Canadian COVID-19 News

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

Let's all not bother to respond or explain. The problem is one we cannot fix!

I think it's important to correct obviously false claims, but I agree with TP here... let's not try and fix something that can't be fixed.

Be careful with our words (me especially ). Otherwise we'll just drive this thread back into the dumpster -- We just got it back out!

[CruisingCouple]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

You clearly have no connection with the Canadian reality. Spend a little time looking at Alberta or Saskatchewan right now where hospitals are over-flowing with cases, and ICU patients are running nearly 200% above capacity.

And you have to ask yourself, why is this? Down here, people moved on from it. You can go about your daily business, not a mask in site anymore. No restrictions, no signs on doors on stores anymore. They made their big vaccine drive, in the county we call home they got about 24% and that's all they're going get. My wife is an RN, she works on the front lines with it. Sure, the hospitals are busy but the healthcare system never collapsed or over-loaded. The world did not come to an end.

In Ontario our friends lost their business and livelihood. Couldn't make the payments anymore after they maxed out their credit cards and the government welfare stopped coming. They got all kinds of restrictions on even how many people they can have over to their house. They sold their boat to pay off the credit card debt and have something to live on and buy food, and they get very little of that left - just enough to get out of the country. They got nothing left there to call "home". Meanwhile they got the corona anyway - both of them. It lasted about a week and they were over it.

This is the reality for some of your fellow Canadians. It has destroyed what they had. Our friends are going to sell their car and pickup truck, take what money they have left and get plane tickets out of Thunder Bay - they have no intentions of ever going back. They're going to cruise with us this winter until March - we can use the extra crew on the boat anyway and we have lots of room. Then we're going to help them get established here where they feel they at least have a chance at a normal life again.

Your "system" of endless control and restrictions failed them. And that's a reality that you seem to want to ignore. But it's very real for them, and it has been going on for approaching two years. They envy us down here because we don't have any of that unless you go to one of the big liberal-run metropolitan areas in California or New York, and even those aren't as bad as the patchwork system they have in Canada. They see us only 165 miles south of them, separated by an imaginary line that defines a border, living our lives as normal again and that's what they want. They don't think it's ever going to end in Canada because people there won't let go of it and learn to live with it. They said if they even break one of the "covid restrictions", somebody will rat on them and that's no way to live.

[desodave]

Ann mentioned the effect of watching someone pass away, and Scorpius mentioned that most of us do not know someone who has done so hence the effective "distance" from the pandemic. I agree with both. A long time former colleague of mine passed away from covid earlier this year - he was 78 with no known preconditions, certainly no excess weight and a non-smoker. That had a major effect on me and on my daughter, who knew him but had not seen him for at least ten years. It really does validate the seriousness of the disease in a way that reading about ICU/hospital overloads or case numbers does not. It makes a lot of stuff personal even when you have no problem believing the seriousness of the pandemic.

[kmacdonald]

Originally Posted by CruisingCouple

And you have to ask yourself, why is this? Down here, people moved on from it. You can go about your daily business, not a mask in site anymore. No restrictions, no signs on doors on stores anymore. They made their big vaccine drive, in the county we call home they got about 24% and that's all they're going get. My wife is an RN, she works on the front lines with it. Sure, the hospitals are busy but the healthcare system never collapsed or over-loaded. The world did not come to an end.

In Ontario our friends lost their business and livelihood. Couldn't make the payments anymore after they maxed out their credit cards and the government welfare stopped coming. They got all kinds of restrictions on even how many people they can have over to their house. They sold their boat to pay off the credit card debt and have something to live on and buy food, and they get very little of that left - just enough to get out of the country. They got nothing left there to call "home". Meanwhile they got the corona anyway - both of them. It lasted about a week and they were over it.

This is the reality for some of your fellow Canadians. It has destroyed what they had. Our friends are going to sell their car and pickup truck, take what money they have left and get plane tickets out of Thunder Bay - they have no intentions of ever going back. They're going to cruise with us this winter until March - we can use the extra crew on the boat anyway and we have lots of room. Then we're going to help them get established here where they feel they at least have a chance at a normal life again.

Your "system" of endless control and restrictions failed them. And that's a reality that you seem to want to ignore. But it's very real for them, and it has been going on for approaching two years. They envy us down here because we don't have any of that unless you go to one of the big liberal-run metropolitan areas in California or New York, and even those aren't as bad as the patchwork system they have in Canada. They see us only 165 miles south of them, separated by an imaginary line that defines a border, living our lives as normal again and that's what they want. They don't think it's ever going to end in Canada because people there won't let go of it and learn to live with it. They said if they even break one of the "covid restrictions", somebody will rat on them and that's no way to live.

I agree with you 100%
The collateral damage must be considered in any response to covid. I feel fortunate to be retired and therefore sheltered fron the devastation but feel for those affected.

[CatNewBee]

Originally Posted by desodave

Ann mentioned the effect of watching someone pass away, and Scorpius mentioned that most of us do not know someone who has done so hence the effective "distance" from the pandemic. I agree with both. A long time former colleague of mine passed away from covid earlier this year - he was 78 with no known preconditions, certainly no excess weight and a non-smoker. That had a major effect on me and on my daughter, who knew him but had not seen him for at least ten years. It really does validate the seriousness of the disease in a way that reading about ICU/hospital overloads or case numbers does not. It makes a lot of stuff personal even when you have no problem believing the seriousness of the pandemic.

How do you know he died on corona and not with corona, after having no contact for 10 years. How old do you think he would become otherwise - 78 is not a bad age.

We have relatives, that died too last year. They had cancer and were treated, and were positive tested when being in the hospital. Corona casualty. They got it in the hospital, had a cough because of the weaker immune system due to chemo therapy. They were not treated for Corona, they sent them home to die.

The figures in the media do not represent the real thread. They count Corona death on or with Corona. This is not a serious statistic.

[Mike OReilly]

The crack opens and in runs all the anti's once again. For g-d sakes, go away. We're trying to have one little space to discuss CANADIAN COVID-19 NEWS. If you want to spread disinformation, go somewhere else!!!

[sv_pelagia]

Well, another on my "set phaser to ignore" list. No point in....

[sv_pelagia]

Originally Posted by CruisingCouple

They see us only 165 miles south of them, separated by an imaginary line that defines a border, living our lives as normal again and that's what they want. .

I look South and THIS is what I see:

[sv_pelagia]

Back to Canada:

Testing high-touch surfaces in grocery stores for COVID-19

https://theconversation.com/testing-...ovid-19-155648

These results suggest that the risk of exposure from high-touch surfaces within a grocery store is low.

Study by University of Guelph researchers

[Mike OReilly]

And here's some more actual news that affect many of us:
Canada sharing COVID-19 vaccine data with countries who don’t accept mixed-dose travellers

The Public Health Agency of Canada says it’s working with other governments still dubious about allowing Canadians with mixed vaccines to travel across their borders without quarantining.

Several countries, including the United States, only recognize people with two identical doses of an approved vaccine as being fully vaccinated.

[danstanford]

It is my belief that there are a large number of people not in the anti-vax camp who want to stretch their thinking to broader issues than the sickness of Covid. They are happy to get vaccinated knowing they are doing the best they can for society but are struggling with the very narrow focus placed on the topic today and the propensity of some people to ferociously clap back whenever they do not follow the 'party' line.

A Canadian Crisis manager, last year opined that putting physicians in charge of the steps and messaging around Covid was a dangerous thing. This thinking is not critical of the medical community's work or input but rather suggests that there are other, perhaps larger, issues at play which need to be considered for the best health of our nations.

[Lake-Effect]

Originally Posted by sv_pelagia

I look South and THIS is what I see:Attachment 246437

Well, exactly.

It IS possible that a country has few options besides just letting COVID happen. I'm sure this is the reality for many poor countries. And, I suppose any country must weigh the tradeoffs between the burden of unchecked COVID vs the economic hit of preventative measures. Maybe much of the US has, in effect, chosen to favour the economy. But THIS is what that choice looks like. They need to own it, there's no point pretending that COVID isn't a thing.

And let's not forget that it ain't the Canadian government blocking the movement of Canadian snowbirds.

There's still that ridiculous loophole of hiring a "commercial" driver to move a vehicle to the US, then the owners fly to the nearest US city and drive from there. Hey, I still have a commercial licence. Anyone need their RV moved?

[Macblaze]

Keep up the good work everyone. All hail the ignore button!




I find this both distressing and expected:


https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/hot...gary-1.6196752


5,000 travellers who defied hotel quarantine rules got big fines, but no sign of fines in Alberta

[danstanford]

Originally Posted by sv_pelagia

I look South and THIS is what I see:Attachment 246437

Can you tell if this chart is raw numbers or adjusted for population? It appears to be total cases in which case a direct comparison is not all that valuable given the 10 times US population compared to Canada.

[sv_pelagia]

Originally Posted by danstanford

Can you tell if this chart is raw numbers or adjusted for population? It appears to be total cases in which case a direct comparison is not all that valuable given the 10 times US population compared to Canada.

It is RATE PER MILLION POPULATION (so yes, adjusted for population.)

USA current death rate is about 5x to 6x that of Canada.