COVID-19 (Aka China Virus)

[pawnman]

6 hours ago, Negatory said:

This opens a legitimate avenue for discussion. Should facebook, twitter, google, etc. be able to point out, when people link any "news" from that website, that the articles are "misinformation" or "fake news?"

Yes, but I'd like a bit more information from FB when they do. "Our fact-checkers said so" isn't good enough.

Or just slap the label on it but let it stay up.

[FLEA]

1 hour ago, pawnman said:

Yes, but I'd like a bit more information from FB when they do. "Our fact-checkers said so" isn't good enough.

Or just slap the label on it but let it stay up.

I would like to see a meta-analysis of multiple fact checkers too. Like, "our liberal fact checker says its mostly true but our conservative fact checker says its false, and here is a link to their their assessments." Even fact checkers are subject to confirmation bias. 

[TheNewGazmo]

I got my first jab yesterday at my local Pharmacy.  I wanted the Pfizer flavor so I shopped around for one who stocked that one.   16 hours later, I haven't grown an extra testicle yet, so I suppose it's "so-far-so-good".  Slightly sore arm... no other side-effects thus far, but I hear it's the 2nd one that gets you.

I found a good explanation about the COVID vaccines (cut and paste from an article):

Del Rio noted that the vaccines were specifically designed to protect against severe disease and death, and that's what those big vaccine trials looked for. "Infection was never an end-point in these studies," he said. That the vaccines were later found to prevent infection, he said "was a little bit ... like the cherry on the cake."

 

The phrasing also bothers immunologist and virologist Dr. Barney Graham, deputy director of the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, whose lab played a key role in the development of the Moderna vaccine.

 

Graham described it in a way that really made me visualize the vaccine's effect on your body.

 

"The vaccines were always designed to focus against disease in the lower airways [the lungs] -- not in the upper airways [the nose and upper throat]," he explained.

 

Think about that. According to Graham, a person becomes severely ill when the virus enters the lungs, and that is exactly where the vaccines offer up their most protective barrier. You see, the vaccines trigger the creation of immunoglobulins, which are proteins that function as antibodies. The main one generated by the vaccines is immunoglobulin G (IgG) which easily moves from the blood into the lower airways (the lungs) where it can block the virus. The level of IgG in blood needed to penetrate the tissues of the upper airways (the nose and throat) is much higher and that is why it is more difficult to block the virus from growing in the nose.

 

"That's why we see such consistency in the efficacy against severe disease. It wasn't designed to protect the upper airways as much," he explained.

 

It is also why Graham said scientists weren't expecting the vaccines to prevent infection as much. "We got very lucky that it did to some extent, against earlier strains," he added.

 

And, while the Delta variant is more transmissible, meaning more infections will certainly occur overall in both the vaccinated and unvaccinated, there will be a bigger difference between the two groups when it comes to protection against severe disease compared to protection against mild or asymptomatic illness, Graham explained. That's clear from data that show the overwhelming majority of hospitalizations and deaths happen in the unvaccinated, not the vaccinated.

 

[gearhog]

Anyone know C141/C21 pilot and AZ state rep Wendy Rogers? First I've heard of her.

 

Edited August 12, 2021 by torqued

[HeloDude]

Thank you MSM for giving it to us straight…

[TheNewGazmo]

29 minutes ago, torqued said:

Anyone know C141/C21 pilot and AZ state rep Wendy Rogers? First I've heard of her.

 

I don't know her, but she sounds like an idiot.  It's going to be a tough one for Commanders to explain when even a small percentage of their troops are lying in a hospital bed on a ventilator when they could be performing their jobs.

Edited August 12, 2021 by TheNewGazmo

[Scooter14]

No. Despite how tempting it is.

This is the catch 22 right here.

You can’t stifle free speech or freedom of the “press” but the more misinformation and misleading clickbait headlines that come through the handheld devices that every idiot is glued to, the worse things get.

You know the Chinese and Russians are laughing their asses off.

[Prozac]

3 hours ago, torqued said:

Anyone know C141/C21 pilot and AZ state rep Wendy Rogers? First I've heard of her.

 

Cool. So let’s get this straight. Wendy thinks mandatory vaccination equates to an unlawful order. Any reason her logic wouldn’t work for any other vaccine? Do troops get to turn down the flu vaccine now? MMR? Smallpox, etc? Is turning one of these vaccines down all an airman would have to do to become non deployable? Who then picks up the slack? Will it be up to commanders to determine who is able to be deployed where? I wonder what other orders Wendy would find to be “unlawful”. She sounds like a lot of the millennials I keep hearing about. Wants her way, devoid of consequences, and is willing to stomp her feet really really loud to get it. 

[Guest]

3 hours ago, TheNewGazmo said:

I don't know her, but she sounds like an idiot.  It's going to be a tough one for Commanders to explain when even a small percentage of their troops are lying in a hospital bed on a ventilator when they could be performing their jobs.

Yes, she sounds like an idiot for standing up for the rights of others. The military should NEVER disobey an order. That would be doubleplus ungood. No matter what the order is. Orders are always plusgood lawful. It would all tick along more smoothly if she just put her blinders on, kept her head down, and worked towards towards implementing the plans. We don’t pay her to think. We don’t pay her to have a soul, or to serve the People. We pay her to obey the State, unquestionably, because the State is our God. That whole “against all enemies foreign, and domestic…” thing is dumb, and outdated. That never existed. We’ve always been at war with Eastasia.

[gearhog]

4 hours ago, TheNewGazmo said:

I don't know her, but she sounds like an idiot.  It's going to be a tough one for Commanders to explain when even a small percentage of their troops are lying in a hospital bed on a ventilator when they could be performing their jobs.

Whoa. Slow down. You read one tweet you disagree with and dismissed her as an idiot.    I put a link to her bio in the earlier post. Consider reading it then asking yourself if you’re trying to disparage her because she has a different viewpoint, or because she is legitimately uneducated.

Once, I had an UPT check pilot in my Stan/Eval office that debriefed a student that he was going to put an aircraft in the ground and kill everyone onboard because he didn’t know how to apply a cold weather altimeter correction.

Edited August 12, 2021 by torqued

[TheNewGazmo]

Whoa. Slow down. You read one tweet you disagree with and dismissed her as an idiot.    I put a link to her bio in the earlier post. Consider reading it then asking yourself if you’re trying to disparage her because she has a different viewpoint, or because she is legitimately uneducated.
Once, I had an UPT check pilot in my Stan/Eval office that debriefed a student that he was going to put an aircraft in the ground and kill everyone onboard because he didn’t know how to apply a cold weather altimeter correction.

The simple fact that she is Tweeting this stuff prooves my theory, but I guess that's what all the cool people are doing these days, so....

[gearhog]

1 minute ago, TheNewGazmo said:

21 minutes ago, torqued said:

Whoa. Slow down. You read one tweet you disagree with and dismissed her as an idiot.    I put a link to her bio in the earlier post. Consider reading it then asking yourself if you’re trying to disparage her because she has a different viewpoint, or because she is legitimately uneducated.
Once, I had an UPT check pilot in my Stan/Eval office that debriefed a student that he was going to put an aircraft in the ground and kill everyone onboard because he didn’t know how to apply a cold weather altimeter correction.

The simple fact that she is Tweeting this stuff prooves my theory, but I guess that's what all the cool people are doing these days, so....

Brother, if you’re attempting to justify your position that she’s an idiot, consider that what you just wrote about “proof” and “cool people” doesn’t exactly lend itself to a legitimate counter-argument. They definitely exist, but you can’t seem to find them. See Prozacs post.

[Guest]

https://lc.org/newsroom/details/062421-fighter-pilot-suspended-over-mask-mandate

https://lc.org/062421LtrtoActingSECAFre AirForcefighterpilotreligiousaccommodation06102021Redacted_Redacted.pdf

Based Captain standing up for what's right. God bless the Captain.

Edited August 12, 2021 by dogfish78
spelling

[pawnman]

7 minutes ago, dogfish78 said:

https://lc.org/newsroom/details/062421-fighter-pilot-suspended-over-mask-mandate

https://lc.org/062421LtrtoActingSECAFre AirForcefighterpilotreligiousaccommodation06102021Redacted_Redacted.pdf

Based Captain standing up for what's right. God bless the Captain.

It's an interesting gambit.  I'd love to see the part of the bible where God instructs people not to wear a mask.

 

[Pooter]

3 minutes ago, dogfish78 said:

https://lc.org/newsroom/details/062421-fighter-pilot-suspended-over-mask-mandate

https://lc.org/062421LtrtoActingSECAFre AirForcefighterpilotreligiousaccommodation06102021Redacted_Redacted.pdf

Based Captain standing up for what's right for him. God bless the Captain.

Weird that his strongly held religious beliefs allow for wearing an oxygen mask while flying but not for a mask on the ground.  
 

Id love to see which bible passages he's using as guidance. Probably from the part of Leviticus that addresses aviation and ground duties. 
 

alternatively.. politics, not Christianity, is his religion and he's being a grandstanding asshole. 

[TheNewGazmo]

Brother, if you’re attempting to justify your position that she’s an idiot, consider that what you just wrote about “proof” and “cool people” doesn’t exactly lend itself to a legitimate counter-argument. They definitely exist, but you can’t seem to find them. See Prozacs post.

What would make her look more credible on social media would be to site specifics as to what makes it an "unlawful order". If the DoD can't mandate a vaccine for Active Duty service members that has been approved by the FDA and recommended by the CDC for emergency usage, I question our ability to enforce anything in crisis much more severe than this one.

[gearhog]

1 minute ago, TheNewGazmo said:

28 minutes ago, torqued said:

Brother, if you’re attempting to justify your position that she’s an idiot, consider that what you just wrote about “proof” and “cool people” doesn’t exactly lend itself to a legitimate counter-argument. They definitely exist, but you can’t seem to find them. See Prozacs post.

What would make her look more credible on social media would be to site specifics as to what makes it an "unlawful order". If the DoD can't mandate a vaccine for Active Duty service members that has been approved by the FDA and recommended by the CDC for emergency usage, I question our ability to enforce anything in crisis much more severe than this one.

That is a reasonable/rational thought. I like it.

[Guest]

24 minutes ago, Pooter said:

Weird that his strongly held religious beliefs allow for wearing an oxygen mask while flying but not for a mask on the ground.  
 

Id love to see which bible passages he's using as guidance. Probably from the part of Leviticus that addresses aviation and ground duties. 
 

alternatively.. politics, not Christianity, is his religion and he's being a grandstanding asshole. 

Why do you think he a "grandstanding asshole"?

Separately, the documents list how two Chaplains concurred his Christian beliefs are sincerely held.

Edited August 12, 2021 by dogfish78
tie-poh

[ViperMan]

31 minutes ago, dogfish78 said:

Why do you think he a "grandstanding asshole"?

Separately, the documents list how two Chaplains concurred his Christian beliefs are sincerely held.

Ehhhh, this is what happens when you make exceptions to rules. You get people who play games. Don't give one shit that his beliefs are "sincerely" held - as if it was up to a Chaplain to make that determination in the first place.

Also, it's BS that M.E. countries don't have to shave to wear an O2 mask, but I do. But whatever, this is much ado about nothing. Just glad I'm not having to see this paperwork cross my desk. The military is full of arbitrary rules - those are the only ones that should be eligible for "exception." If it's safety, good order/discipline, combat, etc, you follow the rules. No exceptions. Don't like it? Go sit in Leavenworth for the rest of your commitment, your choice.

Oh, and the section of the bible that deals with masking and non-masking is right underneath the one that exempts Weapons' officers from SOF...

[Pooter]

26 minutes ago, dogfish78 said:

Why do you think he a "grandstanding asshole"?

Separately, the documents list how two Chaplains concurred his Christian beliefs are sincerely held.

Because nowhere in his overly dramatic and verbose memo does he actually cite any part of the Bible from which he is getting these "sincerely held beliefs."  

Literally the entire thing is: "I'm a Christian, I don't want to wear a mask, that is my sincerely held religious belief." 

And the document listing how chaplains concurred with him... is the memo he wrote...  

And nowhere in this memo does he ever address why the mask he has to wear every day to keep him safe in the airplane, is so different in the eyes of god than a cloth face mask.

 

so like I said, grandstanding asshole

[Pooter]

It's funny how much you can get from reading between the lines of a single memo. Reminds me of some characters I've met at various points in my career.
 

I would bet this dude is a perpetual problem in the squadron and his leadership is very happy he handed them a way to oust him on a velvet pillow by choosing to die on the stupidest hill possible. 

[TheNewGazmo]

It's funny how much you can get from reading between the lines of a single memo. Reminds me of some characters I've met at various points in my career.
 
I would bet this dude is a perpetual problem in the squadron and his leadership is very happy he handed them a way to oust him on a velvet pillow by choosing to die on the stupidest hill possible. 

I wonder if his Christianity prevents him from going into MOPP4 as well.

[Pooter]

3 minutes ago, TheNewGazmo said:

19 minutes ago, Pooter said:

It's funny how much you can get from reading between the lines of a single memo. Reminds me of some characters I've met at various points in my career.
 
I would bet this dude is a perpetual problem in the squadron and his leadership is very happy he handed them a way to oust him on a velvet pillow by choosing to die on the stupidest hill possible. 

I wonder if his Christianity prevents him from going into MOPP4 as well.

Now that I can get on board with

[arg]

9 hours ago, FLEA said:

I would like to see a meta-analysis of multiple fact checkers too. Like, "our liberal fact checker says its mostly true but our conservative fact checker says its false, and here is a link to their their assessments." Even fact checkers are subject to confirmation bias. 

Like a nutrition label they put on food but for fact checkers.

[Scooter14]

Now that I can get on board with

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