asymptomatic does not mean “safe”
According to the Worldmeter site, US deaths per day have declined.
10 May 750
9 May 1,422
8 May 1,687
7 May 2,129
This means 10 May was our first under-1,000 day in more than a month. I suppose such a large decline might be some sort of fluke, but we can hope for the best.
New York saw its first sub-100 day in quite a long time.
Reporting has often declined on weekends as cases/deaths aren’t tallied and are reported later.
4,181,007 total cases
283,868 dead
1,493,401 recovered
In the US:
1,367,638 total cases
80,787 dead
256,336 recovered
Yesterday’s numbers for comparison:
There is a weekly cycle with respect to deaths being recorded and made available to the general public (including sites like Worldometer). But this is low even keeping that in mind.
U.S. coronavirus deaths had already been declining for the past few weeks (peak, AFAICT, was the week of April 15-21). That’s the good news. The more concerning news is that the vast majority of the decline has taken place in NY and NJ alone; deaths in the rest of the country have declined only slightly over this time.
Here in Maryland, for instance, covid-19 deaths are running about 350-370 per week (I recommend looking at weekly averages due to reporting issues) without any increase or decline that I can see over the past few weeks.
I expect covid-19 fatalities will hit 100,000 before Memorial Day, and will exceed WWI deaths before July 4. The 100,000th death ought to win a free funeral or something. 
I was expecting it to be the Presidential Medal of FREEDOM!!1!
CMC fnord!
Moderator Note
Keep the political cracks out of this forum.
Colibri
QZ Moderator
Peter Piot, one of the discoverers of the Ebola virus way back in 1976, said this in a recent interview:
People keep saying this. Well, it’s reality, and people will eventually shrug and go back to the way they were before.
If by “before” you mean the world before antibiotics and vaccines, say, pre-1850, when outbreaks and epidemics were regular features of life then yes.
“Before” meaning 2010, no.
ICE is planning to stick COVID-positive immigrants on passenger planes and ship the to Haiti.
Haiti should refuse all flights from the U.S. until a stop is put to this.
It’s becoming more and more clear that enough Americans won’t comply with mask or social distancing, so each person needs to take appropriate precautions to stay safe. We should just assume that all public indoor air is contaminated, every surface is contaminated, and that every mask people wear is made of poor materials with a poor fit and isn’t filtering anything. With the long pre-symptomatic period, you can’t be sure who is and isn’t shedding virus anyway. Regardless of whether the plane is full of deathly ill patients coughing and sneezing, or full of medical doctors wearing hazmat suits, you should take the same precautions to keep yourself safe.
Basically, assume each and every person is actively shedding virus and you personally do everything you need to do to stay safe. Do not count on anyone else taking precautions, because it’s clear that the general public is not taking this seriously. Assuming that other people will take appropriate precautions is giving people a false sense of security.
Researchers are investigating the use of llama cells in fighting coronavirus. (PDF)
Where’s Kuzco?!
Today in Austria:
[ul]
[li] Drive-in movie theatres are exceedingly rare in Austria, but due to the pandemic a new one will be temporarily opened at the Salzburg airport. The cinema will operate for 95 days from 28 May to 30 August, showing a feature film or a live concert every night at 21:00 for occupants of up to 330 vehicles.[/li][li] Today the chancellor reported that the previously announced financial aid for the restaurant industry will take the form of €500 million in tax relief. The most significant of the measures is that taxes on nonalcoholic drinks will be lowered from 20% to 10%; establishments are expected to pocket the difference rather than passing the savings on to customers.[/li][li] Last week a lane of one of Vienna’s main roads was converted into a bike lane in a bid to encourage more socially distant commuting. But today someone—perhaps a disgruntled motorist—strewed thumbtacks over it, damaging the tires of several unsuspecting cyclists. Police are investigating. The bike lane is supposed to remain in place until at least the end of August.[/li][li] Current statistics: 15,845 confirmed infections, 620 deaths, 14,061 recovered.[/li][/ul]
Where do I donate? And can I please take a magazine into the room with me?
I agree with you 100%. I can’t say I’m sorry to see the dumbfucks selecting themselves out of the gene pool, but it infuriates me that they’re taking so many of us* down with them.
(* People who aren’t dullards)
Basically the US has become a concealed-carry nation where we MUST assume all others are armed and if they make a suspicious move then we’d better shoot first; failure to do so is suicidal.
Now we MUST assume all others are contagious and if they make a suspicious move (like exhaling) then… then what? Do we wear respirator masks with air tanks when in public? Do we carry sharp sticks to keep others at a safe distance? How do we act rationally when surrounded by shedders? Just stay home? We do that now. It’s like WAR GAMES: “The only way to win is not to play.” But we can’t stop. What a pickle!
At first I read it as lama cells and I wondered about the Buddhist connexion. Lama cells. Llama cells. Lllama cells. Tony Lama cells. Try everything!
But beware. I foresee a spike in llama-napping. Rustlers for health! Or will llamas be found dead on the pampas, drained of precious bodily fluids? Will llama bestiality surge? No, seriously – llamaseries had better beef-up security; electrify fences; fly surveillance drones; and fit every beast with a GPS-tracking collar. It’s only prudent.
In most of the rest of the world the goal is to share any information to help fight this catastrophe. The U.S. has the contrary view–keep the information proprietary and make money off of it.