Open (More or Less) Post on Covid 110

[ecosophia]

We are now in the third year of these open posts. As the phrase "died suddenly" repeats in the mass media like a mantra, statistics for work days lost to illness and all-cause mortality mount up in heavily vaccinated nations, and more and more ugly facts about the official response to Covid spill out into public, we are entering what may well turn out to be the most difficult period of the Covid disaster -- the phase in which denial rises in lockstep with the death rate, and a great many people try not to admit what has been done to them by the people and institutions they trusted. It could get ugly, folks.

So it's time for another open post. The rules are the same as before: 

1. If you plan on parroting the party line of the medical industry and its paid shills, please go away. This is a place for people to talk openly, honestly, and freely about their concerns that the party line in question is dangerously flawed and that actions being pushed by the medical industry et al. are causing injury and death. It is not a place for you to dismiss those concerns. Anyone who wants to hear the official story and the arguments in favor of it can find those on hundreds of thousands of websites.

2. If you plan on insisting that the current situation is the result of a deliberate plot by some villainous group of people or other, please go away. There are tens of thousands of websites currently rehashing various conspiracy theories about the Covid-19 outbreak and the vaccines. This is not one of them. What we're exploring is the likelihood that what's going on is the product of the same arrogance, incompetence, and corruption that the medical industry and its tame politicians have displayed so abundantly in recent decades. That possibility deserves a space of its own for discussion, and that's what we're doing here. 
 
3. If you plan on using rent-a-troll derailing or disruption tactics, please go away. I'm quite familiar with the standard tactics used by troll farms to disrupt online forums, and am ready, willing, and able -- and in fact quite eager -- to ban people permanently for engaging in them here. Oh, and I also lurk on other Covid-19 vaccine skeptic blogs, so I'm likely to notice when the same posts are showing up on more than one venue. 

4. If you don't believe in treating people with common courtesy, please go away. I have, and enforce, a strict courtesy policy on my blogs and online forums, and this is no exception. The sort of schoolyard bullying that takes place on so many other internet forums will get you deleted and banned here. Also, please don't drag in current quarrels about sex, race, religions, etc. No, I don't care if you disagree with that: my journal, my rules. 

With that said, the floor is open for discussion.

Comments

Re: Masking as an informed, individual choice

[(Anonymous)]

Trying to keep an open mind, I've seen persuasive evidence that 1) there are some masks that work to reduce the probability of severe illness, and 2) that mask mandates do not work at all to prevent the spread of a pandemic.

Unfortunately, nuance gets lost between the two camps chanting "masks work" and "masks didn't work". Part of the problem may be that faith in masks leads masked people to neglect other preventative measures: vitamin D, "staying away from people", etc. Failure of mask mandates ignores the fact that some people wore no masks, some wore paper surgical masks that simply catch the flying goobers, some wore fabric masks of varying effectiveness, and only a fraction wore really good, close-fitting masks (and then, not all the time).

Personally, I sewed some double-thick flannel masks that seemed effective and comfortable, and I got covid at a church picnic where I thought being outside (mostly) in the sunshine was enough. And I was ill for about two days.

Lathechuck

Re: Masking as an informed, individual choice

[escorcher]

Yeah, there's certainly no one failsafe protection.

I've been occasionally using nasal sprays too and will continue to use Carragelose spray just before going into short term crowded situations or working with people who might be ill. I am also writing this while out in the midday sun - I'm very aware of vitamin D courtesy of a brush with MS.

Re: Masking as an informed, individual choice

[(Anonymous)]

Heh. When I traveled in rural SE Asia, I wore a mask like everybody else-- while walking along dusty roadsides and riding on motorbikes. Because the roads are dusty, and every vehicle kicks up a cloud of dust.

If roads were like that here, I'd wear them here too. Visible dust is one of the few things they're good for ;)