Internal Emails Show How Chaos at the CDC Slowed the Early Response to Coronavirus | Talking Points Memo

I heard this morning that the governor of MS superceded his states’ mayors orders to practice social distancing. He ORDERED people to go back to work.

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Sure. Neither are Trump’s tax returns.

It’s great to have a gold standard, and I agree central lab testing and rigid precautions are the best. But point-of-care testing is a coming thing, perhaps as early as this summer. One way around some of these problems is automation of such testing. In the case of covid-19, the person taking the sample (e.g. mouth-throat swab) must take the appropriate standard precautions regarding protective barriers and hygiene. Such people are trained and hopefully not degraded to wearing swim goggles and garbage bags as we see in some PPE-stressed environments. Moreover, the FDA has already cleared such products as quick tests for ebola in cadavers. Americans home-test for STIs, including HIV. The virus may be less problematic if we establish that having covid-19 confers immunity. If not, home testing will be a hump as the product must be safe for average people.

There are so many things they got wrong, such as disbanding the pandemic response team. But really what it boils down to is Trump prioritizing blind loyalty over sheer competence throughout government, and it has cost us dearly. We can see it clearly now with this pandemic, but you can multiply that across every department in government. Biden will have so much on his plate, he may need to clone himself. He’s going to have to rid himself of every Trump appointee and go back to finding talented, honest people of integrity. They’re out there.

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[On March 3, Redfield wrote to his staff again] …we are prepared for the possible spread of COVID-19 in communities across the United States

The Wuhan lockdown of 57 million people on January 23, 2020 should have been a blaring red alert that this coronavirus was different and it would not be easily contained. How could a scientist and doctor not see the high probability that screening incoming travelers for sickness was not going to catch all the carriers?

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That makes me hate Frankie Laine more than I already did.

I give this :hearts::hearts::hearts::hearts::hearts:

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meanwhile…

As if we didn’t have enough money problems.

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There are good people out there. Just remember they have been out of the loop for years now, and will have a catch up period. Nothing is going to happen fast.

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Gilligan’s Island theme was by Johnny Williams who later went on to score a few little movies like Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark so not surprising.

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What could possibly go wrong with this plan? It’s certainly designed to eliminate any slightest possibility of corrupt motives in deciding which counties open and which don’t.

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From the beginning, this admin was “slow out of the gate” and it can never make up for it.

January 3, 2020 a frantic call to Trump at the White House was made to inform him of the corona virus in the country and the need for immediate action. Trump did not return the call until January 18, 15 days later.

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There are two kinds of sins, big ones are “mortal sins” and lesser ones are “venial sins.” Memories from early catechism of Catholic Church. It never goes away.

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It quickly became obvious to anyone looking for information that the CDC was not the place to find it. Their website made it clear that they were in disarray and under-reporting cases. I found the Johns-Hopkins website which was more accurate - and I continue to look to J-H for guidance, as do many other people I know.

When our lives are on the line, look to the real experts - ignore Trump and his political hack appointees

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The song “Fishing Hole” was a common part of Andy’s stand up comedy days from before the show. There are some classic recordings of him singing it. I seem to recall he did a verse whistling as well, but most was sung. Also if you like his comedy be sure to check out his very early film material No Time For Sargents. Classic WWII material and his first pairing with Don Knott’s.

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I remember when television shows were announced in advance, so you turned the television set on at that announced time, and then, if you could tune in, you watched the show, and then you turned the television set off.

 

Just don’t substitute “Girl” for “Man."

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Williams wrote the theme song for the original pilot, not “The Ballad of Gilligan’s Isle” that we’re all so familiar with, which written by composer George Wyle, with lyrics by the show’s creator-producer Sherwood Schwartz.

‘‘America doesn’t want great music themes – just something it can remember,’’ Mr. Wyle once said of the ballad.

I’m not so sure about that assessment. There’s been a lot of truly iconic themes, like Perry Mason (Frederick Steiner) and Twilight Zone (Marius Constant) to name just two.

Composer Richard Rogers (“Sound of Music”) claimed he knew he wrote a successful song when the audience left the theater whistling it. I tend to agree with that metric.

Just as a bit of trivia — I’m full of it, you know! — in the original post I cited the work of Earle Hagen, who also scored Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C. In one episode there is a restaurant scene where Andy gives Sgt. Carter the mistaken impression that Gomer is Gen. Lucious Pyle’s son.

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Throughout the scene, Hagen’s “Harlem Nocturne,” plays on the jukebox. What a clever way to generate royalties!

Fun Fact: When I worked as a musician I would sometimes play the theme from “Gilligan’s Island.” It never ceased to amaze me that all I need do was sing opening line and the entire audience would take over. It was mind-blowingly predictable, like Pavlov ringing a bell.

I also liked to play Little Roger and the Goosebumps’ "Gilligan’s Island (Stairway), “Stairway to Heaven” with “The Ballad of Gilligan’s Isle” sung over the top. It wasn’t nearly as popular. In fact, it tended to piss people off.