# Coronavirus COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) Thread - 2020 Breaking News **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [February 11, 2020, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758 "2020-02-11T01:16:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 117
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2327 "2020-04-13T15:45:32Z")
I wonder how many people clutching their pearls over masks going to non-medical professionals are actually working themselves. How many people opinionating about this policy are doing so from the privileged position of retirement or a job they can do from home? ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2328 "2020-04-13T15:55:35Z")
Sailor from the USS Theodore Roosevelt dies from COVID 19 > **[Sailor aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt dies of coronavirus | CNN Politics](https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/13/politics/theodore-roosevelt-sailor-coronavirus/index.html)** > > A sailor who tested positive for Covid-19 on the USS Theodore Roosevelt has died of coronavirus, the US Navy said Monday. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2329 "2020-04-13T15:59:49Z")
I strongly urge everyone to watch John Oliver’s latest, [Coronavirus IV](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6s4Bx7mzNkM) (20:37 video). He talks about the challenges facing people who are currently unemployed and about the challenges facing those who are in “essential services”. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2330 "2020-04-13T16:03:36Z")
Sailor from the USS Theodore Roosevelt dies from COVID 19 > **[Sailor aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt dies of coronavirus | CNN Politics](https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/13/politics/theodore-roosevelt-sailor-coronavirus/index.html)** > > A sailor who tested positive for Covid-19 on the USS Theodore Roosevelt has died of coronavirus, the US Navy said Monday. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2331 "2020-04-13T16:10:03Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > It will, of course, be immediately followed by Trump launching _ad hominem_ attacks against the good doctor and calls to immediately do something completely stupid and contrary to actual medical recommendations. > > If we lived in a just universe Trump would catch this thing and spend miserable weeks coughing and gasping in an underfunded, understaffed, under equipped hospital with gurneys carrying the dead resulting from his inaction and poor decisions going past his door day and night, preferably after some odd and ridiculous scenario in which he loses his security escort and ID so no one believes the blustering old man is actually the President, poor thing, obviously heading into senility and delusions, [southern accent]\* aw…bless his heart\*…[/southern accent] so he can directly experience how the other half lives (or doesn’t). **Moderator Note** Keep the political jabs out of this forum, and especially this thread. > [@AK84](#): > > You do realize he is getting re-elected right? And save comments like this for Politics and Elections. Colibri Quarantine Zone Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2332 "2020-04-13T16:24:20Z")
Get ready for a run on bacon. Smithfield, one of the largest pork processors in the country, [has shut its doors](https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/12/business/meat-plant-closures-smithfield/index.html) after 300 employees contracted the virus. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2333 "2020-04-13T16:33:05Z")
[George Stephanopoulos](https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/13/media/george-stephanopoulos-coronavirus/index.html) has tested positive, two weeks after his wife Ali Wentworth came down with it. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2334 "2020-04-13T17:10:07Z")
> **[Covid-19 may attack immune system like HIV, doctors fear](https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3079443/coronavirus-could-target-immune-system-targeting-protective)** > > Researchers in China and the US find that the virus that causes Covid-19 can destroy the T cells that are supposed to protect the body from harmful invaders. Researchers find the coronavirus can target T cells ala HIV. > [@](#): > > The coronavirus that causes Covid-19 could kill the powerful immune cells that are supposed to kill the virus instead, scientists have warned. > > The surprise discovery, made by a team of researchers from Shanghai and New York, coincided with frontline doctors’ observation that Covid-19 could attack the human immune system and cause damage similar to that found in HIV patients. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2335 "2020-04-13T17:17:02Z")
> [@](#): > > I wonder how many people clutching their pearls over masks going to non-medical professionals are actually working themselves. How many people opinionating about this policy are doing so from the privileged position of retirement or a job they can do from home? It was not specified that the masks in question are not medical grade. For that matter, are we all assured that no medical workers would want or accept such masks if nothing else were available? Are we further assured that this is not the case? Given such assurances, my pearls would remain unclutched. Unless the source was unreliable. The other implied snark is deservedly ignored. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2336 "2020-04-13T17:17:43Z")
I made a threat asking about this the other day, which sank like a stone, so I’ll ask here: can one of the more science-y types evaluate the plausibility of the claims in this article? And also the reliability of the source? (Edit: the South China Morning Post story, two posts about this one.) ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2337 "2020-04-13T17:22:05Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Get ready for a run on bacon. Smithfield, one of the largest pork processors in the country, [has shut its doors](https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/12/business/meat-plant-closures-smithfield/index.html) after 300 employees contracted the virus. That’s a bit misleading: Smithfield has only shut one of several pork processing plants it owns. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2338 "2020-04-13T17:33:28Z")
Thread, not threat. Stupid fingers. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2339 "2020-04-13T17:39:45Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > It was not specified that the masks in question are not medical grade. Why would it need to be specified? When I hear “face mask”, I don’t think “N95.” Do you think they are interchangeable terms? > [@](#): > > For that matter, are we all assured that no medical workers would want or accept such masks if nothing else were available? Are we further assured that this is not the case? So until every single medical worker has every kind of mask they desire, regardless of how much risk they are in, the rest of us must go without? No, I’m not down for that, sorry. I don’t want doctors and nurses to put their lives at risk, but I don’t want that for any front-line worker. > [@](#): > > Given such assurances, my pearls would remain unclutched. Unless the source was unreliable. The other implied snark is deservedly ignored. Why should we expend energy unclutching your pearls? You aren’t putting your neck on the line to bag anyone’s groceries or deliver their mail, so why should we care what you think? I only care about the opinions of people who are putting their lives in danger every day. And all those people need PPEs. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2340 "2020-04-13T17:55:57Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > It was not specified that the masks in question are not medical grade. For that matter, are we all assured that no medical workers would want or accept such masks if nothing else were available? Are we further assured that this is not the case? > > Given such assurances, my pearls would remain unclutched. Unless the source was unreliable. The other implied snark is deservedly ignored. [You are invited to the BBQ Pit](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=894057) because the only thing I can say to you is inappropriate for this forum. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2341 "2020-04-13T17:59:58Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > That’s a bit misleading: Smithfield has only shut one of several pork processing plants it owns. Ah, well, the article wasn’t really clear about there being other plants, but it makes sense that there are. Still, this one plant processes something like 5% of the supply of pork. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2342 "2020-04-13T18:09:33Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Ah, well, the article wasn’t really clear about there being other plants, but it makes sense that there are. Still, this one plant processes something like 5% of the supply of pork. This NPR article discussed the closure of that plant (and several others), and quotes the CEO of Smithfield as saying, “The closure of this facility, combined with a growing list of other protein plants that have shuttered across our industry, is pushing our country perilously close to the edge in terms of our meat supply.” > **[U.S. Meat Supply Is 'Perilously Close' To A Shortage, CEO Warns](https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/04/13/833110486/u-s-meat-supply-is-perilously-close-to-a-shortage-ceo-warns?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogscoronavirusliveupdates)** > > A Smithfield Foods plant in South Dakota that produces 4% to 5% of the nation's pork supply has become the latest meat processing facility to shut down as COVID-19 sickens plant workers. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2343 "2020-04-13T18:14:22Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Wait. All of our nurses, doctors, EMTs, etc., they are all fully stocked with masks? No shortages, anywhere? If the local hospital in Boondock County is not fully stocked, who the bleeding fuck decided that grocery stores get them? Cloth masks, not N95 masks. Some of them are handmade. Those help prevent a asymptomatic person from spreading it. ---
**Author:** ![kk\_fusion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kk_fusion/32/15276_2.png) [@kk\_fusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kk_fusion)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2344 "2020-04-13T18:16:12Z")
… and France is extending full lockdown until May 11th. Four more weeks. I predict lasting liver damage. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2345 "2020-04-13T18:22:20Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > It was not specified that the masks in question are not medical grade. For that matter, are we all assured that no medical workers would want or accept such masks if nothing else were available? Are we further assured that this is not the case? > > Given such assurances, my pearls would remain unclutched. Unless the source was unreliable. The other implied snark is deservedly ignored. Well, we _have_ told you. And yes, grocery store workers, like \*\*Broomstick \*\*and my wife are doing a critical job and \*are at risk. \* These slightly above minimum wage workers are risking their lives and the lives of their families so people like you can remain fed. You sir- \*\*are totally and completely wrong \*\*here. Clutch something else. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2020, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758/2346 "2020-04-13T18:59:36Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > It was not specified that the masks in question are not medical grade. It was assumed that obvious facts such as “the sun rises in the east”, “the masks worn by non-medical personnel are not medical-grade masks”, “the Pope is Catholic”, etc, did not need to be specified each and every time. I trust that your correspondents will not make this error again. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758.md?page=116) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coronavirus-covid-19-2019-ncov-thread-2020-breaking-news/847758.md?page=118)