming competitively in college it was very noticeable to me for about 2 weeks after giving blood. We tracked our VO2 max and it would be about 5-15% lower for a couple weeks after giving blood. I probably wouldn't feel it now though as even my hardest rides are cake and nothing compared to swim practice and water polo workouts.

But that's probably because I'm old and don't really work as hard as I think I am now.

Edited July 7, 2020 by quixoft

[ATXZJ]

Thanks to all of you that give blood. I usually don't share but this subject is pretty personal.

My youngest went through 17 units of blood during a surgery gone wrong, and wouldn't have survived without it. After that, and all the recovery it took to get us back to square one, we don't take any chances with her when it comes to being infected with COVID. 

[AustinBike]

Maybe it is the red wine talking (hell, it's after 3 and Premier League is on...)

If you think you are in the "we" category you probably aren't.

You can't be a "we" if you:

• Don't want to wear a mask or complain about a mask
• Believe someone on YouTube over medical experts
• Aren't willing to stop doing things for the greater good
• Believe that you can stop doing things when 'it gets worse'
• Somehow believe that this whole thing is overblown
• Believe the numbers aren't really that high
• Call it the Chinese flu or something like that

Let's face it, there aren't that that many people in the "we" bucket, most of them are immunocompromised or have underlying issues that prevent them from participating in "regular" life. If you went inside a grocery store (even with a mask) when curbside pickup was available, then you are a "me." Sorry, that's just the way I see it. 

The CDC and the other experts are scrambling at this point. Shit is getting figured out real time. Sometimes they are wrong. Sometimes they are right. But you listen to them and follow their guidance, even if it changes. I've never been a soldier and never been in battle; I assume this is what it is like. Not a lot of information, things change, you don't always have 100% of the story, but you do what you can.

Previous generations had to sacrifice, had to suffer. Today we're bitching about the fact that we have to social distance on a beach or can't go to Schlitterbahn.

I am no way near being perfect, but I am pretty close to being a "we" ONLY because I had a surgery and my wife is staring down an infinitely more serious one and we just can't take the risk. If we were both in perfect health I'd probably be a "me" because at heart I am selfish and would figure that I could get away with. Yeah, and I once rode a wet greenbelt, going around a closed gate. I'm not perfect, but I am willing to call out the truth. 

There are far fewer we's than we think. 

[mack_turtle]

previous generations threw down their own actual lives and lost sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and friends to fight Nazis. the current snowflake generation can't be bothered to wear a damn mask. what a bunch of entitled crybabies. your forebears would be ashamed of you and embarrassed that they didn't pass along that sense of community mindedness.

[JMR]

So, should I assume that “we” didn’t hear that hydroxychloroquine actually does work? This is not about wearing masks. But there’s quite a few questions that may accompany this.....

[JMR]

5 hours ago, mack_turtle said:

previous generations threw down their own actual lives and lost sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and friends to fight Nazis. the current snowflake generation can't be bothered to wear a damn mask. what a bunch of entitled crybabies. your forebears would be ashamed of you and embarrassed that they didn't pass along that sense of community mindedness.

Snowflakes wear the mask. And they shame whoever doesn’t. Please don’t imply that men who ran to their deaths on D-day would wear a mask. They faced a very real threat. Today’s snowflakes face social media scare tactics! Keyboard warriors. The truth is coming out. 

[ATXZJ]

Wife's 98 y/o grandmother was nurse in WW2 and wears a mask.

She has outlived two husbands and three children.

[JMR]

11 minutes ago, ATXZJ said:

Wife's 98 y/o grandmother was nurse in WW2 and wears a mask.

She has outlived two husbands and three children.

Dude, you’re not helping....

[mack_turtle]

13 hours ago, JMR said:

Snowflakes wear the mask. And they shame whoever doesn’t. Please don’t imply that men who ran to their deaths on D-day would wear a mask. They faced a very real threat. Today’s snowflakes face social media scare tactics! Keyboard warriors. The truth is coming out. 

soldiers dying on the beach contributed to victory. people on the homefront willing to forgo coffee, nylon stockings, new tires, less meat, etc. made sacrifices of ordinary conveniences so that the resources could be diverted to the war effort. those simple sacrifices made a difference.

people spreading the virus are contributing to defeat. it's a virus, not an army. it can't be bombed, reasoned with, or tired out. the more we throw human lives at it, it gets stronger and we get weaker.

the metaphor ends at this: people in the past were willing to make significant sacrifices that made a difference. today, we're being asked to stay home and wear a mask when we go out. the ease and simplicity of these basic sacrifices is so incredibly easy that I have nothing positive to say about the big babies who refuse to make them. these are minor requests that make a difference, but overgrown infants who swear they would "die for their country" would literally rather die than wear a cloth over their face. that's a "snowflake". "oh no, not poor little me! my delicate skin can't handle it. my glasses might fog up. people might look at me and think my penis is not huge if I have a mask on. I need to show everyone that I'm a big tough guy with a huge dick, so I don't need no mask!" the hypocrisy, asshatery, and ignorance of it all is staggering.

Edited July 8, 2020 by mack_turtle

[notyal]

On 6/16/2020 at 11:13 AM, AntonioGG said:

When is the next episode?  This is like Archer!

Evil Leader: "Mwwuahahaha! Operation Pandemic Freedom Removal is going exactly to plan. Now that all the "sheeple" are wearing a mask, it's time to move into Phase 2: stripping Americans of their freedoms."

Mad Scientist: "Ahh, about that, Sir, we don't actually have a way to rob people of their freedoms or control them in any way just because they are wearing masks."

Evil Leader: "What?!?! I thought we were having positive results on our test subjects."

Mad Scientist: "We were, Sir. However, it seem the sheep we tested the masks on were easily controlled because of hunger. The actual people appear to be removing their masks to eat."

Evil Leader: "Hmm. I see. Yeah, I didn't see that one coming either. What about the other initiative? You know, the mind control masks?"

Mad Scientist: "The mind control masks do work flawlessly. However, they don't seem to be selling on Amazon at the rate we had hoped. Market analysis might suggest that selling a $6,000 mask may have been a bit excessive."

Evil Leader: "Well, shit. Those things are expensive to produce! We can't just give them away now can we? How many have we sold?

Mad Scientist: "Two, and both to fake YouTube doctors who thought it would be funny to buy the most expensive mask to prove some kind of point. Good news is that they are now completely under our control. Bad news is that they were actually doing a better job of spreading disinformation before coming under our control."

Evil Leader: "Ok, I've heard enough. Let's put a pin in Operation Pandemic Freedom Removal and divert all resources to Operation Race War."

 

[JMR]

15 minutes ago, notyal said:

Evil Leader: "Mwwuahahaha! Operation Pandemic Freedom Removal is going exactly to plan. Now that all the "sheeple" are wearing a mask, it's time to move into Phase 2: stripping Americans of their freedoms."

Mad Scientist: "Ahh, about that, Sir, we don't actually have a way to rob people of their freedoms or control them in any way just because they are wearing masks."

Evil Leader: "What?!?! I thought we were having positive results on our test subjects."

Mad Scientist: "We were, Sir. However, it seem the sheep we tested the masks on were easily controlled because of hunger. The actual people appear to be removing their masks to eat."

Evil Leader: "Hmm. I see. Yeah, I didn't see that one coming either. What about the other initiative? You know, the mind control masks?"

Mad Scientist: "The mind control masks do work flawlessly. However, they don't seem to be selling on Amazon at the rate we had hoped. Market analysis might suggest that selling a $6,000 mask may have been a bit excessive."

Evil Leader: "Well, shit. Those things are expensive to produce! We can't just give them away now can we? How many have we sold?

Mad Scientist: "Two, and both to fake YouTube doctors who thought it would be funny to buy the most expensive mask to prove some kind of point. Good news is that they are now completely under our control. Bad news is that they were actually doing a better job of spreading disinformation before coming under our control."

Evil Leader: "Ok, I've heard enough. Let's put a pin in Operation Pandemic Freedom Removal and divert all resources to Operation Race War."

 

I do truly enjoy reading your stories. However, I do have a couple issues:

1. You mis-spelled One World Order

2. It's not a $6000 mask, it's a $12,999.99 5-shelf dresser at Wayfair.com

Other than that, you're doing great!! Can't wait for episode 3! (Fingers crossed) Please be about a cashless society.......

[mack_turtle]

"The science should not stand in the way of this"

Double You Tee Eff? send kids to school in person so they can learn to respect the study of science after slapping science in the face with your profound ignorance. what kind of message does this send to kids?

[AustinBike]

I found it humorous that school districts are having Zoom conference calls because they say it is too dangerous to have on-site meetings - to discuss sending kids back to school.

[mack_turtle]

We have reached Critical Karen status: https://www.kxan.com/news/woman-who-refused-to-wear-mask-wants-half-of-100000-donated-to-starbucks-barista/

 

I'll bet Mark McCloskey will take her case.

Edited July 17, 2020 by mack_turtle

[throet]

47 minutes ago, mack_turtle said:

We have reached Critical Karen status: https://www.kxan.com/news/woman-who-refused-to-wear-mask-wants-half-of-100000-donated-to-starbucks-barista/

 

I'll bet Mark McCloskey will take her case.

She just needs a swift kick to the uterus to fix her medical condition. And did I get that right that her Chiro is treating her Gyno issues, which make mask wearing a threat to her health. Must be the latest healthcare trend, where now you just to go a Gyro to get a pap smear and your neck cracked at the same time.  

[ATXZJ]

4 minutes ago, throet said:

She just needs a swift kick to the uterus to fix her medical condition. And did I get that right that her Chiro is treating her Gyno issues, which make mask wearing a threat to her health. Must be the latest healthcare trend, where now you just to go a Gyro to get a pap smear and your neck cracked at the same time.  

She's been seeing that chiropractor for decades, and still hasn't found her g-spot.

[notyal]

48 minutes ago, throet said:

She just needs a swift kick to the uterus to fix her medical condition. And did I get that right that her Chiro is treating her Gyno issues, which make mask wearing a threat to her health. Must be the latest healthcare trend, where now you just to go a Gyro to get a pap smear and your neck cracked at the same time.  

"...and they don't work anyway."

She must have picked up this piece of infectious disease science from her accountant.