Corona Virus May Hit Argentina Hard

[steveinbsas]

7 hours ago - Marriott Is Already Reopening China Hotels During Coronavirus Crisis. The company isn't forecasting a major impact outside of Asia, and it's already reopening hotels inside China.

Perhaps their forecast is just a wee bit off the mark...or youtube videos like the one below are "filtered" from the internet in China.

PS: Does anyone here believe that closing or opening any business in China is an autonomous decision that is made solely by the business?

PS2: If you (or anyone reading this thread) were told that you had just won an all expense paid trip to anywhere in China with a free stay in any hotel, and you had nothing else to do, and you always wanted to visit China, but you had to go this month, would you?

 

[jeff1234]

Perhaps their forecast is just a wee bit off the mark...or youtube videos like the one below are "filtered" from the internet in China.
PS: Does anyone here believe that closing or opening any business in China is an autonomous decision that is made solely by the business?
/QUOTE]

What made it interesting to me is that Marriott is a publicly traded corp, with a great reputation. They would incur big lawsuits and brand damage if they sent their employees back to work in a dangerous environment for political reasons. If this news isnt accurate, we'll see a strong denial pretty quickly.

 

[camberiu]

A video that Vietnam made to combat Corona Virus is going viral because its music is way too catchy

 

[steveinbsas]

Here is yesterday's video by Dr. John Campbell:

He suggests using hand sanitizing gel and limiting social contact, as well as taking preventative measures such as stop shaking hands and avoiding crowds (including religious gatherings) beginning immediately, as most people are going to contract the virus as a result of contact with others who are not symptomatic (community spreading). I

He notes that fifteen thousand individuals recently returned to London after visiting Italy, and the availability of intensive hospital care in the UK will not be sufficient to deal with the spread of the disease if it becomes epidemic. The UK government is going to announce its plan to deal with the virus today.

IMO, what happens in Europe in the next three weeks may be a "good" indication of what is likely to happen soon afterward in Argentina, at least as far as the spread of the virus is concerned, but I fear that Argentina is probably far less equipped to deal with a major outbreak than almost any European country.

PS: Although Dr, Campbell did not mention it, one thing to keep in mind is that reusable (fabric) shopping bags are likely to become contaminated and should be washed after each use (and/or sprayed with non-scented Lysoform).

 

[perry]

I read a lot of international news, and thats the opposite of what I have been seeing. The NYT, or the right wing or left wing media all seem to be playing this up as big, scary news, the NYT headline today is "China says 1700 Medical Workers Infected".

I think the prevelant attitude in all the english language news I read, european and north american, is to UPLAY the danger and panic. And, certainly, the Trump administration is fanning those fires as well, using it as another excuse to keep non-whites out of the USA.

Trump did say it will all be over in time not to get in the way of his glorious re-election, but his actions are not supported by that statement.

Argentina does not have any cases of Coronavirus as yet but looking back at your posts and your downplaying of this most serious virus since the spanish flu of 1918 are you now with the same views ?

With Seattle Washington USA being the epicentre of the coronavirus and rumours that within weeks the city will be quarantined what do you say now

There are 6 deaths confimed in Washington with now over 100 confirmed cases in the USA . The scary detail is that this is from only 500 tests and now with a concerted effort to test thousands this figure will go up astronomically in the next week . This has the potential to completely change our lives , cease international travel, and destroy the world economy.
As expats in Argentina we must take precautions and stock up on everything for 6 months period including face masks, goggles, gloves, canned perishable foods, water , household supplies etc etc .- In Europe now they have run out of most of these items in Italy .

Imagine Argentina in winter with coronavirus and completely cut off from the world .
Its a great possibility now as this pandemic consumes the world . We cannot be complacent any more

 

[Iznogud]

All is quiet around Recoleta. Supermarkets and minimarkets have full stock of most things. Drug stores, same thing. No major shortages to report..

Must say that 6 liter water jugs seem to have vanished, but they usually come and go in waves.

Iz

 

[notebook.fix]

It's interesting & informative to observe just how governments in the so called first world are responding in their preps for what's coming...

 

[Ries]

Argentina does not have any cases of Coronavirus as yet but looking back at your posts and your downplaying of this most serious virus since the spanish flu of 1918 are you now with the same views ?

With Seattle Washington USA being the epicentre of the coronavirus and rumours that within weeks the city will be quarantined what do you say now

There are 6 deaths confimed in Washington with now over 100 confirmed cases in the USA . The scary detail is that this is from only 500 tests and now with a concerted effort to test thousands this figure will go up astronomically in the next week . This has the potential to completely change our lives , cease international travel, and destroy the world economy.
As expats in Argentina we must take precautions and stock up on everything for 6 months period including face masks, goggles, gloves, canned perishable foods, water , household supplies etc etc .- In Europe now they have run out of most of these items in Italy .

Imagine Argentina in winter with coronavirus and completely cut off from the world .
Its a great possibility now as this pandemic consumes the world . We cannot be complacent any more

While I am not downplaying the seriousness of this virus, or denying that people will die, I am not panicking either. I am flying, tonight, into the Seattle area. Not to Seattle proper, but Paine Field, in Everett. And I do not expect to die. So far, six people have died in Washington State, 4 of whom were living in the same old age home. Certainly more vulnerable people will die. But nine people died today in the US from tornados.
The response to the virus should be a concerted public health effort by government, not hoarding of toilet paper. Trump is suppressing government response, Costco is out of toilet paper.

Go figure.

(the actual "epicenter" is Kirkland, not Seattle. And over 2 million people live in the metropolitan area. So far, even in China, where more men smoke than anywhere else, the percentage of people who get coronavirus and recover is running well over 95%, and I have never smoked)

 

[semigoodlookin]

Argentina does not have any cases of Coronavirus as yet but looking back at your posts and your downplaying of this most serious virus since the spanish flu of 1918 are you now with the same views ?

With Seattle Washington USA being the epicentre of the coronavirus and rumours that within weeks the city will be quarantined what do you say now

There are 6 deaths confimed in Washington with now over 100 confirmed cases in the USA . The scary detail is that this is from only 500 tests and now with a concerted effort to test thousands this figure will go up astronomically in the next week . This has the potential to completely change our lives , cease international travel, and destroy the world economy.
As expats in Argentina we must take precautions and stock up on everything for 6 months period including face masks, goggles, gloves, canned perishable foods, water , household supplies etc etc .- In Europe now they have run out of most of these items in Italy .

Imagine Argentina in winter with coronavirus and completely cut off from the world .
Its a great possibility now as this pandemic consumes the world . We cannot be complacent any more

Perry, while I don't subscribe to the people completely dismissing the threat of the virus, I find your posts to be the exact oppisite and almost conspiritorial. For example, coronavirus has not consumed the world and probably will not. Even Spanish Flu at its worst did not consume the world, although around a 30% infection is troubling. And that's it for me, the coronavirus outbreak is troubling and needs to be treated with respectful caution, not dismissed out of hand but also not the subject of over the top doom mongering.

Again, I am not doubting the potential for this to get out of hand quickly, especially as governments continue to fumble. For me, a Spanish Flu-like outbreak is a worst case scenario because that would mean around 30% infected, or 2.1 billion people. Even at a 1% mortality rate (it's lower globally but higher than this in some Chinese regions) would leave 21 million people dead. Of course, it depends on how long it takes for those deaths to occur, for example Spanish Flu was between 1918 and 1920.

So, this could get failry bad but it is not there yet. Again, I am taking a cautious approach and not shitting the bed like some people here seem to be doing.

Although, if you can afford to drop a few thousand pesos on some prepping, that's not entirely a bad idea considering how the governments are screwing up handling this outbreak.

@Ries, while I agree with the jist of what you're saying, comparisons with, for example, deaths from tornados are pointless. Sure, nine people died from tornados in the United States today, but will nine people die tomorrow, and the day after, and so on. Of course, coronavirus is not at that level of mortality yet, but clearly there is a scenario where it could get there.

 

[perry]

Perry, while I don't subscribe to the people completely dismissing the threat of the virus, I find your posts to be the exact oppisite and almost conspiritorial. For example, coronavirus has not consumed the world and probably will not. Even Spanish Flu at its worst did not consume the world, although around a 30% infection is troubling. And that's it for me, the coronavirus outbreak is troubling and needs to be treated with respectful caution, not dismissed out of hand but also not the subject of over the top doom mongering.

Again, I am not doubting the potential for this to get out of hand quickly, especially as governments continue to fumble. For me, a Spanish Flu-like outbreak is a worst case scenario because that would mean around 30% infected, or 2.1 billion people. Even at a 1% mortality rate (it's lower globally but higher than this in some Chinese regions) would leave 21 million people dead. Of course, it depends on how long it takes for those deaths to occur, for example Spanish Flu was between 1918 and 1920.

So, this could get failry bad but it is not there yet. Again, I am taking a cautious approach and not shitting the bed like some people here seem to be doing.

Although, if you can afford to drop a few thousand pesos on some prepping, that's not entirely a bad idea considering how the governments are screwing up handling this outbreak.

@Ries, while I agree with the jist of what you're saying, comparisons with, for example, deaths from tornados are pointless. Sure, nine people died from tornados in the United States today, but will nine people die tomorrow, and the day after, and so on. Of course, coronavirus is not at that level of mortality yet, but clearly there is a scenario where it could get there.

If being realistic is a conspiracy theorist Im fine with this. I love life . my family and my dead friends and wish that there was no negative news but no life does not work like that

Life can rapidly change in a moment and its best to be prepared and informed. The 1918 spanish flu came in three waves the first was mild and the second and third wave were brutal. The coronavirus has a lot of similarities to this .