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Month: March 2020

Trump’s Easter Opening Will Mean Death, Not Resurrection @spockosbrain

Published by Spocko on March 24, 2020

On Tuesday March 24th in a Fox News Townhall, Trump said, “I’d love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter.” Perhaps Pence suggested Easter to symbolize America’s rebirth. No doubt Trump envisions himself coming out of the Tomb as our Messiah. He expects to resurrect the stock market–and his reelection chances.

Trump will taint Easter with his love of money over human life. It’s par for his course, just like his closed down golf courses.

Trump ignores experts whose conclusions aren’t what he wants and so he finds different experts. On the Rachel Maddow Show, New York Times health and science reporter Donald McNeil Jr. uses an apt simile.

What he’s [Trump] talking about “15 days and the doors are open”is like having a lead lined room next to the Chernobyl power plant and you fling open the doors and say. “Hey the flowers are still sprouting out there, it’s a sunny day I think it’s okay to go out.” It’s not okay to go out.

There are things you haven’t seen yet because so many people are getting infected but they’re not going to be hospitalized for on average another 10 days after they show symptoms.

What would it take for Trump to change his views?

It’s only going to be forced home in the same way that AIDS was forced home to Ronald Reagan after 4 years of not mentioning it by the death of his friend Rock Hudson. Something is going to have to wake the President up to the realization that this is a very serious danger including to him and his family.

Trump keeps calling coronavirus the invisible enemy. In the miniseries Chernobyl one of the scientists had to explain that the reactor core was shooting out three million billion trillion invisible bullets in the air that will kill people.

Opening up America too soon is like walking out of a lead-lined rooms outside the Chernobyl power plant thinking that the invisible bullets have stopped and refusing to use a Geiger counter to test the radiation.

Experts have been pointing out the need to keep the social distancing measures in place. From Axios, Tom Inglesby, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security said in a Twitter thread to drop all the measures in place would be to accept that coronavirus patients “will get sick in extraordinary numbers all over the country, far beyond what the U.S. health care system could bear.”

Inglesby went on: “To drop all these measures now would be to accept that COVID pts [patients] will get sick in extraordinary numbers all over the country, far beyond what the US health care system could bear.”

Trump playing God will kill people in his quest to resurrect “the economy” which he sees as a reflection of his will.

But as my friend Anat Shenker-Osorio explains, the economy is not an ungovernable force of nature. It’s not an entity to worship and sacrifice lives to. It is a system made by humans and we can make changes to that system to reflect our priorities.

“Trump’s economic advisers, including Steven Mnuchin and Larry Kudlow, channeled the views they were receiving from the business community that keeping the country shut down wasn’t worth the economic pain.”  Kevin Liptak, CNN, March 24, 2020

Trump’s economic advisers want to kill people rather than modify a system. To paraphrase Charleston Heston, The economy is people. We can build our economy and help our people. The economy takes second place to a body count.

Doctors hoarding drugs based on Trump’s “feelings”

Published by digby on March 24, 2020

The next time you get a new doctor, you’d probably be wise to ask if he or she watches Fox News. It’s rotting their brains too:

Doctors are hoarding medications touted as possible coronavirus treatments by writing prescriptions for themselves and family members, according to pharmacy boards in states across the country.

The stockpiling has become so worrisome in Idaho, Kentucky, Ohio, Nevada, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and Texas that the boards in those states have issued emergency restrictions or guidelines on how the drugs can be dispensed at pharmacies. More states are expected to follow suit.

“This is a real issue and it is not some product of a few isolated bad apples,” said Jay Campbell, executive director of the North Carolina Board of Pharmacy.

The medications being prescribed differ slightly from state to state, but include those lauded by President Trump at televised briefings as potential breakthrough treatments for the virus, which has killed at least 675 people in the United States and infected more than 52,000.

None of the drugs have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for that use. Some of them — including chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine — are commonly used to treat malaria, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions.

Pharmacists around the country have been swapping stories on social media about the spike in prescriptions written by doctors for themselves or their families.

“I have multiple prescribers calling in prescriptions for Plaquenil for themselves and their family members as a precaution. Is this ethical?” one person wrote on Sunday in a Facebook group for pharmacists, referring to a brand name of hydroxychloroquine. Others weighed in — some noting similar experiences — and expressed their hesitancy to dispense such prescriptions.

“I got called a communist for telling a prescriber, who was trying to call it in for themselves, no,” someone posted on Friday in another Facebook group for pharmacists.

If they watched CNN they might actually learn something:

The short version is that they have not done any clinical trials and the French “study” that everyone’s so excited about followed 20 people and the death rate was actually higher than it is with standard treatment. Epidemiologist Luciana Boreo said on CNN earlier today that the study was “based on very limited data — and very disappointing results actually when I read the study.”

These doctors are listening to Dr. Donald Trump, the man who thinks he’s a genius scientist because his uncle taught at MIT.

Here’s another little lie

Published by digby on March 24, 2020

It’s not the most important lie he’s told today. But it’s one that is so wrong that you have to wonder who told him this. He doesn’t read so it had to be someone on Fox or a lackey in a meeting trying to make him feel better.

Anyway, it’s wrong. Very wrong.

Please:

In 1918 the United States was involved in World War I, but was also dealing with the outbreak of a deadly influenza epidemic. The first cases of the outbreak were recorded in Haskell County, Kansas, and Fort Riley, Kansas, where young men were being hospitalized for severe flu-like symptoms.

A local doctor sent a report to the Public Health Service, but no one was sent to investigate the situation. On March 4, 1918, an outbreak appeared at Fort Riley, with as many as 500 soldiers hospitalized within a week. Within a month, however, the number of patients dwindled and it seemed that the flu had passed its course. Many of these soldiers were sent to Europe to help fight in World War I.

While in Europe the disease mutated and became deadly. By May many reports of soldiers falling ill were reaching the U.S. It did not take long for the disease to spread from the soldiers to the civilian population of Europe, and then around the world. Few areas remained unaffected, and there were recorded outbreaks in Asia, Africa, Europe, North and South America, as well as the Arctic and remote Pacific Islands. 

The outbreak of 1918 was named the Spanish influenza. Although inaccurate, historians believe this name came from the lack of media censure in Spain when the disease hit. The virus mutated again and deaths were being reported in Boston, Massachusetts, by August. In September outbreaks were reported in California and Texas. By October 1918, 24 countries had reported cases of influenza, and many had several deaths. The Spanish influenza was different from other strains of the flu because of how quickly it passed from person to person and the age group it targeted. Most flu strains affect the very young, the elderly, and those without strong immune systems. The main victims of the Spanish influenza were aged from 20 to 40 and were typically healthy individuals.

In Fall 1918 the disease made its way back to Kansas and government officials were quick to take action against the spread of the disease. Dr. Samuel J. Crumbine was the secretary of the state board of health and began a campaign to keep the public in Kansas well aware and educated about the flu and what people could do to prevent it.

However, despite these measures there were still hundreds of deaths reported in Kansas, and eventually health officers were forced to close individual cities. By closing schools, public gatherings, theaters, church services, and limiting the number of people in a store at a time, the government officials in Kansas hoped to limit the outbreak and prevent more people from becoming sick.

Other countries were not so lucky, and although there is no official tally, it is estimated that the disease killed between 16 and 30 million people worldwide and was responsible for 675,000 deaths in the United States alone. The Spanish influenza was responsible for twice the number of casualties (both killed and wounded) of the United States in World War I, which totaled near 323,000.

A third and final wave of the epidemic hit in the spring of 1919, and many reported that it was so severe that people could wake up healthy and be dead by nightfall. By the end of spring the number of patients had dropped enough that officials lifted bans from their cities and states and people could resume school and church. Since the disease occurred at the same time as World War I, the epidemic was overshadowed. Although the epidemic only lasted a year, it left a large mark, both in America and worldwide.

There’s more on the 1918 pandemic, here, which confirms the 2.5% mortality rate. Coronavirus may not have that rate, we don’t know, but it’s much higher than the average flu.

It’s true that a lot of people died. We didn’t have the kind of modern medical interventions we have now. But the mortality rate is going to be much higher than what we are used to and the fact that we don’t have the proper medical equipment is making it worse.

Real Christians Are Immune

Published by tristero on March 24, 2020

I truly don’t know what is wrong with these people.:

Up to 5,000 students will be allowed to return to Liberty University’s campus after school officials confirmed the conservative Christian school based in Lynchburg, Virginia, will reopen this week.

Liberty’s president, Jerry Falwell Jr, defied nationwide calls for mandatory school closures, inviting students to return amid a worsening coronavirus pandemic. Falwell is a major and vocal backer of Donald Trump and evangelicals are a core part of the president’s support base.

Trump has in recent days appeared to balk at a growing US shutdown in the face of the virus and claimed the US would reopen soon – alarming many health professionals.

At Liberty residence halls will reopen, and despite most classes moving online, faculty members were directed to report to campus.

“I think we, in a way, are protecting the students by having them on campus together,” Falwell said. Falwell then invoked a since disproven theory that young people “don’t have conditions that put them at risk”.

Adding: Some of you know the illustration above and may be offended: Opening up a university in the middle of a pandemic is far more blasphemous.

American Crucifixion

Published by digby on March 24, 2020

He has said some very, very stupid things. This may be the stupidest:

Easter’s a very special day for me. Wouldn’t it be great to have all the churches full? You’ll have packed churches all over our country … I think it’ll be a beautiful time.

Two and a half weeks from today he wants people to gather in close quarters, share communion and breathe all over each other so the stock market will go up.

Fox News’ Bill Hemmer earlier called this “American Resurrection.”

I think it’s more aptly called American crucifixion.

I’m going to need to start drinking early today.

Don’t sweat the polling right now

Published by digby on March 24, 2020

From Boston College political scientist Dave Hopkins on the subject of Trump’s approval ratings which seem to be improving, as stunningly unbelievable as that may be:


1. Political leaders’ popularity often rises temporarily after the onset of a crisis….But these popularity bumps fade with time.


2. Americans are still learning about the severity and likely duration of this crisis….Citizens who anticipate that the crisis will only last a matter of a few weeks may see little reason at this point to re-evaluate their opinions about the president, but they may start to feel differently if the inconvenience persists for longer than they first assumed.


3. Americans already have strong opinions about Trump, and most of them disliked him before the crisis….The only way that his popularity could fall much further would be for elements of his remaining base—consisting almost entirely of habitual Republican voters—to become disenchanted with his performance, but these citizens are unusually resistant to changing their minds about him….But a steady approval rating could also be a problem, because he’s already in a vulnerable position heading into re-election and is consistently running behind likely opponent Joe Biden in national polls.


4. It’s not the virus, it’s the economy (stupid)….It wouldn’t be surprising if Trump’s popularity remained stable or even rose a bit over the next few weeks during (presumably) the strictest anti-COVID remediation measures, only to decline later in the year once the larger consequences, especially declining income and employment, became more visible to average citizens.


Just a reminder that Bush’s approval ratings went to 90% after 9/11 and we aren’t seeing anything like that now. The latest has 54% of the public approving his coronavirus response. But his overall approval rating isn’t above 45%.

And after Katrina, his approval rating sat around 43%, slightly dipped temporarily and didn’t nosedive until several months later.

We have an election in 8 months. I wouldn’t hazard a guess as to where his approvals will be then. But if there’s any sanity left in this world it’s not going to be very good. He is making things worse every single day.

Beyond Lunacy

Published by digby on March 24, 2020

I don’ know what to say about this beyond the fact that it is terrifying.

He obviously has no idea what he’s talking about. The only thing we have going for us is that most of the governors and mayors aren’t batshit crazy like this monstrous toad.

Why he thinks he can “order” everyone back to work I do not know. I guess he can veto any further aid to workers, which is probably what we’re going to see. I already heard reporters last night saying that congressional Republicans are balking at any more stimulus since Dear Leader has ordered the economy to start roaring again. So I’d expect there to be massive, massive economic suffering coming our way in the next few months as Trump and his sycophants indulge their fantasy of a recovering economy.

In terms of immediate sabotage of the medical response, he has a limited amount he can do since he never declared a national lockdown in the first place. I would guess that he is going to withdraw the CDC guidelines and the national emergency declaration, making it much more difficult for the states to get the assistance they need. His main accomplishment will be to kill red state residents when they all start doing what he tells them to do and starving the states of what they need to save the lives of their residents.

But as you can see, he’s already got his “blame game” all mapped out. He will hold those public officials who are trying desperately to do the right thing responsible when this catastrophe hurtles out of control and the economy fails to rebound instantly.

His MO will be the same as it always is: brag, blame, whine and lie. It’s all he knows.

Making Boris look good

Published by digby on March 24, 2020

The UK screwed up in the early days of the crisis. They didn’t take it as seriously as they should and allowed the virus to spread. But Boris Johnson has come around and is now listening to the health experts to do what’s necessary to stop it.

Our president is doing the opposite:

He’s all over the place because he’s in over his head and is listening to different people and runs with hat they’re telling him minute to minute. The health care people are trying to save lives and his business buddies are trying to save their portfolios. He leans toward the latter because his hotels are shut down and his precarious fortune is in danger.


David A. Fahrenthold, Joshua Partlow and Jonathan O’Connell of the Washington Post report:

President Trump’s private business has shut down six of its top seven revenue-producing clubs and hotels because of restrictions meant to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, potentially depriving Trump’s company of millions of dollars in revenue.

Those closures come as Trump is considering easing restrictions on movement sooner than federal public health experts recommend, in the name of reducing the virus’s economic damage.

In a tweet late Sunday, Trump said the measures could be lifted as soon as March 30. “WE CANNOT LET THE CURE BE WORSE THAN THE PROBLEM ITSELF,” he wrote on Twitter.

In his unprecedented dual role as president and owner of a sprawling business, Trump is facing dual crises caused by the coronavirus. As he is trying to manage the pandemic from the White House, limiting its casualties as well as the economic fallout, his company is also navigating a major threat to the hospitality industry.

That threatens to pull Trump in opposite directions, because the strategies that many scientists believe will help lessen the public emergency — like strict, long-lasting restrictions on movement — could deepen the short-term problems of Trump’s private business, by keeping doors shut and customers away.

The White House and the Trump Organization did not respond to questions Monday.

The company, which Trump says is run day-to-day by his sons Eric and Don Jr., has not said whether it would apply for a bailout of the hotel industry, if Congress created one.

Trump has not, either. On Sunday, he was asked if his business would abstain from any federal bailout. He did not give a clear answer. “Everything’s changing, just so you understand, it’s all changing,” he said. “But I have no idea.”

Trump’s business includes some commercial office buildings, which have long-term leases and should not be hurt as immediately by the virus. But he is also heavily invested in the hotel business, with 11 hotels around the world.

That business needs new people walking in the door every day, to eat and stay. And by keeping people away, the coronavirus has brought that industry its worst downturn in recent history.

“The data is bad. And we haven’t seen the worst of it yet,” said Jan Freitag, a senior vice president with the firm STR, which analyzes hotel industry data. He noted that the damage to the industry is being caused by the lockdowns and the fear of the virus. “What we’re seeing here is a rapid descent that’s going to last. So it’s going to be a little bit of a worst-case combination of post-9/11 and [the financial crisis of] 2009.”

So far, the Trump Organization has closed hotels in Las Vegas; Doral, Fla.; Ireland; and Turnberry, Scotland — as well as the Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida and a golf club in Bedminster, N.J. Many of the clubs closed because they had to, under local orders. Others closed on their own, following strong guidance or recommendations from local officials.

Those are six of Trump’s top seven revenue-producing clubs and hotels, bringing in about $174 million total per year, according to Trump’s most recent financial disclosures. That works out to $478,000 per day — revenue that is likely to be sharply reduced with the clubs shuttered. The disclosures provide self-reported revenue figures but not profits.

Another of Trump’s golf clubs, in Aberdeen, Scotland, appeared likely to shut down soon, after an order from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson that “nonessential” shops should close and that people should leave home only to buy food, buy medicine or exercise alone.

Even the Trump properties that remain open have been sharply affected: In Chicago, New York and Washington, the restaurants have closed, cutting off a key source of revenue.

On Monday, the managing director of the Trump hotel in Washington, Mickael Damelincourt, sought to find humor in the situation — posting a photo on Twitter that showed him and the chef of the hotel’s restaurant, BLT Prime. They were standing six feet apart, at the door to the empty steakhouse. “Working safely on [the hotel’s] next chapter,” he wrote.

There is also a BLT Prime in Trump’s Doral resort, where restaurants closed last week to comply with lockdown orders. The steakhouse told the state of Florida in a public filing that its entire 98-person workforce — six bartenders, 16 bussers, 24 captains, eight hosts, six managers, eight runners, four chefs, five dishwashers, 18 line cooks and three pastry chefs — had all been laid off.

“These [layoffs] are anticipated to be temporary,” BLT Prime told the state. “However, unfortunately, at this time, we cannot predict when the restaurant will reopen.”

In addition, 160 people have been laid off at Trump’s D.C. hotel, at least 51 laid off at Trump’s New York hotel and an unknown number laid off at Trump’s Las Vegas hotel, according to people familiar with those properties.

Three of Trump’s hotels — in Doral, Chicago and Washington — have outstanding loans from Deutsche Bank that originally totaled more than $300 million. Even before the coronavirus outbreak, all three reported lagging behind their peers in occupancy and revenue, struggles that the company’s representatives blamed, in one way or another, on Trump’s political rise.AD

In Chicago, the city has begun a program to use some now-empty hotel rooms to house people who have the virus but do not need hospital care, as well as people awaiting virus test results. That effort will be a lifeline for some hotels, with the city paying about $175 per night, the mayor’s office said.

The Trump hotel in downtown Chicago is not part of the program “at this time,” a spokesman for Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) said Monday.

If Trump did loosen restrictions on movement in the name of restarting the U.S. economy, that would probably increase the number of people staying in hotels, said Freitag, the hotel industry analyst from STR.

But, Freitag said, it would not be likely to change very much, since fear of the virus would keep many people from traveling anyway.

“If people are on the roads, and the virus continues to spread, you basically have a two-class society, right? The people who had it, and the people who don’t have it,” Freitag said. “It’s going to be hard to convince those who haven’t had the virus to get back on the road.”

Ah whatever. Trump has declared bankruptcy four times already, what’s the problem with another? This time he can blame the virus, the Chinese, the Democrats and the media which is all that really matters. He’ll be fine. He and the family have switched to a brand new grift as the most famous wingnuts in the world. There will be plenty of money for them if he loses re-election. If he wins … well … I can’tthink about that.

Better To Be Morally Bankrupt Than Broke

Published by tristero on March 24, 2020
Image result for mass graves
Mass graves in Iran today from Covid-19 deaths. Coming soon to the U.S.

That’s right. Trump has decided that it’s far better for millions to die than for the country to go broke. This is the Trump doctrine, what has defined his entire career: better to be morally bankrupt than broke.

What he fails to understand is that if he actually does what he says, if people go back to work in the next few weeks, the country will go broke anyway. And millions will needlessly die.

Donald Trump has become completely unhinged and needs to step down immediately.