[Aptorian]

When I was working retail in a supermarket I remember a crazy day where a bus load of American tourists came through the store. All of them had creditcards that weren't chipped and when they swipped them through the machine, they didn't have any PIN-code for their cards. So they couldn't buy anything. No PIN for a credit card seems crazy to me, even now where we have chips. Might as well still be using one of those flyswatter thingies where you take an imprint of a card and hope nobody abuses the system.

[Tiste Simeon]

People are beginning to panic buy stuff like pasta over here, cos that's exactly what we need right now...

[Aptorian]

I went out last week and bought 5 kgs of rice and bunch of canned food. Early bird gets to survive the supermarket apocalypse.

[Macros]

I have made no such purchases. And refuse to.

[Silencer]

Macros, on 05 March 2020 - 09:48 AM, said:

I have made no such purchases. And refuse to.

I am inclined to the same, was rather annoyed last week when I had a choice between buying no toilet paper, or buying twice what I normally do, because all the regular size packs were sold out. As of today's shop, my local is completely out of: hand sanitizer; toilet paper; canned fruit; dispoable wipes/antibacterial wipes; and running out of regular tissues and other canned food.
It's frankly ridiculous. And ultimately this kind of panic is probably going to do more damage than the Coronavirus was ever likely to, if it causes a recession.

Australian supermarkets are now instituting limits on the amount of certain goods you can purchase, like toilet paper, and rice. SMH.

[Mezla PigDog]

On my last online shop I stocked up on a few extra bits of non-perishable food that my child will happily eat every day. An extra bag of pasta, more beans and some cereal basically. If Mr PigDog and I overlap with the fever stage and aren't able to go out for stuff as usual then we will need to feed him easily for a couple of days and I could do without worrying about that. If I have a rotten fever I'm sure I won't be eating anyway but I have a small person to feed and no family down the road to ask for help.

Now if any of you have a toilet paper problem I will be selling baby wipes on the black market - we have a truck load as Mr PigDog went mad in Costco a few months back.

[Maark Abbott]

Seems there's a case in my town now, guess I'll die cursing all Asians that I'll never see my blue passport*.

*Oh Barnsley, you suck

[Gorefest]

It is a tad disturbing to find that I am actually leaning towards the Trump view on coronavirus. He says the current death rate is most likely overstated, as Mezla suggested previously as well, and you can tell that he has genuinely been listening to good medical practitioners on this from the way he explains it. Browny points for Trump.

[QuickTidal]

No.

He also advises that people WITH the virus should still go to work. They will heal "by sitting around" he claims.

Just fucking no.

He also wondered out loud to health workers if the flu vaccine would help...this guy is a fuckton of morons rolled into one slimey dipshit.

[Cause]

With trump at the helm you just have to hope something more serious doesn’t happen. A terrorist crisis, a war, a bigger natural disaster he can’t seem to manage any of it, has lost the trust of more than half Americans

[QuickTidal]

Cause, on 05 March 2020 - 04:16 PM, said:

With trump at the helm you just have to hope something more serious doesn’t happen. A terrorist crisis, a war, a bigger natural disaster he can’t seem to manage any of it, has lost the trust of more than half Americans

Worse, he ignores those that DO know about this stuff because he thinks he knows better.

[Tiste Simeon]

And I just read an article whereby a person has pulled a knife on another person in order to try and get toilet roll in a panic buy situation. Idiots.

[Mezla PigDog]

What is it with the toilet roll. Stab someone for food, sure. But toilet roll? Maybe I should check my privilege since I'm sitting on a baby wipe goldmine but this seems silly.

[Cause]

Mezla PigDog, on 05 March 2020 - 10:32 PM, said:

What is it with the toilet roll. Stab someone for food, sure. But toilet roll? Maybe I should check my privilege since I'm sitting on a baby wipe goldmine but this seems silly.

You shall rule the wasteland justly I am sure!

All hail Queen Mezla, of the baby wipe horde!

[Malankazooie]

There's something in our DNA about having a roll of toilet paper available and the anxiety caused thinking about not having one. I remember when my dad loaded up the car to drive my older brother to university. The first priority and first thing my dade made sure was packed was a package of toilet paper. He was not going to have my brother enter the freshmen dorm having to locate some when he had to drop the browns off at the super bowl.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Maybe this will help bidets to get a foothold in the US. #spraymybutt

[Aptorian]

I don't think that hashtag would be used the way you think it would.

[Cause]

I miss Japanese toilets!

Also the run on hand sanitizer has been crazy. I’m sad, I like to use some before I eat and after I ride the subway.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Cause, on 06 March 2020 - 05:24 AM, said:

I miss Japanese toilets!

Also the run on hand sanitizer has been crazy. I'm sad, I like to use some before I eat and after I ride the subway.

Regular soap + water kills the virus easily. And using hand sanitizer too frequently and/or not washing it off can crack your skin and potentially let the virus in.

But I had been using a lot of hand sanitizer. The outbreak's actually gotten me to switch to soap more.

Agree about bidets. Provided it doesn't get in the water... though I'd suppose that bottled water, or mineral water... with a blow-dryer....

Some interesting articles:

'The Coronavirus Is More Than Just a Health Crisis

National leaders are leaning on experts to help deal with the outbreak, but the really difficult decisions are not medical. They are political.'

[trigger warning: quotes Kissinger repeatedly]

https://www.theatlan...britain/607456/

'China's cases of Covid-19 are finally declining. A WHO expert explains why.

"It's all about speed": the most important lessons from China's Covid-19 response.'

https://www.vox.com/...B8hHasiGR6HpBug

'A Warning From a Scientist Who Saw the Coronavirus Coming

"It's our everyday way of going about business on the planet that seems to be driving this."'

https://slate.com/te...prevention.html

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 06 March 2020 - 05:44 AM

[Malankazooie]

Misinformation going around that you can use vodka as a replacement for hand sanitizer. Screw that! I'm not going to sacrifice my evening wind down - club soda, vodka and lime - so I can DIY hand sanitizer. Good old workman's bar of Lava soap, hot running tap water from sink in utility room, and vigorous hand washing for me.