4 ms·

How is having the knowledge of presence (or absence) of Covid-19 measurably different than having influenza, rhinovirus, or any of another dozen respiratory vir

How is having the knowledge of presence (or absence) of Covid-19 measurably different than having influenza, rhinovirus, or any of another dozen respiratory viruses? Are you testing for all of them? This is my opinion, but that sounds totally unnecessary and so singularly focused to render itself ineffective (I understand the altruistic part). There are people in my office that continue to wear N95 respirators, alone, in their cubicle on a daily basis. I feel sorry for their personal burden because at this point it's clear they are never going to stop. At some point you have to let go for life to have the ability to return to normal. This theater made sense when Covid was mostly lethal, which set it apart from other common illnesses. This is no longer the case.

refulgentis 2y ago
No offense, trying to help: this is a whole lot of mind reading wrapped in condescension. You have absolutely no idea what their health status is, and COVID is still COVID. With wide vaccine availability and the likelihood of 0 exposure decreased, the rest of us can giggle about malformed psyches, but there's plenty of people who still need to avoid it like the plague. I empathize with you, my instinctual reaction when I see someone masking outdoors is to roll my eyes. Then I walk through "well gee maybe they have it and don't wanna spread it, or, or, or..."
adw 2y ago
You don’t know their personal circumstances. Maybe they’re in the same situation as you (I’m assuming “generally in good health”), but they are just more anxious than you and you believe that’s unnecessary. On the other hand, some people - yes, in your workplace - are likely immunocompromised or caring for someone who is; disease risk is not evenly distributed and COVID did make this set of risks meaningfully and continuously worse. You can’t tell the difference just by looking at someone.
- wannacboatmovie 2y ago
  The problem I've had with this argument is immunocompromised individuals existed before COVID but masking and obsessive testing was nearly nonexistent outside the elderly and infirm. Now that things have largely reverted back to normal, why have behaviors not followed? You make valid points but COVID broke people's brains and caused widespread hypochondria. People in this category are likely making poorer long term health choices (e.g. N95 masks should not be worn for more than a few hours as it's hard on your heart).
  - sunshowers 2y ago
    > The problem I've had with this argument is immunocompromised individuals existed before COVID but masking and obsessive testing was nearly nonexistent outside the elderly and infirm. Now that things have largely reverted back to normal, why have behaviors not followed? My general hope from society is that we learn new things and improve over time. COVID completely changed the public and expert understanding of airborne illnesses. While cloth masks don't work, N95-grade masks absolutely do.
  - adw 2y ago
    "Obsessive" is pretty loaded language! Also: normal has shifted, as it always does, so you should expect permanent changes in behavior. It used to be normal to smoke indoors; one of the few good outcomes of Covid is that people are a lot more serious about building ventilation than they used to be, thankfully. Anyway, the new normal _still_ includes Covid, and Covid is still a significant risk to the naive (un-or-insufficiently vaccinated or people who haven't had it yet). It's comparably risky to a bad flu, which is a pretty real thing. Do you have a citation for the N95 risk? I'm sure a bunch of painters and woodworkers would be interested in that.
    - wannacboatmovie 2y ago
      State of California says max of 8 hours. I assume this is over a 24 hour period. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/EPO/Pages/Wildfire%20Pages/N95-Respirators-FAQs.aspx https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/EPO/Pages/Wildfire%20Pages/... The site also says: N95 respirators may make breathing more difficult and lead to increased breathing and heart rates. Individuals with heart and respiratory conditions should check with their doctor before wearing an N95 respirator. N95 usage results in significantly elevated CO2 levels, reduced O2, and increased heart rate, with far more pronounced effects in overweight individuals. This is common knowledge and there have been plenty of medical articles published about this for years pre-COVID; Google them if you wish. If anyone has done drywall or woodworking you know what a relief it is when you pull that mask off. I am a strong believer in PPE. Wearing it when it's not necessary isn't a great idea.
      - 2y ago
saulrh 2y ago
COVID is still an order of magnitude more immediately deadly than the usual influenza strain. Furthermore, influenza basically either kills you or it doesn't; COVID continues to have a horrible habit of leaving young and perfectly healthy people permanently disabled.
sunshowers 2y ago
Covid is significantly worse than other widespread respiratory viruses, in that it clearly leaves a significant chunk of people disabled for months at a time if not permanently. (I personally had terrible fatigue for around 3 months afterwards. I've had a lot of respiratory illnesses, but this was the only time I had symptoms lasting months.)
anonbanker 2y ago
I'm sure I'm going to get greyed for this reply, as well as for being a stickler for terms such as "vaccine" keeping their traditional meanings, but I may have an answer for you. If you, like me, avoided the mRNA gene therapy injections, but still attend barbecues and other get-togethers, it's a good way of confirming that you were the recipient of spike proteins from one of the injected. Sunday before last (8 days ago), I was gifted Covid-19 a third time since Easter 2020 (took a test to be sure) from a bowl of spicy Fuego Takis at a barbecue, likely from licking my fingers clean of all the powder rather than washing them with soap and water. The reason it was worth confirming that it was Covid was because of the irregular heartbeat I had during the first two days of the illness, and I wanted to make sure it wasn't something unrelated. Post-testing, I knew that 50mg daily zinc and vitamin C & D megadoses was all I needed for the rest of the week.
- refulgentis 2y ago
  You weren't! Even with the stuff you knew was fantastical. Congrats :) You've proved Cancel Culture is fake.
ifyoubuildit 2y ago
> This theater made sense when Covid was mostly lethal ... So you're saying it never made sense? What does mostly lethal mean?

refulgentis 2y ago

No offense, trying to help: this is a whole lot of mind reading wrapped in condescension. You have absolutely no idea what their health status is, and COVID is still COVID. With wide vaccine availability and the likelihood of 0 exposure decreased, the rest of us can giggle about malformed psyches, but there's plenty of people who still need to avoid it like the plague. I empathize with you, my instinctual reaction when I see someone masking outdoors is to roll my eyes. Then I walk through "well gee maybe they have it and don't wanna spread it, or, or, or..."

adw 2y ago

You don’t know their personal circumstances. Maybe they’re in the same situation as you (I’m assuming “generally in good health”), but they are just more anxious than you and you believe that’s unnecessary. On the other hand, some people - yes, in your workplace - are likely immunocompromised or caring for someone who is; disease risk is not evenly distributed and COVID did make this set of risks meaningfully and continuously worse. You can’t tell the difference just by looking at someone.

wannacboatmovie 2y ago
The problem I've had with this argument is immunocompromised individuals existed before COVID but masking and obsessive testing was nearly nonexistent outside the elderly and infirm. Now that things have largely reverted back to normal, why have behaviors not followed? You make valid points but COVID broke people's brains and caused widespread hypochondria. People in this category are likely making poorer long term health choices (e.g. N95 masks should not be worn for more than a few hours as it's hard on your heart).
- sunshowers 2y ago
  > The problem I've had with this argument is immunocompromised individuals existed before COVID but masking and obsessive testing was nearly nonexistent outside the elderly and infirm. Now that things have largely reverted back to normal, why have behaviors not followed? My general hope from society is that we learn new things and improve over time. COVID completely changed the public and expert understanding of airborne illnesses. While cloth masks don't work, N95-grade masks absolutely do.
- adw 2y ago
  "Obsessive" is pretty loaded language! Also: normal has shifted, as it always does, so you should expect permanent changes in behavior. It used to be normal to smoke indoors; one of the few good outcomes of Covid is that people are a lot more serious about building ventilation than they used to be, thankfully. Anyway, the new normal _still_ includes Covid, and Covid is still a significant risk to the naive (un-or-insufficiently vaccinated or people who haven't had it yet). It's comparably risky to a bad flu, which is a pretty real thing. Do you have a citation for the N95 risk? I'm sure a bunch of painters and woodworkers would be interested in that.
  - wannacboatmovie 2y ago
    State of California says max of 8 hours. I assume this is over a 24 hour period. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/EPO/Pages/Wildfire%20Pages/N95-Respirators-FAQs.aspx https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/EPO/Pages/Wildfire%20Pages/... The site also says: N95 respirators may make breathing more difficult and lead to increased breathing and heart rates. Individuals with heart and respiratory conditions should check with their doctor before wearing an N95 respirator. N95 usage results in significantly elevated CO2 levels, reduced O2, and increased heart rate, with far more pronounced effects in overweight individuals. This is common knowledge and there have been plenty of medical articles published about this for years pre-COVID; Google them if you wish. If anyone has done drywall or woodworking you know what a relief it is when you pull that mask off. I am a strong believer in PPE. Wearing it when it's not necessary isn't a great idea.
    - 2y ago

saulrh 2y ago

COVID is still an order of magnitude more immediately deadly than the usual influenza strain. Furthermore, influenza basically either kills you or it doesn't; COVID continues to have a horrible habit of leaving young and perfectly healthy people permanently disabled.

sunshowers 2y ago

Covid is significantly worse than other widespread respiratory viruses, in that it clearly leaves a significant chunk of people disabled for months at a time if not permanently. (I personally had terrible fatigue for around 3 months afterwards. I've had a lot of respiratory illnesses, but this was the only time I had symptoms lasting months.)

anonbanker 2y ago

I'm sure I'm going to get greyed for this reply, as well as for being a stickler for terms such as "vaccine" keeping their traditional meanings, but I may have an answer for you. If you, like me, avoided the mRNA gene therapy injections, but still attend barbecues and other get-togethers, it's a good way of confirming that you were the recipient of spike proteins from one of the injected. Sunday before last (8 days ago), I was gifted Covid-19 a third time since Easter 2020 (took a test to be sure) from a bowl of spicy Fuego Takis at a barbecue, likely from licking my fingers clean of all the powder rather than washing them with soap and water. The reason it was worth confirming that it was Covid was because of the irregular heartbeat I had during the first two days of the illness, and I wanted to make sure it wasn't something unrelated. Post-testing, I knew that 50mg daily zinc and vitamin C & D megadoses was all I needed for the rest of the week.

refulgentis 2y ago
You weren't! Even with the stuff you knew was fantastical. Congrats :) You've proved Cancel Culture is fake.

ifyoubuildit 2y ago

> This theater made sense when Covid was mostly lethal ... So you're saying it never made sense? What does mostly lethal mean?