Just to put the cat into the pigeons,
My Chinese friends are insistent CV19 came in on an ice cream shipment from the US, and the US had cases before china.

Now , the amount of ice cream shipped from the US to Wuhan is not stated anywhere as far as I can see,
but my friends insist the Chinese have tested that CV19 can live on ice-cream from the US , so it must be true !

I found this link,.

https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-ice-cream-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-in-china-12188761

Yes, well,...

I'm amazed the WHO can do anything in china

 

And conduct experiments with genetically modified superhuman clones, control the value if its currency, have a monopoly on goods & services, control wages and access to Healthcare and on and on and on.

Mainland, yes this all makes sense. But Taiwan isn't like that AFAIK.

 

Just to put the cat into the pigeons,
My Chinese friends are insistent CV19 came in on an ice cream shipment from the US, and the US had cases before china.

Now , the amount of ice cream shipped from the US to Wuhan is not stated anywhere as far as I can see,
but my friends insist the Chinese have tested that CV19 can live on ice-cream from the US , so it must be true !

I found this link,.

https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-ice-cream-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-in-china-12188761

Yes, well,...

I'm amazed the WHO can do anything in china

The Chinese reaction to the WHO investigation is telling.

https://www.modernhealthcare.com/sa...hes-conspiracy-theories-covid-origin-vaccines

The arrival of the WHO mission has brought back persistent criticism that China allowed the virus to spread globally by reacting too slowly in the beginning, even reprimanding doctors who tried to warn the public. The visiting researchers will begin field work this week after being released from a 14-day quarantine.

The Communist Party sees the WHO investigation as a political risk because it focuses attention on China's response, said Jacob Wallis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.

The party wants to "distract domestic and international audiences by pre-emptively distorting the narrative on where responsibility lies for the emergence of COVID-19," Wallis said.

What disinformation theories being actively spread depends on the country of origin of the disinformation.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90599673/china-covid-19-conspiracy-theories

As researchers who study online media and public discourse, my colleagues and I examined conspiracy theories about the origins of COVID-19 and narratives that debunk them on Sina Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter and one of the major Chinese social media platforms.

We found that popular conspiracies on Weibo about the origins of COVID-19 differ substantially from those in the U.S., with many claiming that a national government deliberately constructed the coronavirus. Conspiracy posts and posts attributing responsibility to the U.S. surged during Sino-U.S. confrontations.

Surveys show that many Americans also believe COVID-19 conspiracy theories, however most of those conspiracy theories involved personalities such as Bill Gates and Anthony Fauci or unfounded alternative explanations for the illness, such as 5G, the new high-speed wireless network technology.

We also found in our analysis of Chinese social media that debunking posts can be more effective when they come from women and influencers, who are people with large followings on social media. Debunking posts are also more effective when they cite scientists as the source. We believe these techniques could be effective not only in China but in other countries as well.

https://www.fastcompany.com/9053242...n-conspiracies-and-intentional-disinformation

Disinformation has its roots in the practice of dezinformatsiya used by the Soviet Union’s intelligence agencies to attempt to change how people understood and interpreted events in the world. It’s useful to think of disinformation not as a single piece of information or even a single narrative, but as a campaign, a set of actions and narratives produced and spread to deceive for political purpose.

Lawrence Martin-Bittman, a former Soviet intelligence officer who defected from what was then Czechoslovakia and later became a professor of disinformation, described how effective disinformation campaigns are often built around a true or plausible core. They exploit existing biases, divisions, and inconsistencies in a targeted group or society. And they often employ “unwitting agents” to spread their content and advance their objectives.

 

Mainland, yes this all makes sense. But Taiwan isn't like that AFAIK.

I don't know enough to speak much further about it; probably said too much already. My impression is that China is like a politically inverse America with Taiwan being its California (the most significant geographical region in political opposition to the majority). If someone has beef with America, they probably have it with California too. Not sure if Taiwan deserves to be separately considered. Are they their own country? A state/ province/ prefecture? IDK last time I looked into it, it seemed to be a subject of some dispute. I'm sure if I'm wrong about that someone will be along to correct me soon enough.

 

Taiwan is more like a "renegade province" that so far has enjoyed the protection of the US. It has its own democratic government, its own coin and its own laws. Its political culture is the exact opposite of that in mainland totalitarian communist China.

China has always claimed Taiwan as being part of its territory, so much that they're forcing other countries to refer to it with its given chinese name of Formosa instead.

I am afraid that it's just a matter of time before the island is invaded and reclaimed by China, because they are never ever going to give it up.

 

Well, sad news. My daughter's kindergarten teacher passed away today. The first person I personally know, who died of covid. She was hospitalized dec 8.

Consider yourself lucky. I know about a half dozen friends/family who died of Covid.

 

Mainland considers Taiwan a "rogue province" but Taiwan more considers itself autonomous and independent. I'd say it's similar to North and South Korea, so not really similar at all. In China, they'll round up "law-breaking" citizens and shoot them if they want, no questions asked. I think Taiwan they are more like us and that would be rare.

 

The father of one of my best friend's daughter's boyfriend just passed away due to CV19. He contracted it during a Christmas celebration... he was 66. May he rest in peace...

 

https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pa...al-coronavirus-cases-drop-third-straight-week
WHO Chief: Global Coronavirus Cases Drop for Third Straight Week

https://apnews.com/article/san-francisco-sues-own-school-district-9fa9cf285326935ce79b86c3c4c56774
San Francisco sues its own school district to reopen classes

While the vast majority of California’s public schools have been closed since March, San Francisco schools have been allowed to reopen since September. Herrera noted that nearly 90% of schools in neighboring Marin County, including public schools, have resumed in-person instruction and that 113 private and parochial schools in San Francisco also are open.

The lawsuit says school administrators are violating a state requirement that districts adopt a clear plan “to offer classroom-based instruction whenever possible” during the pandemic. It seeks a court order to require schools to prepare to offer in-person instruction and file a detailed plan, Herrera said.

School administrators called the lawsuit an embarrassment.

It's an embarrassment there needs to be a lawsuit to make teachers do their job.

 

The political history of china is complicated and while chairman Mao brought it out of its dark ages of being ruled by warring regional warlords and their armies it also suffered greatly under his communist regime and his "Cultural Revolution". It's present political climate is horribly restrictive and controlling. Also, their delusion that the world and the universe beyond rightfully belong to them.

 

The political history of china is complicated and while chairman Mao brought it out of its dark ages of being ruled by warring regional warlords and their armies it also suffered greatly under his communist regime and his "Cultural Revolution". It's present political climate is horribly restrictive and controlling. Also, their delusion that the world and the universe beyond rightfully belong to them.

Yup.... the all mighty demigod called emperor has been replaced by a single party system following the same beliefs.

 

Not even sure of what their beliefs are. Seems people are always able to eke out an existence regardless of governments that come and go. The same can be said of diseases which leads to the question are governments a disease. No! This has nothing to do with politics, just a general statement of the human condition!

 

Not even sure of what their beliefs are. Seems people are always able to eke out an existence regardless of governments that come and go. The same can be said of diseases which leads to the question are governments a disease. No! This has nothing to do with politics, just a general statement of the human condition!

We organize ourselves in a hierarchy, it's natural. Most living things do. Spend a few hours watching chickens. If governments are a disease it's only because they're made of humans.

 

I think corruption inevitably leads to economic hardship, which like clockwork causes the ruling class to hunker down and protect their elite positions. It's not like engineering where if we screw up a product, we generally fix the problem and move forward. Apparently when you're in a position to abuse power, you will, and rather than admit fault, people will assign blame elsewhere.

Testing consistently shows that the Chinese have a higher mean IQ average the most other groups. However, and somewhat paradoxically, apparently the standard deviation is less than western populations, which means while much of their population is a bit smarter, they have less geniuses and less, uh, mentally challenged persons. (Assuming a Gaussian distribution.)

It's interesting to speculate what the lack of mentally gifted individuals in a population might mean for long term development. Would it explain things like eating bats, things that might make viral epidemics more likely?

 

More positive news regarding Vitamin D and protection against COVID-19.

(162) Vitamin D studies confirm correlations - YouTube

 

Just got a book from amazon, cleaned it with Clorox how long will it take for me to read?

Thx
kv

 

... how long will it take for me to read?

Well, first you need to learn your ABC's.

 

Just got a book from amazon, cleaned it with Clorox how long will it take for me to read?

Thx
kv

In all honesty, I doubt that handling a mail ordered book poses any threat. And if cleaning it made you feel any better, I'm sure you can start reading it right away.

 

Wife wipes down her groceries but all I do with Amazon pkgs. is wash my hands after opening. I don't worry about cleaning what's inside.

 

Just got a book from amazon, cleaned it with Clorox how long will it take for me to read?

Depends on how many pages and how faint the print is after its been bleached by the Clorox.