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I wouldn't look into going to Brazil until much later this year...October, November, December may work depending on if we get a vaccine, they are able to stabilize the current situation, they open travel up across the board.... Brazil is getting slammed right now with cases due to the healthcare system and Trumps Portuguese speaking brother that leads the country... Keep in mind that Brazil is also a third world country with all the issues that includes... Pray that international travel gets back to some type of option THIS YEAR....

While there are a few great medical centers in Brazil, the emphasis is on the word, "few". The descent from a little cough and fever into respiratory failure can happen so rapidly with Covid-19 that, even if you have the best medical evacuation insurance policy, it's likely you wouldn't have time to get back to U. S. hospitals. So I ask you: Would you really want to spend your final days of life on a ventilator in a Brazilian ICU?

My response to seeing the headline was "Aren't we all!"

The only reason I am still fantasizing on traveling to Rio in July is my abundance of free time and the need for appealing masturbatory landscapes. I am aware it is not going to happen. Not only because of traveling restrictions and locked down cities, but also right now I cannot make any serious plans as my calendar is in the air. They decided to end the school year earlier, and no one knows yet how the new academic calendar is going to look like for summer school and next school year. I hate the idea of having a 6/8 weeks summer break to be locked in home.

Foreign relations is a curious beast. Cambodia has been in Beijings camp since the days of French colonial rule. King Sihanouk fled to Beijing after the 1970 coup which may well have had CIA backing. It was the US secret unsanctioned bombing of Cambodia that directly created the vacuum that led to the rise to power of the genocidal Khmer Rouge. Even after Vietnam invaded and liberated the country, the world led by the USA continued to recognise the murderers for another dozen years. The US even tried to persuade other nations to help rebuild the Khmer Rouge! President Carter in a policy continued by Reagan and Bush 41 called on other nations to cut off assistance and aid to Vietnam. How come the murder of about 1.5 million plus of its citizens would qualify the Khmer Rouge continuing in power? The Khmer Rouge then continued to represent Cambodia at the UN until 1991. Madness! Funny too that Vietnam is coupled with the USA and others in attempts to stamp out the covid19 virus. From what I read, Vietnam was way ahead of the USA in insisting on its people wearing facemarks and using hand sanitiser. This despite Vietnam having a weak healthcare system and small health budget. The leaders in Hanoi implemented their strategy during Tet, the same day as Chinese New Year before the end of January when there were no known cases outside China. Quarantine of those with the virus and tracking of contacts started long before Trump and his minions in Washington gave the virus the time of day.

Our plans for a July trip to Rio are now canceled. It's going to be several months, if then, before the city is capable of handling tourists again. Or so I think.

The President of the United States of America is endorsing right-wing protesters who want to disobey the orders of Democratic governors during a national pandemic. No one wishes COVID-19 on Trump or the protesters, but don't they significantly increase their chances when they gather close together, many with no facial masks or other protection? Do they think that their guns will protect them from this disease? Troubling times are ahead if Trump continues to act so unpresidential. https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-04-18/coronavirus-protests-texas-maryland-wisconsin-cuomo (I guess the cigarette is meant to ward off the virus?) Social gun distancing!

He says he has. But Huffpost.com says that's a whopper. For one, the US population is about 330 million people. Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-saves-billions-us-pop-350-million_n_5e9bd2bec5b6ea335d5cb120

I thought I would post together some suggestions rather than create separate threads for them. I love to surf the internet, and find many things I like to share here. But it's not "The Lucky Pub" so I don't want to have too many threads with my name on them. (Someone will no doubt tell me when there are too many!) My first one I will title BUZZ AND TOMMY- What's The True Story? It comes from the several websites. A picture of two very handsome guys, perhaps taken around 1949... So, what's the story? Were they lovers? Is it a good-bye note, perhaps at the end of summer? Your guess is as good as mine. Blogger Andy Towle posts some suggestions and invites yours: https://www.towleroad.com/2020/04/life-guards-buzz-tommy/

Good posting with revealing information and scary photos, but I suggest one edit: Delete: No one wishes COVID-19 on Trump or the protesters, but

Voices are rising in opposition to the homophobic policies of this group: New York state senator Brad Hoylman said. “That said, the federal government has put us in the unfortunate position of having to accept charity from bigots like Franklin Graham and at the very least I think it’s government’s responsibility to ensure that he follows the law.” Hoylman has requested that the Mount Sinai hospital network ask Samaritan’s Purse staff to sign a non-discrimination agreement acknowledging their understanding of New York’s human rights law. But he still fears the organisation’s presence in the city will cause “incalculable” damage. “I do fear that we’ve given Franklin Graham a platform in one of the most famous pieces of public land in the country to spew his hatred of LGBTQ people, and unfortunately at the same time legitimise his homophobia,” Hoylman said. The Guardian article in total: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/19/questions-mount-over-christian-group-behind-central-park-covid-19-hospital

We really do need to go back to the tax rates of Reagan or before. You know, it sure is funny that the oil and railroad barons still made all that knowing they'd be in a 90%+ tax bracket but today's say they won't get out of bed if their nominal rate is above 30%. And if they didn't just want to pay their taxes they put it into foundations or other public works that still exist today, meanwhile pretty much only Gates/Buffet have a meaningful foundation doing public good today.

The facts aren't hard to find, I'm so tired of "partisan truth". Trump's only accomplishment in the early days was the China ban, by which time the states receiving direct flights had already put in screening and limits and after which something like 450,000 still traveled. He then went to several campaign rallies and golf trips while downplaying the "China flu" as a hoax. Ignoring dire warnings and advisories from experts for all of February and doing fuck-all in March to boot. His circuses, I mean press conferences are often full of objective lies. Anybody who can't take 2 seconds and instead defends them... And we know he doesn't actually know what "billions" are as he's been lying about being a billionaire most of his life.

Let’s defy the orders and just go!!! I am loosing my shit.

I love the Harry Bosch novels by Michael Connelly. I have read them all. But I could not watch the TV show as the actor playing Bosch just did not fit with my image of him from the novels.

Your Balls COULD BE DANGEROUS!!!!! Why are men more susceptible to COVID-19? The LA Times takes a look: https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-04-18/do-testicles-make-men-more-vulnerable-to-coronavirus

July seems so tempting and very very optimistic. My little brainless head is hoping for the best but my big brain knows that it is not likely to be safe for travel then. but since there is frankly so much uncertainty with this, no one knows for certain what might happen over the next two months. trust me we are seriously bullshitting our way through this!!! BTW you might not be afraid of death but COVID-19 is a very shitty way to die. It is not pretty...no death is, but this is very painful to watch so i imagine it is even worse to experience it.

My days of sharing social space with David Geffen are long over. I hail from a boating culture, but the boat pictured above seems vulgar and not all that attractive. Reminds me of short, hairy, men with super-small dicks needing to show off in some way. Gay men with certain shortcomings always seem to have something to prove.

Well I agree that the future is impenetrable, Thailand sounds like a country preparing to emerge from the doldrums of isolation. Air Asia announced today it will begin some domestic service in Thailand May 1. The government's Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration stressed yesterday that 29 provinces have been free of new cases for two weeks. Its spokesman says guidelines for a “new normal” are being drafted amid talks of a gradual reopening of business around the country. He said the government is pleased with the dropping number of new cases and is considering relaxing restrictions, though people can not ignore “good practices” such as social distancing, wearing a mask and washing hands regularly. The Bangkok Post reports that Phuket province (that has the second-highest total of infections in the country after Bangkok) reported no new Covid-19 infections on Saturday as seven more infected patients have fully recovered and been discharged from hospitals. The Post also said today that 33 new local cases were logged nation wide but there were no new deaths. Thailand has only 0.7 deaths per million population, compared to hardest hit countries like Belgium (477), Spain (428), Italy (376), France (278), UK (219), Netherlands (200), Switzerland (157), Sweden (137), US (113) and Ireland (109). According to Khaosod English, the PM has appointed 23 senate members to a Committee on Tourism. Fifteen are military officers turned senators.

This lockdown made me sensitive to everything! Oh how i miss spooning and cuddling lol

spooner than later? I take offense!

call it 'enforced chastity"

Franklin is one of the biggest human turds on earth. His own father delivered one of the most quietly cutting condemnations I have ever heard. When a journalist asked Billy what he thought about his son calling Islam “very wicked and evil,” Billy simply replied, “I have many friends in that part of religion.”

Medical professionals across the globe are doing just that; trying to save lives as much as possible. It is however very hard to do when you don't have the resources to test as much as we need to. Testing and isolation protocols should have been activated a long long time based on the advice the medical community gave to political leaders across the globe, but here we are. It is true we can't have economies shut down for an extended period of time, it will spell dire consequences for the world economy and mental health. it is very easy to apportion blame right now, but there is no easy way around this because in a sense we are a tad bit late, so all we can do is to save as many lives that walk through our doors. As for the issue of immunity. Humans are not too great on forming immunity when it comes such seasonal viral infection. The most we have seen in terms of immunity to viruses in this family is 3 years post infection where as some formed an immunity for just 1 year post infection. Unfortunately as the name suggests this Coronavirus is too novel for us to have concrete answers as to how long we form an immunity and how good that immunity is. There are several factors that go into the production of antibodies that help us form this immunity, so for now the general consensus is that people will have some form of immunity but the question is how good/deep this immunity is and for how long does the immunity last. This is all uncharted waters and we are collecting as much data as we can to make informed recommendations as we go along. But it is very difficult when you uncooperative political associates making life harder by dismissing recommendations which would have gone a long way to save lives a long time ago and now. In short, Testing was very important and still is important, we have found that early intubation and ventilation is key to survival (there are not enough ICU beds and ventilators in the world for that). those drugs being thrown around might mitigate some of the respiratory inflammatory response to the viral infection but they are not curative. Way forward; if we are able to truly enforce social and physical distancing, the curve will flatten a little quicker, the plateau of the various models will be shorter and the decline steeper. this will mean less strain on us, healthcare, ICU personnel and resources, PPEs, we can open up our ORs for elective surgeries again. less strain on the economy and I can go back to getting railed and shagging my way through Brazil again. i can't fucking do that if i am permanently scarred from wearing those Goggles for 12-16 hours and mentally scarred from intubating and calling families about their loved one that died alone!!! but i digress lol My two cents but I will let the multitalented experts on this forum make the final call though.

It’s not the role for medical experts to come up with a “compromise” in order to reduce unemployment or boredom at home. Their job is to save as many lives as possible during a global pandemic. Right now, the USA has more recorded cases and deaths from COVID-19 than any other country, mostly due to the lagged (at best) or failed (at worst) response — not by our medical professionals, but by our federal government leader, and many state government leaders who take their cues from him. I didn’t think it was even possible, but the response to the pandemic by Bozonaro at this point lags behind that of Drumpf. He’s about where Drumpf was a month ago, and Dumb Donald’s current position is not quite evolved enough to flatten the curve and curb a pandemic. The respected Oxford University model predicts 478,000 deaths from COVID-19 in Brazil alone. Recent news reports indicate that Brazil is seriously under reporting both its coronavirus cases of infection AND its deaths (known and unknown) in impoverished areas (favelas). meanwhile, Bozo refers to it as “just a little flu” and encourages the country’s largely catholic population to attend crowded churches every Sunday. This thing in Brazil is NOT going to end anytime soon. Not without months of forced closings and social distancing. It’s probably going to be one of hardest hit nations, at this rate. It brings me no joy to say this, but it’s shaping up to be a blood bath down there. The last thing any of us should be concerned about is when a sauna will re-open.

Did you watch a COVID-19 patient die? where?