Masks by Star Slate Codex. It's not encouraging.

Wait. Didn't you tell me that Trump was literally Hitler. Which is it?

Trump Is an Authoritarian Weakman
Coronavirus would be the perfect opportunity for an autocrat. Trump isn’t taking it.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/03/26/trump-is-an-authoritarian-weakman-149573

Be careful of what you wish for. There are very few Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus' around who will voluntarily lay down the reins of power and go back to their civilian life.

If Media Don’t Want To Be Called Propagandists, They Need To Stop Publishing Chinese and Russian Propaganda

https://thefederalist.com/2019/06/20/if-the-media-dont-want-to-be-called-propagandists-they-need-to-stop-publishing-chinese-and-russian-propaganda/

Should have gotten a shepherd.

https://youtu.be/piLzwSbiL54

Masks seem to be hiding in unexpected locations.

The Service Employees International Union said it has located 39 million N95 masks and will be facilitating the sale of them to healthcare providers.

...

The union said it will be selling the masks to states, counties and hospitals for $5 apiece and claims it “has no financial interest in the transactions.”

https://www.breitbart.com/health/2020/03/26/seiu-healthcare-union-suddenly-finds-39-million-n95-masks/

Any locality that has price gouging laws in place will find the $5/mask to be excessive.

We don't need no steenkin' pants. Oh, hai!

https://twitter.com/OntWtf/status/1243320047147388928

Good advice.

In the immortal words of that Hong Kong protester: Don’t trust China, China is asshole.

https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/362862/

China's factories are working 24/7 to make ventilators for the world

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/china-e2-80-99s-factories-work-247-to-build-ventilators-for-milan-new-york/ar-BB11zRkg

China's factories are working 24/7 to make ventilators for the world

I'm sure they'll charge us a pretty penny for them. Presuming they're not built using slave labor.

In Tennessee:

Though here in Tennessee the state health department sent out a rather odd letter to providers, telling them that the hydroxychloroquine/Z-pak treatment was unproven and that they shouldn’t use it, and also that they shouldn’t hoard hydroxychloroquine and Z-paks because they were needed by patients and providers.

https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/362852/

Ventilators...a thread. Emphasis mine. How's that socialized health care working out over in Europe? and it sounds like the limiting factor on ventilator is trained staff, not availability.

3/ In fact, the paper states explicitly "that U.S. hospitals could absorb a maximum of 26,000 to 56,000 additional ventilators at the peak of a national pandemic, as safe use of ventilators requires trained personnel."

4/ In other words, whatever happens with COVID, if we built a million new ventilators, 950,000 would be furniture.

Added bonus: the paper reports the US already has far more critical care beds per-capita than other nations: 35 per 100,000, compared to 12 in Italy, 7 in the UK...

https://twitter.com/AlexBerenson/status/1242985120165965826

Mama is...over 65
We've got to keep her fed
But if she goes outside she's dead
So mama...please stay at home
I'll have food delivered to your door

https://kcmq.com/bohemian-rhapsody-with-covid-19/

Ye Olde England

The race to deliver much-needed ventilators to hospitals fighting coronavirus received welcome news today from British entrepreneur Sir James Dyson. A spokesman for Dyson confirmed to Forbes that an initial order of 10,000 units from the U.K. government has been placed, and work will begin immediately at the historic airforce base RAF Hullavington.

Dyson confirmed in a letter to staff seen by Forbes, “Since I received a call from Boris Johnson ten days ago, we have refocused resources at Dyson, and worked with TTP, The Technology Partnership, to design and build an entirely new ventilator, The CoVent.”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddawkins/2020/03/26/billionaire-james-dyson-confirms-initial-order-of-10000-ventilators-will-made-in-britain-at-raf-hullavington/#5715bd531660

So, IRA, we don't have socialized health care in Switzerland but we DO have a staffing problem... a lot of hospital staff lives in neighboring countries, that had high rates of the virus. This was why we couldn't close the borders.

So they've made arrangements. Some hotels have been repurposed to host French and Italian staff. In exchange Switzerland is taking EU patients.

From an elderly Czech friend of mine, today:

Czechs are typical by making jokes... quickly and about anything...
(Reinhardt Heydrich, the Nazi Protector assassinated by parachutists in 1942, would call the Czechs "laughing beasts"...)

So this is a batch of jokes about the coronavirus:

Attention please!
The meeting of senior management on coronavirus risks is cancelled due to coronavirus risk.

You know that Chuck Norris caught coronavirus? – But he felt sorry for it and let it go.

Are you sad about all this? Don't despair!
Soak your sanitary mask in toluene and it will be the coolest walk in your life.

“Hello, is that the police? – A burglar broke into my house! –”

“We work from home because of coronavirus, ma'am. Please, can you give him to me on the phone? ”

When buying grass from a dealer, keep at least two meters away.
(You don't want him to lie down with a fever!)

not bored at home in quarantine at all!
I just wonder why a pound of rice bought in Hannaford contains 2894 grains
while in the same package bought in Walmart there are 3017 grains...

A doctor in the infection department is questioned what they were serving to patients with coronavirus.

"Pancakes, potato pancakes, and pizza."

"And that helps?"

"I don't know... but all these fit under the door."

[ And finally one specific for Europe: ]

I entered a grocery store this morning… and there was a huge line.
I greeted "buon giorno" ... and suddenly there was no one to pay to.

Just in case the shit really hits the fan. Does your computer support IP over avian carriers?

In computer networking, IP over Avian Carriers (IPoAC) is a proposal to carry Internet Protocol (IP) traffic by birds such as homing pigeons. IP over Avian Carriers was initially described in RFC 1149, a Request for Comments (RFC) issued by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), written by D. Waitzman, and released on April 1, 1990. It is one of several April Fools' Day Request for Comments.

Waitzman described an improvement of his protocol in RFC 2549, IP over Avian Carriers with Quality of Service (1 April 1999). Later, in RFC 6214—released on 1 April 2011, and 13 years after the introduction of IPv6—Brian Carpenter and Robert Hinden published Adaptation of RFC 1149 for IPv6.[1]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_over_Avian_Carriers

Oh, those wacky Danes, pissing off the ChiComs.

Denmark's Jyllands-Posten printed a cartoon of the Chinese flag with virus-like figures in place of the symbolic yellow stars. China is demanding an apology from the paper, which has previously waded into controversy.

https://www.dw.com/en/china-angry-over-coronavirus-cartoon-in-danish-newspaper/a-52196383

This mocking of the ChiCom flag must stop! This one is just too brutal.

https://twitter.com/so_vergo/status/1222582317010415616

Not unfair, just savage.

Non-corona joke, "Holy Icon" from the same friend - the video comes from Moscow, though.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_s9vWoXw4BM

Follow- up:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BiI5UuCiEoU

Even better - an interview with the prankster!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=elG7DjbRkqo

> one specific for Europe —

Ahem

What’s the difference between Covid-19 and Romeo & Juliet?

One’s a coronavirus and the other is a Verona crisis.

One’s a coronavirus and the other is a Verona crisis.

*scribbles notes* What? I know a good joke when I steal one.

we don't have socialized health care in Switzerland

I wasn't taking a swipe at Switzerland, or even Italy or UK. Rather, I'm taking a swipe at those who think that the UK's National Health Service is something to be emulated here.

the US already has far more critical care beds per-capita than other nations: 35 per 100,000, compared to ... 7 in the UK

Good thing we didn't follow them down that road, or we'd be eye-ball deep in the kim-chi about now. And we're no where near peak demand.

Et tu, Zoom?

The video conferencing app's popularity has exploded during the COVID-19 outbreak, becoming essentially an industry standard for video conferences and remote work meetings.

According to network traffic analysis carried out by Motherboard, Zoom for iOS is sending data to Facebook without making any mention of the practice in its privacy policy.

Upon being downloaded and installed, Zoom connects to the Facebook Graph API, a practice that is not entirely uncommon since many app makers use Facebook software development kits (SDKs) to implement features into their software.

https://appleinsider.com/articles/20/03/26/zoom-for-ios-shares-data-with-facebook-even-if-users-dont-have-an-account

Concur.

Pro Tip: Don't take health advice from Florida Man.

https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/florida-man-friday-illin-and-chillin/

A round up of Xi's Disease linkies. 3M intends make a billion N95 masks by year's end.

https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/362785/

Good thing we didn't follow them down that road, or we'd be eye-ball deep in the kim-chi about now. And we're no where near peak demand.

I R A Darth Aggie at March 27, 2020 11:23 AM

Veteran, right?

Now whip it!

https://twitter.com/Solmemes1/status/1243605192932761600

Self help evictions are barred in nearly every state. Your landlord generally cannot unilaterally terminate a lease, change the locks, turn off utilities, etc. if you are current on your rent.

https://twitter.com/BoozyBarrister/status/1243550064850735112

You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.

https://twitter.com/FBillMcMorris/status/1243554067554742279

“I don’t want to break the law.”

At this point the words of Charles Dickens came to mind: “The law is an ass!” I then say, in so many words, “What does Governor Doug Ducey know about medicine? He’s a stupid politician. You, my doctor, who specializes in respiratory illnesses, is a far better expert on the subject. You more than anyone should know when it is safe to give this test, and to whom. That you are allowing a politician tell you how to treat your patients is to my mind literally unethical.”

I then added, “Why did you even have me bother coming in?”

“I won’t bill you.”

“What I want is for you to give me the test. I am the patient, I know my condition. I am not going to make everyone in the office sick by doing this, and you know that.”

https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/essays-and-commentaries/today-covid-19-made-my-doctor-and-i-criminals/

• I used to see these little fuggers down in the brine… They're fun! They can tell that you're nothing too worry about, because you're too slow and bubbly.

• Hadn't thought about this, a factor to bear in mind during the election season. If we have one.

Veteran, right?

No. I've known more than a few service members, and heard the term from them. And I've known more than a few Koreans from the old country, and I've smelled kim-chi.

If the Norks ever wanted me to spill my guts, all they'd to do is bring in the kim-chi. What do you want to know? I'm not adventurous enough to try it. Nope. Nope. Nope.

Why is this a big deal? For one, antibody tests are way faster and easier to administer than the slow PCR testing for the virus itself. This is something that can be scaled up to entire populations of a region.

For another, if this confirms the theory of an Oxford epidemiologist that a substantial percentage of the UK population is already immune to the virus… That would completely transform the economic calculus. People who are immune could simply get tested, get a clean bill of health, and go back to work. This would go a long way to mitigating the economic damage (which ultimately filters down to everybody) of a prolonged lockdown.

https://spinstrangenesscharm.wordpress.com/2020/03/26/covid19-update-march-26-2020-antibody-testing-could-be-a-game-changer/

Remember the college admissions scandal? it may provide more bad news for the FBI.

The defense says prosecutors withheld evidence that would support the parents’ argument that they believed the payments were legitimate donations that would benefit the schools, rather than bribes for coaches or officials. The evidence — notes from the phone of the scheme’s admitted mastermind, admissions consultant Rick Singer — was not given to the defense until last month.

Singer wrote in the notes that FBI agents yelled at him and told him to lie to get parents to say things in recorded phone calls that could be used against them. Singer wrote that FBI agents told him to say that he told parents the payments were bribes.

https://nypost.com/2020/03/26/lori-loughlin-college-admissions-scandal-parents-urge-judge-to-drop-charges/

> 3M intends make a billion N95
> masks by year's end.

I always liked Minnesota.

But for the record, please review this tweet thread for blunt, unpleasant truths about N95 respirators.

This results in CO2 buildup. After about 30 minutes your plastic mask, if actually airtight and strapped securely to your face will, before you can take it off, kill you- very peacefully. You'll just slump over and go to sleep, but you'll still be dead.

I remember my respirator training, the last time I worked in a hospital. They gave the standard two minute explanation, made you put the respirator on, and then made you go underneath a hood where they squirted some aerosolized sugar solution. If you could smell the sugar, your respirator was leaky and you failed. I tried so hard and I failed so many times. It was embarrassing and I hated it.

I’m naturally clumsy and always bad at that kind of thing. Some people were able to listen to the two minute explanation and then pass right away. Those kinds of people could probably also listen to a two minute YouTube explanation and be fine. So I don’t want to claim it’s impossible or requires lots of specialized background knowledge. It’s just a slightly difficult physical skill you have to get right...

The most likely explanation is: doctors aren’t much better at using respirators than anyone else. In a California study of tuberculosis precautions, 65% of health care workers used their respirators incorrectly. That’s little better than the general public, who have a 76% failure rate.

" I'm not adventurous enough to try it. Nope."

It's just Korea's version of sauerkraut with chili pepper. Plus pepper. And some hot pepper.

> I know a good joke when
> I steal one.

Same here; as did EmmZee, whose pocket I picked.

“I’m naturally clumsy and always bad at that kind of thing. Some people were able to listen to the two minute explanation and then pass right away. Those kinds of people could probably also listen to a two minute YouTube explanation and be fine. So I don’t want to claim it’s impossible or requires lots of specialized background knowledge. It’s just a slightly difficult physical skill you have to get right...”

I’ve never had to do,this, but I did learn how to take off a gas mask in a room full of CS, then put it back on, and clear it.

It's just Korea's version of sauerkraut with chili pepper. Plus pepper. And some hot pepper.

And don't forget fresh, raw oysters. Those are the reason it gets that umami taste paired with the stench of unwashed jockstrap.

Thankfully, not all Kimchi needs raw shellfish. Only the traditional one. Everything else is just regular pickled veggies/fruits.

It's just Korea's version of sauerkraut with chili pepper. Plus pepper. And some hot pepper.
And don't forget fresh, raw oysters. Those are the reason it gets that umami taste paired with the stench of unwashed jockstrap.

Thankfully, not all Kimchi needs raw shellfish. Only the traditional one. Everything else is just regular pickled veggies/fruits.

Sixclaws at March 27, 2020 7:04 PM

Eaten a lot of Kimchi. It is very popular in northern Japan. I think the slightly funky taste is from the fermentation process, most likely an interaction with rice straw. Natto has the same funky taste.