Coronavirus / COVID-19

[ReluctantSamurai]

"We decided to make that sacrifice because what we were standing up for was the American way of life," he said. "In the very same way now, we have to stand up for the American way of life."

Here's what Christie's cryptic babble actually means in terms of Fearless Leaders plan for reopening the US economy:

https://www.theguardian.com/commenti...l-robert-reich

Remove income support, so people have no choice but to return to work.

By threatening to deny unemployment benefits, the Labor Department is forcing workers (read as all those poor bastards who draw a weekly paycheck) to choose between rolling the dice at the COVID-19 Casino, or losing their livelihood.

Hide the facts.

Use a deeply flawed epidemiological model that consistently under-reports both cases and deaths in order to make the situation look better than it is. And, of course, put a gag order on Dr. Fauci so that he can't contradict anything that's being said.

Pretend it’s about “freedom”.

When there is no choice given to people who are about to lose their jobs, their homes, and everything they've been working for most of their lives, except to take a dance with death, I'd hardly call that freedom.

Shield businesses against lawsuits for spreading the infection.

The icing on the Trump Hotel Truffle (as applied by The Man Who Never Smiles):

The Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, insists that proposed legislation giving state and local governments funding they desperately need must include legal immunity for corporations that cause workers or consumers to become infected.

"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

....and get to work you effin' bastards, I have an election to win come November---Fearless Leader

Look, Trump is right about one thing, an economy as large as the United States can't be kept in limbo any longer otherwise there won't be an economy. His administration botched the initial response back in February by not taking the threat seriously and lost nearly two months that could've been spent getting hospitals and PPE stockplies prepared (and with Patient 0 now identified in California as early as the first week of February, containment was already lost). Now, the entire month of April has been wasted by the anemic role of the federal government in organizing the procurement of supplies, and expediting their dispersal. Instead, states were forced to compete with each other and pay exorbitant prices for the much needed PPE and other medical equipment.

The lock-downs and stay-at-home orders kept hospitals from being washed away by a tidal wave of cases, but now have no more effect other than keeping new cases and deaths on a plateau line (and even that's not going to happen much longer). The situation has come down to trying to save every life possible and to hell with the economy, or open back up and to hell with whomever has to die.

Jesus, I'm embarrassed to be called an American

@ Monty

The snafu (supposed) with sending body bags to the Navajo instead of medical equipment is a sad commentary on our entire treatment of Native Americans from the first day settlers got here.