The evidence that covid can dysregulate the immune system is — at this point — extensive, though not well-publicized. A close eye on covid-related subreddits will reveal — with surprising frequency — posts asking about, or describing, anecdotal experiences with this. Here are over a dozen:
The mask ban being proposed in North Carolina is discriminatory & dangerous. I’m grateful this clip covered the risk these bans pose to POC & marginalized individuals. It won’t be limited to people committing crimes…. If you truly believe that you need to listen to more marginalized voices.
I found it especially telling that the senator mentioned “trusting” law enforcement not to arrest Granny for wearing a mask in Walmart. The de facto implication here is that they CAN arrest Granny for that. They may not be able to criminally charge you - but if they’re allowed to stop, search and arrest just for masking in public there will be abuse. There will be situations where people are forced to remove their mask and consent to a search AND risk infection.
Im incredibly grateful to all the groups fighting back against this bill - and encourage everyone to watch this brief clip:
Anecdotally - it feels like I know way more people sick with respirator viruses right now than I have in a long time. None of them are testing for COVID and none seem to think it’s strange they’re so knocked down in May.
One of them just got over a terrible cough & loss of appetite that lasted 3 months starting in December …. And is already severely ill again.
Does anyone have any positive stories of people who suddenly got fed up being sick all the time and finally masked up again? Or came to you and asked for more information on Covid precautions? I’ve been brushed off just for suggesting they test … and it’s feeling pretty bleak.
I genuinely believed that when previously healthy people started getting sick over and over (and for long durations) they would start to question the narrative that COVID is over/mild. They would get curious. They would ask questions. None of that is happening.
It makes me very scared that it’ll never happen. That no amount of sickness or statistics will get people to reconsider their stance on Covid, masks and mitigations.
So if anyone has hopeful stories - I would love to hear them!
California's BOT Disclosure Law was perhaps unfairly panned in a Wired commentary in 2019, by an employee of what Harper's magazine said is the industry-captured "Big Disinformation" research industry.
It was passed by the legislature and signed by CA Gov Jerry Brown.
Humans and machines are different species. Humans, even the ones who go rogue, care about how other humans, such as their kids, see them.
A machine-fabricated author being displayed as a human is a recipe for mass mayhem. And #MachineLearning startup companies will not get traction for very long in such an environment.
Which is why the BOT disclosure law needs publicity. It was unfairly panned.
NC are proposing a bill to ban masks (including medical masks) in public settings. This is not only discriminatory - it’s dangerous. It’s removing the LAST tool we have to protect against COVID.
It also sets dangerous precedent & fuels damaging narratives about COVID.
The proposed bill would see all masks banned in public settings. If a person requires a mask - they would need to have a medical exemption. Disabled people are exhausted. We’ve been forced into dangerous situations for 4 years thanks to “you do you” COVID policy.
To now expect us to do additional work to procure a medical exemption just to be able to wear a respirator to help us prevent death or further disability? It’s unnecessarily cruel. Doctor’s appts & notes cost money. They’re not accessible to everyone.
COVID mitigation is already a significant social justice issue. By virtue of the fact our governments and public health have done nothing to protect people - individuals are left to procure protection for themselves. This protection isn’t affordable for everyone.
Respirators, HEPA filters, rapid tests, far UV… all these tools are out of financial reach for many people. We have fantastic organizations attempting to get respirators into the hands of those who need them - but some people are always left behind.
Now we’re adding an additional barrier by putting the burden of proof that a mask is required on the disabled individual. We’re forcing them to risk exposure to go to a doctor, spend money out of pocket for a note and then carry it around in the hopes they don’t get arrested?
If governments and public health would take Covid more seriously -
People wouldn’t need to don respirators nearly as often. But when the powers that be take away access to vaccines & anti-virals, refuse to clean the air, provide testing or paid sick leave? We have no choice.
Even if everything goes perfectly (which rarely happens) and a person has access to a respirator, can afford to see a doctor & obtain medical exemption… there’s still a good chance they’ll be forced to remove their mask while law enforcement analyze the exemption’s legitimacy
COVID infects extremely quickly. Breaking the seal on your respirator - even briefly - can result in infection. We’re asking people to jump through an inordinate amount of hoops and spend ridiculous amounts of money only to quite possibly end up infected anyways.
There’s also a bigger issue that stems from the idea that the “medically vulnerable” can and should obtain an exemption. It continues to drive the narrative that Covid is ONLY a threat to people who are already vulnerable. Which we know is untrue.
COVID is a multi system disease that has a 10% chance of causing disability. The odds of Long Covid go up with each infection. It’s not 10% in those that are already vulnerable - it’s everyone. Many young & healthy people have had their lives ruined by this disease.
The lie that only the vulnerable need to be concerned is one of the most devastating of the pandemic. People are getting infected over & over & think they’ve “gotten away with it”….When there’s good odds that they’ve got silent damage & their next infection will disable them
It also propagates the notion that the vulnerable are expendable. That it’s ok if we die or become further disabled because the rest of the world needs to “go back to normal”. There’s nothing normal about a society that turns its back on others.
This desperation to return to the way the world was in 2019 is quite literally killing people. It’s ruining lives. It’s dividing people, straining healthcare systems and causing long term health consequences that will have ripple effects for decades to come.
This NC bill to ban masks is just the latest in a string of terrible decisions that are costing lives. And it didn’t have to be this way. Had we admitted Covid was airborne and worked to implement clean air standards - we wouldn’t be in such a dire situation now.
“More and more, the upper and middle classes alleviated themselves of the need to panic. They used the poor and working classes as their early warning detection system. It was only after a certain number of poor people died that they actually needed to take a threat seriously. Until then, they couldn't be bothered … Panicking wasn't genteel.” #BirdFlu#pandemic#HereWeGoAgain https://www.okdoomer.io/panic-all-you-want-its-good-for-you/
"People who misunderstood airborne spread needlessly wore masks on outdoor walks and veered off sidewalks to avoid their neighbors."
people have closed face-to-face distance on me incredibly fast, and I was caught scrambling to put on a mask, when I could otherwise have already been wearing one
""Transmission of #COVID19 is through droplets. It is NOT airborne..."
⁉️
Funny thing. Their "Back to the Office" memo (May 2020) very much indicated otherwise:
"To ensure optimal ventilation within the areas with automatic ventilation systems, all systems have been switched to "100% fresh air circulation only..."
Since Toronto hospitals (which were ground zero for SARS1) dropped mask mandates in favour of a “mask respected” policy - I’ve heard many stories of patients requesting HCWs mask & being told no or experiencing push back.
When there’s an imbalance of power & no recourse if HCW refuses… how can a “just ask” policy work? Expecting a patient to argue/beg/plead for the HCW to mask is completely unreasonable and leaves people unable to access safe care. If your polite request is being met with eye rolls and accusations of “anxiety”… it’s hardly a “mask respected” environment.
One of the most devastating (and dangerous) parts of pandemic has been the politicization of masks. As an immunocompromised person - getting HCWs to mask was never a battle. Other people weren’t aggressive & unkind.
Now? People cough on me or label me anxious. It’s unsafe.
A great article from Julia Doubleday about our failed pandemic response. “Forever reinfections” is not the way out of pandemic.
I weep for lack of common sense these days. Herd immunity is NOT coming to save us & I want to know how many infections people need to get before they realize?
Periodic friendly reminder that the Covid pandemic is not over, kiddos! We're still All Up In It, and a new variant is starting to make the rounds. Wear your mask in public. Don't go out or to work if you're feeling even a little sick. No, a negative Covid test does not necessarily mean that you don't have Covid. No, a negative Covid test does not mean you aren't contagious. No, a negative Covid test does not mean "it's just allergies".
If writing to legislators is your kind of thing, now might be a good time to remind them that we still 100% need unlimited free Covid tests, vaccines, and paid medical leave.
This group aims to become a network for disabled and/or chronically ill persons and their partners, especially for people negatively affected or socially isolated during the ongoing pandemic. A place where communal care can be discussed and examined from an anarchistic/feminist viewpoint, but also to put it into practice.
Patriarchy kills.
Ableism isolates and kills.
Anti-capitalist.
Intersectional.
Anarcho-feminist.
Please let us know if you are interested in joining our Signal group.
Or help us to create zines, collections of art about #COVID19, #LongCOVID, the age of the #pandemic and the collective abandonment of disabled/chronically ill people.
"Accordingly, in all samples analyzed, circulating MK [megakaryocyte] in Long COVID sheltered both Spike and SARS-CoV-2 ssRNA [single-stranded RNA], but also dsRNA [double-stranded RNA] suggestive of viral replication. [...] Platelets microclots were detected in all tested Long COVID patients."
An absolute must watch: (58 min)
Dr. Michael Greger, an infectious diseases expert on pandemic prevention | infectious diseases, Aids, Influenza, Coronavirus.
This video is a 2008 speech covering the cause of infectious diseases and the likelihood of a pandemic almost identical to the coronavirus (Covid-19). https://youtu.be/G20cooZOiYE?si=KEJmAPu8-KE_ciNa @auscovid19#covid#CovidIsNotOver
Please boost if you feel it would be of interest to others.My reach is short. @auscandoc @augieray@DenisCOVIDinfoguy
@Prietenul@EllieK@auscovid19@augieray@DenisCOVIDinfoguy As said…doomed… “standards of biosecurity may actually be in decline in an attempt for the industry to cut costs … stake the lives of millions of people upon for the sake of cheaper chicken a pandemic caused by h5n1 or some comparable future bird flu virus has the capacity to trigger one of the greatest catastrophes of all time” #pandemic#H5N1
The USDA is doubling down on mythical milkborne spread:
"The USDA said cows shed the virus in milk at high concentrations, so anything that comes in contact with unpasteurized milk may spread the disease. Respiratory transmission is not considered a primary way for the virus to spread in cattle, the department added."
No explanation given. Flu is a milkborne pathogen now. Total fucking clownshow
@georgetakei
It's head-shaking childishness stupidity from #DozoTheClown that makes me more & more certain that his support isn't anywhere as great as the #Media (and pollsters) would have us believe.
There is simply NO WAY this senile man-child whose comic ineptitude crashed the global economy, cost more American lives in just 11 months than every American war of the 20th century due to dismissing a #pandemic, and now facing 91 FELONY indictments has GAINED support since his 2020 loss.
"While the real H5N1 [case fatality] rate could be lower than the current estimate of 60%, it is unlikely that it will be at the 0.1–0.4% level currently embraced by many pandemic plans. We suggest that, based on surveillance and seroprevalence studies conducted in several countries, the real H5N1 CF rate should be closer to 14–33%."
"This review summarizes several mechanisms that may be involved in PASC. [...] Second, dysregulation of the immune response caused by the persistence of the virus in asymptomatic infections is thought to be a pathophysiological mechanism that may cause symptoms of related diseases, including autoimmune responses, pulmonary fibrosis, or autometabolic disorders."