Some aspects of school closures are worrisome. How are health care workers staffing the clinics, hospitals, nursing homes and senior living centers locally and beyond going to go to work if they have to care for kids at home?

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I am more concern of the economic and low wirkforce than the virus itself, this panic situation has put me to buy food and stuff no because of the virus, because everybody is taking tons of everything at the stores, what is the government really hiding? I remembered the swine flu at this point of the same time had contagied and killed 10 fold times that this new coronavirus and there ware no any cancelations and no panic at all, something is smelling different here, the elite just know why they are doing all of this!!!...

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This is a time bomb waiting to explode as inmates are being processed & admitted 24/7.

Outside of a verbal health questionaire & a TB shot, inmates are booked and incarcerated either in the main SJ jail or the one in Milpitas (Elmwood) where the incarcerated reside in 100 bed barracks.

Sanitary conditions are less than stellar & inmates are always headed to an understaffed infirmary for a variety of ailments.

Breakfast & lunch are packed by inmates working in the kitchen & except for the breakfast bologne which comes sealed, everything else is hand-packed/wrapped except for dinner which is a microwaved pre-packaged meal.

The cleaning of the shower & toilet facilities are left up to the appointed 'trustee' (an inmate) & conditions vary from average to filthy.

If a mass pandemic broke out at county jail, a lockdown quarantine would be required,the jail infirmary overun by sick patients,
then the SC County hospital utilized, followed by referrals to private district hospitals.

Are we ready for this? People are dying from coronavirus, panic buying has emptied store shelves, schools shut down, nearly everyone afraid of going out in public.

America is LOST & only the lucky ones will go unscathed by this dreaded disease running rampant globally.

We are experiencing a Malthusian-themed science fiction scenario of sorts except that it is real.

Having been recently released from Elmwood Correctional Facility (where I can speak from personal experience) the inmates don't care about the outside world because the outside world doesn't care about them.

Besides...we are all going to die someday anyway.

"What About A Potential COVID-19 Outbreak At County Jail?"

Group Quarters are a huge concern, which is why many are closing (dorms, etc..) Some jails are doing early release to help with containment of the virus.

Let that sink in.

It would have been easier to control, evaluate and contain, especially with Group Quarters if Trump had not fired the admiral who was in charge of our national pandemic team three years ago. He never replaced that position on the NSC.

It would also had been easier if Trump and Pence had accepted the offer of millions of test kits from the WHO in January. Nope, they made an absolutely stupid decision to not take them.

Trump and Pence have been utter failures in timely action on this epidemic. Our hospitals may well be overrun. Governors are asking the Feds for help on every front, even setting up military medical assistance NOW in preparation for the wave that will potentially overwhelm facilities in weeks (following the Italian Curve that shows we about 2 weeks behind in most regards.)

Group Quarters are a huge issue as incubators.

Not dissimilar to airports last night where, due to Trump's token travel ban, tens of thousands sat in close, tight proximity incubator lines for up to 6 hours at NY, Newark, O'Hare, DFW, etc.. before being released out onto the streets.

Brilliant.

Two weeks. Pray folks. As the Italians are saying: we keep our distance now so we may embrace later.

Except in customs line in airports. And jails. And....

> Besides...we are all going to die someday anyway.

Awesome attitude. About the only polite thing I can say is: "No, I couldn't, please, you first..."

;-)

Quote...Some jails are doing early release to help with containment of the virus.

^^^^ Not sure if this is a good idea as releasing various inmates from jail may only INCREASE the chance of them getting sick on the outside. Nature of crime/arrest also enters into the discretionary picture.

As far as blaming Trump & Pence for the lag in acknowledging this public health issue/problem...

Like George W. who got chastized by the media & left for the aftermath of 911, Trump/Pence cannot be blamed for this pandemic arising as it's reportage was delayed somewhat by China & only when the COVID-19 went global with many casualties did the POTUS finally acknowledge that something was awry.

I suspect that the best case scenario is for people to remain more insular during this time of crisis...avoid physical interaction with others if possible (which many are doing anyway) & let the chips fall where they may.

We've got the internet so it is not necessary 'to reach out & touch someone' let alone infect them (if one happens to be a carrier but not ill themselves).

All things eventually pass & if there are fewer of us around after this COVID-19 finally winds down, no big deal as the world is already overpopulated & the greatest sacrifice one can make is to ensure a quality of life for others.

Most people are only concerned with their own petty world & that is why so many are freaking out.

> As far as blaming Trump & Pence for the lag in acknowledging this public health issue/problem.

I'm not blaming them for this error as much as for other CRUCIAL mistakes:

- firing the National Pandemic Team 3 years ago

- failure to accept millions of test kits offered by the WHO in January.

All three mistakes together? That borders on criminal negligence.


> Like George W. who got chastized by the media & left for Sept 11

Not the same at all: Bush was READ a PDB which stated clearly: Bin Laden Determined To Attack US, and then went on vacation for a month.

It's a case of vacation for Bush vs multiple criminally stupid mistakes by Trump/Pence.

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Since the US has had such extreme limits on testing, actual cases are easily 10x the confirmed numbers, according to most epidemiologists.

And people are contagious for up to 14 days before showing symptoms.

And everyone has family and friends over 60 or with chronic conditions at high risk.

Let that sink in, and then cancel everything.

It's tough being the executive branch leader of the greatest country in the history of mankind...sorry ancient Egypt & Rome, you guys pale in comparison.

That said & while not defending George W. in any form or matter, he was not provided with an accurate/specific timeframe or the pinpoint specifics of such a plot as 911...much was subject to speculation by intelligence gathering & as history has demonstrated, sometimes over-reacting to perceived threats can lead to some serious blunders...while Jim Morrison was singing 'Light My Fire' his father had ignited the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution two years earlier.

Then again & according to the media, it is ALWAYS a Republican administration responsible for various crucial oversights that seriously impact the health, morality & misguided direction of the USA. *oh well*

BTW ..I am not registered Republican (or Democrat) as both parties seem to be full of horsefeathers. I have remained registered 'independant' since voting for McGovern in 1972 & cross party lines...generally to get rid of someone.

As aforementioned, the best we can do at present is avoid unnecessary interaction with others & perhaps turn more inwards & get to know ourselves better...then maybe some
of the superficial vanities that many people tend to embrace can take a break as well.

And if COVID-19 takes me down in the process, no big deal as we are all destined for oblivion & no one remembers the names of any 1918 Spanish Flu casualties...who cares?

>> what is the government really hiding? I remembered the swine flu at this point of the same time had contagied and killed 10 fold times that this new coronavirus and there ware no any cancelations and no panic at all, something is smelling different here, the elite just know why they are doing all of this!!!...

^^^ A very valid point & concern.
One thing you learn in county jail is never to trust the outside world as vast amounts of money & convoluted justice are exclusively reserved for the greedy & corrupt.

"Behind every great fortune lies a crime." Pere Goriot by Honore de Balzac

^^^ that's how it's done...by pushing the universe out of balance. Robber barons (i.e. Rockefeller, Morgan, Stanford, Carnegie, Gates, et Al have been with us since the beginning of mankind & only after they've accrued more money than they'll ever need do they become conditional 'philanthropists'.

So yes...there may be something bigger behind all of this but conspiracy theories are a dime s dozen & oftentimes best ignored.

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One country puts the entire world on its knees and you are blaming Trump???? We can recognize the intensity of China’s public-health response. But we should acknowledge and condemn the methods by which the world was kept in the dark for too long, and the means by which Beijing continues to interrupt the flow of information. We should not be thanking Beijing for its actions. Instead, we need honesty and the pursuit of the truth to defeat this challenge. And we must acknowledge that the Chinese government’s actions early on almost certainly led to the global crisis we’re facing.

@Duveneck/St. Francis -- As usual, when faced with the uncomfortable truth, the -45 cult try to change the subject.

Let's get something straight here: What the Chinese government did (or more accurately, what the provincial officials in Wuhan did) is neither here nor there as far as the (non)actions of this administration are concerned. As has been repeatedly reported in the last few weeks, the administration had ample warning about the COVID-19 virus infecting people in the United States -- and they did NOTHING. And none of their actions (so far) have achieved the slowing of the transmission rate of COVID-19.

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> Instead, we need honesty and the pursuit of the truth to defeat this challenge.

Yes, truth and honesty. Trump fired the Pandemic Team and turned down millions of testing kits in January when we all knew of the virus.

Why do you say you seek Truth but are unwilling to acknowledge fact? Are you being honest with yourself?

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> One country puts the entire world on its knees and you are blaming Trump????

Sure. Or, rather, it's a government's responsibility to protect its own people. I blame Trump, but then I also blame previous administrations as well as local governments. America's slow response, CDC incompetence (eg. faulty kits), and our health care system that deters people from reporting themselves have lead to "community spreaders" meaning that we can't track the virus because we're not able to, despite being a first world country.

Taiwan and South Korea (?) meanwhile, have shown that a country CAN contain this virus, despite being less than 100 miles away from China. Taiwan acted in January, and has only one CoVid death. It's already mid-March and the USA has started to close schools. Yeah, that's impressive. Both of these countries have a much smaller population than the USA, that's not an excuse for USA's slow response and lack of kits.

Web Link

> I blame Trump, but then I also blame previous administrations as well as local governments.

Trump, not Newsom or Obama, fired the national pandemic team three years ago.

Trump/Pence turned down millions of test kits from the WHO in January.


Local governments have been looking to national leadership for guidance. All they got was Trump calling it a hoax and telling us it would probably just disappear.

"But we have it so well under control. I mean, we really have done a very good job."

[Portion removed.] No person, no party, no organization is perfect and there and will be mistakes. Rather than continuing to post the same negative crap over and over and over, let’s try to come together and support each other, make positive contributions. THIS IS THE TIME FOR US TO COME TOGETHER.

For example, I saw this earlier today and it warmed my heart and hopefully gave hope to the Italian people! Let’s all be positive! Stop the blaming and negativity!

Web Link

> He streamlined a bloated agency

No. While he may have gutted many agencies, this is FAR DIFFERENT.

He *fired* the ADMIRAL on the NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL who was in charge of the national pandemic team.

That's not "streamlining" - it is sheer incompetence. Americans need to know this as Fox goes about re-writing history. [Portion removed.]

re the Italians, as previously credited above:

We keep our distance now so we may embrace later.

Why can't Stanford and any other university with a hospital use their now-empty dorms for extra hospital bed capacity? Seems like a perfect solution to the anticipated acute shortage. They're close to a hospital, and with some shared resources and "ownership." That certainly seems better than using hotels. And if Newsom can take over hotels, surely he can take over dorm buildings under the same authority if a university objects.

I read an awful lot of comments blaming Donald Trump for this CoronaVirus mess, but how can you really blame a guy whose last educational experience was in the 1960's yet thinks he knows more than the experts about pandemics thanks to his uncle's genes? After all WHO KNEW running a country was so complicated? WHO KNEW? That needs to be the slogan of the Trump administration ... WHO KNEW?

If Trump didn't know then it was his responsibility to find out what he was doing. The shirking of responsibility answer he gave to Yamiche Alcindor, the White House correspondent for the PBS NewsHour about his own bad judgement and poor decisions was ludicrous. People who support Donald Trump should definitely socially isolate and hang your heads in shame.

Yes. There are many ways to potentially die (e.g. by accident, various diseases, murder etc.).

The only way to reduce certain death-related odds is to counter them via lifestyle changes & alterations.

In the case of COVID-19, people are avoiding each other & public gatherings. A good call since the virus is airborne.

By not riding in or driving a car, one greatly reduces the risk of being involved in an automobile accident or fatality.

Adhering to a healthy lifestyle & diet can also ward off certain diseases attributed to excess or abuse.

And murder can often be avoided by discretionary measures regarding who you associate with or where one ventures, resides etc.

Genetics is another KEY factor as there will be many individuals who NEVER catch the coronavirus even though they are being exposed to it on a regular basis.

Possibility = 100% Probability = variable %s

My grandparents are Amish & except for certain degenerative diseases that have been passed on due to limited marriage pool, they avoid cars & are at minimum risk for COVID-19 because they rarely leave the farm being relatively self-sufficient in terms of animal husbandry, food preparation, the making of clothing & what not.

The interaction of modern society is why COVID-19 is spreading like a wildfire.

If people distanced themselves from others, the coronavirus would affect fewer individuals...perhaps then, only people who reside in the suburbs or inner cities would come down with it.

We are watching this outbreak from a distance & have told our children that though the outside world can have a certain exciting appeal, there are many dangers that are lurking when too many people are co-occupying the same living spaces.

We are somewhat immune from COVID-19...not because of any genetic or mental superiority but because most of us chose not to interact with the outside world on a regular basis.

Plus...there is absolutely NO REASON for us to be traveling to or conducting business with overseas countries as self-sufficiency reduces and/or eliminates the necessity.

Does anyone have access to information as to how many Palo Alto residents have this virus? I know the numbers are not accurate yet due to lack of testing, but it would be helpful to know how many people in town have symptoms severe enough to seek medical care and thus get counted by officials.

We are all entitled to privacy, so names cannot be given, but we should have information about the city and perhaps neighborhood.

Certainly in many other countries people are allowed to know what is happening directly around them. Santa Clara County is huge, and we need more specifics.

Please check your facts: Gavin Newsom did NOT "announce new state restrictions in a Sunday press conference, including home isolation of everyone in the state over age 65." He urged people to stay at home, but did not mandate that. You are targeting people based on age--even the Daily Post got it right! As did the SJ Mercury News.

> Does anyone have access to information as to how many Palo Alto residents have this virus?

No. No one knows. Until there is enough testing for all with symptoms and enough to do a sampling of those without symptoms, we will not know.

The WHO offered Trump millions of tests in January and he turned them down.

No one knows.

I am not sure its a right page but did any of MP /Palo Alto city officials are closley looking at FB facility where thousands of contractors like cooking staff,House keepers, FB uber drivers, in house securitu etc are forced to work in this emergency situation. They come from all parts of bay-area with mixed background and it needs only couple of cases to errupt the pendemic in any area. I think the city counsil should take proper action for not allowing thousands of people working same facilities during this emergency.

“Does anyone have access to information as to how many Palo Alto residents have this virus?

Yes.
Facebook, Google, and your ISP maintain detailed databases on all your internet activities. They know everything about you.

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The last update dated April 20th shows 41 new cases and 6 new deaths. The case count by City doesn't seem to have been updated at 4:00pm.

Web Link

Update: the Case Count by City was just updated to April 20th: Web Link

Palo Alto increased to 66.

Our Government preaches Testing!Testing! “We need more testing to open CA”, but then they use the excuse of confirmed cases going up, not down, as a reason to NOT open up our businesses. We are now at a point where many are facing bankruptcy. Bankrupting State and Local Cities is not a smart way to counteract a health crisis in my book.