The Debbie Downers have been right all along

[Hlitner]

5 minutes ago, tosteve1 said:

Covid in Britain. Speaks for itself.

My goodness, how dare you muddy up the agenda driven rhetoric with real facts.  Shame on you.  When I see someone making a big deal about the B1.1.7 variant (the so-called UK variant) they will say it is more contagious and "might" make folks more sick.   Our Canadian poster (HappyinVan) seems to have all kinds of COVID mitigation ideas (i.e. masks, social distancing) but ignores the solution which is effective vaccines.  Fortunately we had a government that for once did the right thing by putting am emphasis on vaccine development through the investment of a lot of money.   Perhaps they have a long way to go where he lives, but we are rapidly reaching the point where everyone who wants to be vaccinated will be vaccinated.  The math seems to indicate we should reach this threshold within the next 6-8 weeks (some think it might take a little longer).  But for the sake of the doom and gloom poster here is an interesting up to date chart: about COVID in the USA. 

COVID-19 Hospitalizations (cdc.gov)

 

Now looking at that chart I am trying hard to find doom and gloom.  But what I see is that our country is rapidly defeating COVID despite some claims to the contrary.  Everyday we get more then 3 million vaccine shots into arms.   Most of the small surge in cases are due to younger folks (under age 50) being a bit careless and getting themselves sick....but the vast majority of these cases do not require hospitalization.    The UK and Israel have also had very good results by simply relying on vaccine programs.   Meanwhile North of the border they continue to think that lockdowns make the world a better place?   No thanks.

 

Hank

 

 

 

 

 

 

[idiebabe]

@Hlitner  We’re angry, too!  Hank, all your Posts are excellent and expressed how many of us feel!  Rant on!  👍

 

 

Edited April 8, 2021 by idiebabe

[john2003]

I am glad the bet on vaccines is paying off for us all. But really thank the super smart people who developed the technologies before Covid 19 was known. This is not often recognized.

Somewhere to the south of us 500,000+ casualties seem to be being ignored. Picture not as clear or clean as presented.

Hospitalizations are a lagging indicator so maybe a bit soon to be cheering. I certainly hope it is justified but I see total cases for the US to be bending upwards. Hope these are the old type of cases not significantly the UK or Brazilian variants as these are different. Ontario and BC certainly  understand that well.

 

 

[HappyInVan]

Success depends on the ability to meet the challenges of tomorrow.

 

Finally, Boris Johnson is trying to get ahead of the curve....

 

"British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday everyone in England will be able to take a COVID-19 test twice a week in a new drive to track the pandemic as society reopens and the vaccine rollout continues at its rapid rate..."

 

https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/uks-johnson-launches-mass-testing-programme-as-economy-reopens-2021-04-05

 

"Too soon to say if Britons can take summer holiday abroad, says UK's Johnson"

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-britain/uks-johnson-launches-mass-testing-programme-as-economy-reopens-idUSKBN2BR0QW

 

IMHO, the UK can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Debbie asks, “When will the States reach this level of enlightenment?”

 

 

Edited April 8, 2021 by HappyInVan

[bcummin]

Nice chart, Hank.  So why is Washington State seeing a rise in COVID in spite of high vaccination rates?

Barbara

[KroozNut]

13 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Because other times that victory has seemed to be imminent, premature loosening of restrictions has led to surges.

 

That may be true in NY, but where else in the U.S. has this happened?

[KroozNut]

11 hours ago, KirkNC said:

We just need another 6-8 weeks and it will be much safer. 

 

Remember back about a year when they said that 'we just need two weeks to flatten the curve'? Well that two weeks quickly evolved into months, and now more than a year. But we keep hearing that we only need a little more time and all will be better.

Nonsense... we need to quit kicking the can down the road and open this country back up now! 

[Lido - Lanai]

29 minutes ago, HappyInVan said:

Only items available for sale is food, medicine and gardening supplies

I trust that also includes feed for the sheep ??

[anniegb]

6 hours ago, HappyInVan said:

Success depends on the ability to meet the challenges of tomorrow.

 

Finally, Boris Johnson is trying to get ahead of the curve....

 

"British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday everyone in England will be able to take a COVID-19 test twice a week in a new drive to track the pandemic as society reopens and the vaccine rollout continues at its rapid rate..."

 

https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/uks-johnson-launches-mass-testing-programme-as-economy-reopens-2021-04-05

 

"Too soon to say if Britons can take summer holiday abroad, says UK's Johnson"

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-britain/uks-johnson-launches-mass-testing-programme-as-economy-reopens-idUSKBN2BR0QW

 

IMHO, the UK can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Debbie asks, “When will the States reach this level of enlightenment?”

 

 

JMO as a UK resident, rapid flow tests are only being offered to mask the incompetence of the ''world beating'  privatised track and trace system in the UK (Churchill family connection which is printing money on the back of it ). The 4 countries of the UK have different policies on these tests.

 

My family scientific boffins are unconvinced of the accuracy of these tests and false negative results could give rise to a false sense of complacency.

 

These rapid flow tests are not mandatory.

 

As the country which discovered the B117 variant first, we have porous borders.  Oh how I wish our leaders had the guts of the Australian and NZ leaders.

 

Annie

 

 

 

 

 

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

The most significant post in these most recent ones, in my opinion, is the one concerning the statement by the President of Carnival Cruise Lines.  They are the "big dog" in this fight as to what cruising from the United States ports will look like.  

 

If they pick up "their marbles" along with those of RCI and NCL and depart American ports, there is going to be repercussions by them doing so.  The politicians of whatever Party may well experience the wrath of their constituents whose jobs in the hospitality/cruise industry will have been permanently lost.  

Your post presumes that the general population will be affected by this. I think that is hardly the case. What percentage of the population is interested in cruises? These boards are hardly a random sample of the population at large.

[jimmy2x]

I liked the Cruise Critic boards a lot more when nobody discussed politics. It’s appalling.  Do you do this with real people that you meet on a cruise?  

[Crazy For Cats]

14 minutes ago, jimmy2x said:

I liked the Cruise Critic boards a lot more when nobody discussed politics. It’s appalling.  Do you do this with real people that you meet on a cruise?  

I liked it better when life wasn’t so political. 

[T8NCruise]

9 hours ago, KroozNut said:

 

Remember back about a year when they said that 'we just need two weeks to flatten the curve'? Well that two weeks quickly evolved into months, and now more than a year. But we keep hearing that we only need a little more time and all will be better.

Nonsense... we need to quit kicking the can down the road and open this country back up now! 

Don't you even wonder why Australia and New Zealand have done so well with their lockdowns?  

[HappyInVan]

6 hours ago, Lido - Lanai said:

I trust that also includes feed for the sheep ??

... and turnip for the Donkeys!! 😆

 

1 hour ago, T8NCruise said:

Don't you even wonder why Australia and New Zealand have done so well with their lockdowns?  

 

Yes, its amazing. It's a fact that NZ has not had a domestic case in 40 days! It must be significant that 23 cases were identified at the border in a single day, with one border worker infected.

 

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/zealand-suspends-entry-india-due-053953436.html

 

IMO, North America is in trouble because of the superspreader states. When will the border ever reopen?

 

Here's some good news. Aussies and Kiwi are forming a travel bubble, effective April 19. No quarantine hotels. Heavy bookings. Great for their tourist industries. Let wish them all the best.

 

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/new-zealand-and-australia-travel-bubble-to-begin-on-april-19-prime-minister-jacinda-ardern-air-nz-run-off-our-feet/CE5FN7UHT23NEY2VVKQZWANFQI/

 

Cruising should be able to restart if the bubble holds. 👍

 

 

[AncientWanderer]

It baffles me when people compare the U.S. to Australia or New Zealand.  The geographic layout, population densities, and amount of commerce of those places are just entirely different than the U.S.    

Having traveled throughout all three of these countries, I just scratch my head when I hear the comparison.  I really don't get it.

[rkacruiser]

11 hours ago, jimmy2x said:

I liked the Cruise Critic boards a lot more when nobody discussed politics. It’s appalling.  Do you do this with real people that you meet on a cruise?  

 

Raising political issues with fellow Americans on a cruise?  No.  Not a wise thing to do.  But, I have cannot count the number of times over my cruising career when citizens of other countries have asked me:  "what were you Americans thinking of when you "did this or that" or "elected whomever".

 

11 hours ago, Crazy For Cats said:

I liked it better when life wasn’t so political. 

 

Please cite the time in American history when life was not so political.  

 

It is because of the advances in our media that we have become more politically aware more quickly than once was possible.  

[nocl]

10 hours ago, T8NCruise said:

Don't you even wonder why Australia and New Zealand have done so well with their lockdowns?  

Largely because they have very tight controls on their boarder (being islands help).  They have very aggressive contact tracing and have the capacity to track down those that are identified during the contact tracing.

 

So to put it simply

 

1. isolated

2. relatively few cases

3 aggressive contact tracing with sufficient capacity to complete very quickly (in hours)

 

That all leads to 

 

4. Strong lock downs when there is any sign of community spread to keep the problem local.

[T8NCruise]

12 minutes ago, nocl said:

Largely because they have very tight controls on their boarder (being islands help).  They have very aggressive contact tracing and have the capacity to track down those that are identified during the contact tracing.

 

So to put it simply

 

1. isolated

2. relatively few cases

3 aggressive contact tracing with sufficient capacity to complete very quickly (in hours)

 

That all leads to 

 

4. Strong lock downs when there is any sign of community spread to keep the problem local.

Exactly!  It works.

[lyndarra]

10 hours ago, nocl said:

Largely because they have very tight controls on their boarder (being islands help).  They have very aggressive contact tracing and have the capacity to track down those that are identified during the contact tracing.

 

So to put it simply

 

1. isolated

2. relatively few cases

3 aggressive contact tracing with sufficient capacity to complete very quickly (in hours)

 

That all leads to 

 

4. Strong lock downs when there is any sign of community spread to keep the problem local.

5. A mindset to put aside political differences and get on with the job for the good of the country and it citizens.

[kangforpres]

Just got my 2nd Pfizer shot this morning! However it's hard to be that happy with the vaccine progress in the U.S. when we had $81k new cases yesterday. Also situations are really bad in Brazil, India, parts of Europe and Canada.

 

I know NCL and other line are giving a lot of cruisers hope with their July 4 plans, but I'm not sure if that is gonna happen as planned.

 

-Paul

 

 

[Crazy For Cats]

19 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Raising political issues with fellow Americans on a cruise?  No.  Not a wise thing to do.  But, I have cannot count the number of times over my cruising career when citizens of other countries have asked me:  "what were you Americans thinking of when you "did this or that" or "elected whomever".

 

 

Please cite the time in American history when life was not so political.  

 

It is because of the advances in our media that we have become more politically aware more quickly than once was possible.  

I can only refer to my experiences.  Twenty years ago I could discuss political views with people on the opposing side.  Very often when talking we would agree on the end result just disagree on the path to get to the desired result.  Friendships remained intact.  In recent years I have seen family members disagree and cut off ties to each other.  I have recently lost “friends “ because I didn’t think the way they did on a given topic.  
If we can’t have the discussion nothing will get better.  We shouldn’t fear reprisals for beliefs, what beverage we drink, where we visit, how we spend our free time and money.

[nocl]

57 minutes ago, Crazy For Cats said:

I can only refer to my experiences.  Twenty years ago I could discuss political views with people on the opposing side.  Very often when talking we would agree on the end result just disagree on the path to get to the desired result.  Friendships remained intact.  In recent years I have seen family members disagree and cut off ties to each other.  I have recently lost “friends “ because I didn’t think the way they did on a given topic.  
If we can’t have the discussion nothing will get better.  We shouldn’t fear reprisals for beliefs, what beverage we drink, where we visit, how we spend our free time and money.

Largely because 20 years ago before the mass media explosion there were limited people for discussions.  Those on the fringe were in disagreement with many in their community and the trend was more for the middle.  Now no matter how far to the extremes one goes they can find plenty of people to agree with them on social media.  So their views must be correct.

[KirkNC]

5 minutes ago, nocl said:

Largely because 20 years ago before the mass media explosion there were limited people for discussions.  Those on the fringe were in disagreement with many in their community and the trend was more for the middle.  Now no matter how far to the extremes one goes they can find plenty of people to agree with them on social media.  So their views must be correct.

One of the worst things to happen over the last twenty years or so is the 24 hour news cycle and dozens of 24 hour news stations.  They need to fill the airwaves with something.  About the only thing they agree on is that their news is “breaking”.

[rkacruiser]

4 hours ago, Crazy For Cats said:

If we can’t have the discussion nothing will get better.

 

What discussions must have taken place when the Confederation of the United States came into existence?  Those discussions seemed to lead to the creation of our Constitution.  

 

Civil, reasoned discussion is what is lacking today.  

 

The post that follows to this comment offers a reason as I post that I will then make following it.

 

I submit that one of the major reason we are in the polarized--"I am right and you are wrong"--discussions of today is the failure for generations of our current citizens being poorly educated in the areas of world history, American history, and Civics.  The learning of critical thinking skills has been lost because "the need for kids to pass a test".  Emphasizing STEM is worthy in today's technological world.  But, what has been lost is a properly educated citizenry in the liberal arts.  

 

As a country, we like to "think" that we believe in equality.  Once again--as it has happened since the 19th Century and many times afterwards--as a country we keep demonstrating that the word "equality" is a concept, but not one in which many of our countrymen really accept.  

 

You are "Red"; I am "Blue".  I like a Big Mac.  You prefer a Rib Eye.  My God's name is different than your God's name.  What the difference does it make?  I inhale the same oxygen that you do that may have been made by some plant during the era of the dinosaurs.  

 

Our thinking today about the Covid pandemic continues to be "small thinking" as it has been for too long about many issues.  At least, during my lifetime.

 

 

 

3 hours ago, KirkNC said:

One of the worst things to happen over the last twenty years or so is the 24 hour news cycle and dozens of 24 hour news stations.

 

May I suggest the advent of many forms of social media is responsible as well?  

[Gracie115]

On 4/8/2021 at 7:47 PM, rkacruiser said:

It is because of the advances in our media that we have become more politically aware more quickly than once was possible.  

 

Boy is this ever true...although "advances" might not be the word I use....something more along the lines of "invasion" works for me.  The 24 hour news cycle begun by CNN has NOT been a good thing for the nation or the world IMHO.