Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Starver]

Depending on how many nuclear reactors are damaged in Ukraine, we might still have a use for masks in the future...

(Yes, probaby less than useless for that, if you want to be picky. But not less than useless in general.)

[martinuzz]

So many nurses and doctors are calling in sick that our health authority has decided that healthcare staff that has tested positive for corona should still come to work, if they have no symptoms.

[JoshuaFH]

So many nurses and doctors are calling in sick that our health authority has decided that healthcare staff that has tested positive for corona should still come to work, if they have no symptoms.

That.. sounds like ordering people to become a lot of Typhoid Marys.

[martinuzz]

The alternative is letting patients die because there's not enough doctors.
Those who come to work with corona will get extra protective gear.

[Starver]

Spoiler: Extra protective gear (click to show/hide)

[hector13]

My place of employment also made masks optional, which most people took to get rid of them.

I’m still wearing mine currently as there are various at risk people on my immediate orbit, and I’m alright with an extra layer of safety for them, if you’ll excuse the pun.

[JoshuaFH]

Part of my job is protecting the at-risk person on my staff, by enforcing mask usage for every single person they come into contact with throughout the day. If they don't like wearing the mask, they can leave.

Most people are pretty cooperative, though I've had a few that absolutely refuse no matter what.

[Rolan7]

My job removed mask requirements for vaccinated employees today. I've also realized how ugly my coworkers' faces are. I'm still going to wear mine; even without the risk of infection, there's a lot of dust floating around my work area, and the mask really helps with that.

Honestly I just want it to stay normal to wear a mask because I want to.  Even if Covid was gone (which it extremely isn't, ugh) I feel a lot better in public this way.

[delphonso]

New sessions are starting in China and a lawmaker actually suggested opening things up again for tourism. This is making rounds in the foreigner community, because we haven't logistically been able to see our families since the start of it. Two weeks quarantine for any foreign visitor (unless you're rich/connected), on your own dime, plus you need a Chinese phone number to enter basically any large business/institution. If you go abroad, you have to do the same whenever you return.

If this goes through, and things start opening up again, that will be a huge release of stress for the foreigners here, as well as lighten a huge economic strain on the tourism industry (it is also hard for Chinese people to travel outside their province, unless they drive themselves)

[coalboat]

This 14-day-quarantine hinders traveling around greatly. New cases are coming up in SZ for the past few months and I went through 2 xiaoqu lockdowns already.

[ChairmanPoo]

So many nurses and doctors are calling in sick that our health authority has decided that healthcare staff that has tested positive for corona should still come to work, if they have no symptoms.

That.. sounds like ordering people to become a lot of Typhoid Marys.

Loosening restrictions means this sort of shit

[Duuvian]

Having just went through an Omicron wave myself, I hope that there are no hesitations to request anti-covid assistance from the US government if there is a surplus of something useful here. I would encourage the US to approve such help if it is requested. I don't know if anything is needed or what the situation may be in China regarding covid right now but for example if there are surplus vaccines or masks or medicines here in the US now I would be happy if my country sent them in the spirit of the Lend/Lease act against covid. I have heard a person on television speak of a new Lend/Lease act (it was only once to be honest, but it stuck with me) and I wanted to ask respectfully what China's opinions could be on what the US can do to avoid "negatively effecting stability in the region" while still preventing such catastrophes as we see in Ukraine.

One idea I had after I heard about it was for a new Lend/Lease act to primarily be used for joint US and China projects on infrastructure and development in less wealthy and also wartorn nations as I believe that could be a desirable outcome for the populace of both the US and China as well as those nations. Is this whole thing a really bad idea? Serious question as I don't know much about the subject yet or what would be possible or well advised.

[wierd]

So many nurses and doctors are calling in sick that our health authority has decided that healthcare staff that has tested positive for corona should still come to work, if they have no symptoms.

That.. sounds like ordering people to become a lot of Typhoid Marys.

Loosening restrictions means this sort of shit

My own workplace wants to try this stupid game also.

Sadly, the adage of "Play stupid games, win stupid prizes" seems to not be understood. Healthcare workers getting ill from covid exposure likely is correlated strongly with the "But we GOTSA KEEP OPENZ! LOcKDoWnz BAAYYUUD!" and "Muh Freedumz!", keeping the virus at a sufficiently mobile level.

Really, our society is in denial about the reality of the situation, and wants to pretend that if we ignore the problem, things will get better. (rather than worse.)

This is because doing things like we should have done them (which is too little too late to do now, sadly) was "Hard", and "Expensive."


Well, Stupid games, stupid prizes.


Next, the attrition of HCWs leaving the vocation because of the stupid games and stupid prizes, will not be tenable, and the system will break.  When it does, everyone being super denial morons about it will wonder why, and the Muh Freedumz! crowd will suggest forcing HCWs back into the vocation. Somehow.  (Despite the hilarious 180 about-face about "Freedum" that would be.)

Yeah, I am real salty and cynical about this.

[Duuvian]

I found this bill after a browser search:

https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/6753/text?r=10&s=1

To provide enhanced authority for the President to enter into agreements with the Government of Ukraine to lend or lease defense articles to that Government to protect civilian populations in Ukraine from Russian military invasion, and for other purposes.

Also that was bad of me to think such a bill would go beyond Ukraine. That's what I was worried about so I hesitated to just call for something like that without trying to learn about it. I would like to help out other countries including China with covid medicines if we have a surplus during low case numbers.

I don't have expectations of Xi and Biden to become best friends but I do hope for warming relations over time between our two countries.

I actually haven't checked this thread lately, sorry for not paying as much attention. It looks like there are a lot of places with high numbers still.

I wouldn't mind a covid lockdown but it might have to be organized in a rolling fashion around the world and all the places with outbreaks at once.

Do you think Omicron will be the last big wave? I don't know but I hope so. If the scale of it goes down at some point I'd hope we might have enough pandemic savvy to eliminate it if that's possible.

[TamerVirus]

Omicron BA.2 “stealth” variant is gaining traction around the world.
Another wave developing?