NON_POLITICAL China Coronavirus THREAD

[ponyo]

I have lots of canned food but probably not enough for more than a couple of weeks. I doubt VERY seriously the stores are already cleaned out - maybe in areas already impacted, but in the rest of the US? You're wrong.

Couple weeks is fine. You don't need more.

As for essentials, I was referring to coronavirus essentials like masks and hand wipes. Those are gone and you have to wait for restock.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

I have lots of canned food but probably not enough for more than a couple of weeks. I doubt VERY seriously the stores are already cleaned out - maybe in areas already impacted, but in the rest of the US? You're wrong.

Depends on the area for sure, but we're starting to see the effects.

Anecdote from myself, when I stocked up last Friday my local Tops was already getting kinda thin on water. Nobody was stocking up like I was though.

https://www.reddit.com/r/China_Flu/comments/fcr6ee

Internet, so take it with a grain of salt. Person's talking the talk though, so they're at least in the industry.

EDIT: What asshole decided that every reddit link should be embedded as a media tag? Just let me post a goddamn web link!

 

[IronWing]

The oil change place didn't open on time today with the mechanics locked out. I had an appointment. I think corona took out the manager. Should I go in if it opens later? What if everybody over there is a zombie by then? I can see the place from my office. What signs should I look for?

 

[Muse]

Got my chance to hit Costco yesterday. There and on TV news I'm seeing people buying a LOT of bottled water. Not gallons but smaller sizes by the case.

I'm wondering why bottled water? I never buy those. I do buy gallons as a survival tactic in a major earthquake, where water supply lines may be broken.

But AFAIK this pandemic shouldn't interrupt flow to my faucets. I drink and cook with tap water, and it tastes fine (to me, although my ex GF complained about the CL taste).

So, what is it? Is it that they have a different life style? I don't drive much, less than 1500 mi/yr, so I'm not away from the house wondering what I'm going to do about my thirst, in which case swigging on bottled water could make sense in a pandemic. If I'm in that situation (as I said not much likely) I could take a thermos with whatever drink I'd prefer, i.e. water, coffee, tea.

Costco was out of alcohol, but I have some. I deliberated on buying hydrogen peroxide, decided not to. I have bleach, some. Can't imagine wiping down my house with it for covid-19 protection. I've never bought wipes, I suppose they were out of those.

 

[nakedfrog]

You should have some dried and canned foods regardless of this coronavirus scare. I would say you're the stupid one if you don't have any around for general use and any potential emergencies. At this point, the masses have already gone and cleaned out most stores of the essentials. If you don't have the essentials, go waste your time searching for restocks. If you already have the essentials, there's nothing to panic about and you can just relax.

I was at the grocery store yesterday, it looked like people bought a lot of chili, and the small cans of corned beef hash were all gone (I got a large can instead). Other than that, everything looked perfectly normal.

 

[KMFJD]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1234822447947558915

just lol

 

[echo4747]

just want to add a product for those thinking of buying hand sanitizer.. A product called hibiclens. It is a germicidal soap that actually is supposed to be effective for quite some time after you wash with it as the active ingredient is supposed to somewhat bond to the skin. I purhased a quart a couple days ago and poured it into an empty foaming hand soap pump bottle. It actually foams and cleans quite nicely. I actually like it enough that I am awaiting a 2nd order to arrive.

 

[Muse]

I don't recall if it was this thread or somewhere else I read, but the actual air in Wohan has the virus in it now, like it's high enough to register. That's scary as it means it can spread just from the wind at this point. Not sure how high it can go but if it happens to get to the jetstream it could literally go global. That's without people. Even a full stop on international air travel would not stop it at that point.

Local news last night the anchor interviewed an "expert" woman. I had to wonder. She said it's NOT airborne like measles or (another pathogen I forget now), but is in droplets, to which you are susceptible if exposed up to 6 feet from a cougher or sneezer. What really made me wonder was her saying that wearing a mask is no help for anyone in not getting the disease. She said wearing a mask will only make sense for people who already have the disease in not communicating it to others. Is there any truth in that?

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

just want to add a product for those thinking of buying hand sanitizer.. A product called hibiclens. It is a germicidal soap that actually is supposed to be effective for quite some time after you wash with it as the active ingredient is supposed to somewhat bond to the skin. I purhased a quart a couple days ago and poured it into an empty foaming hand soap pump bottle. It actually foams and cleans quite nicely. I actually like it enough that I am awaiting a 2nd order to arrive.

Hibiclens is a brand name for Chlorhexidine. An exceedingly effective antiseptic and general biological warfare agent against microorganisms, it's ineffective against polioviruses and adenoviruses. It hasn't been tested against herpes viruses. I wouldn't rely on it to save me against coronaviruses.

Chlorhexidine - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Local news last night the anchor interviewed an "expert" woman. I had to wonder. She said it's NOT airborne like measles or (another pathogen I forget now), but is in droplets, to which you are susceptible if exposed up to 6 feet from a cougher or sneezer. What really made me wonder was her saying that wearing a mask is no help for anyone in not getting the disease. She said wearing a mask will only make sense for people who already have the disease in not communicating it to others. Is there any truth in that?

Absolutely true. Mask helps by keeping sneeze and breath particulates inside the mouth (note, not 100%... just helps). If you're wearing a mask trying to not catch it (assuming it was fitted properly, almost guaranteed to be a false assumption), you can still get droplets in your eyes, on other parts of your body (that then cross-contaminate into your body, think rubbing eyes or touching food). In addition, 99.9% of people have zero idea of how to properly handle biologically contaminated materials, virtually ensuring that they'll contaminate themselves when they try to remove the mask, assuming they weren't already infected.

 

[TheVrolok]

Local news last night the anchor interviewed an "expert" woman. I had to wonder. She said it's NOT airborne like measles or (another pathogen I forget now), but is in droplets, to which you are susceptible if exposed up to 6 feet from a cougher or sneezer. What really made me wonder was her saying that wearing a mask is no help for anyone in not getting the disease. She said wearing a mask will only make sense for people who already have the disease in not communicating it to others. Is there any truth in that?

A surgical mask is not significant personal protective equipment to prevent contracting Covid-19. Currently, the CDC recommends eye protection in addition to standard (wash hands, etc.), contact (gown, gloves, etc), and airborne (N95 or PAPR) precautions when caring for patients possibly infected with this virus. This is also only truly effective when donning and doffing in proper order. Long story short, the layperson buying N95's for home use is probably wasting money.

She is saying that a surgical mask will help prevent a Covid-19 infected patient from spreading the virus by containing droplets.

 

[Captante]

I have lots of canned food but probably not enough for more than a couple of weeks. I doubt VERY seriously the stores are already cleaned out - maybe in areas already impacted, but in the rest of the US? You're wrong.

I was in the grocery store about 30 minutes ago and there was plenty of food food to be had. In other words you are correct.

Having said that I normally keep 1-1.5 weeks worth of canned stuff and a big bag of rice in my place anyway in case of severe laziness.

By far the biggest real concern is not getting sick its poorly informed people getting hysterical.

 

[mooncancook]

Local news last night the anchor interviewed an "expert" woman. I had to wonder. She said it's NOT airborne like measles or (another pathogen I forget now), but is in droplets, to which you are susceptible if exposed up to 6 feet from a cougher or sneezer. What really made me wonder was her saying that wearing a mask is no help for anyone in not getting the disease. She said wearing a mask will only make sense for people who already have the disease in not communicating it to others. Is there any truth in that?

I wish anyone who get sick from any contagious illness would wear a mask in public places. You would rarely see that from Americans though. If you are in close proximity with a sneezer with the virus, imo a mask alone would not be enough but it's the first line of defense. Goggles would help. And then you probably want to wash your clothes and disinfect yourself asap.

 

[CZroe]

just want to add a product for those thinking of buying hand sanitizer.. A product called hibiclens. It is a germicidal soap that actually is supposed to be effective for quite some time after you wash with it as the active ingredient is supposed to somewhat bond to the skin. I purhased a quart a couple days ago and poured it into an empty foaming hand soap pump bottle. It actually foams and cleans quite nicely. I actually like it enough that I am awaiting a 2nd order to arrive.

Good tip. I had a huge tub of this but I'm sure I used it all a couple years ago.

 

[CZroe]

Local news last night the anchor interviewed an "expert" woman. I had to wonder. She said it's NOT airborne like measles or (another pathogen I forget now), but is in droplets, to which you are susceptible if exposed up to 6 feet from a cougher or sneezer. What really made me wonder was her saying that wearing a mask is no help for anyone in not getting the disease. She said wearing a mask will only make sense for people who already have the disease in not communicating it to others. Is there any truth in that?

For surgical masks, yes. For N95 or better it can reduce your risk when you are around infected people. They are deliberately not mentioning that in order to maintain supplies for healthcare workers who do have to get up close and personal with infected patients.

 

[Scarpozzi]

By far the biggest real concern is not getting sick its poorly informed people getting hysterical.

Yeah....living people were way scarier than the zombies in the walking dead.

 

[Muse]

I wish anyone who get sick from any contagious illness would wear a mask in public places. You would rarely see that from Americans though. If you are in close proximity with a sneezer with the virus, imo a mask alone would not be enough but it's the first line of defense. Goggles would help. And then you probably want to wash your clothes and disinfect yourself asap.

OK, I've been wondering this:

Is all it takes is a single cell of this covid-19 virus to infect you?

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

OK, I've been wondering this:

Is all it takes is a single cell of this covid-19 virus to infect you?

Virii are not cells, but I think you are asking if a single virus is enough to infect you, and yes, of course. If your body has no immunity, a single virus/bacteria/fungi spore can infect. That doesn't mean it *will*, but it can.

 

[CZroe]

OK, I've been wondering this:

Is all it takes is a single cell of this covid-19 virus to infect you?

Viruses are not cells. They are packaged strings of DNA/RNA that infect cells and force them to produce more. Yes, one encountering a compatible cell will do it, but they are fragile and only one usually won't make it all the way.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

I find it hilarious that things like face masks are selling out all over... How many people do you think don't realize that it doesn't protect you from the virus?

 

[Captante]

I find it hilarious that things like face masks are selling out all over... How many people do you think don't realize that it doesn't protect you from the virus?

I find it depressing that I didn't stock up on these things beforehand so I could Ebay the crap out of them now for 5x what I paid!

 

[Svnla]

I find it depressing that I didn't stock up on these things beforehand so I could Ebay the crap out of them now for 5x what I paid!

Better not do that on Amazon. They would remove your product(s) and could ban you.

"The removal comes after Wired found sellers gouging the prices of coronavirus-related products, like face masks, or charging people "exorbitant shipping costs," according to the magazine. In one instance, the publication found a seller with face masks for as much as five times their normal price."

Amazon deleted 1 million items for price gouging or false advertising about coronavirus | CNN Business

Amazon says it has pulled more than 1 million products for price gouging or falsely advertising effectiveness against the coronavirus.

www.cnn.com

 

[Muse]

I find it hilarious that things like face masks are selling out all over... How many people do you think don't realize that it doesn't protect you from the virus?

Well, hilarious isn't a word I would reach for in this. But I found it odd yesterday that for the first time in all this I encountered the idea that a face mask is not protection from infection of covid-19. That after months of coverage of all kinds. It was a TV interviewer who said it can be used to prevent people from communicating it to others, not the other way around. I was incredulous, but it's been confirmed here. I was taking stock of my N95 supply. I still may use it in publi, in particular if I feel I may have contracted something. However, as noted here, an N95 is some protection, just not adequate protection.

We're not going to stop this, but we can slow it down, which will make it easier to deal with. I was already into hand washing. My doctor has a graphic on the wall of how to properly wash your hands. It's pretty heavy duty and I think likely designed for medical staff. I took some shots of it with my phone while waiting some months ago.

 

[CZroe]

I find it hilarious that things like face masks are selling out all over... How many people do you think don't realize that it doesn't protect you from the virus?

Not true. N95 and better masks do provide some limited protection.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Not true. N95 and better masks do provide some limited protection.

If fitted correctly. And if you know how to decon correctly. And if nobody sneezes in your face, such that it gets in your eyes (unless you're cognizant enough to be wearing eye protection as well).