CoronaVirus ==> Empty Shelves

[clear out]

Who’s got a lighter?
H.

[FenceFurniture]

This little number chugging ever upward makes the whole "100k dead" thing seem all rather trivial....

World Population Clock: Daily Births - Worldometer

We are a plague:

World Population Clock: growth

Whilst I don't disagree with your sentiment, it will only be 100k dead with all the technology, medical expertise, N95 masks, gloves, lockdowns etc that are being brought to bear. If we were back in 1917 it would be a whole lot different.

[woodPixel]

Hopefully you will be more successful at having people listen to you than I ever was...

I was only using it as a thought piece, not my political opinions (which I'm beginning to requestion, again!)....

The idea really wasn't about how "just" 100k died. This isn't great and I'm not suggesting our species could do with a fair hit to balance the ecological equation.... BUT, seeing that birth rate clock over.... bleep, bleep, bleep, bleep, bleep, bleep...

Its horrifying. If it were locusts, or T-rex's, or Donald Trump clones, we'd kill it with fire and without mercy.

Think about it. Every second a new human or 8 is popped out. Like some auto-factory.... a goddam Vonn Neumann nightmare.

A self-replicating machine of all-consumption.

After seeing the ASTOUNDING recovery of our environment in only a month (smog gone! Himalayas seen in India! Oceans recovering!) its more important than ever that we, as entire planetary species, learn from this episode and fix our sins against the environment.

JMO

[Sturdee]

Let us award Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews first prize in this alarming competition for doing the most to close down an economy and constraining citizens.

Whilst you may not think that Daniel Andrews does a great job, I, as an Victorian, think he is doing a fantastic job in this unprecedented crisis.

Without his incisive action I may not survive this crisis due to my health conditions and I also believe that if a decision has to be made between say a nineteen year old or me then IMO it should be me that is saved.

Peter.

[Glider]

On a lighter note, elder daughter has a flat in South Bank which looks across the Yarra to the Melbourne CBD. Yesterday she texted a video taken the previous evening from her flat showing people yelling, singing and shining torches from their balconies right across the city.

Very uplifting, I thought.

mick

[FenceFurniture]

Yesterday she texted a video taken the previous evening from her flat showing people yelling, singing and shining torches from their balconies right across the city.

Have you been doing that in Edith?

[FenceFurniture]

Whilst you may not think that Daniel Andrews does a great job, I, as an Victorian, think he is doing a fantastic job in this unprecedented crisis. Peter.

Jaysus Peter, did you actually read that tosh from Albrechtsen? I saw enough of her on Q&A to know I'm better off not hearing or reading any thought bubble she might have. You may as well just read The World According to Rupert, and that won't enrich your life either - quite the opposite. It's all very well to get a range of opinions, but it's even better to know and avoid those that are a waste of pixels.

[doug3030]

Whilst you may not think that Daniel Andrews does a great job, I, as an Victorian, think he is doing a fantastic job in this unprecedented crisis.

Daniel Andrews has put strong restrictions on travel alright. It has been hard enough to get anywhere in Melbourne for ages because he started every roadwork project you could think of (except for the East-West link, which was the only one he should have been doing anyway). But he does not have th e money to finish any of them and the result is nobody can go anywhere anyway.

So because he can't build the transport infrastructure we need, he has instead reduced the number of people who can travel to the extent that the network can support the new volume. Covid19 is Daniel's best friend.

[BobL]

After seeing the ASTOUNDING recovery of our environment in only a month (smog gone! Himalayas seen in India! Oceans recovering!) its more important than ever that we, as entire planetary species, learn from this episode and fix our sins against the environment.

Hummmmm . . . . CO2 and other green house gasses in the air are not disappearing and are actually still increasing albeit a little slower, because no fossil fuelled powered power plants have been switched off. The reduction in electricity use has brought down energy prices so there will be a tendency to keep using fossil fuels making the transition to less polluting sources slower. And plastics have not stopped flooding into the oceans . . . .I could go on.

[Glider]

Have you been doing that in Edith?

We're isolated 365 here so life has gone on as normal. Jenolan Caves has been closed since the bushfires so no "peak hour" traffic from Oberon.

I saw a truck yesterday.

mick

[FenceFurniture]

A longish read:
He Could Have Seen What Was Coming: Behind Trump’s Failure on the Virus - The New York Times

[Lappa]

Interesting sms from a relative who lives in California.


“ Seems like good news for both Australia and New Zealand with the lock downs. Also seems like Commonwealth countries are doing lockdowns on a national level and following up with enforcement - friend from the UK said they are only allowed out to for one exercise/day and are stopping cars and people and fining if people do not have a legitimate reason for being out. Very different here - the federal government will not take ownership for anything and have left it to the governors and mayors for each of the states to decide on a state-by-state or even city-by-city policy - which is very haphazard and also has state bidding against state for equipment and supplies and then the federal government will come in and out bid and then give it to the state that Trump likes (read republican) or the state that has been most appreciative of him - he has even said “states need to appreciate him”. Good that they are being realistic with the time for lockdown - here again Trump is itching to get the country back to work (only because if the economy is still in bad shape come election time in November he will not do well) - the medical experts are warning that this would be a huge problem and a return to where we were - he said he will listen but then make up his own mind - the good thing is that governors will make up their own minds on a state-by-state basis and that goodness California has a good intelligent governor who is making decisions based on medical advice. California is also doing well in flattening the curve and we are not forecast to peak until mid May - schools in California are closed until next academic year. “

[FenceFurniture]

Well at least the most important thing has been satisfied: Trump will have something to blame for his loss in November, and it can't answer back.

[Lappa]

The problem is that Trump is up against Biden, the man who has problems straining a sentence together. Gezzus, what a choice!

[woodhutt]

One thing that does concern me is how we have become almost totally reliant on essential medicines, PPE, ventilators etc. from overseas suppliers - largely China, who manufacture a large percentage of the world's medications. It seems that we have put too much faith in globalization at the risk of being unable to source essential supplies.
We have already seen the US refusing to supply Canada with face masks, despite the fact that Canada supplies the US with the raw materials to make them. Is it too much a stretch of the imagination to envisage a situation where we may not be able to source essential items either because the manufacturing country will not supply because of its own needs? Or perhaps the supply chain fails because of the impact of a pandemic?
Perhaps it's time to re-think the 'global village' theory for certain goods. I have no problem with China or any other country making all the world's mobiles, clothes, teapots and kiddies toys. If these goods disappeared tomorrow the world would get by.
Maybe Aus, NZ and Japan for example should be looking at a collaborative pharmaceutical industry. Perhaps new industries to produce PPE and medical equipment. What do we have to lose except a decline in unemployment to service new industries and perhaps a paying a little more for our medicines?
Pete