Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Dr. Strangelove]

PDJT actually had a good response to a pork question -- maybe about the NYC Met or something -- "the Ds wanted it. This is a negotation. You have to give some. It's hpw deals work. They've been good to us." -- something along those lines. Now, I'm sure he said 31 other things on the topic that conflict with that, but at least 1 of 32 was the correct response.

Yeah, that was $25 Million to the Kennedy Center. Rightwing media was set to pounce but Trump ruined it by announcing he personally approved of that and likes the place. It was in some of the earliest Republican drafts of the bill.

Grasping at straws by some folks to prove they are still "fiscal hawks".

I'm really more curious about the unemployment thing and whether those Senators just didn't understand how unemployment insurance works (in which case, lol again) or whether the bill really does make changes to its basic function. I do know that for the first time ever if you're a independent contractor and get let go during this, you can collect unemployment temporarily. But again, that's if you are let go. Not if you leave on your own. So it WOULD be a radical change if people can quit and collect AND a genuine concern. But my guess is the Senators were just clueless and at any rate they all voted for it in the end with no language changes.

[iam416]

The obvious issue is for hourly employees that aren't necessarily fired but who have no hours because of the shutdown. I can see some companies not wanting to fire employees they fully anticipate bringing back or wanting to keep.

In any event, unemployment is actually the most important thing (IMO) and access thereto. The free money part -- meh. But everyone who has lost wages because of the lockdown should have access to unemployment.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Yeah, exactly on that first part. I think Marriott Hotels may have been caught doing that with employees. "Oh no no, he's still our employee, we just reduced his hours to zero". I believe in normal circumstances an employer can't keep claiming that week after week (maybe about a month's limit?)

The one positive (I guess) if they're still carrying you as an employee is you potentially still have your insurance and are not getting raped by COBRA. But on the other hand there it's like unpaid maternity leave -- you're still expected to make the employee contribution whether you're receiving a paycheck or not.

[CGVT]

PDJT actually had a good response to a pork question -- maybe about the NYC Met or something -- "the Ds wanted it. This is a negotation. You have to give some. It's hpw deals work. They've been good to us." -- something along those lines. Now, I'm sure he said 31 other things on the topic that conflict with that, but at least 1 of 32 was the correct response.

This is it exactly. Everything has been so hard line, yes or no, Period! for so long that people have forgotten how politics have always worked. You want ridiculous shit, I want ridiculous shit, I give you some of yours, you give me some of mine. The Senate bill was bullshit. Pelosi's bill was bullshit. Now there is a bill that has a little bullshit for both sides. Hopefully the house won't fuck it up...

[AlabamAlum]

[AlabamAlum]

How the fuck are cruise liners still sailing?

https://apple.news/AYCMJhJmnTWK5raKzhN5oMw

[AlabamAlum]

I mean, I know that was a long cruise, but when the shutdown happens, you steam to the nearest port and abort the fucking cruise.

[iam416]

100% correct. Vanity Fair seems to think that PDJT has 30,000 ventillators laying around and he's just waiting for Cuomo to travel to Washington and scrape and beg for them. Because that's what's happening.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Tired of these hospital administrators who can find no money for masks and basic PPE but always seem to find enough change under the sofa cushions to buy themselves a new cushy massage chair for their office every year. TOTAL DISGRACE

[iam416]

Does anyone really believe that China is adding only 60-70 new cases a day?

[Dr. Strangelove]

Does anyone really believe that China is adding only 60-70 new cases a day?

Well Spain just revealed that 640,000 corona tests that they bought from a Chinese company are faulty-- yeah, BOUGHT, it's Chinese propaganda to pretend they're being donated to Europe. They're supposed to have an 80%+ sensitivity and instead the Chinese ones are only 30%. That means a lot of infected people get tested and declared disease-free.

The Chinese govt says "oh you should have bought from one of our state-approved vendors"

Can't find an English version of this article

https://elpais.com/sociedad/2020-03-26/china-asegura-que-espana-compro-los-test-rapidos-a-una-empresa-sin-licencia.html

[iam416]

JFC.

[AlabamAlum]

Well Spain just revealed that 640,000 corona tests that they bought from a Chinese company are faulty-- yeah, BOUGHT, it's Chinese propaganda to pretend they're being donated to Europe. They're supposed to have an 80%+ sensitivity and instead the Chinese ones are only 30%. That means a lot of infected people get tested and declared disease-free.

The Chinese govt says "oh you should have bought from one of our state-approved vendors"

Can't find an English version of this article

https://elpais.com/sociedad/2020-03-...-licencia.html

[Hannibal]

Does anyone really believe that China is adding only 60-70 new cases a day?

Some of the info floating around out there....

1. They are incinerating bodies now by the thousands.
2. Millions of cell phone accounts have mysteriously dropped out of sight.

[iam416]

Yeah, I'm not quite sure that I'm ready to go full-on Evil Empire conspiracy theory guy, but there's no doubt in my mind that 60 in China means something several orders of magnitude higher.