…I know they were about something else but there’s a couple of eminem tunes that seem like they might be begging for a corona-virus re-write…like this one
…but it seems indecently clear that stay-safe-at-home vs fend-for-yourself-out-there is choice a certain someone only sees in terms that involve dollars…because only an idiot looking to shirk responsibility…one working from a position of such aggravated ignorance as ought to be literally impossible for a literate individual in his position…could possibly look at the current situation & declare that we could do without the whole social distancing thing
…& not to go completely off the rails first thing in the morning…but…motherfucking what?
…for real?
…you’re going to stand there & say that shit because you’re that fucking terrified by the prospect of a population figuring out that what going all out trying to save as many of their lives as possible right now might actually look like?
…could it be that it wouldn’t look like any part of anything you fucking stand for?
…could it be that it might look a whole hell of a lot like the exact fucking opposite?
…could it mean suspending the agreement that the natural order of human society is dictated to us by the abstract concept that we so consistently & desperately assert is the immutable bottom line of cold, hard cash?
…that if you stop & think about it from what is essentially the opposite direction & think about a universal threat that respects no division of race, gender, creed or wealth & against which it is not possible to protect a sub-section of humanity while leaving the rest to fend for themselves on account of it being a fucking virus that shit starts to make all kind of core GOP bullshit look kinda shaky & one or two left-wing pipe-dreams look attractive…universal kinds of things…like healthcare & basic income
[…yes, I know she’s a scottish lady…but I’ve known a few of those…& just the thought of some of them getting to debate this shit with some of these slackjawed GOP cretins fills me with an almost indescribable emotion I believe we used to call unalloyed joy…either way, the point remains the same]
…& I know a month ago is like talking about the Pleistocene era or some shit but
…because for fucks sake, people…I don’t love being out here day after day sounding like the voice of fucking doom giving it the full misanthropic chorus on the latest round of here’s-what-some-fucking-asshole-with-no-clue-did-today but for the love of all that is or ever might be holy these fucking idiots are out there killing people with raw fucking stupidity & apparently it’s not ok for me to think about imposing social distancing with an actual pikestaff…or a pitchfork
…but if you’re looking at holding a seat in a Congress that recently said this
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/reversing-course-house-won-t-return-d-c-next-week-n1194316
…& you say this
…then fuck you, pitchforks are appropriate…or one of those rails they used to run you out of town on…tar & feathers optional
…sorry…I generally err on the side of filling these with links & less of my own personal bullshit but goddamn it I barely woke up & I’m so fucking angry I may skip the coffee in favor of coating the top of my head in fire-retardant foam
…I wish from the bottomless depths of the flaming gouts of rage coursing through every fiber of my being that it were possible to truly drive home to these godless fucking sacks of literal scum the full measure of suffering their actions will cause by inflicting each & every part of it upon them personally in your classic reap the whirlwind scenario
…but. it. is. a. fucking. virus.
…so I have to root for the shit that stops even people like the orange-shellacked shitstain & his roving band of sycophantic viral vectors from catching that shit
…but if I believed in a particular deity right about now I imagine they’d be pretty busy listening to what must be a fucking torrent of appeals from their believers so maybe they wouldn’t have time to answer impertinent questions from mere mortals like myself
…if they did, though…me & them might need to have a few words
[…sorry about the block of WaPo links & all…other news outlets are available but those were the links I had to hand]
…hell, I can’t even remember at this point if I already threw these ones around but if I didn’t I should’ve & if I did then damn it I think it might be worth saying again
…none
…of
…this
…shit
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/04/28/meat-industry-supply-chain-faq/
…is
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/apr/29/the-ugly-truth-behind-the-rise-of-kim-yo-jong
…fucking
…ok
…so I ain’t even going to start on why when you’re looking to replace an elderly white man with a severe case of over-privilege & a marked lack of evidence that he has anything much going on upstairs but a worryingly consistent trail of allegations coming from women of his acquaintance…it might be a good idea not pick your candidate by checking off every goddamn box on that fucking list…but jesus wept…& I’m beginning to see why
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/29/fox-news-trump-democratic-talking-points
…still, at least this sounds like it might one day turn into some actual good news?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/29/remdesivir-coronavirus-drug-experimental
I guess I picked the wrong day to quit huffing glue in the morning.
(Lloyd Bridges gif)
I’ve got friends in my timeline mad at the Governor for doing a phased opening rather than advising higher-risk people to stay inside and “letting the rest of us go out and make a living.” I wish more of them would get mad at an economic system that purposely keeps them in a position where they can’t afford to miss more than a month of work.
I’m seeing more and more proposals about that two-tiered approach. Basically telling high-risk people to stay home so everyone else can get out. Problem is, 23% of the population here in Florida is over 60, so that’s at least one-fifth of the state classified as high-risk. Probably closer to 25% or 30% if you add in all the other high-risk categories. So how is that going to work? Fred, who’s 65, can’t go to work while Sally, who’s 55 can? Who will pay Fred’s bills? How’s Fred going to feel about all this, particularly when election time rolls around and he’s bankrupt?
I’ve already seen it at my wife’s job. They divided the employees into two categories, at-risk and not. Some of the “nots” have been allowed to come back to work, but the at-risk are being told to stay home and use their leave time. So part of the staff is getting stripped of available leave time based on health and age. You think there will be lawsuits? I certainly do.
And on the Biden front, I’m already seeing the beginnings of the right pushing the sexual assault narrative, without a hint of irony, and with the obligatory refernces to the left’s “hypocrisy.” I even saw a smug reference to “whataboutism” in comparing Biden’s accusations to Trump’s. To which I say, if you are going to make me choose between two sexual predators, then voting the lesser of two evils is still voting for less evil.
I’ve been trying to write about the Joe Biden thing for the better part of a week and for the life of me I don’t think I can put into words the shitty way I feel about trying to balance my wanting to believe people who come forward with sexual assault allegations and my deep, unrelenting desire for Trump to be as far removed from the White House as humanly possible.
Some of the folks I follow (and respect) on Twitter have been talking about this, too.
A couple are survivors of sexual assault themselves, and *they* have been talking about how YES, they DO believe her.
And YES Biden is a on absolute horse-shit choice–one of them literally said she loathes Tulsi, and TULSI would be a better choice.
But they also explain that, realistically, it’s down to Joe or Trump, and out of those two SHITTY options, the one where the least amount of people end up harmed, or DEAD, in the end, is Biden.
Because while, YES, Biden is a terrible option, Trump is *that* sort of terrible, PLUS worse…
And they’ve been saying that, while this IS re-traumatizing to them in some ways, they feel like the damage Trump would do to *everyone,* makes them feel like–to do the best they can in a horseshit situation–they’ll be pulling themselves together, holding their noses, choking back their gags, and voting blue, because so many lives literally depend on trump *not* getting 4 more years.
I’m not a Biden fan & don’t like to judge possible victims credibility but Tara Reade doesn’t seem like the most credible source.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/30/1941560/-Veteran-federal-prosecutor-dismantles-piece-by-piece-the-Reade-Biden-accusations-in-USA-Today?utm_campaign=trending
If it is true, I’m still stuck with the lesser of two evils thing too. We all know Trump has done this to countless women and even admitted it. 4 more years of this shit & we will be begging for aid from Somalia.
I think that’s what I keep coming back to; a desire to believe Tara Reade wouldn’t lie about something this serious, while also knowing her somewhat sketchy history, while also also knowing that having a sketchy history doesn’t mean what she’s saying isn’t true, while also also also knowing that come hell or high water, I’m still gonna vote for Joe Biden in November.
It’s thrown all my fucking morals in a blender.
I don’t know if there’s something I’m not understanding.
Primarily, I understand that the virus really can’t be stopped until we have a vaccine, that we can’t really be “locked down” forever, and that 2k people are dying each day and new infections have not decreased.
What I’m not understanding, so someone explain, is why we’re “opening” the country now? I know the answer is money, but really, is there something my dumb dumb brain is not getting?
I live in Florida and the governor determined we can do a soft opening and literally said that if the counties choose something else they’re ignoring “medical advice” and that it’s the media’s fault that people won’t be out shopping because they’ve hyped the fear. Again, dumb dumb brain seems to remember this virus ravages people in mild cases, children aren’t immune to the virus, and many deaths are in people 45-55.
The governor keeps saying it was New York people who hecked it up for South Florida. But guess who left us open for Spring Break? He says that New York State has suffered because at many church gatherings the virus spread. Guess who never made churches here shut down?
I don’t think the average person is clambering to sit in a restaurant right now. This soft opening says restaurants can have a 25% capacity. In most cases, that’s a gathering of more than ten people.
I don’t know, I’m dumb, but I’m pretty sure in the US there will be a second wave in July and no one will take responsibility.
You aren’t misunderstanding anything – I think you just weren’t on the Republican Talking Points email.
I think the point here is that your governor is a goof and he’s gonna get lots of people killed. You are not going crazy, he’s just a callous bastard with no regard for human life or suffering.
You’ve hit on a really BIG problem with “reopening” the country. Republicans, Trump, DeSantis, all of them seem to believe that all you have to do is say “We’re open!” and restaurants and Disney World will fill right back up. Because they think there’s this pent-up demand that will immediately put the country right back on track.
As columnist Leonard Pitts pointed out this week, saying “We’re open” don’t mean shit (I’m paraphrasing). NOBODY can “open” until consumers decide they are ready to come back. It doesn’t matter what the Orange Imbecile declares, or DeSantis says, or anything else. I get to decide when I’m going back to Disney World or when I’m willing to sit in a restaurant. And guess what? A LOT of people are going to say, “No, I’m good” until they have sufficient reason to believe they’re safe.
I had this conversation with my boss yesterday. We do training seminars, and they WILL NOT snap right back because some idiot politician says “okay, go.” We are looking at at LEAST a year to rebuild business back to its January levels, and maybe it will never come back the way it was before.
I’m sure there will be a handful of people who go “yeehaw! Time to slobber all over this restaurant!” but this will surely lead to MORE permanent closures of businesses.
For the most part, take out was becoming the norm before this. And maybe, just maybe, the US needs to diversify its’ economy if wiping out the service industry puts so many billionaires on the edge of not getting a bonus.
When it comes to Disney, and Orange County in general, there’s no way they’re opening under people capacity limits. Even though the people on the TV are talking about the theme parks opening with increased janitorial I just don’t see it. So what if we get the infection under control? All it takes is a handful of tourists who are ill setting us back to square one.
And as for all of the office workers, call centers in the like, those offices aren’t going to open in the near future, at least I hope not. Call centers are packed to the gills on purpose and people get each other sick in regular times.
On top of all of this, if unemployment is 30% all of those boom time indulgences will dry up. Less eating out, less travel, less of everything. So that’s why the US government needs to begin UBI if it wants to stop the Great Depression II: Bigger, Longer, Stupider.
You’re not dumb, AND it’s literally all about the $$$.
In the states that are “allowing” (DEMANDING🤨😠🤬) “soft openings,” when you look at the unemployment stats, they are HEMORRHAGING money… in Florida, where the system was *specifically* set up by Rick Scott to be entirely broken, and allow as few people as possible to draw benes, 266,000, or 40% of applicants have been told they are ineligible… and the state caps benes at $275.00/wk.
They’ve ALREADY spent $553 *Million* as of this past Tuesday, on 404,000 claims, but there are more than “853,000 unique unemployment claims”asof that same day…
https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/04/29/florida-deo-limits-number-of-people-able-to-access-connect-unemployment-site/
Link #2:https://www.wesh.com/article/did-a-mistake-lead-to-40-of-floridas-unemployment-applicants-being-deemed-ineligible/32320077
And in a state like FL (and, let’s be REAL here, MANY red states!), that *doesn’t* collect income taxes, but rather, relies on *sales tax* to make up most of their budgetary $$, NOT having that sales tax revenue coming in, while simultaneously having half a billion a week outflowing,means their budget would be blown ALL to hell, within a month–because most states can’t legally run a deficit…
THIS is why so many red states are pushing so hard to give people “the freedom to *choose* whether they go back to work, or not”–with Iowa’s shitty Gov, (and Texas’ following in close goose-step!🤬🤬🤬), saying that a refusal to work over fears of being infected will be considered a “voluntary quit, rendering the person ineligible for benes:
http://www.kmaland.com/news/iowa-govt-refusing-to-return-to-work-during-crisis-voids-benefits/article_b73782a8-8af6-11ea-8d2d-774f0444ea0a.html
https://www.businessinsider.com/iowa-tells-workers-return-to-work-or-lose-unemployment-benefits-2020-4
Basically, if these states require people to stay home, then they have to admit later on, that the ways they budget their state governments are fucked up. So… they’re trying to force people back to work & *off* the unemployment rolls, so that the budget doesn’t irreparably implode, and *they* don’t lose office, once people realize how badly things have been fucked…
Plus, there’s *also* the fact, that PLENTY of big $$$ donors want their employees to get back to making $$$ for them,so that’s yet ANOTHER reason to push for re-opening.
Yet another reminder, that “The Pro-Life Party” is *really* just the Pro-Forced-Birth party, and that they don’t give a rat’s ASS about lives, once they’re actually being lived…
I know some people who would love the idea of going back to work for two hours for the sole purpose of getting fired.
…I want there to be something we’re not understanding…but I’m afraid we may know all too well the logic at work?
…working backward from any projection that gives Dolt45 a passing grade from the electoral college & predicating literally everything else on that being the only thing that matters…& then reverse engineer who needs to say what to get your narrative line front & center in the places you need it to drown out all sense & reason
…so long as the votes you kill off shake out such that blue states lose blue more than red states lose red they could care less because they come out ahead
…it’s not like they give a shit about the people that do vote for them…so the ones that don’t are less than nothing to them
…that’s the reality they live in, apparently
Additional info regarding coordination in the R-party of Louisiana, to frame the shutdown as an *economic* issue, rather than a health & safety issue:
Something to…. brighten everyone’s day?😉 (TW’s,of course, for suicide, and Hitler!)