Lazarus

Very shaky for a keeper. Like he never played the game before!

Yes, there have been some issues with software updates/upgrades and we needed to revert back to previous installations. Sometimes that might cause issues with cached files and scripts. Clear your web cache. More updates will be performed this week.

An interesting article and one that seems to capture the gravity of the moment. I do agree with the author that says: "The answer to the question: “who on earth is dumb enough to believe in the gaslighting of America, at the point of literal mass death?” is, sadly, too many in a position of mainstream intellectual and cultural power in America." The US is on the verge of succumbing to Trump's authoritarianism, yet the majority of the citizens fails to understand and take this seriously. I also agree with the author's statement that the US fails to understand this because they have not experienced anything similar to this in the past. Medium: The Trumps are Gaslighting a Collapsing America Ever Wondered How Authoritarianism Happens? Exactly Like This.

Topic unlocked. All comments will require moderator approval prior to release.

One more little new feature is the Topic View Summary that appears at the topic sidebar area - a bird's eye view of activity within the topic. It very quickly lets you know how old the topic is and how long it has been since the last reply. This context is essential if you are unwittingly replying to an older topic.

Still working on improving the forum interface and functionality. Added a feature to preview new topic and comment posting prior to posting. Maybe it won't improve the quality of the posts, but it will certainly help make them look prettier! ?

There was an attempt to a software/system upgrade. Things did go wrong, and had to restore an earlier backup version. Some newer posts might have been lost. Sorry guys. Will attempt another upgrade over this coming weekend, so we will need to close the forums for a few hours. On Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020, the forums will not be available from 1:00PM - 5:00PM.

The US Naval Special Warfare Command said Sunday it is investigating a video that showed military working dogs attacking a stand-in wearing a Colin Kaepernick jersey during a demonstration at the Navy Seal Museum last year. What a disgrace for the US Navy! A clear display of whom they consider the 'bad guy'. A terrible lapse of judgement from the officers responsible for the training or a clear sign about the degree in which racism is wide spread in all US institutions? Top command better come down hard on this. https://twitter.com/BillyCorben/status/1289961836264095744?s=20

It's unfortunate that cases have spiked, but good to hear that the governor of Victoria is determined on taking drastic actions. Let's hope you guys manage to keep things under control and that we will look at you as another success story.

Happy to hear that you are getting things under control. Keep trying and follow the guidance set forth by the rest of the world - a world that seems to be managing the pandemic a bit better than us.

Topic locked. For now. There seems to be a problem getting it under control, so we'll change course and policies.

Former President Barack Obama delivered a rousing eulogy celebrating Lewis' life. "He, as much as anyone in our history, brought this country a little bit closer to our highest ideals," Mr. Obama said. Consider it a lesson in leadership and human values. Topic is locked to keep out trolling (we'll deal with all the exotic trolls in these forums in the coming days).

That's a great question. According to the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, "Effectiveness of quarantine during a viral outbreak relies on the timing and accuracy of the quarantine period, as well as the ability of individuals and health care providers to follow quarantine procedures. Current evidence to inform quarantine is limited, and COVID-19 infection trends raise critical questions about implementation effectiveness." ... "Quarantine is different from isolation, which is the separation of ill or infected persons from others to prevent the spread of infection or contamination. Introducing quarantine, according to the WHO: “aims to delay the introduction of the disease to a country or area or may delay the peak of an epidemic in an area where local transmission is ongoing, or both”." An opinion - on the subject of travelers - featured on Bloomberg reads: Britain’s Coronavirus Quarantine Won’t Fly : The U.K.’s quarantine for inbound travelers will inflict economic damage on its $182.5 billion tourism market, and it may not be enforceable.

I think that is what everybody should be doing. It's too early for us in the US to let our guard down.

@Molon Lave Our prayers are with you. This is scary indeed. For our international members, this reference from the BBC : Why Texas is seeing a coronavirus surge might shed some light as to why your state is going through these tough times. Stay healthy.

It's scary. Southeastern Pennsylvania entered its Green phase yesterday. Philadelphia enters the Green phase on Fri. Jul 3. Let's see how that goes. Will our fellow citizens act as responsible adults or immature children? I am pessimistic on this. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer: Pennsylvania does less coronavirus testing than almost every other state "If not for Philadelphia, where testing is relatively widespread, Pennsylvania’s rate would be even lower — roughly 4,800 tests per 100,000 people, ahead of only Wyoming, Idaho, and Puerto Rico..... But how much is enough? Epidemiologists say the answer is not simple, and that in one key respect — the percent who test positive — Pennsylvania’s low level of testing may be adequate."

Just a bit confused here. Which part do you consider funny? The incompetence or the propaganda? Have you not seen yet how this person's incompetence, corruption, cronyism and policies have wrecked this country? The fact that this individual is holding the highest elected position in our country and running running for re-election should scare the living daylights out of everybody.

The Greek Government's official count is here: https://covid19.gov.gr/covid19-live-analytics/

Yes, many have been called the name. People like slapping labels onto others. While the word 'fascist' has acquired a feeling of the extreme, like 'crying wolf', one has to pay close attention and study what fascism is and the machinations of how fascism works. Then, evaluate on your own where we currently stand and whether these labels are justifiable or not when applied to our current political climate and if they should be used when making the association with Donald J. Trump. An excellent study on the subject is the 2018 book: How Fascism Works by Jason Stanley. (The Guardian Review ) - same guy as the previous video. Essential reading in my opinion. Jason Stanley: How Fascism Works Excellent reference. Thank you for that.

A video clip from the New York Times for the thinking citizens of the US:

The area of Pennsylvania where I live, is lifting the stay-at-home order Thursday, June 4, at 11:59 p.m. On Friday, June 5, by 12:01 a.m., all Pennsylvania counties are expected to move to the yellow phase. Governor Wolf and Secretary Levine signed amended yellow phase orders on Thursday. On Thursday, Pennsylvania reported 537 more positive cases of COVID-19, and 75 new deaths. "I remind Pennsylvanians that yellow means caution and even in the green phase everyone needs to take precautions to keep themselves and their communities healthy," Governor Wolf said. Personally, I'm not too confident about things working out quite yet. But hey... Who am I to keep the economy from booming?

Mortality rates can be fudged or inconclusive - dependent on how the reporting goes. From the BBC, Belgium, with a population of 11.5 million, has seen 82 people in every 100,000 die during its coronavirus outbreak while the US, with a population of around 330 million, has seen nearly 30 people in every 100,000 die. One of the problems with comparing countries is that many of them report deaths in different ways. Belgium, for instance, includes deaths where coronavirus was suspected of being present but was never confirmed with a test. Some US states record deaths this way, but not all. As for Brazil...

80,000 + souls perished in the USA as of May 11, 2020. The Trump propaganda machine is bragging about the 'wonderful job' they have done in testing and how the US stands alone among nations as the best response ever. What a bunch of horseshit!

Sponsored by the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump super PAC that George T. Conway III (prominent attorney and husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway) co-founded with other Republicans and former ones. The video, released Monday, May 5, 2020, lays responsibility squarely at Trump’s doorstep for the severity of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, including the deaths and economic damage.