My
barbershop just informed via email they are closed indefinitely. Good thing I took care of such last
week… (Maybe instead of folks rushing to
hoard up TP, they should have gotten a haircut instead?)
Feds near zero interest rates, most likely could
translate into refinancing any existing loans to lower rates…maybe. Even so, I am hopeful the US does not fall
into the Eurozone culture with negative interest rates: this means you get paid for going into debt
(borrow 100, pay back 95), but savers lose out (save 100, get paid back
95). A bit of a topsey turvey environment.
Not only a Small World After All…but possibly A Mad One as well…
Ventilators:
Finally figured out…yes there are limited supplies (but that is
‘normal’). Can’t just flip a switch and
increase production. Vents are specialty
made products, various suppliers (2 in
US, Germany, Netherlands, India, few others, etc), each make a few hundred a
year, price is $25,000. Takes
significant investment and time to ramp up production–and that extra expensive
production may only have a one time use…maybe.
In addition, the machines are NOT like a lawnmower where anyone can
operate them. It takes special skills
and training. So in addition to
difficulty making more…there is a shortage of operators and it takes time to
train them.
Interesting that India and Pakistan have
reported only a couple hundred of virus cases.
Either the reporting is questionable, or if accurate…what makes those
areas so light with Covid 19 patients?
Could it be a combination of hot weather and curry and hot spices (which
I like)? Hope the researchers and health
providers are assessing the circumstance to determine if there is a cause and
effect. (One strange commentator
suggested we burn more coal and increase global warming so we kill the virus
with higher temps…not sure about the secondary effects of melting ice caps…)
Heard one commentator suggesting those 80 or
over should not have access to ventilator and maybe even health care, thereby
freeing up space for younger apparently more valuable folk. Sorta makes one acting like God; puts a
damper on what age discrimination means; and the Physicians creed of do no
harm may have to be restated. Tough
times usually result in honest transparency of
beliefs and philosophy. A little
bit of sunshine is a great disinfectant.
There have been many Pandemics over
history. And death tolls a lot worse
(1918 Spanish Flu killed 40 million…, SARS, Ebola, Hong Kong flu, AIDs, Swine
flu, Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis, etc where 100,000’s died – and don’t
forget that 35,000 US deaths per year (over a million globally) from auto
accidents). Sorta makes one wonder why
the stock market has acted so crazy with No. 19 and not so much the
others? Factors might be (aside from the
conventional reduction in business activity, unemployment pressure, liquidity,
etc) … more uncertainty (neither the market or investors like the U word); less
brick and mortar companies and more ‘service’ businesses whose ‘value’ is not
touchable – its in the cloud and a
fragile thing indeed (social media firms have people and office space but only
peddles communication and data and they use other’s hardware); more folks in
town than on the farm so more urban than rural mentality – congested urban
agitation and less in-touch with mother earth that otherwise gives our toes
while walking barefoot on dirt, that feeling of belonging and contact with
perceived reality; (OK…I may have
wandered abit here into ideology and philosophy land… : o)
Not sure it’s good politic to now call it the
‘Chinese Virus’. All of us need a
helping hand now and then from whoever…and playing the blame game, isolates
‘friends’, and is a silly thing to do no matter whose side your on…and I try to
be on the side of right. (Good thing Mr.
T and China premier agree on one thing…its someone else’s fault. I say instead of focusing on who spilt the
milk…how about just clean it up, besides blaming it on a 1 year old who has not
matured into the age of reason, is not a mature adult healthy thing to
do.). I probably subconsciously blame it on bats (The Bat Virus – TBV)
and wondering if we should fumigate the Waugh drive bridge – and others – where
one of Houston, Texas’s local bat colonies ‘hangs’ out (apology for the
pun)? Maybe Austin, Texas BeeCave drive
bat colony environs are another target.
Or Carlsbad Caverns? Or…??? Downside is that the mosquito population, a
food source for bats, will go up with less bats…then there might be a malaria
problem…A Mad World…
Some deniers have equated shutting down bars as
a form of Prohibition, which they claim didn’t work before. Interesting closing bars has nothing to do
with one’s right to purchase all the booze they want…just have to drink it at
home or small groups. What Prohibition?
I wish CNN and Fox and other news folks would be
much less dramatic in their hand waving reporting and stop selling glitz and
chaos and promoting their selfish agendas be they political or not…not that I’m
not (now there’s a double negative us lawyers and English teachers focus on –
yes, a dangling participle as well) sympathetic to many of the objectives,
there’s a time and place for everything and right now we need solidarity and
common purpose by all to achieve success with defeating a global common enemy.
I had no idea that the public elementary school
system is not only an educational institution, but also a food and nutrition
provider for the majority of students. I
occasionally attend my grandchildren’s schools and have lunch with them. On reflection there does appear to be a large
number who obtain their meal from the cafeteria. My GC’s take their own lunch prepared by
their moms. (Something my mom did when I
was a tike…we did not have much, but we never went hungry though it may not
have been top choice…). Where do those
children eat when its summer vacation?
With all the volatility…looks like the stock
market shares of hand sanitizer, paper and food companies are doing quite well
in all this since everyone seems to be hoarding such items and buying up
supplies. Good to feel wanted I guess. (I’ve been told Tuesday is when supplies are
generally received by retailers and they restocking their shelves…hence why
coupons are generally valid Wednesday thru Saturday. Best we do our non-hoarding shopping on
Tuesday afternoon or Wed morning and buy that normal roll of TP.
I was wondering if the sewer systems were
becoming incubators for the virus given all this hand washing and
drainage. Apparently not, since the
mixed in soap zaps the virus.
Given China and Italy experience and all the
turmoil they have had, there is comfort that utilities (water, electricity,
gas, communication) and food supply systems have all worked without
hiccups. Good to know that, as a bunch
of stored up frozen pizza may not be the better ‘nonperishable’ food stock to have
as emergency food supply, should electricity and refrigerators shut down. Not that I’m a doomsayer…but there are those
who need to think the unthinkable JIC.
BTY my JIC store of nonperishable food supply is non-refrigerated dried
beans and rice (whose shelf life is pretty resilient and not dependent on a
frig) and boiled water (that camp stove has new meaning).