Our newest death factories

"Stay strong Minnesota. Keep the pressure up on our state government. We need to open up, and fast. We need our State Fair to be open this year. We need our care facilities protected. We know what to do Walz, now leave us alone."   

Today, our wayward Governor is going to announce where the state of Minnesota is headed next month. What opens up, what stays closed. He will remind us that we are now hitting about 400 new COVID - 19 cases a day, and our death count is a staggering 319 and counting. I know - compared to NYC, a statewide death toll of 319 seems like small potatoes. I mean after all, NYC alone has had almost 13,000 deaths from this virus. But our fatality number of 319 is misleading. As reported yesterday, 78% of these deaths happened in congregate long term facilities.

Life in not good these days in our care facilities. Many of these seniors are fully aware of what is going on. They know they are living in petri dishes. They know some of their fellow residents have contacted this disease. And they know that some have died. Plus they know their visits from loved ones have dried up to about zero. They know if they get sick, they are on their own. They will be sick alone, and maybe die alone. And once dead, a respectful funeral is probably out of the question. 

Saint Therese and North Ridge in New Hope have been particularly savaged. I am familiar with both, as when we were looking for a care facility for my mother, we toured both of them. Both had good reputations. But the bottom line is this - it does not matter the county, nor the city a care facility is located in. Many have already been invaded by this virus. Plus, that story does not end in Minnesota. Congregate facilities all over the country are dangerous for residents and staff alike.

The number of people who have passed from this disease in Minnesota, and are not residents of congregate facilities, is less than 100. A number not that much higher than the people who have died in traffic accidents this year. Why is this important to know? We shut down the state for a disease which is the most deadly to senior citizens who are residents of care facilities. Bottom line? We over protected those who are younger and healthier, and had jobs. We under protected those who really needed the protection. For how we have handled this first wave, I give us an "F". 

Before the second wave hits this fall, we need a huge "do better". We absolutely have to figure out how to protect our most vulnerable. And for those who only need a modest bit of protection (like, younger people who have a job), we need to let them live their lives. No more of this having young healthy people climbing the walls of their houses, when their places of employment are on life support.

We can't get back to normal, until we start living like normal. And we can't start living like normal with everything being shut down. What would things look like right now if we had not shut down most of the state? All we need do is set our gaze westward. To South Dakota. Somehow, they are surviving without being shut down. In fact, other than the Smithfield plant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota has done very well. 

Stay strong Minnesota. Keep the pressure up on our state government. We need to open up, and fast. We need our State Fair to be open this year. We need our care facilities protected. We know what to do Walz, now leave us alone.   

A very, very small number indeed!

"We understand the starfish story, we understand the John Donne quote - but we also understand reality. We can't go on this way. If we do, it will be the end of so many things we hold dear." 

There is an old story about a young boy on a beach. After the tide had gone out, thousands of starfish were trapped on the beach. Before the tide would back in, the starfish would surely die. So the boy started picking them up, one by one, and throwing them back into the ocean.

An older gentleman, who was out for a walk on the beach, saw the boy doing this. He came up to the boy and said, "Why are you doing this? You can never save them all. Do you think you will make a difference by doing this". The young boy, holding a starfish in his hand, looked up at the man and said, "You are right sir. I can't save them all. But I can save this one."

Why recite this old story? Numbers. I am going to again address numbers, as they relate to COVID. But first I will quote the President. "One American death from this disease, is one too many." We can talk about how low our numbers are in the scheme of things, but each person who dies is a father, or mother, or son, or daughter, or something in someone's life.
As John Donne said many years ago, "Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind..."

And now the numbers. The local media has reported that of the 301 COVID deaths in Minnesota so far, 78% have resulted from allowing this virus to get into our long term care facilities. If we could have avoided that intrusion, our death toll to date would be less than 100 in Minnesota alone. That would mean the chance of dying from this disease would be 
100 divided by a population of 5,700,000. You know the math. The resulting number is so small, it borders on insignificant.

Albert Einstein is quoted to have said, "We still don't know one thousandth of one percent of what nature has revealed to us." Is that a correct number? No. It was for illustration. Einstein's purpose of using this number was to come up with a very, very small number. The same is true for the statistics of COVID - 19. The chances of catching this disease, the chances of ending up in the hospital, the chances of going into ICU, and the chance of dying from COVID - 19, are very, very small numbers.

Coming home from Sam's Club yesterday, we drove through Riverdale Shopping Center in Coon Rapids. Every time we have driven though Riverdale since this COVID thing started, I am amazed on how desolate this once busy shopping center has become. Much of it looks like a ghost town. Some of these shops will not survive. And why have we done this? Why are we killing our economy?Because of a very, very small number. For that number, our Governor, as well as many other leaders in the world - flinched.

For the sake of the citizens of the world, for the sake of our sanity, for the sake of our lost normalcy - I am proclaiming May 4th as OPEN IT BACK UP DAY! We are done playing duck and cover with this very, very small number. We understand the starfish story, we understand the John Donne quote - but we also understand reality. We can't go on this way. If we do, it will be the end of so many things we hold dear. 


    

Broken chains

"Maybe we needed this. Maybe it was a wake up call. Most of us (me included), have taken our supply chains for granted. All the way from the producers (farmers and ranchers), to the processors, to the truck drivers, to the grocery stores."

If you are not ready for what is coming, you might want to be. For those still having trouble finding enough TP or sanitizing wipes, that was just a prelude as to what is coming. Our supply chains are breaking. I am hearing that more and more now from various sources. Actually, it does not take a degree in rocket science to figure this out. Meat packing factories are shutting down, and cows, pigs and chickens cannot get processed. Then, empty shelves at grocery stores are sure to come.

Actually, the only source which has said we will NOT have a meat shortage this summer is our Ag Secretary, Sonny Perdue. How we will not, he did not say. But he is convinced we will work our way through this. The problem however, is the recipe we have been using for our meat packing plants, does not work well in the era of COVID - 19. In fact, it is disastrous. To get our meat packing plants back online, using proper OSHA practices to ensure worker safety, will take a major reclama. And we don't have the time for a major reclama this season.

Our food supply, once thought to be robust and steady, we are now finding out is not so much. A virus so small, that it is invisible, has done a job on our food supply. And when our food supply takes a hit, so does much of the world which also depends on our steady food supply. In my 70 years on this planet, a constant food item has always been ground beef for hamburgers. Always. This summer, ground beef might start becoming rare, expensive, or both. Is that the farmers and ranchers fault? Absolutely not! They are brimming over with livestock and poultry. They just have no place to sell their products with the meat packers being shuttered.

Where do we go from here? What do we do? Are we stuck? First off, there was a story on the news yesterday about a pig farmer with 3,000 pigs ready to be sold for butchering. But - no place was operating. So he was stuck, looking at the possibility he might have to "de-populate" his pigs. When the town folk heard about his situation, 400 families each volunteered to buy one of his pigs. They would buy a pig, and then find some local place to have it butchered and processed. Not a fix, but it is a start.

With all the money the government is throwing around these days, I would have expected some of it going into the meat packing facilities. Let's face facts. This virus is not going away, and until we get a solution to how these meat processors can operate safely, we will continue to have a meat problem. 

Maybe we needed this. Maybe it was a wake up call. Most of us (me included), have taken our supply chains for granted. All the way from the producers (farmers and ranchers), to the processors, to the truck drivers, to the grocery stores. We now have a better appreciation for each of those links on the chain. Let's get this fixed America. Once again, the eyes of the world are upon us.   

Getting back on the horse

"What then are the huddled masses saying on this Monday morning? 'Hi ho, hi ho - it's off to work we go.' It is time once again to be an example for the rest of the world. Sure, we got knocked off the horse. But now we are getting right back on. Fearful? No. Cautious? Always. We will make it work. We always do."   

One of my social media friends, a person who is well known in Minnesota, is a Never Trumper. Hates the President with a passion. He is trying hard to pin some of the blame for this virus on the President. I have pushed back very hard on that issue. I keep reminding him it was the Chinese who did this. Here - let me spell that out - C-H-I-N-E-S-E. The only shade I will throw on the President, is he, like the rest of the country, got caught a bit flat footed by how contagious this virus is. We have never seen anything quite like this before. 

This is the big week. Some states are declaring themselves willing and ready to go back to work. Even the repressed state of Minnesota, might be "allowing" some who want to, return to work. Why is this so important? Besides the obvious reasons? This COVID - 19 thing has "thrown us off the horse". Not only thrown us off the horse, but also has kept us down in the dirt and dust for over a month. But now it is time. Time to get back on the horse.

The Scarf Queen thinks we will need to keep our distance from others (social distancing) until the summer is over. Bit whoop. And then what? Get ready for round 2 of this thing? Then the powers that be will direct us to keep our 6' distancing up until this new flu season is over. The people however, think differently. This has been made evident by yet another weekend of protesting. Not just in one state - all over the country. Why? We are Americans. The state in which we live does not matter, as much as the country in which we live. We are Americans who want to "get back on the horse". We want to go back to work. We want our normal back.

Where do we go from here? First off, most of us are not naive. We know the sickness and death will continue. Worldwide, slightly over 3 million have caught this virus. A bit over 200,000 have died. BUT - almost a million have recovered. AND, more and more doctors think the number of people who are asymptomatic is much bigger than once thought. In other words, your chances of catching this virus, and then dying, are still a fraction of a percent. And if we factor out the people who have died in care facilities, the ones who died who had other complications, and the ones who were misdiagnosed - that number gets really small.

What then are the huddled masses saying on this Monday morning? "Hi ho, hi ho - it's off to work we go." It is time once again to be an example for the rest of the world. Sure, we got knocked off the horse. But now we are getting right back on. Fearful? No. Cautious? Always. We will make it work. We always do.   

Good for the goose, good for the gander...

"Good for the goose, good for the gander? I think so. If America was founded on fear, there would be no America today. Time to get back in the game. Time to send China a bill." 

Yesterday, there was a flotilla of boats, protesting the governor in NJ. Why is that? Their dip weed governor, will not let them work. Not let them fish. He said they were non-essential, and therefore grounded them. WTH? Would they not be socially distanced from the fish they caught? Meanwhile, the cherished few in the NY metro complex who are blessed enough to have "essential" jobs, still ride to work in subways, crammed in like sardines. What planet is this? I mean, this is beyond stupid.

16,500 have died in NY, with most of the deaths happening in NYC. In NJ, almost 6,000 have died, with many of those deaths occurring around the NYC metroplex. What am I saying? We can preach social distancing until we are blue in the face, and yet when humanity is shoved into an ancient subway system, a city bus, or a commuter train - all bets are off. Social distancing becomes inches, not the mandatory six feet.  

What is good for the goose, should also be good for the gander. If we are going to enforce "stay at home" laws as well as proper social distancing, the lefties are going to have to part with their precious mass transit. A health professional in the NY area was asked how "dirty" a subway car was. Dirty, meaning full of COVID - 19 viruses. "Beyond description", he said. "COVID -19 viruses can live for hours on a subway car, infecting many." Meanwhile, as we are standing on our heads to give others the necessary space and space bubble, it is Katy bar the door when we take mass transit. 

What are you saying Bird, that we should shut down mass transit until we can get a handle on this thing? That is exactly what I am saying - sort of. What I really am saying is this - either open everything back up (like normal), and have whomever wants to ride mass transit (like normal). Or - if we are not opened up for normal, then shut down mass transit. Again, good for the goose, good for the gander. 

Or - we could face reality. And reality is simply this. In Minnesota, most deaths have occurred at long term care facilities. Fact. A tragic fact, but never-the-less, a fact. Even with many older and/or infirmed folks dying from this disease, we still have lost a very small fraction of a percent to COVID - 19. A half million Americans die every year from smoking related issues, and we hear nary a peep about that statistic. COVID is a killer for sure (with some people), but is still a minor league killer compared to other diseases which plague our land.

Americans are ready to move on. Except for some governors (like Walz, Evers, and Whitmer - just to name a few), the majority of us are saying enough is enough. Time to get back to living. Time to earn a living, once again. Time to enjoy, not cancel, summer. AND - it is time to figure out how to keep this disease out of facilities which house our most fragile.

Good for the goose, good for the gander? I think so. If America was founded on fear, there would be no America today. Time to get back in the game. Time to send China a bill. Time to get ready for beaches, fairs and summer vacations. Time to come out of the bunker, and live bravely once again.   

The post COVID road ahead...

"Folks, it is time to fight back. Time to take our country back. I love it when states are starting to send China a bill for what they have done. Oh, China will pay for what they have done - either directly or indirect. We will offer no quarter. The defense has held. Time to send in the offense." 

Some are already calling the road ahead the "post COVID road". These are the optimists, the clear thinkers. However, they are not naive. They know COVID - 19 will be with us a long, long time - maybe forever. Or - we could find a magic cure, and be done with this thing. Chances are however, it will be like a bad penny. It will keep showing up - uninvited.

What will our "post COVID road" look like? If COVID - 19 still makes an appearance from time to time? First off, I think we can come to an agreement on two things. One, it is nasty. Not a stone cold killer, but still nasty enough to kill some of us from time to time. Second, it is very contagious. Easy to catch in a dirty environment (unless you are immune), and easy to share. 

Here are some ideas what "COVID Preppers" might look like, when they travel the road ahead:

• They will have "touch free" thermometers at home. Each morning, they will take their temperature prior to going to school or to work. If a temperature is present, it will be a stay at home day.
• Their employer or school will have a ready room one must pass through first. That room will have UV lights and fans, which will kill any viruses or bacteria on clothing.
• Masks, social distancing, and smaller groups will still be practiced.
• Most houses will also have UV lights, which can be moved to various rooms in the house. 
• Some houses will also have black lights, which will be used to check for surfaces which still contain bacteria.
• Preppers will take supplements consisting of Vitamin C, Vitamin D3, Rose Hips, Zinc, and Elderberry.
• Preppers will eat better than before. At a minimum, an orange a day, some blueberries, raw carrots and celery. Fruits and vegetables in moderation are like taking natural medicine.  
• Preppers will spend as much time as possible outside. The natural UV light from the sun is tough on viruses.
• Whenever possible, buy direct from farmers.
• Whenever possible, BUY NOTHING FROM CHINA!

We won't be fooled again. This virus has decimated the cruise industry, the meat packing industry, and brought the airline industry to its knees. It has torn through our care centers, killing hundreds of our elderly or infirmed. It has left many of our government leaders looking like deer in headlights, leading to knee jerk reactions, like closing everything down. Consequently, our debt is exploding, and our economy is on life support. 

Folks, it is time to fight back. Time to take our country back. I love it when states are starting to send China a bill for what they have done. Oh, China will pay for what they have done - either directly or indirect. We will offer no quarter. The defense has held. Time to send in the offense. 

   

The mouse that roared

"Playing defense against the regular flu or COVID - 19 has gotten old fast. Time to go on offense. Time to cut the number of deaths we have from any kind of flu way back. Time to protect our seniors in LTC facilities better."

As this spring has gone on, more and more of us are getting less and less afraid of our newest "boogeyman". And who exactly is that "boogeyman"? COVID - 19, of course. We are finding out this is not the stone cold killer we feared it would be. What is it then? It is a strain of the flu which is on the tougher end of the scale. It is more infectious than the other strains of the flu. But for a non-living thing, this protein is mortal. Seems it can be killed by a great many things.

Don't get me wrong. Other than the giant flinch our government did in March, we all have gotten much smarter from dealing with this thing. Maybe we needed a refresher on how to wash our hands. Or, how to have a comfortable "space bubble" once again when dealing with people. Plus, how to keep the counter tops in our kitchens, and our bathrooms cleaner. Most importantly, we really needed to remember how to cover our mouths (the right way), when we cough or sneeze.

But one doctor was on the news yesterday, and gave me the biggest ray of hope I have seen as yet. It seems this mouse that roared, is really a mouse after all when UV light is introduced into the picture. The amount of time this virus can survive outside, is a fraction of how long it can survive inside. Why? The UV light from the sun. Also, this doc said that installing the right kind of UV lights (with fans) in the entry way of stores, will kill the virus in short order - while not being harmful to the humans. He said for other COVID viruses in the past, the vulnerability to UV light has been well known. Why it is not used more today, is a mystery to him.

More and more medical professionals are now thinking that COVID - 19 will go into a remission (like the other flu viruses) until late fall, when the flu season starts. The biggest fear they have, is COVID -19 will make a return like the regular flu does every year. Then we would have both to deal with at the same time. If we forget the lessons we have learned on how to deal with COVID - 19, and how to kill it, we could be in big trouble.

However, if we do remember those lessons, we should be able to deal with COVID -19, as well as the regular flu just fine. Why? Because many of the safe practices which we have learned on how to keep us safe from COVID -19, should also keep us safer from the regular flu. The body count from the regular flu could be a lot less.

Playing defense against the regular flu or COVID - 19 has gotten old fast. Time to go on offense. Time to cut the number of deaths we have from any kind of flu way back. Time to protect our seniors in LTC facilities better. In other words, let's get our economy roaring again, punish China by de-tangling and "on-shoring" as much as possible, and practice better hygiene and nutrition to keep us healthy.

One final thing. Where are the first places we should put those UV lights? In the entrances of LTC facilities and our meat packing plants. The fact we could not figure out how to keep this virus out of both of those type locations is a shame on us. Now, it is estimated we will have some meat shortages this summer. For the rest of 2020 we will be (or should be) smarter - a lot smarter. Hopefully, this unpleasant experience has not been for nothing. 

What can we do? What we can't do...

"I don't know if our government will be smarter in the future, but individually, most of us are. Most of us know how to stay safer. Most of us know what to do. We are prepared to live with this new virus. We just want our lives and livelihoods back. Not tomorrow - today."  

"These are the days my friend, oh will they ever end...". Okay - that is not how the song goes. But many feel this way right now. These days, these COVID days. Many of us are trying to figure out how to live in these days of SD (social distancing), isolation, unemployment, shortages, testing, blah, blah, blah. It is hard to enjoy these lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer, when the entire world seems to be upside down.

I starting trying to think about that glass full of water again. How to look at things like the glass is half full. Since we are bombarded with all kinds of things which we can't do, I started thinking what we CAN still do. Even though we are "technically" still in a "stay at home" mode, we can still leave our homes. We can go for walks around the neighborhood, we can go to the store, heck, we can even go for a ride if we want to. I know, I know - these are liberties and rights we should not need to ask to have. But these are very different times.

Getting back to work. With the unemployment rate north of 20% right now, the number one objective of our leaders (an objective which should be tied for first with keeping us safe), is getting businesses opened back up. Even if businesses are opened back up with diminished hours and limited capacity due to safety concerns, it is a start. Many businesses right now are begging, pleading, for people to use their services or buy their goods. Maybe if it is only curbside or delivery, it is something. We need to fix that, so it is much more than just "something." Otherwise, many more small businesses might become history.

However - the biggest problem we have right now (as far as employment is concerned), is our meat packing plants. While at work, employees are way too close to each other. Practically zero social distancing. While not at work, many of the employees, especially immigrant employees, live in factory subsidized housing. Again, they are way too close to each other.

Many houses are also multi-generational. Because we have not yet figured this out, how to make these facilities safe on or off campus, one by one, they are shutting down. That being said, what is next up? Meat shortages. Even though this country has plenty of produce and livestock, we will not be able to process it.

The biggest problem we have right now (NOT as far as employment is concerned), is our care facilities which take care of our older loved ones. Currently, many care facilities are like death traps. We have not been able to figure out how to keep this virus out of our facilities, and when an 80+ year old catches it, the results are often not good. How bad is it? Over half of the fatalities we have had in Minnesota have happened in care facilities. Short of putting each resident in a total isolation ward, we don't yet know how to protect these fragile people. 

All this being said, we will get through this thing. We will also get through the now dreaded "second wave". Even though the Governor told us that up to 70% of us will eventually get this crap, we will get through it. We may have been caught flat footed during this first wave, but hopefully we are better and smarter when the second wave hits.

I don't know if our government will be smarter in the future, but individually, most of us are. Most of us know how to stay safer. Most of us know what to do. We are prepared to live with this new virus. We just want our lives and livelihoods back. Not tomorrow - today.  

The Second Wave? Or there goes summer...

"Our big blue marble will have to take second fiddle to this nasty virus. In fact, I am going to step up my carbon footprint by doing some badly needed burning. Sorry Gaia. It has to be done. We still love you, but - life needs to go on." 

Everybody I know is trying their best to stay positive right now. In the 91 days since this COVID BS has breached our shores, our lives have gone from normal to abnormal and then more so. But everyone's hopes are pinned on the month of May right now. Getting back to work (with conditions). Getting outside to garden, and taking care of the lawn. Going for walks or bike rides. Maybe even going to church again. But then - the medical "experts" have start talking about the dreaded "second wave".

I like most of us, have no clue on what this "second wave" is. Except for what we have been told. That it will be nastier than the wave we are currently in. And this current wave has done a job on us. It has not only brought our economy to a stand still, it has disrupted most every part of our normal lives.

To make matters worse, this current wave is also causing parts of our summer to evaporate - even before they happen. Some counties are closing their beaches for the year. Cancelling Fourth of July celebrations. Many of us fear the State Fair will be the next big item on the chopping block.

Yesterday, was the first day I went grocery shopping in a while. I was wearing the mask my wife had made for me (no - not the plague mask!). Our daughters have been doing our shopping for us, and my wife and I appreciate it fully. But it is time to start living again. I went to Cub with other citizens to buy some goods. About 2/3 were masked up. Everyone was giving others a wide berth. The store was still a bit picked over, but looking better than the last time I was there a few weeks ago. Our new motto in grocery shopping is to get what you can, when you can, how you can. 

I started thinking, if this is the new abnormal normal, what will our lives be like if or when the "second wave" hits? Are we going to be relegated back to our basements, cowering like scared children again? The patriots I know, are not very good at playing duck and cover. They are not very good at hiding. In fact, they have already had it with this COVID BS, and want to get back to work, and live their lives again. They understand this risk vs. reward thing better than most. And to live their lives again, they are ready to take on more risk.

One thing we have found out about this current wave, which is a certainty, is very troubling. About half the folks who have died in this state, lived in long term care facilities. Many in their 80's. The national news is reporting that other states are also having this problem. If and when this "second wave" hits, we really need to step up our game on how we protect the most vulnerable of us. Of all the things we have failed at during this current wave, this has been the worse.

Today, it is going to be in the 60's or maybe even 70 with sunshine. Good day to do some yard work as well as getting some badly needed Vitamin D. I know, I know. It is Earth Day. Number 50 or so. Big whoop. Our big blue marble will have to take second fiddle to this nasty virus. In fact, I am going to step up my carbon footprint by doing some badly needed burning. Sorry Gaia. It has to be done. We still love you, but - life needs to go on. 

Caught with our pants down...

"America, pull your pants up! In fact, put your big boy pants on. We have work to do, and we can't do it by cowering in our basements like scared children. We need to live. We need to enjoy. We need to produce. Time to fight back."  

We are 2/3 the way through April right now, and this COVID - 19 thing has been with us since January 21, 2020, when the first US case was confirmed in Seattle. That was three short months ago today. My wife and I were getting ready to celebrate our grandson's 5th birthday. Shortly after his birthday, we were leaving the state and headed south. First, to visit my wife's cousin, then her brother in Florida, and finally some good friends further south in Florida. After that, we were going to set up shop in Pensacola, and enjoy the Florida spring weather until early March. COVID - 19? Never entered our thinking.

In 90 short days, we have gone from the first confirmed case of COVID - 19 (Wuhan virus) in Seattle, to over 40,000 dead from this virus in the United States. The Wuhan virus is now everywhere, and few counties in the US have avoided it. It came upon us like a fast moving storm, and how we reacted to it, was nothing less than amateurish. In 90 days we have gone from the "Roaring 20's", to almost a dead stop. Much of that is because (collectively), we got caught with our pants down. We were just about totally unprepared for an event such as this.

First off, let me say something I have said since the get-go. This is China's fault. Not Trump's, not Congress, not the red team, not the blue team - China's fault. How we have reacted to it however, has been poor, and on us. How so?

• Schools - Basically, letting the kids start their online learning at home in March, was a good idea gone wrong. We already know that many students did not look upon this pause in going into a school, as continuing learning from home. Nope. To many, it was just an extension of a very long summer vacation. We may be learning a lot on how to handle this in the future, but today's kids are paying the price of our being unprepared.
• Work Place - Talk about killing an insect with a sledge hammer, that is what we did to our industry. Today, in that short period of 90 days since our first case in Seattle, many places of employment sit empty, and workers who want to work, are sitting at home -doing nothing. Unemployment is sky high, GDP is nose diving, and more and more small businesses are throwing in the towel. Why? Rather than figuring out how to work safely in this new environment, instead we flinched. Basically, just shut down the economy. This has been a major fail, brought to us most by our Governors.
• Medical Supplies - We really got caught with our pants down on this one. After going through some close calls with SARS, MERS, Swine Flu and so on, one would think we would have had emergency supplies coming out of our ears, should we ever have an emergency such as this. Nope. It has been close to a disaster in many areas, especially our "hot spots". This has been a mess of the highest order, and when the dust settles, heads should roll because of it.
• Hospitals - For some reason, known to only a few, hospitals did a major flinch on this one. Most hospitals were set aside for this major influx of COVID - 19 casualties. No seeing your family doc (except for a dire emergency), and no elective surgeries. All of a sudden, the life blood of our medical system (money from normal operations) - was gone. Even a healthy hospital like Mayo, had to cut the wages of 20,000 employees to stay afloat. Now that we know the "models" we were using for this of disaster were way off, the hospitals are still not taking normal patients. Why not? Someone needs to tell me. Hospitals get a huge "F" on this one.

I could go on, but it is too depressing. This has been like Hurricane Katrina on steroids. Collectively, we have been flat footed as well looking like a deer in the headlights. In 90 days, just about everything we hold dear and normal, has gone from thrills to chills. So where do we go from here? We need to look at the pot holes we stepped in during the past few weeks, and learn not to step in any more of them. In other words, we can not fix what China has broken (or created), but we can fix what we broke in how we reacted to it. 

We need bold, decisive leadership right now. Putting a pause on letting immigrants into the country, is a good example of that. Getting people back to work in a safer environment before May 1st, would even be a better example of bold leadership. We all know we need to live with this Wuhan virus - maybe forever. And that really sucks. But to keep flinching instead of living our lives, will do nothing but allow the virus to win the day.

America, pull your pants up! In fact, put your big boy pants on. We have work to do, and we can't do it by cowering in our basements like scared children. We need to live. We need to enjoy. We need to produce. Time to fight back.     

And then there is tornado season...

"No severe weather today. None predicted this week. If I never see another tornado, it will be fine with me. I love a good thunderstorm at night, but the severe stuff, or a tornado - no thanks. Well, enough about storms - back to worrying about the pandemic."  

As if we did not have enough on our plates right now, it is also severe weather season. For many who live in the central part of the country, that means tornado season. First a moment of confession. I am highly addicted to watching storm chasing videos. And right now, there are a ton of them on YouTube. So every night as I am falling asleep, I watch one of those videos. Last night, I saw a whopper. 

The state was Texas. The time was about 20 years ago. That May morning in central Texas, started with sky high humidity - the highest humidity most locals could ever remember for that time of day. The state was ripe for a severe weather event. About noon, a cold front from the north, slammed into that very moist and warm air over central Texas. Then all hell started. Tornado after tornado started breaking out on the front line. Soon, an EF5 monster developed. And it was a whopper. Over a mile wide, with winds over 250 in the middle of the twister. 

Now for a personal aside. I have never fully understood why houses down south don't have basements. I know, I know - it is because up north, we need furnaces. So we have basements up here. But here is the rub. And I have heard this statistic many times before. If you are in a house, and are above ground when a strong EF4 or EF5 twister hits, your chances of surviving are about zero. There is no safe room in the house which will protect you.

Last night, the video I was watching showed what the small Texas town looked like once the EF5 passed over it. There was literally nothing left. It was like every house, every tree, every person who was hiding in their house - was erased. The ground was scoured. One of the meteorologists explained it this way - when a tornado that strong hits a house, everything in the house is turned into shrapnel. In other words, everything in the house is chewed into bits - including the people seeking shelter inside. Many times, there is not enough left of a person to perform an ID. They are simply gone. 

Spring tornadoes in Tornado Alley are as common as mosquitoes in Minnesota. Every year, the news seems to be the same. A break out of twisters in the spring time, resulting in the deaths of people who live in mobile homes or stationary houses with no basements. Like I said, having a safe room, or hiding in a bathtub with a mattress over you, will not save you if the twister is strong enough. 

The first year we vacationed in Pensacola, there was an outbreak of tornadoes around the Mobile area. They were headed east, across Mobile Bay, towards Pensacola. We were staying in a condo with no basement. As the sky grew dark and angry, I asked my wife what Plan "A" was for severe weather in the place we were renting. The answer - nada. You can only hope and pray nothing bad comes your way. Luckily, we only had lots of wind, rain and lightening with the storm - and no tornado. 

No severe weather today. None predicted this week. If I never see another tornado, it will be fine with me. I love a good thunderstorm at night, but the severe stuff, or a tornado - no thanks. Well, enough about storms - back to worrying about the pandemic.  

Our abnormal new normal

"When will this end, how will this end, will this end - all questions which are asked on almost a daily basis. When will things get back to a normal which is familiar to us? When we can kill every last Wuhan virus spoor in the world. Until then, our new normal will continue to look very abnormal." 

On 9/11, when the twin towers fell, I remember telling my very shaken daughter that the world just changed. I did not know how much it would change, I (along with most other folks), just knew that it would. And it did. I did not have that feeling during the Great Recession in 2008. To me, that was just another bump in the road. And it was. This COVID - 19 virus (now known as the Wuhan virus), is a game changer for just about everyone. As a friend of mine recently said, the normal we had a couple months ago will never be our normal again. True words. Our new normal will seem pretty abnormal.

Our Imperial Wizard (Walz) has agreed to let the serfs in Minnesota play golf and go fishing. Then - we will see what happens. If we can be good little boys and girls, we might earn back some more privileges - like, being able to work for a living. But it all depends on our behavior (SD, gathering, and hand washing), as well as the mighty curve. If the curve does not flatten enough, the Wizard will keep us tucked in our homes - cowering like frightened children.

Here is the bottom line. And this bottom line is not rocket science, as most, if not all of us now realize it. There will be no "normal, normal" until a vaccine is found which can kill this Wuhan virus for once and for all. Period. Until that cure found, and administered to the masses, venturing outside our houses to do anything, is playing a bit of Russian (or should I say Chinese) Roulette with our health. Short of herd immunity or a true vaccine, there will still be a chance, albeit a small one, that anyone of us can be stricken with this highly contagious virus.

WalMart just announced that all employees will now be wearing face masks. In addition, they are "encouraging" customers to do that also. This is normal? I told my wife more than once, before this is all over, many stores will require customers to wear face masks to shop there. As much as we are trying to distance ourselves from China, we will start looking more and more like them.

How about movie theaters? For those brave enough to go when they finally open up again - will masks be required? What if someone sneezes during the movie and is not wearing a mask? Mass panic? How do you eat popcorn or have a sip of pop with a mask on? Same with sporting events. How to you practice SD (social distancing)? Will masks be required there also? Is that our new normal? Masks just about everywhere? Treating our fellow citizens like they have leprosy (and visa versa)? 

Yesterday we really broke the rules "bigly". We had our grandies over for a while. It was a bit like normal, but not really. They have learned in daycare and Montessori School not to hug. Give virtual, or air hugs instead. And no kisses. My grandson told me when they were leaving, "Bapa, I can't hug you, because I don't want to give you my germs." Kids don't understand this. Hell, we barely understand this.

When will this end, how will this end, will this end - all questions which are asked on almost a daily basis. When will things get back to a normal which is familiar to us? When we can kill every last Wuhan virus spoor in the world. Until then, our new normal will continue to look very abnormal. 

We need to boycott China!

"Today in the press was a story about how dozens are on ventilators in a local hospital, fighting for every breath. Why? The ChiComs. These international villains deserve no quarter. If I could put all of the ChiCom leadership on ventilators, I would. Tit for tat, it is only tit for tat." 

Who is with me on this one? I know, I know - the globalists over the past couple of decades have got us very pregnant in dealing with this bunch of crooks (better known as the Communist Party of China). We really need to teach China a lesson they won't forget. A very painful lesson. Short of going to war, what could we do? A worldwide boycott of buying ANYTHING from China.

I was going to list the countries who were affected by the ChiCom developed (and spread) COVID - 19 virus. But that would have taken too much ink. It would be easier to list the handful (and I mean handful) of countries who have NOT yet been affected by this virus. The economic cost, as well as the cost in human lives is staggering, and only going to get worse. 210 countries. 155,000 souls have been lost to this man made disease. And by the time this virus is under control, it will cost the global economy tens of trillions of dollars.

Some of the entanglements with China will take years to untangle. I understand that. Every nation on Earth who is now dealing with China, needs to put them on notice. They may be trading with China today, but not tomorrow. The wheels need to be put in motion with countries who are honest brokers, who want to expand their manufacturing capabilities. What is currently made in China, can and will be made elsewhere. And the United States needs to lead the charge on this. BUY AMERICAN, has never, ever, looked so good to me!

I have said this many times before, but now let me say with a full throated voice. I am so very done with these guys. Not the Chinese people - many inside the this evil empire are also victims. It is the evil and corrupt Chinese government that needs to go. Until the Chinese people can rise up and throw of the shackles of the ChiComs (like Hong Kong is trying to do), the people of China are going to have to suffer along with their government. The ChiComs can take their world dominance BS and stick it where the sun don't shine!

A worldwide boycott of China is going to take guts and resolve. It ain't gonna be easy. But it is necessary. At this point in time, a simple "I'm sorry", uttered by the remorseless ChiComs will not cut it. No, they need to be punished, and punished good. What they did is unforgivable. They do not deserve to remain in power. We can stop them. Economically, we will. They need the world to trade with to survive. Starve them financially, and they will go away - for good. The days of Mao need to finally be over.

I expect to get blow back on this idea. Some will call me a Pollyanna. So be it. But this is the way I feel. Today in the press was a story about how dozens are on ventilators in a local hospital. They are fighting for every breath. Why? The virus made by the ChiComs. The ChiComs deserve no quarter. If I could put the leadership in China on ventilators, I would. Tit for tat, it is only tit for tat. 

  

Transportation, "gating" and SD

"And to think, we could have had Jeff Johnson right now instead of Mr. Rocks and Cows. Remember that in November - elections have consequences - sometimes dire consequences."    

Remember car pooling? Van Pooling? All those "greenie" things to make us feel better? After all, we were saving our Big Blue Marble from being stomped on my our collective carbon footprints. Well, right now we have a big, big problem. And it has to do with SD (due to the concerns of a longtime social media friend, she never wants to hear the term "social distancing" again - so I will use "SD" instead). How in the world can one practice the proper SD while car pooling? While taking an MTC bus? Those homeless shelters on rails - better known as LRT? And airplanes, once they start filling up again?

We are now in the period of "gating". I guess that means our imperial governor will determine if or when we are worthy enough to get to Phase One of returning to normal. By the way, whomever came up with these three phases might want to re-think them a bit. After we have "gated" at bit, and we are allowed to enter Phase One, one of the items which will be allowed will be going to a movie theater (if they are still in business). One doctor was asked if he thought it would be safe to go to a movie. His response - in a theater of 200 people, as soon as someone sneezes, the ensuing panic will be tantamount to yelling "FIRE".

This new game of "gating" and Phases is not without its peril. At any time, should the "curve" start to climb again, you could be sent back to "Go" without collecting $200. Why is that? Short of saying screw it, and opening everything up all at once and letting herd immunity run its course, we are going to be plagued by this virus for a long time. Maybe wave after wave for the rest of the year and into the next. Bottom line? We really don't know how to get out of this box canyon the ChiComs have put us in.

When you think back (seems like years now), to the days prior to the virus, so many things we did were communal. Sporting events, movie theaters, working, church, going out to eat - the list could go on forever. Now, we are being asked to proceed back to some kind of normal while practicing SD, constant hand washing, and no hand shakes. Anyone have an idea how this new normal is going to look? I sure don't.

Meanwhile, our imperial idiot governor, is now part of a neighborhood team of other idiot governors. They will plot how to make this "gating" happen. Oh, joy. We even have the queen of mean thrown in the mix - that would be Michigan's DEMOCRAT governor. How about a normal governor like Kristie Noem from South Dakota, just to even things out a bit? No flipping way! No normal people in this group!

Today is the big protest in St. Paul. Will it do any good? Na. Walz will blow it off. After all, it is just his subjects who don't know any better. And who does know better? Why him of course. The man who never worked in the private sector. The one who has no clue about how businesses operate and where the money comes from.

And to think, we could have had Jeff Johnson right now instead of Mr. Rocks and Cows. Remember that in November - elections have consequences - sometimes dire consequences.    

The new "us"

"If you are a change agent, what will be happening should delight you. If you hate change, you might not be a happy camper in the near future."

It is April of 2020. We are knee deep in our national "pause" with our economy. There are over 20 million unemployed, and there is no end in sight for that metric if we continue on this path. So this is what is going to happen. One way or another, we are going to come out of this "pause" this month, or early next. If we don't, there will not be much to come back to. In fact, the smartest thing we could do, is start bringing the economy back this month or next.

When someone has a chronic disease, and has a bout where they get real sick and then recover, the doctors say they are now at their "new normal", or a new baseline. In other words, the health world in which they left before their bout, and the one they came back to - are not the same. That is exactly what will happen with our economy. When it comes back, it will look different than the one which existed at the beginning of the year. How so? It involves the "new us".

If you are a change agent, what will be happening should delight you. If you hate change, you might not be a happy camper in the near future. What will change? If you are a white collar worker, team meetings, where we all gather around a table, have a power point presentation and hammer out some strategies. I mean, that will still happen, but now the same way. Hello, Zoom or other tools like you. Your commute in the morning, be the bedroom to the home office. 

Blue collar workers (or as I like to say, "touch labor", will also have a different world. These are the folks who make stuff to sell. Mitigation will be everywhere, to keep everyone safe. There will be stations to do the work, where one will still be able to be safely distanced from co-workers. Will that be weird? Oh, yes.

But as much as the workplace will change, it is nothing compared to how our school rooms will change. And I am not talking K -12. I am talking K - 16 or higher. Good-bye to 100% classroom education. Good-bye to living on campus. Good-bye, good-bye, good-bye. We are entering a long delayed brave new world on how to educate our youngins. How is this going to work? Where computers will educate our youth? Ask you local "Wizards of Smart". Why? They will be the ones doing it. They may hate it, but they will be on the hook for fixing it. 

What will the "new us" look like? Stay tuned - I have some ideas, but no real clue. I am only hoping that our "new us" will be a workable world. If it is not, we will entering a dystopian world nobody wants to think about. 

(Some) States speak the truth!

"Time to move on from this virus, learn from it, and defeat it. And once things start getting back to normal, China, your ass is grass. Get ready for a gargantuan bill for damages - not only from us, but from dozens of other countries as well." 

Wow! Did you see what happened in Michigan yesterday? The people gave the Governor the Ryan Winkler gesture. Lansing Michigan, was covered with wild and loud patriots, most riding in their cars, just wanting to get their message heard. And that message was? OPEN IT UP!

Now that it is all but proven that the ChiComs are behind this virus, which came out of their Wuhan lab, keeping our economy of life support is doing nothing but aiding the enemy. Time to show the Chinese that we are America Strong! We are fearless! We know how to deal with this virus, rather than hiding from it.

It was not just Michigan. It was also Kentucky. Minnesota's turn is on the 19th. In the old days, lazy hippies would protest the government so they could get paid without having to work. Today, patriots and citizens are protesting the government because they want to work!
What we are starting to find out, is much of our reaction to this virus was a major flinch.

Our two hospital ships we deployed to LA and NYC, are virtually empty. Some of the temporary hospital space in NYC is being dismantled. The east coast has more than enough ventilators. And the stats, as well as the new modeling, are showing a worse case scenario of 60,000 deaths from this virus instead of 240,000. That means you would have about a .0002% chance of dying from this thing. Plus, many who have died so far, have been elderly in care facilities.

Where do we go from here? First off, as much as I would like to see things opened up immediately, we need to be smart about it. Governor Noem of South Dakota knows that. Even though she never closed down her state, she is going to demand better mitigation and training for the Smithfield plant before it re-opens for business. But have no doubt it will open up again - and soon. 

In Minnesota we have already closed down one of the largest water parks in the land - for the season. We are going to delay the opening of the BWCA (don't want to get within 6 feet of a woodchuck or Loon). And of course, all the beaches and pools are closed for the summer. Somebody said it well the other day - 2020 will be the summer of existing, not living. All the things which are enjoyable to do, are now being put on the no-no list. Bottom line? We not only cannot work, we can't enjoy ourselves in the time we are forced to have off. That is a lose-lose in anyone's book.

Hard to believe many of our state's leaders come from the same stock which produced the Greatest Generation in the 30's and 40's. On D-Day, many very young men, barely old enough to shave, were bravely taking part in an invasion which easily could have left them dead or wounded. Today, we are scared senseless of an invisible protein, which has a .0002% chance of killing you. We are so scared of this thing, like John Galt in Atlas Shrugged, we have stopped the engines of the world.

Open it up Taxing Timmy! We are not stupid. We will take care of ourselves and our neighbors. We will not take any unnecessary chances. We can work and chew gum at the same time. Even my wife, the ultimate rule follower, is on the verge of revolt. 

Time to move on from this virus, learn from it, and defeat it. And once things start getting back to normal, China, your ass is grass. Get ready for the mother of all bills for damages - not only from us, but from dozens of other countries as well. If you don't pay it, we will stop paying our debt to you. We also, know how to play this game. 

   

Intimidated and stimulated

"Maybe I will be cleaning the basement again today. Right now, my basement is cleaner than most operating rooms. But that's okay - I will stay stimulated and clean it again. And again. And again."   

I am confused and conflicted. I am all dressed up with nowhere to go. What? Like how so? First off, gas is now at the lowest price it has been in decades. I could fill up (if my tank was not already full), but then I could go.....where? Can't go on a trip, can't go visit friends, can't go out to eat. And here is the clinker. On the news this morning, some group of deep thinkers said if we don't have a viable vaccine soon, this new life of isolation will not last 18 months - it will last 24 months!

Today, many of us are waking up to find out the stimulus checks have started hitting our back accounts. That is the good news. Now - where are we suppose to spend it? For example, by definition, a "stimulus" check is to be used to stimulate the economy. Other than Amazon, where in the heck would one spend it? Most of the big box stores are closed. Restaurants are closed. Like I said before, travel is out of the question. I would have much preferred for those who are still working to have a tax holiday instead of these stimulus checks. That would have made more sense.

Yesterday, I addressed how unprepared this country was for this uninvited COVID - 19 event. Lots of knee jerk reactions to how we are dealing with it. In my opinion, shutting down almost 100% of the country was one of worst knee jerk reactions. Giving people a stimulus check of $1,200, is like fly poop in the pepper, compared to allowing most to earn a living. The United States is the engine which powers the world. Our economy is second to none. To allow our engine to sputter like this is dangerous - not just to us, but also to the entire western world. 

We need to have cooler heads prevail, and soon. The strong and independent nature of the American people are not fit to being involuntarily isolated. Putting it another way, the natives are getting restless. Not a little restless, a lot of restless. Yesterday, it was announced the mega huge wave pool at one of the local regional parks is going to be closed for the season. Really? Why decide that now? There is still snow on the ground. Are we that sure this virus will still be ruling our lives over the summer? What is next - no baseball season? No football season? No state fair? No going up north? What kind of a crap summer is this going to be? Meanwhile, we do have our stimulus checks, sitting in our checking accounts, doing nothing.

South Dakota has a governor who can stare this thing down and call it for what it is. Even though the giant Smithfield processing facility in Sioux Falls is now closed down due to COVID contamination, she was matter of fact about it. "We will get it cleaned out, get the proper mitigation installed in it, and then re-open." She thinks that closing down her state would have been non-sense. While other governors were flinching, South Dakota's governor kept her vision focused. Meanwhile, our governor is hiding under his desk.

Well, time to go. Have to have breakfast so I can get ready for another day of being here. Maybe I will be cleaning the basement again today. Right now, my basement is cleaner than most operating rooms. But that's okay - I will stay stimulated and clean it again. And again. And again.