The COVID-19 pandemic

[panamaniac]

How did that anti-mask thing go in Victoria Park yesterday?

[danbrotherston]

How did that anti-mask thing go in Victoria Park yesterday?

I thought it was a week from yesterday.

[panamaniac]

How did that anti-mask thing go in Victoria Park yesterday?

I thought it was a week from yesterday.

Ahh, THAT next Sunday ...

[tomh009]

Nobody did any reporting on Civic Holiday, so some interpolation had to be done for those days.

Waterloo Region  reported two new cases today, adding to the eight reported over the past three days; 13 new cases total over the past week, or just less than two per day. New cases averaging 4.0% of actives over the past seven days. Active cases in the region were up to 40 (+1 today), and down by one in the past seven days.

Only 988 tests over the past three days, or an average of 247 per day and a weekly positivity rate of 0.35%.

Ontario reported a total of 179 for the past two days, with a seven-day average of 103 new cases. 241 recoveries and four deaths translated to a decrease of 67 active cases, so we're now at 1,245, a new low-water mark. A weekly total change of -330. 42,190 tests (over two days) for a 0.42% positivity rate. The positivity rate is averaging 0.38% for the past seven days.

The new cases are 0.2% of the total and 7.1% of the number of active cases (on a daily basis). New cases averaging 7.7% of actives over the past seven days.

The ICU population is back up to 28 (+2).

• 22 cases in Toronto: 0.7 per 100K population
  
• 16 cases in Peel: 1.6 per 100K population
  
• 2 cases in Waterloo: 0.3 per 100K population
  

Ottawa and Windsor now both under 10 new cases for the past two days, but SWO (essentially London and points west) still accounts for about 35% of the new cases.

[tomh009]

Waterloo Region  reported no new cases today; a total of 7 new cases total over the past week, or one per day. New cases were an average of 3.6% of actives over the past seven days. Active cases in the region were down to a new low of 36 (-4), and down by three in the past seven days.

Next testing report on Friday

Ontario reported 86 new cases today, with a seven-day average of 104. 146 recoveries and no deaths translated to a decrease of 60 active cases, so we're now at 1,185, below 1,200 for the first time since March. A weekly total change of -291. 17,229 tests for a 0.50% positivity rate. The positivity rate is averaging 0.41% for the past seven days.

The new cases are 0.2% of the total and 7.3% of the number of active cases. New cases averaging 8.0% of actives over the past seven days.

The ICU population is back up to 30 (+2).

• 18 cases in Toronto: 0.6 per 100K population
  
• 16 cases in Ottawa: 1.6 per 100K population
  
• 14 cases in Chatham-Kent: 13.3 per 100K population
  
• 11 cases in Peel: 1.1 per 100K population
  
• 10 cases in York: 1.2 per 100K population
  
• 0 cases in Waterloo: 0.0 per 100K population
  

Windsor down to two cases today, but the five remaining listed regions account for 69 of the 86 new cases.

[tomh009]

Waterloo Region  reported no new cases again today; a total of 10 new cases total over the past week. New cases were an average of 3.7% of actives over the past seven days. Active cases in the region were down to a new low of 20 (-15), and down by 15 in the past seven days.

Next testing report on Friday.

Ontario reported 95 new cases today, with a seven-day average of 105. 159 recoveries and only one death translated to a decrease of 65 active cases, so we're now at 1,120. A weekly total change of -277. 26,181 tests for a 0.36% positivity rate. The positivity rate is averaging 0.42% for the past seven days.

The new cases are 0.2% of the total and 8.5% of the number of active cases. New cases averaging 8.3% of actives over the past seven days.

The ICU population is back down to 29 (-1).

• 30 cases in Toronto: 1.0 per 100K population
  
• 19 cases in Ottawa: 1.9 per 100K population
  
• 10 cases in Chatham-Kent: 9.5 per 100K population
  
• 0 cases in Waterloo: 0.0 per 100K population
  

Windsor is at five, and Peel and York both dropped below 10. Ottawa still has trouble keeping new cases below that level, though.

[bgb_ca]

.....

https://www.kitchenertoday.com/coronavir...er-2604180

P.S. Spokes, you need to add a facepalm emoji to the list of smilies.

Seems we still have a lot of idiots in this town.

Still waiting for that facepalm emoji.

https://www.kitchenertoday.com/local-new...nt-2619482

[panamaniac]

Children have 66 chances to be kidnapped? Man needs help ...

[ijmorlan]

Children have 66 chances to be kidnapped?  Man needs help ...

And people think we don’t need mental asylums…

[ijmorlan]

Children have 66 chances to be kidnapped?  Man needs help ...

And people think we don’t need mental asylums…

Actually I don’t know exactly what we need. But clearly this person’s thinking is just as confused as is the thinking of somebody who thinks demons are telling them to kill the people around them, or whatever — way outside of the bounds of what are even conceivably valid ideas.

[jamincan]

I doubt it is mental illness and is instead just extremely poor rationalization for their dislike of masks.

[tomh009]

Waterloo Region  reported four new cases today; a total of 14 new cases total over the past week. New cases were an average of 6.5% of actives over the past seven days (19% today!). Active cases in the region are up slightly to 21 (+1), and down by 13 in the past seven days.

2,680 tests over the past three days. 0.15% positivity for those three days and 0.38% for the week.

Ontario reported 88 new cases today, with a seven-day average of 98 -- the first time the average has dropped below 100. 118 recoveries and no deaths translated to a decrease of 30 active cases, so we're now at 1,090. A weekly total change of -270. 25,136 tests for a 0.35% positivity rate. The positivity rate is averaging 0.40% for the past seven days.

The new cases are 0.2% of the total and 8.1% of the number of active cases. New cases averaging 8.0% of actives over the past seven days.

The ICU population is back down to 28 (-1).

• 15 cases in Ottawa: 1.5 per 100K population
  
• 15 cases in Peel: 1.5 per 100K population
  
• 10 cases in Toronto: 0.3 per 100K population
  
• 4 cases in Waterloo: 0.2 per 100K population
  

[ijmorlan]

I doubt it is mental illness and is instead just extremely poor rationalization for their dislike of masks.

This is something I’ve tried to think about, without much success.

I know that some mental illnesses have symptoms that include people believing manifestly, obviously, and definitely untrue things, such as that voices in the walls are telling them to harm people.

But there are many people who have weird conspiracy theory beliefs, of a level of craziness that is simply incompatible with correct thinking processes. To be clear, I don’t mean everybody who disagrees with me or even most people who disagree; I mean stuff like this, or the politician in the States who thought he got Covid from wearing a mask. This is thinking which is clearly maladaptive; but does that make it a mental illness? I’m not really clear what a mental illness even is. If it has to involve a chemical imbalance or something like that, then it’s at least in principle clear; if people think weird stuff about masks because of a chemical imbalance then it’s a mental illness; if it’s because they have poor thinking skills then it’s not.

So I don’t really know, but you’re absolutely right that I should not characterize it as mental illness.

[jamincan]

I think you have to first question if these are statements of true belief, or if they are simply just rationalizations. The goal of a rationalization is principally about defending something that might be considered transgressive or controversial by supplying a logical justification for the action or belief. Chances are that for the majority of people who oppose wearing a mask, it is almost solely due to them feeling uncomfortable wearing a mask. This is not considered acceptable justification for not wearing a mask by most people, though, so instead they have to rationalization their decision. They don't have to believe the rationalization (ie. is the decision to not wear a mask driven by the justification they provide, or by other reasons?) as the goal is simply to offer a plausible explanation for their behavior. In that sense, it's no more a sign of mental illness or poor thinking skills than a child denying they took a cookie is a sign of delusions.

[ac3r]

I think in a lot of cases this is just a result of being poorly educated and as a result they've become idiots. Some people really lack critical thinking skills and the ability to reason and think logically, and that just continues to pile up over the years. If someone lacks the ability to draw on fundamental critical thinking skills you usually develop in high school, it's pretty easy to go through life believing anything you hear. But nowadays, it isn't just Coast to Coast AM or grifters like Alex Jones screaming into the radio, they've got an abyss of misinformation on the internet they can dive into. It doesn't take a mental illness to believe the earth is flat, that the moon landing was fake and that face masks result in kidnappings and oxygen deprivation. I think this actually trivializes people who have mental illness. There is a big difference between a schizophrenic who cannot discern reality from delusion and somebody who has simply lived a life of stupidity.