The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes. Julius Caesar (Act II, Scene II, Line 31) Shakespeare
Death is the driving hell behind this novel Coronavirus, COVID-19. Somewhere between ten percent and two percent of those who are infected die. It has wiped out families and those without. It has killed celebrities and those who sweep floors. It has no care about making some people without symptoms and those whose body can no longer breathe.
What a pandemic or epidemic does is bring death to the door. Not a pleasant leaving this mortal coil (Shakespeare) as often is the blessing of dying in one’s sleep. Not a violent end from a automobile crash. It is a disease that makes one ill or horribly ill and a death with a tube in your lungs. Or your neighbor’s lungs. Or your children’s teacher.
Some live, some die. You cannot know who will live, who will not. That is what happens with a disease like a virus.
This afternoon I was watching MSNBC Nicolle Wallace when one of the panelists said he has lost ten friends to COVID-19. I started having flashbacks (yes, real horrible flashbacks) to the mid-1990’s when I was fighting for my life against a virus, Hepatitis C. Death was a constant for us.
I was on Prodigy, AOL and CompuServe various boards related to HepC. Starting in 1995 we realized the death rate was nothing like the governments were telling us. By 1997 we were losing at least one person, a Hepper (I made up the name Leper and Hepatitis) every day. I started a website as a memorial website of those who died. It had many hundreds of memorials. I ended it when a friend committed suicide.
We lost thousands of Heppers. Some showed up for a few visits on the boards, a few were regulars. What made all of us the same was being infected with HCV and not knowing if we were going to die. Death with HCV is terrible, just as death with COVID-19 is.
The experience hardened me. When you have hundreds of people you know by name and have shared lives and hopes, and they die it does something to you. My psychologists have helped. They understand what mass death means. This pandemic is doing the same. You see life differently, you feel life differently. And for those who survive you are changed. You are changed in ways others may never understand.
My sympathy goes to all those affected by this virus. I fought mine to a draw. It took me almost fifteen years to recover most of my strength. I hope these people do not face that life.
BBronc, horrible flashbacks here too, but mine are from mid 80s taking care of a dear relative who was one of the early HIV victims. same fears then as now abound.
wapo: Vice President Pence’s office has threatened to retaliate against a reporter who revealed that Pence’s office had told journalists they would need masks for Pence’s visit to the Mayo Clinic — a requirement Pence himself did not follow. Pence’s trip to the clinic Tuesday generated criticism after he was photographed without a surgical mask — the only person in the room not wearing one. The Minnesota clinic requires visitors to wear masks as a precaution against spreading the coronavirus. Pence’s wife, Karen Pence, said in an interview with Fox News on Thursday that he was unaware of the mask policy until his visit was over. But Steve Herman, who covers the White House for Voice of America, suggested that there was more to the story after Karen Pence’s interview. “All of us who traveled with [Pence] were notified by the office of @VP the day before the trip that… Read more »
patd – old age CRS hit because I thought I had typed in a couple sentences regarding the HIV AIDS of the nineteen eighties, even to have read it during editing. This world has changed. Some understand that and others do not. There is no there to return to now. It is gone, just memories now. February first was the old life. May first is the new life. We live with a fear of going out the door. That cannot be removed by words. We will live this way for a year or two years. We had lived a life that our ancestors could not. Now we are they.
Thanks BluB, a somber read but a reminder most of us get through this. I do cringe at those who keep saying We WILL get through this. No, most of us will, many aren’t.
BB, thank you. That is a wonderful post. And to verify that it is a new day, our paralegal found out yesterday that her husband let their kid go spend the day with his in laws. His FIL had been running a fever for a couple of days that they did not tell paralegal or her husband about until late in the day when paralegal called to check on her kid on her way home (she lives out in the boonies over half an hour from here). She went nuts on them. Turns out one of the kids that spends time at in -laws’ house from time time also had a fever. So she texts us last night to see whether we wanted her to come in – she knows I am over 60 (that’s an understatement BTW) less than two months following surgery and have that somewhat compromised immune… Read more »
re joe, every time media does a story on his accuser they should also mention the long list of trump accusers (such as this story last summer by CNN). especially faux snooze
being all kinds of fair & balenced ya know.
Pat, give MSNBC credit, before the Biden interview this morning they did a lengthy segment detailing every Trump accuser one by one. If other media do that could be a net positive for Joe, his questionable accuser pales in comparison to the parade of credible Trump accusers, plus Biden never bragged on tape about assaulting women.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/01/health/health-care-europe-us-medical-bills-coronavirus-intl/index.html
Americans won’t seek help until later because of the cost of healthcare, not just from Covid, but for most reasons. I thought Covid treatment was being covered in the US, but it is not being covered in all cases. HEALTHCARE FOR ALL NOW!
Robert, yer nephew’s a fine lookin’ feller and seems to have his head on straight (so to speak).
Glad to see that torches still get passed.
BiD
The CARES payment is supposed to be $600 a week.
Heaven and Hell.
Wikipedia has an interesting article on the 1347-1351 “Black Death.” Reading it gives insight into what may be the long-term personal and social impacts of Covid-19.
The Black Death completely transformed European society. It caused widespread political and economic upheavals. The “static” feudal system was shattered forever and the “dynamic” modern era began.
Art historians have argued that most of the greatest works of church art produced during the Italian Renaissance were paid for by a new social class of wealthy, city dwelling merchants who feared early death from disease. Heaven and hell were no longer something far away, only to worried about at the end of a long life. Heaven and Hell were always present in daily life because with the Black Death you could be healthy one day and dead the next.
Jamie – I’m not sure why I only got the $600 supplement for only one week in a two-week distribution. There is nobody to ask; I’ve never been able to get through on the phone. It’s OK. I’m good since I’m a family of one (me) and was raised by Dust Bowl/Depression/WWII grandparents. It’s sad for others who have a family to support or who have over-extended themselves. I have a stimulus check to look forward to, as well. I continue to applaud how Flatus re-distributed that payment to Joe and other Dems.
Nash – I don’t know if you were around when I mentioned that my former cardiologist said we needed a “good due-off.” There were waves of plague, as there will be several waves of Covid-19. We won’t lose as many. While we, here on the trail, see things as forever changed, there is a large group of folks out there who are determined to act like it’s nothing. It’s not nothing. I’m trying to imagine things as different but, newer and better ways of doing things in the future. Zoom meetings are not among those better things, although, last night’s “Parks & Recreation” reunion was the best show from quarantine that I’ve seen.
How about this as an advertising theme:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/01/us/coronavirus-moderna-vaccine-invs/index.html
WTF? Giving a bid to a company who has never brought a product to market; they’ve never gotten FDA approval for any of their vaccines. Why? Because Trump wants a vaccine now and this company made big promises. I can name that tune in 3 notes. The proper, safe way is not what Trump is interested in doing.
The timing of this women’s accusation???? Damned fishy especially since the dictator’s freaked out about his poor polling numbers due to his dismal or total lack of leadership. She’s changed her story. She likes Pootin. Biden should say NOTHING more. He probably should have just said it’s fake news just like the dictator & his comrades do. Thinking back to Al Franken.
All those lousy repubes do is DENY, BLAME, & PUNISH. I hate the “punish” part the most. I’ve never done that. Not with my kids. Not with my students.
There’s nothing about the repubes that I like. There’s nothing that they do that I value.
‘s
Tara Reade, who has accused Joe Biden of sexual assault, wrote several Medium posts in 2018 praising Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Wrote Reade: “President Putin has an alluring combination of strength with gentleness. His sensuous image projects his love for life, the embodiment of grace while facing adversity.”
The posts have since been deleted, but can be viewed in the Internet Archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20190404043945/https:/medium.com/@shewrites94/why-a-liberal-democrat-supports-vladimir-putin-f54ca2a3a405
Where’s OSHA and the Ag Dept vis-a-vis the meat workers and others? He orders meat workers back to work and denies unemployment if they’re afraid to work. Where’s the Dept, of Transportation vis-a-vis all transport in this country? Subways, trains, airlines, etc? Where’s DeVos and Fed Ed vis-a-vis education throughout the country? Where’s leadership from the Ag Dept vis-a-vis redistribution of food from farmers who are dumping it to those who have no food in the wealthiest country in the world? Where are their protocols and guidelines to safeguard workers? Nothing. NO leadership from any part of the federal government. And this isn’t even the chaos & confusion the dictator has created with PPE’s etc. to front line health workers. A TOTAL dismal failure. WORST “president” and administration in the whole world. Dickensian = “of or reminiscent of the novels of Charles Dickens, especially in suggesting the poor… Read more »
BlueBronc… I too had quite a few friends pass away from HIV back in the early 90s. It’s very sad.
I wish everyone the best concerning covid-19.
I read somewhere this morning… sorry forgot where… that trump is saying Biden’s accuser could be a fake. I wouldn’t put it past him to have paid the woman to make the accusation just so he can say… “see, I have fake accusers too.”
Got a blueberry banana bread cooking in the oven… gonna be a good breakfast tomorrow.
I know we have a few science fiction readers/fans here just ran across this on twitter.
For those who didn’t laugh at the previous post.
the red uniform is Star trek security personnel. They accompany Kirk and Spock down to what ever planet and then die a gruesome death.
an old trekkie joke
Jack
I hope ‘journalists’ are looking into connections Reade has with any kind of Trump.
Another meme I’ve made. A friend of mine moved to Florida about 6 months ago or so. She’s already speaking like a true Floridian concerning this whole re-opening of the states. Anyway, this morning I was told that my return to work date has been pushed back until May 25th.
Jack, I saw one on Facebook the other day with Kirk asking the red shirts to go grocery shopping for him. LOL!
My brother just sent me a chart showing flu is worse than Covid. I told him, no. No, it can’t be compared. We don’t have stay-at-home orders for the flu. We have a vaccine for the flu. He needs to stop watching Faux Noise.
Jack & Corey, good posts. I know the references for both. LOL….grim My brother died from HIV/AIDS about 10 years ago. I dealt with the docs and my sister with our mother. It was a grim death just like in the ole days. And it was a battle with the hospitalist doctor who wanted to drill a hole in his head. It wasn’t until I found the palliative care doctor that things got better. I wrote a scathing letter to the hospital, UC Davis. It was bad enough that he had all the usual stuff from lack of an immune system & was dying, but to have that woman doc keep on after me about drilling the hole in his head when she admitted that it wouldn’t save him, was uncalled for. It made it even more stressful. Thanks goodness for palliative care. for him. And apparently, they’ve stopped… Read more »
For most doctors, the phrase do no harm gets a bit fuzzy with end of life issues.
He came back with some other flu BS, trying to make the argument against lockdown. I explained that there is an impact on numbers if the flu vaccine matches the strain that shows up and if folks get vaccinated. He just said, “lots we don’t know.” Keep watching Fox Noise and you will know less and less.
business insider:
In a tweet on Friday morning, President Donald Trump described protesters in Michigan as “very good people” and suggested that the governor should strike a deal with them.
Mika Brezinski. Biden should have picked a better interviewer
Bink, went back and saw your music posts on the prior thread. Excellent. There’s hope for you. Not a clinker in the bunch.
Almost all comparisons to this disease or that war or this or that accidental or intentional cause of death are flawed beyond raw numbers. They are no more meaningful than comparing deaths from lightning to deaths from gunshots.
Jack
You are not getting me into a red shirt!!!
pogo, ‘cepting the fear of the other fellow being like leper. the fear the contagion is in the air, on the door handle, the well=meant gift box and the neighbor’s kid or dog. the fear is the same whether or not the numbers or realities are.
bet during all the plagues there were always some form of gun-toting mobs protesting
*
If I were from another country and I saw those protesters I would say, God, Americans are stupid.
Detroit free press:
Many of the demonstrators did not observe social distancing guidelines or wear masks. Some carried signs that appeared to advocate violence, such as, “Tyrants get the rope.”
The Cure For ripper Demonstrators Get several people who have recovered from C19. Supply them with signs that read C19 KILLS THE UNBORN. Send them to mingle with the demonstrators. There will be “words.” The newcomers must then cough on the demonstrators, causing serious disruption. Capital cops arrive to apprehend the demonstrators, who are removed to deepest Detroit and kept for psychiatric evaluation. The hospital is overwhelmed, so each 2 demonstrators have to share a room with one cadaver. The cadaver is bugged and the ensuing conversations are recorded. Meanwhile the home team gets warrants. Next, interview the demonstrators while searching their electronic communication records. As soon as the home team has the identities of the next higher person(s) in the conspiracy, those persons are apprehended and subject to warrants and interviews. After 72 hours locked up w/corpses, investigators should have a clear picture of the entire republican conspiracy :… Read more »
blueINdallas:
You are right that Covid-19 will not be as bad as the Black Death, which killed 30% to 60% of the population of Europe, depending on the location. But Covid-19 will have an impact.
Some of the permanent changes in society due to Covid-19 could be things like a major shift to “vote by mail.” More states are doing it now due to public demand but once voters experience it, most of them will never want to go back to in-person voting at polling places.
In “red” states the Republicans have been systematically reducing polling places in Democratic voting areas to create long lines to suppress the vote. They won’t be able to do that with mail voting, so this will change the balance of power between the two parties.
There are many other changes that could become permanent. This is just one.
Of course, if you don’t really want to hammer a stake into the blubbery chest of the demonstration conspiracy, you can just send people over with “C19 KILLS THE UNBORN” signs and have them cough all over the demonstrators.
I think that’s a little wimpy, myself.
Who do we have in the state, who can take on the job of getting the governor, police, hospital, etc on board ?
I guess in SFB’s world we are all Swedish now
and just a thought. Byedon could always step aside and let Gov Andy be the candidate
When I was growing up there was no casual dining. Even though both my parents worked we had a home cooked dinner every night. I can remember my mom wistfully speaking about a couple she taught with who only ate out. She thought that was the best thing ever. Today it seems like people eat out more than at home.
Reade’s only scheduled interview is with Fox that should tell everyone a lot
Also her description of the assault sounds a lot like E Jeanne Carroll’s assault by Trump
Biden is refusing to open up his Senate office records saying “there is nothing there.” If so, why not open them? If you listened to his interview on “Morning Joe” what you heard was a cleverly qualified and evasive denial strategy that was prepared for him by the pack of lawyers and public relations consultants he has hired to manage the cover-up. We haven’t heard from Biden for many days because he has been rehearsing his act, doing dozens of practice interviews, that have recorded and critiqued. The consultants probably spent an hour arguing over what color his tie should be. We have heard this same line of BS before from Harvey Weinstein, Donald Trump, and countless other #Me Too targets. And one thing we know from past experience: this probably ain’t over. The more this woman is trashed by Biden’s establishment Democrat and mainstream media allies, the more… Read more »
Putin’s 5th column strikes again:
Yep, the .01% fortunately.
Biden campaign would be better served to 1. have it all opened up, and then 2. challenge trump to open up his tax records – then 3. run ads of trump ’15 promising to open his tax records.
There were no protesters in the Michigan capitol building, there were terrorists, and not many of them. But, one with a gun is good enough for the media to make it seem as if thousands had arrived to take over. SFB is a terrorist for supporting terrorists.
I listened to the Biden interview. Yes it was created by lawyers, you have to do that to avoid saying the wrong word and have it taken as something else. Do they make him hide the truth? Biden straight out said he did not do it, it never happened. Biden supports having the documents reviewed to find any support for the woman’s story. There are a lot of things which are not making sense and those need to be investigated. I will wait and hope Putin/SFB does not do a whack job like they did to Franken.
He has proven he wins by saying “nyet” to everything he doesn’t like, and that he can’t be persuaded, coerced, or shamed into doing something he “should” do. Not now or ever. He’s declared total war on the institutions of the country. All or nothing, shoot the moon, go for broke. Plus he seems to be at the mercy of someone he owes.