627 replies to this topic

[TVCasualty]

This is pretty revealing, but not a surprise: https://www.bbc.com/...canada-51976484
 
 

Coronavirus: US Senators face calls to resign over ‘insider trading’

 

Two US Republican Senators are facing calls to resign over allegations they used insider knowledge to sell shares before prices fell due to coronavirus fears.

 

Richard Burr reportedly dumped up to $1.7m (£1.45m) of stocks last month.

 

Kelly Loeffler is reported to have sold holdings worth up to $3m in a series of transactions beginning the same day as a Senate briefing on the virus.

 

Both Senators have denied any impropriety.

 

 

The political upheaval with this is going to be extreme, and that will probably be a good thing in the long run. Careers will be destroyed and made in the coming months, and our entire economic paradigm might be on the cusp of changing radically and in ways that are long overdue and necessary if we want to ensure we don't end up living in the Stone Age (v2.0) in fifteen years or so.

Edited by TVCasualty, 20 March 2020 - 03:08 PM.
fixed formatting, of course

[riseabovethought]

This bothers me too, and I hope they get strung up and exposed for the low life’s they are. If we at least have the balls to face it and call them out for it and it’s something we learn from once and for all, then I guess we could actually move the ball forward. I hope the fuckers get what they got comin.

We forgave em far too many times for the same behavior and we never sent the right message to our public servants fooled by their mansions and body guards into thinking we were their booty to rape and pillage.

[August West]

...our entire economic paradigm might be on the cusp of changing radically and in ways that are long overdue and necessary...

I hope you're correct. The time is now to start being vigilante about where money is going and who is benefiting, even when the ostensbly obvious positive, "rescue packages" start being doled out.

[TVCasualty]

 

...our entire economic paradigm might be on the cusp of changing radically and in ways that are long overdue and necessary...

I hope you're correct. The time is now to start being vigilante about where money is going and who is benefiting, even when the ostensbly obvious positive, "rescue packages" start being doled out.

 

 

I figure it's either that or the whole thing will be burned to the ground (with extreme prejudice). I'm not going to be getting any checks according to the plan I've read since my life is largely under the table. I'm definitely not alone in that regard and know others who are still working as contractors (some in their late-60s, one in his mid-70's but most are in their 40's like myself) because they need the money. I've got a small cushion of savings that will keep me from having to go full Road Warrior longer than most who are in the same boat, but then I'll end up with no savings and no relief check coming so I may just end up going all Road Warrior later rather than sooner.

 

When untold millions of people don't get any relief while they watch others who are (even if it's a pittance that doesn't really help much) they won't care about whatever rationalizations are given about who gets some cash and who doesn't. Large mobs of people with nothing left to lose and who have a lot of ammunition stockpiled are going to be a problem, and possibly soon. Sure, the National Guard will suppress a lot of unrest but there's still going to be a fuckton more angry people on the streets than weekend warriors who will be ordered to pacify them.

 

 

This is also an especially bad time to be addicted to something. I expect a lot of opioid cold-turkey nightmares to come (among other kinds), though if someone ends up forced to kick because they can't get what they need then at least they can hopefully remain free of that addiction if life ever returns to some semblance of 'normal.' I'm a little concerned about what the gang and hard drug scene is going to devolve into. I guess we're going to find out.

[August West]

FWIW, my time to edit passed but, I meant vigilant, not vigilante...at least I think I did.

 

And, @, or towards, TV, or rather just adding an aside...another result of this is gonna be people committing suicide due to isolation like a FOAF of mine did yesterday.

Edited by August West, 21 March 2020 - 09:35 PM.

[TVCasualty]

Damn, that really sucks. Sorry to hear it.

 

 

 

That problem is likely to get a lot worse since most people seem to have a lot of trouble being alone with their own thoughts, even if there are a bunch of techno-distractions all around them. Or maybe it's because of all those distractions.

 

It helps a lot when trying to endure this kind of thing if one has undergone a traditional Vision Quest, which is 4 days and 4 nights sitting alone in some bushes with a few gallons of water (I brought a blanket, too).

 

It pushed my mind to what it thought were its limits around the third day but holding on until the borderline insanity passes brings unparalleled clarity and calmness and a different perception of time. It is not advisable to undergo a full four-day quest for one's first time as it is a far more intense experience than anyone expects and if unprepared one is likely to bail early and go temporarily nuts without getting any insights from it.

 

The first "Oh shit, what have I gotten myself into THIS time?" thought often happens around the end of the first 15 minutes when it occurs to you that you're already bored silly and only have 95 hours and 45 minutes left to go.

 

I was taught that doing at least one a year is the way to go for rapid spiritual growth (or 4X a year for supercharged growth), but I've only done one in the past 20 (I'm a bit of a slacker tracker) but I still learn things from it to this day and the benefits I gained did not dissipate over time. I can remain very quiet and still while out-waiting nearly anyone, lol. Which can be a huge advantage when you don't want to be seen and people are looking for you, or are under interrogation since it also taught me that I can just sit there staring into space for days (literally) without saying a word (I type a hell of a lot more than I talk). By the end of the second day, birds were landing on my head and plucking hairs out for their nests, lol. It was a real trip.

 

 

Anyway, the entire human race now appears to be undergoing a forced collective Vision Quest by being stuck at home instead of sitting in some bushes. And we had no chance to mentally prepare for it, so I expect the following weeks and months to be profoundly transformative for nearly everyone. Many will find great clarity and gain confidence in themselves as their awareness expands and their minds strengthen to meet the challenge while many others will be shattered to pieces.

 

Unlike a traditional Quest, we're not undergoing this collective one alone so looking out for each other will be necessary to help as many of us as possible manifest a positive transformation instead of ending up shattered from isolation and loneliness.

 

Sitting alone without Intent leads to loneliness and crippling depression but sitting alone with Intent (i.e. a Vision Quest) is an exercise undertaken in solitude and never feels lonely. Quite the opposite, ironically.

 

I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that we are currently experiencing the most profound and significant crossroad/turning point/moment of truth for the human race since the development of agriculture. At this moment things could still go either way, and it's a once-in-a-10,000 year chance that we'd best not fuck up.

 

I mean, we all knew at some level that the world we lived in a couple of months ago was completely unsustainable and doomed therefore it had to fail at some point, and better that it happen when the power is still on, the water is still flowing through the pipes, and food is still being distributed vs. losing ALL the basics we take (or took) for granted all at once, as in a total grid collapse.

 

I don't know what most people were expecting after having collectively acted like spoiled, entitled children for centuries (if not millennia). That it would go on forever?

 

Science was like mom saying: "What do you think you're doing? You stop that right now!"

 

We didn't care: "Whatever. You're not the boss of me!"

 

Science: "You just wait 'til your father gets home!"

 

Us again: "Okay, whatever."

 

Inevitable disaster: "Hey honey, I'm home!"

 

Us: "Uhh... I didn't mean it! I promise won't do it again! Give me one more chance!"

 

Disaster: "Bullshit. You're grounded until further notice!"

 

to be continued...

 

 

In other news I'm hoping that everyone who goes to Mexico or Canada on a regular basis to get life-saving medication (such as insulin) they can't afford in the US will still be able to either go get it or get it here affordably. That includes a hell of a lot of people.

[August West]

North Texas Hospital Reports Spike In Severe Child Abuse Cases; Believe Linked To Stress From Coronavirus Pandemic

 

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Doctors at Cook Children’s Hospital say they believe the stresses from the coronavirus pandemic are linked to six cases of severe child abuse seen at the hospital just this week.

Cook Children’s says it typically sees that many such cases over the course of a month.

All of the children admitted this week were under 4 years old.

“We knew an increase in abuse was going to occur, but this happened faster than we ever imagined,” said Christi Thornhill, director of the Trauma Program, the CARE team and Fostering Health at Cook Children’s. “I mean this happened in a week and these are really bad abuse cases.”

Jamye Coffman, M.D., medical director of the Cook Children’s Center for Prevention and Child Abuse and Neglect and the CARE team, believes these unprecedented times have simply become too much for some parents.

“People have so much increased stress right now,” Dr. Coffman said. “They’ve got financial stress. Some people lost their job or worried about keeping their current job. They lost their income. You’ve got stress from being overcrowded. Everyone’s cooped up together. They feel like they can’t get away from each other. These stressors can lead to abuse.”

Dr. Coffman said another factor is that people can’t get away from COVID-19 news as it is on TV and social media constantly.

It’s more difficult to take children to a grandparent or neighbor’s house right now and kids aren’t going to school to give their parents some away time.

In a news release Friday, Cook Children’s talked about what families can do now:

“Most of us know family members or neighbors we can reach out to when we know that maybe this is high stress situation,” Dr. Coffman said. “I think just maintaining some human connection is extremely important so people don’t feel isolated or people don’t feel as alone, which may reduce some of the anxiety and frustration. It may even be a phone call to somebody to say, ‘I’m having a hard time’ or even ‘my kids are driving me nuts.’”

Dr. Coffman stressed it’s normal to feel more frustrated because of the unknown and uncertain times, but when you feel frustrated, it’s Ok to ask for help or reach out and ask for advice.

Childhelp.org offers a resource for both parents and children alike during this time. For this article, we called this organization. We were told they are currently available to help and welcome any phone calls. The National Child Abuse Hotline is 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453.

Thornhill encourages people to get involved during this difficult time. The number one reporter of child abuse continues to be teachers, but kids aren’t seeing them right now.

“We worry about who will see abuse and report it right now,” Thornhill said. “That’s where we need neighbors and other family members to pay attention. If you hear the child next door screaming, call for help. All of us need to be involved. As much as most of us don’t want to, we all must make it our business.”

 

Edited by August West, 22 March 2020 - 10:57 AM.

[Alder Logs]

A younger couple (40s) next door went to the Oregon Coast to pick up an order of foodstuffs at a distribution point there yesterday.   They were going to go to Costco and the supermarket, but skipped that.  What they encountered were huge crowds and traffic because of spring breakers.  No vacancy at any motel or campground, all fully booked.  The stores were packed, so they picked up their order and came home.   So, what's that revealing?

 

When the subduction quake that I have said will cut me off from the world by closing the one highway that passes through here both ways happens, we can bet it will erase most of those coastal towns by tsunami, twenty minutes after it has closed all the roads heading inland.   If I am inside this rickety cabin on stilts, I probably will be mousetrapped.   So, I won't be needing any more Costco anyway.

Edited by Alder Logs, 22 March 2020 - 01:03 PM.

[Tenderfoot]

Do any of our Euro brothers and sisters worry about a currency cancellation in the neat future?   Metals dealers have reportedly quit selling to individuals and physical USD are in extreme short supply.  Digital currency on the Euro horizon?  The virus seems like a convenient cover to finally federalize the EU,  complete with military.  I would expect other governments to not let this crisis go to waste and grab as much power as possible.  Curious to some opinions! 

[TVCasualty]

If you kill cash you end the anonymous and untraceable black-bag shenanigans that those same governments depend on, including the international black market in drugs, weapons, people, etc..

 

If the black market goes down, the "white" market goes with it.

[August West]

First a note...

 

Maybe we should try to come up with more distinct titles to place our various thread forks, with regard to Covid? "Consequences of", "Infrastructure breakdown", "Economics"...just a thought. If we're all gonna be trapped at home, our current threads are gonna become (already are?) messy.

 

I would expect other governments to not let this crisis go to waste and grab as much power as possible.

 

I'm sure they'll just roll this back when it's all said and done (sorry if this has already been posted elsewhere).

 

DOJ Wants to Suspend Certain Constitutional Rights During Coronavirus Emergency

The Department of Justice has secretly asked Congress for the ability to detain arrested people “indefinitely” in addition to other powers that one expert called “terrifying”

 

The Trump Department of Justice has asked Congress to craft legislation allowing chief judges to indefinitely hold people without trial and suspend other constitutionally-protected rights during coronavirus and other emergencies, according to a report by Politico’s Betsy Woodruff Swan.

 

While the asks from the Department of Justice will likely not come to fruition with a Democratically-controlled House of Representatives, they demonstrate how much this White House has a frightening disregard for rights enumerated in the Constitution.

 

The DOJ has requested Congress allow any chief judge of a district court to pause court proceedings “whenever the district court is fully or partially closed by virtue of any natural disaster, civil disobedience, or other emergency situation,” according to draft language obtained by Politico. This would be applicable to “any statutes or rules of procedure otherwise affecting pre-arrest, post-arrest, pre-trial, trial, and post-trial procedures in criminal and juvenile proceedings and all civil processes and proceedings.” They justify this by saying currently judges can pause judicial proceedings in an emergency but that new legislation would allow them to apply it “in a consistent manner.”

 

But the Constitution grants citizens habeas corpus which gives arrestees the right to appear in front of a judge and ask to be released before trial. Enacting legislation like the DOJ wants would essentially suspend habeas corpus indefinitely until the emergency ended. Further, DOJ asked Congress to suspend the statute of limitations on criminal investigations and civil proceedings during the emergency until a year after it ended.

 

Norman L. Reimer, executive director of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, told Politico the measure was “terrifying,” saying, “Not only would it be a violation of [habeas corpus], but it says ‘affecting pre-arrest.’ So that means you could be arrested and never brought before a judge until they decide that the emergency or the civil disobedience is over. I find it absolutely terrifying. Especially in a time of emergency, we should be very careful about granting new powers to the government.”

 

“That is something that should not happen in a democracy,” he added.

 

DOJ also asked Congress to amend the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to have defendants appear at a hearing via videoconference instead of in-person with the defendant’s consent, although in a draft obtained by Politico, the sections about requiring consent were crossed out. But it’s not just Americans’ rights the DOJ wants to violate. They also asked Congress to pass a law saying that immigrants who test positive for COVID-19 cannot qualify as asylum seekers.

 

As coronavirus spreads through the country, activists are calling on politicians in office to release prisoners and immigrants held in detention centers, both of which can be a hotbed of virus activity with so many people in close quarters and limited or non-existent supplies of soap, sanitizer, and protective equipment. Some states have already begun to do so. But with this, the Trump administration is taking steps to hold more people in prisons for an undetermined amount of time — showing their priority is not saving lives but giving themselves more power.

 

Edited by August West, 22 March 2020 - 02:32 PM.

[TVCasualty]

That "like" was for posting it, not what it says. Fuck.

 

I can almost hear millions of rifles being eagerly loaded on both sides of that insanity.

 

It's going to be interesting to see how willing to enforce such things the troops would be. They will be insanely outnumbered, and ...all that that implies.

[Thacan]

Even today, I still see a lot of people saying that the warnings about the corona virus are blown out of proportion...  I wonder where they got that idea?  Hopefully, someday we will hold the sources accountable, because many people will die from the extreme negligence and misinformation that we have seen for years from these and other people just like them.

 

[Direct Link]

[Alder Logs]

We should avoid rushes to judgment on either side of these questions, so as to not be herded into further unrealities for the benefit of agendas which we will be very unlikely to learn of in any official revelation.  Just keep taking in what you can and be ready to not occupy any particular position to the death. 

Edited by Alder Logs, 22 March 2020 - 03:29 PM.

[TVCasualty]

 

https://act.eff.org/...blumenthal-bill

[August West]

We should avoid rushes to judgment on either side of these questions, so as to not be herded into further unrealities for the benefit of agendas which we will be very unlikely to learn of in any official revelation.  Just keep taking in what you can and be ready to not occupy any particular position to the death. 

I agree, in premise. Though, that is a still shot of a bottom feeder in that video he posted.

[August West]

That "like" was for posting it, not what it says. Fuck.

 

To me, stories like that one really muddy the waters of what exactly is going on with the response to this thing in the U.S. With this administration, there is every reason to believe that ineptitude is as good an answer as any. That said, is it possible that a nice, slow response creates the exact excuse required in order to really tighten the screws?

 

"Oops. Guess we were wrong about our response. Looks like we'll need to take some more of your rights to deal with it."

 

*WTF? I can't stop back-to-back posting. I blame the virus...

Edited by August West, 22 March 2020 - 05:02 PM.

[Coopdog]

I think the entire worldwide virus panic is one huge distraction that is being perpetrated on us in a huge and unprecedented move to consolidate into a the One World Government they have been drooling over for years. For this to happen, some unthinkable things need to occur, starting with stopping the internet and the electric grid for a while. The Revolution Will Not Be Televised has been a foregone conclusion for years.

 

   They have to keep the whackos, gang's and real Patriots from organizing. Without the instant communication grid we have now, any organized movement is dead in the water and much easier for them to stomp on and extinguish. There will be lots of little fires, but they don't care about that and they are prepared and locked and loaded with literally billions of rounds of ammo and guns and manpower to deal with the insurrrections that will certainly occur. With interstate travel restricted, people are not going to rally from much farther than you can throw a rock to come and join your cause or to put it down either.

 

   This is literally going to devolve very quickly. All it will take is the loss of internet and power, and I have heard one hell of a lot of people already discussing breaks in the power supply. It will start as "rolling blackouts" and the media will still be there saying all is well, just a temporary outage, then one day it will just not come back and all the praying and prepping in the world is going to be useless to combat it at that point.

 

   The Government is already laying the framework of the basic human income by offering us checks which have not materialized yet, but that people are already spending in their minds. Socialism is at the door.

 

   Anyone with deductive reasoning skills is trying hard to keep their sanity right nowl. For me I intend to fiddle while Rome burns, and one of the only things I bothered to stock up on is whiskey and beer and gonna play music and party my ass off until they make me stop...

Edited by Coopdog, 22 March 2020 - 05:08 PM.

[Thacan]

[Alder Logs]

Is this a cog in a wheel?

 

[Direct Link]

 

[Direct Link]

Edited by Alder Logs, 22 March 2020 - 10:12 PM.