Coronavirus pandemic

[Revive 755]

I haven't dug into the details of the mandatory lockdowns in all of the states that have them, but Illinois' specifically protects outdoor recreation (walking, hiking, biking, etc.) as an "essential activity" so long as social distancing is observed.

Yet Illinois closed all the state parks IIRC.

[kalvado]

I haven't dug into the details of the mandatory lockdowns in all of the states that have them, but Illinois' specifically protects outdoor recreation (walking, hiking, biking, etc.) as an "essential activity" so long as social distancing is observed.

Yet Illinois closed all the state parks IIRC.

Can be staffing thing. Can a state park be legally open without bunch of people on site?
Here in NY, fee collecting attendant is the minimum requirement...

[RobbieL2415]

I don't like the idea of saying, "well, Country X has Y confirmed cases and Z deaths which is more than Country A so clearly Country X doesn't give a shit".

[ixnay]

In regards to the Bay Area that was reaching unsustainable level anyways giving the skyrocketing home prices and urban sprawl to San Juan County.

San Juan County, California?  There is none such.

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

ixnay

[Max Rockatansky]

In regards to the Bay Area that was reaching unsustainable level anyways giving the skyrocketing home prices and urban sprawl to San Juan County.

San Juan County, California?  There is none such.

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

ixnay

Meant San Joaquin County in the context of Tracy and Stockton. 

[wxfree]

In road-related news, the Texas Transportation Commission meeting will be conducted electronically.  There will be a live stream and public comments will be taken by telephone.  Usually there's a video of the meetings, but since everyone will be in different places there will only be audio.

[US71]

Kansas City is going to mandatory "Stay at Home" beginning Tuesday.

Arkansas has shut down all dining rooms, but a lot of eateries are going to carry-out and delivery with restricted hours.

[fwydriver405]

NY Thruway has suspended cash collection indefinitely. For the record, I have been told the Maine Turnpike Authority will NOT be doing an AET measure at their toll facilities as of the posting of this message. I wonder how many other states will follow suit...

Emergency Toll Procedures - NY Thruway

For the safety of Thruway Authority personnel and the travelling public and out of an abundance of caution, emergency tolling procedures are in place for cash collection on the Thruway until further notice. Beginning March 22 at approximately 8 p.m., non-E-ZPass customers will not receive a toll ticket on entry, and will be asked to provide license plate information when they exit the Thruway, without paying cash. They will receive a bill in the mail approximately 30 days after travel which they can pay with credit card, through the steps below.

[D-Dey65]

Daily reminder that:

- Habeus corpus is still in effect
- Free movement is still allowed
- There has been no declaration of martial law.  Anywhere.  Period.

You will not get arrested for merely being out in public.  There's a lot of misinformation going around to the contrary.

The term being used here is "social pressure."   I find that amusing since I barely interact with anyone to begin.

Same here.  I give exactly zero fucks about social pressure.  The fewer people I have to deal with, the better.

I couldn't really care that much about social pressure either. But I'd like to be able to know that if I need to buy gas or food or whatever, that I can.

[hbelkins]

I'm sick of the China, Italy and 1918 comparisons. Just lock the topic

LGL322DL

Or just self-quarantine yourself from it.

[hbelkins]

I would be in favor of a permanent travel ban on China. I mean really what do you need them for anyways? They are not are friends they haven't been for a really long time.

Except for our trade dependence on them, the millions of people with family and friends on either side, the many businesses in the U.S. that have offices there, the U.S. tourism industry that relies on Chinese traffic, etc etc.

It's really stupid to put a permanent travel ban over a temporary problem. China's government is to blame for the severity of this outbreak, but it could have originated anywhere with human-animal interaction.

For your reference, government of United States of America is usually spelled "US government", not "China's government"

That's a rather dumb comment. I still think it's highly likely that China developed this as a biological weapon.

I would be in favor of making China pay for this in the form of wiping any debt we owe to the Bank of China off the books, declare it null and void, and refuse to pay back another dime that's owed to them for our national debt.

[Scott5114]

I would be in favor of a permanent travel ban on China. I mean really what do you need them for anyways? They are not are friends they haven't been for a really long time.

Except for our trade dependence on them, the millions of people with family and friends on either side, the many businesses in the U.S. that have offices there, the U.S. tourism industry that relies on Chinese traffic, etc etc.

It's really stupid to put a permanent travel ban over a temporary problem. China's government is to blame for the severity of this outbreak, but it could have originated anywhere with human-animal interaction.

For your reference, government of United States of America is usually spelled "US government", not "China's government"

That's a rather dumb comment. I still think it's highly likely that China developed this as a biological weapon.

I would be in favor of making China pay for this in the form of wiping any debt we owe to the Bank of China off the books, declare it null and void, and refuse to pay back another dime that's owed to them for our national debt.

What is your evidence for that?

[kalvado]

I would be in favor of a permanent travel ban on China. I mean really what do you need them for anyways? They are not are friends they haven't been for a really long time.

Except for our trade dependence on them, the millions of people with family and friends on either side, the many businesses in the U.S. that have offices there, the U.S. tourism industry that relies on Chinese traffic, etc etc.

It's really stupid to put a permanent travel ban over a temporary problem. China's government is to blame for the severity of this outbreak, but it could have originated anywhere with human-animal interaction.

For your reference, government of United States of America is usually spelled "US government", not "China's government"

That's a rather dumb comment. I still think it's highly likely that China developed this as a biological weapon.

I would be in favor of making China pay for this in the form of wiping any debt we owe to the Bank of China off the books, declare it null and void, and refuse to pay back another dime that's owed to them for our national debt.

What is your evidence for that?

Who cares about minor detail like evidence of us constitution? Just send B-52s!

[Scott5114]

Who cares about minor detail like evidence of us constitution? Just send B-52s!

I'm pretty sure the Love Shack is shut down as a non-essential business. Just as well, it's hard to socially distance in a Chrysler that seats about twenty.

[Max Rockatansky]

I would be in favor of a permanent travel ban on China. I mean really what do you need them for anyways? They are not are friends they haven't been for a really long time.

Except for our trade dependence on them, the millions of people with family and friends on either side, the many businesses in the U.S. that have offices there, the U.S. tourism industry that relies on Chinese traffic, etc etc.

It's really stupid to put a permanent travel ban over a temporary problem. China's government is to blame for the severity of this outbreak, but it could have originated anywhere with human-animal interaction.

For your reference, government of United States of America is usually spelled "US government", not "China's government"

That's a rather dumb comment. I still think it's highly likely that China developed this as a biological weapon.

I would be in favor of making China pay for this in the form of wiping any debt we owe to the Bank of China off the books, declare it null and void, and refuse to pay back another dime that's owed to them for our national debt.

What is your evidence for that?

That's part of the run of typical commentary that comes up whenever a pandemic strikes.  Some people in 2009 were saying the same thing with Swine Flu in regards to it being weaponized.  In comparison to Swine Flu it remains to be seen if COVID-19 will even come close or even pass it's mortality rate and infection rate.  There is zero evidence out there that supports any recent pandemic being a biological attack.  Things like the Anthrax letters post 9/11 were in some instances real but they didn't cause wipe spread disease. 

[MikeTheActuary]

NJ, in their order to close non-essential businesses, did say to go out for walks to get some exercise.  Apparently in some towns people are calling 911 simply because kids are playing together.  The police are trying to insist not to call 911 for that...if you have an issue with that and feel you must call someone, call the local non-emergency line.   Speaking of, in a newspaper article, the police were asked if they were going to stop people out between 8pm and 5am (the original quasi-curfew time).  Not only did they say they're not really going to stop motorists for driving during that time, most officers said they're not going to stop people for minor infractions - they want to stay away from us as much as possible themselves.

Driving from Memphis back to Hartford this past Sunday/Monday, one of the things I observed was a remarkable lack of speed traps.   I saw one Sunday morning outside Memphis, one Monday afternoon in Pennsylvania...and that was pretty much it.

[AlexandriaVA]

China will "pay for" COVID the same way that Mexico will "pay for" a border wall: it won't.

[kalvado]

NJ, in their order to close non-essential businesses, did say to go out for walks to get some exercise.  Apparently in some towns people are calling 911 simply because kids are playing together.  The police are trying to insist not to call 911 for that...if you have an issue with that and feel you must call someone, call the local non-emergency line.   Speaking of, in a newspaper article, the police were asked if they were going to stop people out between 8pm and 5am (the original quasi-curfew time).  Not only did they say they're not really going to stop motorists for driving during that time, most officers said they're not going to stop people for minor infractions - they want to stay away from us as much as possible themselves.

Driving from Memphis back to Hartford this past Sunday/Monday, one of the things I observed was a remarkable lack of speed traps.   I saw one Sunday morning outside Memphis, one Monday afternoon in Pennsylvania...and that was pretty much it.

And if you get pulled over, just give them a warning cough along with the license....

[Max Rockatansky]

NJ, in their order to close non-essential businesses, did say to go out for walks to get some exercise.  Apparently in some towns people are calling 911 simply because kids are playing together.  The police are trying to insist not to call 911 for that...if you have an issue with that and feel you must call someone, call the local non-emergency line.   Speaking of, in a newspaper article, the police were asked if they were going to stop people out between 8pm and 5am (the original quasi-curfew time).  Not only did they say they're not really going to stop motorists for driving during that time, most officers said they're not going to stop people for minor infractions - they want to stay away from us as much as possible themselves.

Driving from Memphis back to Hartford this past Sunday/Monday, one of the things I observed was a remarkable lack of speed traps.   I saw one Sunday morning outside Memphis, one Monday afternoon in Pennsylvania...and that was pretty much it.

And if you get pulled over, just give them a warning cough along with the license....

Regarding people calling 911 we had a neighbor threatening to do that with some kids playing in the park on a neighborhood app.  It got blasted hard by pretty much everyone else on the street and was taken down.  I think it was the same person who tried to call the police because my Mother-in-law hand her handicap tag truck out in front of the house for two days.

[MikeTheActuary]

NJ, in their order to close non-essential businesses, did say to go out for walks to get some exercise.  Apparently in some towns people are calling 911 simply because kids are playing together.  The police are trying to insist not to call 911 for that...if you have an issue with that and feel you must call someone, call the local non-emergency line.   Speaking of, in a newspaper article, the police were asked if they were going to stop people out between 8pm and 5am (the original quasi-curfew time).  Not only did they say they're not really going to stop motorists for driving during that time, most officers said they're not going to stop people for minor infractions - they want to stay away from us as much as possible themselves.

Driving from Memphis back to Hartford this past Sunday/Monday, one of the things I observed was a remarkable lack of speed traps.   I saw one Sunday morning outside Memphis, one Monday afternoon in Pennsylvania...and that was pretty much it.

And if you get pulled over, just give them a warning cough along with the license....

My wife and I both have pre-existing chronic coughs.   We couldn't decide whether a coughing fit if we were pulled over would get us free, or get us locked in quarantine. 

[fwydriver405]

NJ, in their order to close non-essential businesses, did say to go out for walks to get some exercise.  Apparently in some towns people are calling 911 simply because kids are playing together.  The police are trying to insist not to call 911 for that...if you have an issue with that and feel you must call someone, call the local non-emergency line.   Speaking of, in a newspaper article, the police were asked if they were going to stop people out between 8pm and 5am (the original quasi-curfew time).  Not only did they say they're not really going to stop motorists for driving during that time, most officers said they're not going to stop people for minor infractions - they want to stay away from us as much as possible themselves.

Driving from Memphis back to Hartford this past Sunday/Monday, one of the things I observed was a remarkable lack of speed traps.   I saw one Sunday morning outside Memphis, one Monday afternoon in Pennsylvania...and that was pretty much it.

On the contrary, when I went to grab my remaining items in Orono last Friday, there were a lot of Maine State Troopers patrolling I-295 and 95 between Brunswick and Bangor. Flow of traffic was mostly going 130-140+ km/h (80-87+ mph) and not one officer pulled anyone over... even saw one of their pickups as well. Freeway was mostly empty and most of the traffic was actually heading northbound, southbound was literally empty in some spots.

[Bruce]

A few cities here have closed their parks because of inappropriate social congregation...people can't follow suggestions, so sadly they have to ruin it for all of us.

[sprjus4]

NJ, in their order to close non-essential businesses, did say to go out for walks to get some exercise.  Apparently in some towns people are calling 911 simply because kids are playing together.  The police are trying to insist not to call 911 for that...if you have an issue with that and feel you must call someone, call the local non-emergency line.   Speaking of, in a newspaper article, the police were asked if they were going to stop people out between 8pm and 5am (the original quasi-curfew time).  Not only did they say they're not really going to stop motorists for driving during that time, most officers said they're not going to stop people for minor infractions - they want to stay away from us as much as possible themselves.

Driving from Memphis back to Hartford this past Sunday/Monday, one of the things I observed was a remarkable lack of speed traps.   I saw one Sunday morning outside Memphis, one Monday afternoon in Pennsylvania...and that was pretty much it.

A Memphis without cops positioned at every single exit? Shocking.

[Plutonic Panda]

A few cities here have closed their parks because of inappropriate social congregation...people can't follow suggestions, so sadly they have to ruin it for all of us.

or the city can fuck the fuck off and not close parks.

[bandit957]

or the city can fuck the fuck off and not close parks.

I think this is the first time I've ever wanted a "like" button on this forum!