So… I dared speculate about the 7th wave cresting but it seems that Toronto’s 
super-spreader summer festival events are winning after all.
Officialdom, such as it is in this province, made a similar pronouncement last week.
Oops… ?
Officialdom, such as it is in this province, made a similar pronouncement last week.
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The difference in concern and response keeps getting to me. Just saw this reaction to the latest changes in CDC guidelines:
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I clicked “Like” because I read the article and found it interesting. However, for the record, I found this part (which is about photography rather than about coronavirus) disturbing:
“I use my iPhone 12 so it is very discreet. I’m not sure if I have permission to photograph,” the photographer says.
“I did a few times [take photos] with my regular camera. Some don’t mind, others just tell you ‘no photos.’ But I like the angle I get with the phone and the fact that the person does not know I am taking the image. The angle makes it more dramatic.”
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The problem is how can we make a personal risk assessment if there is no longer any meaningful data to assess our risk?
Michigan used to have good data available every 3 days and then once a week, now you have to really dig to get information that can be used.
So my assessment is keep wearing a mask indoors.
We’re also avoiding family gatherings unless it’s at our house with family we trust and it’s an outside event.
It also sucks because I could point to the CDC as to why we were doing what we were doing. Now I’ll have to hear “Biden says you don’t have to wear a mask, why are you wearing a mask?”
People that know me know my health so for them I just say I get my orders from my 3 doctors. For strangers I scream HIPAA and walk away.
I’m still not convinced I would do well and neither is the doctor that’s kept me upright for the last 10 years. His advice is avoid getting covid.
tl;dr Bite Me CDC.
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Good news?
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It’s problematic. He said some people asked him not to take pictures before, so many of his “models” probably wouldn´t comfortable with the idea of being exposed. I am not sure if the Chinese government would like His pictures either…
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Yes, there’s more than one thing going on in terms of “permission”, and I feel two ways about it…
On one hand, speaking personally, I wouldn’t want to be surreptitiously photographed as I was doing my job, even if it’s in public—that feels creepy to me. The result is a nice and artistic body of work, yet it feels to me like the photographer is “using” his subjects. Maybe expectations are different in China, or in a large crowded city like Beijing, I don’t know.
On the other hand, if Chinese officials are trying to suppress images of the pandemic, then I think it’s good for the photographer to do it.
So I guess my original comment actually was about both photography and coronavirus, after all.
(The photography/subject/permission issue is an age-old debate, of course, and I don’t mean to derail us with it here. I was mainly trying to explain that I “Liked” that you linked to that article and I appreciated reading it (thank you), while I didn’t necessarily “like” everything I read there!)
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Given the CDC is taking a nap right now, I wanted to share what I learned at a building science conference a couple weeks ago.
For mitigating your personal risk, think of it in order of filtration, ventilation, UV penetration.
Upgrade your home or office HVAC filters to MERV 13 if you have forced-air and the system can handle it. If not, or in addition, build a few Corsi-Rosenthal boxes and have them running whenever people are sharing an indoor space. Aim for a clean air delivery rate (CADR) of 1 air change per hour or higher.
Ventilate either through mechanical ventilation or opening doors and windows. A low-cost CO2 monitor (we got the Aranet) will give you a good sense of ventilation levels (but not filtration) so you can determine if you feel safe in a space. Some friends will leave a space if it gets above 1400, bc to them, that means they’re breathing in too many other people’s exhalations.
The UV stuff is a little more technical so I won’t go into it unless people are interested.
Long story short, with masking, filtration and ventilation, your chances of contracting this thing, even in an enclosed space, are immensely lowered. Stay safe. 
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Long Covid is the monster in the closet with this thing. Too little known, and almost certainly multifactorial and not a single entity. Those who were hospitalized and have lingering symptoms are not equivalent to those who had mild or even asymptomatic cases, and yet have sequelae. I continue to hope for a broader understanding of the lingering effects of many viral infections. If anything coming out of this could be described as “good,” it would be that. But this is very much a work in progress.
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Count me as interested please!
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Came here to post the story below but first…
My wife went the Detroit Zoo today with our daughter, they said it was somewhat crowded but a good portion of people, young, old, and kids were wearing masks outside. So that’s cool.
How does the fetal tissue thing even make it into the court, I mean don’t they have experts that can explain how fetal tissue is used or not used and then point out other medications that use the same science, medications the objectors probably take.
Citing the use of fetal tissue in medical research, they alleged the hospital operator’s requirement that its then-approximately 17,000 employees get vaccinated against the coronavirus discriminated against them because of their religious beliefs.
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WTF? Only the J&J had any relation to fetal tissue, from a cell line that’s older than I am. Those employees had access to other vaccines with nothing to do with fetal cell lines.
We truly are in the dumbest timeline.
ETA: it’s worse than I thought. Their objection is due to the general use of fetal tissue in medical research, not to the specific use of cell lines in the production of the J&J vaccine. These are clinical hospital workers who interact with things that are the result of such medical research constantly in order to do their jobs. If that’s a problem for them, then they are manifestly unfit for their chosen occupation. It’s madness.
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This is my MIL’s excuse. No amount of rational talk or facts helped
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Yup. This. Exactly. If you reject the foundational principles of medical science, maybe don’t work in medicine you herd of jackasses.
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Oh ffs.
For me it’s like the old Howard Stern stats. If they hate him why do they listen… To see what he’ll say next.
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