Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[unfilteredJW]

To be fair, the healthcare system and neo-liberal policies have been costing lives and ruining lives of a whole lot more Americans than this virus ever has and ever will.

You don't have to sell me on that.

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Why are these lives any more important than any if the other lives lost due to government negligence or incompetence?

MAYBE bare your fangs at those who deserve it.

[Breccia]

Houston sounds alarm bells.

While limited testing has prevented officials here and across the state from getting a complete accounting of how many people have been infected with the coronavirus, hospitals in greater Houston have seen a steep increase — 40 percent over four days — in the number of patients believed to be suffering from the virus, according to a daily census of hospital admissions collected by the SouthEast Texas Regional Advisory Council, which helps coordinate emergency response efforts.

The 25-county region surrounding Houston had reported fewer than 950 confirmed coronavirus cases among its 9.3 million residents as of Monday. But on that same day, there were 996 people hospitalized in the region with confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19, according to the advisory council count. That figure is not cumulative and does not include patients with COVID-19 who were hospitalized and released before Monday.

Texas has ramped up testing in recent weeks, but it still lags behind nearly every other state in the country. On a per capita basis, New York state has tested residents at a rate seven times greater than Texas, according to an analysis of coronavirus testing figures and U.S. census data. Lengthy delays getting results have further slowed the process in Texas, forcing government officials to make decisions based on incomplete and outdated information.

In Houston, officials have set up a pair of drive-thru testing locations, but because of limited supplies from the federal government, Mayor Sylvester Turner announced last week that his city of 2.3 million people would only be able to complete about 250 tests per day at each site. That number does not count tests run at hospitals and those sent to private labs. As of Thursday, Houston had reported 506 confirmed cases in the city.

Dr. Umair Shah, executive director of Harris County Public Health, said without widespread testing, county officials have no choice but to begin preparing for worst-case scenarios, while at the same time hoping they won’t need to execute them. That includes a plan to potentially set up an emergency field hospital on the sprawling campus of NRG Stadium, where the Houston Texans play.

Houston might not be packed with Trump supporters, but you know who is? Farmers. And they have their own problems. Specifically, especially in the south, farm deadlines are coming up and all their seasonal migrant workers are stuck at the border. Many farms rely on legal workers, who cannot enter the country, but fruits and vegetables don't sit around waiting for very long. Without workers, they're going to rot on the vine.

[Forogil]

Houston might not be packed with Trump supporters, but you know who is? Farmers. And they have their own problems. Specifically, especially in the south, farm deadlines are coming up and all their seasonal migrant workers are stuck at the border. Many farms rely on legal workers, who cannot enter the country, but fruits and vegetables don't sit around waiting for very long. Without workers, they're going to rot on the vine.

And in other news about 10 million persons filed for unemployment in US the last fortnight.

I understand that everyone might not be able to work at farms, wages are low so that people normally don't want that job (on the other hand the government is handing out free money), and there might travel restrictions in place - but all of that are solvable problems.

[Adam Jensen]

There's still a few around having fun with this situation and the misery it is causing, best to pay them no mind. Mental illness is no laughing matter sadly.

The thing about it though, is the states that are ignoring it, are mostly red states. Yeah, a few blue states, but Florida, Mississippi, etc, have been finger-in-the-ear LALALA I CAN'T HEAR THE VIRUS for too long.

And people will die as a result.

[Thepersona]

The thing about it though, is the states that are ignoring it, are mostly red states. Yeah, a few blue states, but Florida, Mississippi, etc, have been finger-in-the-ear LALALA I CAN'T HEAR THE VIRUS for too long.

And people will die as a result.

A lot of old people live in florida. In a bad case scenario, a lot of them will die.

A lot of them voted for trump and the republicans. Why the fuck the governor didnt think that? If the fucking virus goes unchecked, a non insignificant part of his voting base will be wiped out

[Kraenen]

Many farms rely on legal workers, who cannot enter the country, but fruits and vegetables don't sit around waiting for very long. Without workers, they're going to rot on the vine.

In the near-term this looks to be untrue.

[unfilteredJW]

The thing about it though, is the states that are ignoring it, are mostly red states. Yeah, a few blue states, but Florida, Mississippi, etc, have been finger-in-the-ear LALALA I CAN'T HEAR THE VIRUS for too long.

And people will die as a result.

With churches being considered "essential" here in Florida, I'm waiting for the photos tomorrow of what'll be a complete horror show.

[Kraenen]

Trump has killed americans super power status of global influence, he literally did the OPPOSITE of making america great, he made us weak, he dosent understand strength dosent come from the most bloated military budget but also your leadership and global influence which he ceded to putin, but then again hillary talked about those things and people said she was "too politically correct" for not calling for nuking iran and carpet bombing civilians in syria

You're talking about Obama/Bush?

[Lenonis]

Trump literally making a joke about fucking models right in the middle of his press conference last night....

Zero impulse control when it comes to not saying whatever pops into his head sometimes.

It stems from his complete lack of empathy. He has zero ability to understand the pain and suffering happening so he can't help but crack a joke when the chance arises.

[Adam Jensen]

With churches being considered "essential" here in Florida, I'm waiting for the photos tomorrow of what'll be a complete horror show.

Bodies stacked in a refrigerated truck because the morgue is overfull?

Already happening in New York City, why not bring the same misery to Miami!

[Breccia]

In the near-term this looks to be untrue.

Literally contradicted by the cited source.

"This coronavirus has got everybody so stirred up," Georgia farmer Bill Brim told CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann.

Worrying about his farm keeps him up at night. "I sleep about two and a half, three hours a night," he said.

Seasonal foreign labor, mainly from Mexico, always harvests Brim's crops, but this spring, he could be 200 workers short. The coronavirus crisis has delayed the U.S. government's processing of their work visas.

Brim is facing a series of harvest deadlines. The first one is April 15 for squash. May 1, it's cucumbers, and he better have his pickers in place, he said.

"When we start harvesting squash, we've got just days to pick it," Brim said. "So if our workers don't show up here on time, then we're gonna be in trouble."

Seventy miles away, Jeremy White is in bigger trouble. His blueberry crop is days away from harvest. He needs 100 pickers and packers, but they're stuck in Guatemala, where the borders are sealed because of the virus.

"We need 'em now. Absolutely, we need 'em now," White said. "As you can see, this fruit's turning blue and it's not waiting on anybody."

More than $1 million worth of blueberries could rot in the fields, he said, and he has no plan B.

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And in other news about 10 million persons filed for unemployment in US the last fortnight.

You have a good point in spirit, but people aren't supposed to travel to where the farms are.

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Farm Bureau tells USDA U.S. farmers need help immediately

U.S. farmers need immediate financial help as the coronavirus continues to roil the nation’s food supply chain, the American Farm Bureau Federation said on Friday, urging the Agriculture Department to make special direct payments to dairy and cotton producers, livestock farmers and cattle ranchers, among others

In a letter sent to the USDA on Friday, the trade group also asked for emergency funding for ethanol plants, as well as the corn growers who can no longer sell their crops to them and the livestock producers who no longer have access to the facilities’ byproducts for feed.

Now one interesting thing that the article cites is dairy. Maybe you knew this, but a huge proportion of US milk goes to US schools. Which are all closed. The letter asks Trump's WH to just buy all the milk -- this is not a bad idea, really, look what Trump did with the oil industry, it's the same thing -- or else they'll have to dump it. Restaurants being closed isn't helping them either, and Phase One with China, well, that's either dying or dead.

The Farm Bureau also asked that USDA “immediately make purchases of dairy products including but not limited to fluid milk, butter, cheeses and dry milk powders,” to help offset the loss of food service and school meal programs.

The trade group also asked that USDA consider purchasing beef, pork, poultry and aquaculture products for distribution in food and nutrition programs.

It makes sense. If there is food in America, and there are hungry Americans, and the problem is the logistics, asking for help is the right move. And it's not like Democrats are opposed to giving food to hungry Americans. Hopefully we see movement on this issue.

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Already happening in New York City, why not bring the same misery to Miami!

Funny you should mention Miami. Apparently the mayor has recovered and is participating in an experimental treatment, namely, giving his antibody-plasma to ill patients.

[arandomuser]

You're talking about Obama/Bush?

obama partly, i will be critical of obama for being weak on forein affairs and not holding his ground on red lines, he did sede alot of ground to putin in syria/ukraine that enabled trump, and bush for all of his blunders he created an international coalition for iraq and afghanistan suppported by the UN security council, and saddam was given a red line, and when saddam refused he acted, oh and saddam did have weapons of mass destruction

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...l-weapons.html
"From 2004 to 2011, American and American-trained Iraqi troops repeatedly encountered, and on at least six occasions were wounded by, chemical weapons remaining from years earlier in Saddam Hussein’s rule. " "In all, American troops secretly reported finding roughly 5,000 chemical warheads, shells or aviation bombs, according to interviews with dozens of participants, Iraqi and American officials, and heavily redacted intelligence documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.
"weap·on of mass de·struc·tion
noun
a chemical, biological or radioactive weapon capable of causing widespread death and destruction."

[Adam Jensen]

Funny you should mention Miami. Apparently the mayor has recovered and is participating in an experimental treatment, namely, giving his antibody-plasma to ill patients.

We're all going to die . . .

[Breccia]

On topic (glares), with the federal government now apparently sending out expired masks (yes, elastic stops working eventually, the mask won't help if it isn't over your face) states are relegating the expired masks to less essential needs. For example, Washington State is giving them to prison guards.

Also, add Oregon to the list.

Several of the shipments we have received from the strategic national stockpile contained (personal protective equipment) well past expiration dates and, while we are being told much of the expired equipment is capable of being used for COVID-19 response, they would not be suitable for use in surgical settings

Wait, national stockpile? I thought it was Kushner's personal collection. I saw it on the website...

[Thepersona]

We're all going to die . . .

I mean, that trestment has shown some promise

[Kaleredar]

And in other news about 10 million persons filed for unemployment in US the last fortnight.

I understand that everyone might not be able to work at farms, wages are low so that people normally don't want that job (on the other hand the government is handing out free money), and there might travel restrictions in place - but all of that are solvable problems.

It has been proven... multiple times that Americans will simply not do harvesting jobs. They couldn’t even get prisoners to do them.

[Resurgo]

24 hours later, 7,152. Death rate increase seems to want to stay +20%...

We didn’t even go 24 hours for the next 1000

[ati87]

A lot of old people live in florida. In a bad case scenario, a lot of them will die.

A lot of them voted for trump and the republicans. Why the fuck the governor didnt think that? If the fucking virus goes unchecked, a non insignificant part of his voting base will be wiped out

Because the way these right-wing leaders are elected is part of the reason why they will never be honest even if it kills there voters.
Don't believe your lying eyes is the mantra that they use to fearmonger but at some point they themselves started to honestly believe there own propaganda.

[Forogil]

It has been proven... multiple times that Americans will simply not do harvesting jobs. They couldn’t even get prisoners to do them.

Are prisoners known for being more than usually interested in work? I wouldn't assume so.

[unfilteredJW]

I mean, that trestment has shown some promise

Probably meant as humor since that never goes well in sci fi movies.

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Are prisoners known for being more than usually interested in work? I wouldn't assume so.

I mean, I know people that have been trapped in a room with stuff to do for a week and would love to go do something.

Seriously though, yes, it's a coveted position.