Tuesday, April 21, 2020

The State of Things (Media Version)

Sometimes, in a crisis, you just need to stop and reflect on where things stand. Fortunately, we have quality news sources like the Daily Mail, Drudge and a whole lot of leftist blogs masquerading as legitimate media to inform us. So where are we?

There are so many bodies they are out of body bags and are wrapping them in sheets and leaving them on loading docks so people can STACK them in pickup trucks and bury them in MASS graves!

Everyone in Italy is dead. Everyone. We can’t verify this yet because they all died at home and their relatives lived with the bodies for days until they died too, but EVERYONE.

Healthcare workers are killing themselves because they can’t handle the horror.

RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!! RACISM!!

Trump cut the pay of all healthcare workers.

Trump stopped funding for a cure.

Trump gave all of our medical supplies to China, then refused to send any to Canada, stole some from Germany, sent none to states and those he did send were defective. All our hospitals are overwhelmed!! There are people lying in the hallways DYING!

Trump contaminated the CDC.

Trump is pushing dangerous drugs because he’s an investor. Those drugs have horrible side effects and kill people. Also, doctors are using these drugs and Trump touting them created a shortage and caused two hillbillies to DIE!!

Trump sent his son to interfere with the doctors seeking a cure.

Everywhere is a hot spot!

All the police in New York City are DEAD!

Everyone in the world lost their jobs and those will never come back. Capitalism has collapsed. There are shortages of everything and those things will never return. The grocery stores are empty and people fight over scraps.

Rats are eating each other in the streets.

The US navy has withdrawn from the Pacific and will never return. China now has a free hand. China is the new super power. All hail China.

Grocery store employees and Amazon employees are literally dying on the job.

The death rate for VIRUS could be as high as 10% or higher! And double that among black people! All of you black people will die! Be afraid!!

Up to 50 million people could be affected in the US and not even know it!

VIRUS causes permanent lung damage, permanent brain damage, makes your testicles fall off, and gives you sores all over your toes... from your testicles landing on them. Young people are particularly vulnerable, as are old people and healthy middle age people.

Repent!
Maybe things will be better next week?

21 comments:

AndrewPrice said...

Feel free to add anything I missed.

tryanmax said...

I would like to think I'm crazy, but these three indisputable facts don't fall together in any pleasant way:

1. Democrats routinely accuse Republicans of things they do themselves.
2. Democrats routinely accuse Republicans of allowing Americans to die to maintain power.
3. Democrats encouraged their constituents to go out to bars, restaurants, movies, stores and Chinatowns at the same time they were delaying the first COVID-19 relief bill.

I'm going to go chant Hanlon's razor to myself, now.

Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.
Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.
Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.
Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.
Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.

AndrewPrice said...

Amazon update. The protest happened. It is claimed to be 350 employees, though Amazon disputes this. The media is deceptively using headlines like: "Amazon workers stage largest protest". Sounds ominous until your realize it's only 350 people, some of whom apparently are already staying home without pay.

AndrewPrice said...

tryanmax, That's because smearing is all the left has left. They lost their ideas when the Soviet Union fell and China went capitalist and they turned to whining.

As for the media, I think this just shows how far gone they are. They are a joke. "Sensationalize" doesn't even cover it anymore... fantasize is more like it.

tryanmax said...

The Amazon protest is across “over 50 locations.” That averages to less than 7 employees per location. I’m sure amazon is suffering.

Pittsburgh Enigma said...

Bill Maher recently called the media coverage "panic porn". I thought that was very appropriate.

I've also seen a narrative trending recently that supermarkets ought to be completely closed to customers (as in they can't come inside anymore) and that all business move to pick-up and delivery. This kind of constant fear-mongering is really depressing me. Every day the idea of what the "new normal" will be becomes worse.

AndrewPrice said...

Great point!

The two articles I've seen on it, both of which bury Amazon's response until waaaaaaay late in the article, make it clear that this is being organized by people who are not currently working there. This is coming from several people who have decided to stay home, at least two of which tried to organize prior protests before VIRUS.

In fact, one article tried to present this as the latest in a "series of worker protests related to the coronavirus," but when you dug through what they mentioned, it was all Amazon-based or "Whole Foods" (which is Amazon), and the protests went back six months and were mainly all in NYC over one specific location.

AndrewPrice said...

Hi Pitts!

I thought that was great what Maher said. He was spot on. But the left isn't listening... they attacked him as a denier.

I've seen that about grocery stores. What a mess that would be!

In terms of being depressed, I get it. Trust me. Every time I look at the news it's another doomsdayist talking about the new normal and from now on we will never ___ again. The thing to remember is that none of that is true. The "new normal" isn't even true right now. When this is over, almost everything will return to normal for society.

AndrewPrice said...

Seriously, everyone needs to realize:

1. The news coverage is intentionally misleading you to scare you to keep you reading;

2. The new normal crap is being pushed by people who make money pushing worst case scenarios or who are trying to exploit this to push their pet peeves onto society;

3. BUT people are keeping their good humor and little of the lockdowns is actually real; and

4. When this is over, humans will do what they always do: party, go back to their bad habits, and forget everything.

It's who we are.

ArgentGale said...

Sounds about right to me, Andrew. They've definitely been ramping up the fearmongering, especially with restrictions in some areas easing up, and of course they're attacking the protestors against the lockdowns with their usual bile and smears. It really is exasperating. Thanks as always for the reminders, humor, and sanity here, Andrew. It's done more to help me keep it together than you know and I'm sure I'm not the only reader who feels this way. And while it's more appropriate on the previous post looking forward to your article on the good, bad, and ugly corporate conduct (and curious as to what Disney did to merit a mention).

AndrewPrice said...

Daniel,

I'm glad I can help! I'm hoping everyone can stay sane and relatively happy. Things really are not as bad as they seem, and I think a lot of people are being super irresponsible right now.

I'll talk about Disney in my "shame" article. By my way of thinking, they are acting disgracefully and should be legally punished. Basically, they are laying off a lot of people to save money (and dumping them on the government) and then issuing a dividend in July which would more than cover the costs of keeping those people.

ArgentGale said...

That's vile of Disney, Andrew, and I hope it comes back to haunt them. On the media the second wave of the Kung Flu seems to be the big thing now and people are getting scared again. Any thoughts on this?

AndrewPrice said...

Daniel, I don't see a conspiracy this, so don't think that. I think what you are seeing is a media that is in a scaremongering frenzy and this is just the obvious next step. So they're running with it.


In terms of the second wave.. duh. That was always coming. There should be no surprise. "Flatting the curve" only puts off the inevitable so people have time to try to adjust. Unfortunately, it has been sold as a cure when it really isn't. It's just about slowing things down and giving doctors a chance to learn to treat, scientists a chance to cure, and the public a chance to learn safety.

Do NOT run right out and assume everything is safe.

In fact, if the governors are smart, they will reopen with all kinds of instructions and restrictions. And I would not look for certain things to reopen - like theme parks. I'd avoid hotels and crowds too.

Tennessee Jed said...

Covid-19 causes “mysterious” blood clotting deaths according to anecdotal and unverified reports. Be afraid, be very afraid. Get back under your beds with triple masks and butt plugs!!!

tryanmax said...

Speaking of anecdotal evidence, I find it interesting that the press dismissed hydroxychloroquine because the evidence for it is, so far, anecdotal. But yesterday, news was all over the place of a small, unreviewed (read: anecdotal) study that says HCQ doesn't work. Funny how that happens.

FWIW, the study was of some 300-odd patients at the VA. I understand some changes have been made at the VA, but it's still the VA. Of the veterans I know, any that have options besides the VA take them. And those without options, let's just say life has been hard on them and they're not the most likely candidates to survive even the regular flu.

AndrewPrice said...

You don't sound sufficiently terrified, Jed. You're not a denier are you?

AndrewPrice said...

tryamax, That's not surprising. Any hint, no matter how ephemeral, that Trump is wrong/evil is TRUTH. Proof that he might be right must be examined a thousand ways and torn up at all levels.

ArgentGale said...

I thought it was just the natural progression of things as well and didn't mean to imply any conspiracy. I was more curious about your thoughts on the fear I was seeing and that does make sense and goes with a lot of other things I've read about the second wave. Flattening the curve really was oversold like you said so that explains things too. As far as our reopenings go we do have both of those with distancing in workstations for nail and hair salons and staggered shifts to minimize contact. Not sure what restaurants are going to look like, though since the owner of my favorite downtown place usually works Thursday evenings I can ask him (or whichever manager is on duty) about them when I get my usual takeout tomorrow. The way people are reacting you'd think we completely threw open the gates when we didn't, though. What a mess, huh?

AndrewPrice said...

Hi Daniel, Sorry, I wasn't suggesting you were being conspiratorial. I just wanted to make it clear that I wasn't suggesting a conspiracy. So many people are getting conspiratorial these days that I think it's important to point out.

I'm not sure what restaurants will do yet. They may need to block off lots of tables to create 6 foot zones. It might make sense to study Sweden actually.

All told, I think Georgia is making a big mistake, but we'll see. I don't see the public as ready to open up yet and I think the blowback is going to be outsized. Every death will now be blamed on conservatives.

ArgentGale said...

I've heard similar things, Andrew, and it is worrisome. If the rules imposed are followed things should be manageable and a lot of people are still not sure about going out. Still, as often as things go wrong these days...

Tennessee Jed said...

As you say, I definitely take it seriously. In my 70’s, respiratory disease, and Crohn’s on immuno-supressants. Still, the guy I think said it best is Ben Carson, a brilliant neuron-surgeon. This is not verbatim but essentially Americans are smart, cooperative, and patient, but they realize the whole country is not the same. When your livelihood is taken away with sometimes irrational lock down decisions, people are no longer going to idly sit by. If taking the subway is essential but having an in car church service is a crime .... WTF

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