Gromnir

watched the road (2009) the other day. only got halfway through the film. *sigh* am recalling better times when we could sit back and enjoy a bit o' vapid saccharine cheer in a movie. HA! Good Fun!

if your neighbor has a vicious dog and you pretend as if the dog is friendly and tame knowing such ain't true, then when you refuse to change your behaviour and get bit by the dog, predictably, you gotta accept some blame. sure, the dog's owner is no less at fault 'cause you are an obtuse dullard, but you need embrace responsibility for your injuries. it were years past that bill gates predicted a china born pandemic. the obama administration warned the incoming administration 'bout the possibility o' a pandemic emerging from china during the transition exercises when trump were moving into the wh. Is China Ground Zero for a Future Pandemic? Diseases like Ebola and avian flu are some of the biggest threats to global security — and lack of funding puts the US at risk many people with expertise saw this coming. HOWEVER, another sars kinda coronavirus were actual one o' the lesser concerns. is literal millions o' coronaviruses and almost none o' them pose a threat to humans. given chinese resistance to consuming less than "fresh" meat, and the huge populations o' china which is not particular spread out 'cross their geography, the dangers o' a pandemic spreading from china were well documented. even so, the likelihood o' a lethal coronavirus making the leap from some wild critter in a market in china or elsewhere, while recognized, were considered a lesser danger. in retrospect, the coronavirus threat were underappreciated, but is easy to point fingers in march 2020. yes, china hid the dangers o' covid-19 from their own people and the world. even so, in january 2020 the US government were getting strong intelligence reports confirming that the predicted nightmare scenario o' a pandemic o' chinese origin were already happening. fact folks here in north america, including kanada and mexico, reacted so slow in spite o' forewarning is arguable criminal negligent. am not giving china a free pass. china badness does not absolve trump or trudeau. oh, and when this is all past, if we as a species pretend as if the danger is past and ignore the future danger from the next global pandemic, then we deserve what lies ahead. even if china closes every wild animal market, their poultry and pork production is gonna continue to represent an existential threat. oh, and americans don't get a free pass from Gromnir. US domestic animal production is gonna need serious attention in the coming years if we wanna prevent a north american born pandemic, but please read the 2017 smithsonian article we linked. we got lucky with covid-19. am knowing how callous that sounds, but covid-19, as bad as it is, coulda' been a far more lethal disease. we are lucky 'cause we are getting a chance to fix our mistakes. blame entire on china may make vol feel better, but if such vindication means US and kanada reacts with insufficient vigor in preparing for the next pandemic, then it is utter misguided and unacceptable dangerous. woulda' kept this in the other thread, but am responding to vol. Trump says he wouldn't have acted differently on coronavirus without impeachment what a cheap and cowardly dodge. surprising he is adopting this argument as it suggests weakness, no? HA! Good Fun!

again, we got a friend who will do the diagnostic bit. with a tail wind and following a moderate warmup, we could hit our friend's house with a thrown baseball from where we live... on a very good day if we were ten-to-fifteen years younger with a bit less arthritis in our shoulder. am relative rural, so nearest merchant with such equipment is a 25-minute drive. ordinarily we would have friend take a looksee (even though he is a st. louis cardinals fan and those guys are all tool bags) and clear code if it were a non-factor, but as hurl observes, the auto repair guys is hurting. HA! Good Fun!

am suspecting we need clear some code and then may go back to driving as usual as there is no symptoms which would alarm us. first thing we did were to check to make sure the gas cap were tight, but am knowing even if such were the problem, address problem alone wouldn't make the engine warning light disappear. being a cheap bastard, ordinarily we would go to a friend who has the appropriate computer hardware/software to identify the code before we even consider taking to a shop. nevertheless, you got a point. with how bad the repair guys is hurting, throw a little business their way couldn't hurt. silver lining: gives us an excuse to drive one o' the buicks for a couple days. HA! Good Fun!

went to costco this AM. got to the store 20 minutes early. there were a line o' people stretching from one end of the store to the other, and back again. hundreds o' people waiting to gain entrance. turned around and came home. will call costco and ask when the best time to shop is. check engine light glared amber at us on the ride home. HA! Good Fun!

am disappointed on some level to see oro posting and doing fine. don't get us wrong, is swell and all when a john munch channeling wingnut shows up after a bit o' an absence, but on some level you know he wishes he had been drugged and abducted by government stormtroopers who then waterboarded him ceaselessly for no reason save that they could. welcome back @Orogun01, but know that if there is any way we might help you achieve the fantasy o' being brutalized by an indifferent State, we will be there for you... from a safe distance. HA! Good Fun!

our first ever anticipatory "today-what you've done" post. am taking off this april fool's day. ordinarily we would chuckle at the lack o' imagination displayed by folks applying vaseline to windshield wiper blades as their contribution to the day's whimsy, but this year those sophomoric hijinks rings a bit hollow. our own april fool's pranks tend towards the elaborate and rely on multiple co-conspirators. have a group o' friends commit a prank means the aggrieved need be angry at all o' you. sure, is cowardly to hide your villainy in a group, but is also effective. regardless, given social distancing guidelines limiting our group participation options, as well as being aware 'nuff to recognize how the line 'tween funny and hurtful is more easily mistaken when people is stressed, am gifting our friends and family with a pass this year. is arguable our lack o' wisdom is making every day an april fool's day, but am foregoing the official observance this year. yet another covid-19 sacrifice being made for the greater good. HA! Good Fun!

Ford, GE estimate it will take until end of April to produce 1,500 ventilators so trump says peak is in two weeks. where such figure come from is anybody's guess. however, the ventilators being produced won't begin coming off the assembly line 'til late april. personal protective equipment and testing? well, the ppe shortage is not 'cause there is a surge o' patients who may have a sooper transmissible disease in hospitals but 'cause essential supplies are 'going out the back door.' and testing? testing is great. 'ccording to the most recent trump presser, is more per-capita testing in the US than south korea (lie)... and the population of seoul is 38 million btw (wrong). regardless, trump hasn't heard any testing complaints in weeks. today, march 30, many hospitals are stretched to the breaking point. cases and deaths is doubling every 3-4 days. the intelligence community were briefing lawmakers in late january and early february that covid-19 were coming to the USA sooner rather than later. the media were reporting 'bout what were happening with covid-19 in china at beginning of january. first US death were late january. oh, and what the hell is wrong with people? what is wrong with people? HA! Good Fun!

we always buy the cheapest ramen we can find, then throw away everything but the noodles. is weird, but is usual cheaper to buy ramen noodles as part o' packaged meals than to buy ramen noodles. our current biggest problem for any kinda ramen is finding fresh garlic and ginger. we got a few sooper ez ramen recipes which use peanut butter or tahini but am always needing cloves o' garlic and an a bit over an inch o' garlic. HA! Good Fun!

hadn't previous considered russian orthodox priests on flatbeds doing mass holy water blessings street-by-street. a novel virus needs novel solutions. good for russia. HA! Good Fun!

congrats. that is exact what trump wants. trump spends a great deal o' time and effort trying to compliment putin and others. not exact the way you mean, but complimentary nevertheless. aren't you lucky? resist is another option. resist autocrats. resit lies. resist whataboutism. Dr. Birx Predicts U.S. Will See 100,000 to 200,000 Coronavirus Deaths in ‘Best Case Scenario’ “If we do things together well, almost perfectly, we could get in the range of 100,000 to 200,000 fatalities,” optimal = 100-200k deaths. am not sure how trump can keep reselling the two weeks schtick. next two weeks were the most important time ... two weeks ago. two weeks from now is when trump believes will be a peak in deaths, in spite o' fact much o' the country is just beginning to get to the point where ny was, two weeks ago. one estimate not bounded by two weeks is the 50k ventilators (as many as 100k) on the way from automakers: 100 days. am not quite sure the President realizes how much difference there is 'tween fourteen and one hundred. if the fed had pushed at the end o' january for ramped up ventilator production, the 100-day estimate would be far less temporal remote. HA! Good Fun! ps case/death numbers is doubling every 3-4 days. ~3000 deaths today. look to a month from now if there isn't a drastic drop in rates. is 'bout 8 doublings? so, 768,000 deaths projected?

am recognizing how tough this must be. you enjoy when oliver exposes a wouldbe autocrat like trump, but am suspecting you were less appreciative when oliver went after more experienced autocrats such as putin and xi. story from march 14 'We are all infected with football and will die for Zenit' march 19 Sharp increase in Moscow pneumonia cases fuels fears over coronavirus statistics march 20 Doctors in Russia are accusing the government of covering up its coronavirus outbreak and denying them protective equipment march 25 Why Is Russia’s Coronavirus Case Count So Low?

good news? the picard season finale aired and so the shared nerd nightmare ends. HA! Good Fun!

~15 years past, the west nile virus hit bird populations in north america. crows were particular susceptible. in one year, crow population is estimated to have fallen by 30%. overall, during entire west nile virus period of 'bout 5 years, the crow population in na dropped 60%-80%. the crows had it coming. currently, there is a fungus which is spreading 'mongst amphibians. already 501 species o' frogs and salamanders has been wiped out... wiped out as in gone from the world never to be seen again save in photos and textbooks n' such. ever met a salamander who didn't deserve to die? +99% of species which has ever existed has been murderized by mother nature. mother nature doesn't care about you anymore than she cares 'bout salamanders or crows or dinosaurs or woolly mammoths. mother nature will, one day, end you with the pathological indifference o' a serial killer. viruses ain't some kinda punishment for transgression against nature or god or whatever. even if you see some kinda population control function as an explanation for the existence o' viruses, the pathogens is utter indiscriminate. nature takes such a long view that human conceits such as punishment and justice is incompatible with her goals. if there is a reason, then there is an opportunity for control. change behaviors and offer a few more virgin sacrifices to the gods will be your prophylactic 'gainst doom. sure, there is ways to combat virus spread and symptoms. we need not stand idle and surrender to fate, but pretend like all the death and suffering has meaning is foolishness. and if Gromnir is wrong and viruses is some kinda punishment from nature, then am gonna go out and buy as many plastic straws we can afford and set 'em ablaze in a grand bonfire with the most environmental harmful fuel source available to us. #$%& you mother nature. HA! Good Fun!

after a moment o' reflection, we concluded the most recent robin hood tv show or movie we view positive, stuff wherein robin hood is a main character and not a single scene or episode kinda thing, is from 1976. is a long time for an iconic character to be so ill treated by directors, writers and producers o' visual media. HA! Good Fun!

The stimulus bill includes a tax break for the 1% we earlier highlighted this curious tax boon for the wealthy included in the stimulus bill, but the linked opinion article does a fair job o' explaining. "Let's pause for a moment to review: The new relief provision only benefits those who can list more than $500,000 in excess business losses -- typically artificial losses from depreciation that have more than wiped out their business income on paper -- AND more than $500,000 in other income from wages or other sources now that the cap on the tax break has been removed. Pity such people in a time of pandemic? Congress did. "Who are they? The Times and other accounts refer to this category as the "top 1%" of taxpayers, according to Internal Revenue Service data. These are people who are likely making millions, writing off millions more in paper real estate losses, all the while really hating the taxes they must pay." when a bit o' normalcy returns, Congress needs re examine this provision. similar but different... Red and Blue America Agree That Now Is the Time to Violate the Constitution have mentioned previous how when we talk o' the government taking away freedoms we ordinarily don't mean it in the same way as does gd. is a mistake to think o' government as a threat to The People. one should always be conscious o' the fact the greatest threat to freedom in this country is not tyrants acting 'gainst the will o' the people but rather the tyranny o' the majority. particular in times when fears is stoked, democracy becomes dangerous. japanese internment in ww2 were not evil government acting in spite o' popular will but rather government responding to widespread anger and fear. in 2020 we look back at japanese internment and wonder: how could the government do such a thing? wrong query. the Constitution (the Bill of Rights in particular) is designed, consciously and with full awareness, as a limit on democracy. decades hence, school children will look back at 2020 and lament how the government took civil liberties away from people in violation o' the Constitution. just like patriot act. just like korematsu. just like... etc. gotta break the cycle. gotta recognize it is The People demanding safety and security and offering freedom up on the pyre as a sacrifice. yeah, trump and others is gonna grab for power for self interest, but biggest threat is your neighbors and the guy in the mirror. HA! Good Fun!

would be nice if it were a denver thing. so denver is buckwheats? bad enough, but our experience suggests it is a bit more widespread. in another post we mentioned how our older family members were not taking this situation serious. referenced two aunts specific. the 82-year old lives in midwest. the 79-year old lives in socal. ... y'know, for driver training classes in US high schools, students is shown blood on the pavement and similar such films to try and drive home the scope o' dangers from driving when st00pid. such lessons is having admitted limited and short-term impact on teens, but short-term may be enough in this situation. am knowing this sounds like a cruel solution, but am thinking it might be worth showing film o' people suffering from severe respiratory distress to, well, everybody. if you have ever watched somebody die as they struggle to breathe, chances are it had an impact 'pon you. am knowing film ain't same as in-person viewing a friend or loved one die from pulmonary embolism or similar, but am thinking far too many do not yet comprehend what it is they are facing, not the reality of it. the following is gonna be a bit graphic, so please do not read if you are sensitive to such descriptions regardless, am doubtful shady's experience is anything other than the norm as we see it here and am knowing our family, spread 'cross the country, is replicating the indifference o' the older generations to warnings 'bout the need for social distancing. people clear don't get it, not yet.

Who got special deals in the stimulus and why they got them "A provision for the FDA to approve “innovative” sunscreens—that happen to be made in Florence, Ky., by L’Oreal—appeared in the bill, which was steered in the Senate by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky." not mentioned in the article is the single line from the bill, kinda hidden, which returns the real estate depreciation tax cut that the 2017 tax deal removed. is hard to explain how big this is... for rich folks. is gonna be multiple years o' no tax payments for the wealthy attributed to this single provision o' the stimulus deal. we need something to help Americans, and like it or not, this stimulus is it. unfortunate, the deal represents much o' what is wrong with Congress. HA! Good Fun!

keep in mind there is also significant misapprehensions 'bout lethality o' covid-19 compared to previous pandemics. 1% mortality assumes 2020 first-world health care under ordinary circumstances. compare lethality o' spanish flu, smallpox and black death results in a serious underappreciation o' the lethality o' covid-19. one reason why death rate in italy is so high is 'cause health care resources in that country is overwhelmed. a patient, forced to survive covid-19 w/o all the benefits o' 2020 medical care is not facing the spectre o' 1%. failure to adequate anticipate surge ADDS to functional lethality. furthermore, lethality and transmissibility is equal significant considerations. covid-19 actual spreads more readily than first assumed. ebola, as terrible and lethal as it is, spread nowhere near as quick as covid-19. fact we got so many asymptomatic covid-19 folks spreading through respiration is making the disease functional more deadly. HA! Good Fun!

am gonna disagree. polarization and gaslighting, supported by media sources which is more interested in promoting a particular ideology than factual accuracy is gonna result in an unsupportable narrative nevertheless becoming gospel for a significant portion o' the population. if you ain't been paying attention to trends from the last decade, you will be shocked and horrified by the lengths folks is gonna go to in an attempt to reimagine and marginalize what should be inarguable tragic. as much as you need steel yourself for many weeks o' social distancing in an effort to keep the spread o' the pandemic from overwhelming limited healthcare resources, am thinking you also need prepare self for the aftermath which has frightening large numbers o' people in multiple nations convinced this were all much ado 'bout nothing... relative speaking. we are lucky. this pandemic, as bad as it is gonna get 'tween now and release o' a vaccine more than a year hence, coulda' been much worse. this is not a civilization ending pandemic, but the next one might be. with increased globalism becoming the norm, the possibility o' worldwide pandemics growing outta control too fast for nations with current levels o' preparedness to respond is increasing. as such,we are getting a harsh but valuable warning from the universe. can either learn from it or suffer a far worse fate when a truly terrible pathogen spreads through every city and township o' the the world a decade (or sooner) from today. as insane as it may sound in this moment, we are lucky, lucky this ain't far worse. polarization. gaslighting. lack o' education. improbable as it may appear to those o' us who see images from italian and spanish and nyc hospitals being overwhelmed, there is a real possibility that we, as a people, don't genuine learn anything from today's experience. don't be surprised if such posts age better than you believe is reasonable. HA! Good Fun!

mentioned elsewhere we were gonna check out the met's tannhäuser offering. occurred to us tannhäuser, in an extreme small portion, may be one o' the better known (to american audiences) wagner operas... albeit with liberties taken. HA! Good Fun!

well, you did (purposeful) leave out the bit before the colon: "improbable but not impossible." tell us cyndi lauper is an improbable but not impossible option for democrats emerging from a brokered convention and we would need concede the possibility. our fatalism has us believing democrats will, by accident as 'posed to intent, do whatever is in trump's best interest, but am past the point o' caring. o' the possibilities available for the democratic nomination, none is trump. given debacle o' past three years, and in particular the past three months, am gonna vote not trump regardless o' who that ends up being. even so, am holding out hope for ms. lauper 2020. HA! Good Fun!

am recalling pbs buffalo went after levar burton when he resurrected the reading rainbow show via a kickstarter campaign. seth macfarlane contributed ~$1 million to the kickstarter. am embarrassed to admit we never bothered to see what were the resolution o' the legal kerfuffle, 'but given he is still reading but not using "rainbow," am assuming some kinda settlement were reached which allows mr. burton to continue. is our opinion gaiman's best work is found in his kid friendly and ya catalog, and that ain't a backhanded compliment. the graveyard book is one o' the best stories we has read since 2000... period. no qualification as a children's book needed. applause for mr. burton and gaiman respective. HA! Good Fun!

y'know what's really exploitive? _________. reroll is no biggie 'cause __________. *insert favorite dismissive emoticon here* disadvantage for us, having been on crpg boards since last century, is fact these balance arguments is like living groundhog day. same bad arguments getting repeated over and over and overandoverandoverandoverandoverandover. bg3 is not pnp. bg3 is a single-player crpg. re-load is a known and predictable quantity. ps:t went so far as to make dying part o' the mechanics and dying were in fact necessary to advance the game. nevertheless, reload happened and were anticipated in ps:t and scores o' similar crpgs. reroll, on the other hand, is utter outside control o' developer as the range o' possible attribute spreads is vast. HA! Good Fun!

https://www.unacast.com/covid19/social-distancing-scoreboard is knee-jerk to draw too many conclusions, but is interesting to look at the data. HA! Good Fun!