Metaneos

I am returned. I suffered through a months long depression after the passing of a relative from Covid-19. My mood is lifting somewhat, and sparks of life return although in time to witness the nation of America fall into the madness of "herd immunity". There is no herd immunity for this virus. The more people it infects, the more chances it has at mutations. It is comparable to the common cold in only that regard. Otherwise, it is deadlier and attacks multiple organs other than just the respiratory system leaving behind if not a corpse than probably a disabled survivor. It is not the sort of disease that should be allowed to become endemic but political and business leaders have decided that this is what will be done, and so America (and Canada) have decided on this march into oblivion. At the rate of infection, and the rate of mortality from Omicron, it is likely millions will perish from it in less than a year in America alone. Canada—if it follows the American decision—wou

It's been a while. I've been busy trying to find employment. Found some at last so I can carry on living this meagre existence, living month to month, hoping for some bit of improvement in my financial security. I am filled though with incredible sorrow. Grief and bereavement from the losses my family has suffered during this pandemic. And it just isn't stopping. It goes from one tragedy to the next. And people who should know better are falling into the cesspit of Trumpian lies about vaccines and masks although considering the American media's complicity in promoting lies, there's good reason to doubt anything it promotes now. There is no credibility to what is reported nowadays. But there should still be some credibility left somewhere. Vaccines are just simple things. Well, mRNA vaccines aren't but they're based on the same concept, just delivered earlier into the immune system where vaccines can do some good. They just raise a bit of defences against vir

Global News I remember when Harper did his apology on behalf of Canada for residential schools, it bothered me for a long time. I realized later on it was because it did not acknowledge what happened in the residential schools as criminal. It was a "mistake" rather than anything intentional. In other words, Harper's apology was a non-apology apology: "Sorry you all suffered but Canada was trying to do the right thing." No, acknowledging it as genocide is the right thing to do. What would be steps for Canada in showing its sincerity in this acknowledgement? Reviving the Kelowna Accord? I should think with inflation, what was initially pledged should probably be bumped up to $15 or even $20 billion over a similar time frame. I think originally, it was $10 billion over ten years pledged to on-reserve development. A criminal investigation committee with prosecutorial, subpoena, and sentencing power is another thing. These were actual crimes of genocide. The broadcas

Medicare for all, a contentious issue in the United State of America. There are some who'd have the whole system replaced wholesale, and some fewer who'd leave it in place as is forevermore. The former though are seemingly powerless against the votes of the latter, as proven by Sanders' loss to Biden in the Democratic Party primary, as both embodied the systems they wanted to bring about or leave alone. One is now president, and the other relegated to near obscurity in the Senate, destined to serve out the remainder of his term neutered and forgotten. Sanders was the Medicare for All advocate in the Democratic Party's primary, and on this issue he very nearly won. However, against the power and money of the current leadership of the party, he faltered midway, and so the battle for victory for medicare for all was delayed yet again. Perhaps as Ted Kennedy before him, he may likely pass on from this life without ever having fulfilled his lifelong goal of bringing to Amer

I read an article commenting on demographics. The decline of fertility rates in Western nations. I think of myself, of course; I always wanted a family but could never bare to think of entering into a relationship without financial stability. To find a perfect woman, and just live a nice life, and have some kids. But, I have never in my life felt financially secure; I have always felt anxious about what I would be doing in a week or a month or a year from now. I have never wanted to enter into a relationship feeling I would be dependent on my partner, and now that I have a university degree, in turn I would not enter into an unequal relationship. But it took me twenty-two years of my adulthood to get to this point. My best years for starting a family are behind me. Anyway, that's all anecdotal in regards to the following consideration: the decline of Western fertility rates seems to have more to do with financial security than anything else. The luxury of having children seems a go

Yesterday, I was given a list of side-effects from getting my first vaccine shot. However, not listed was one of blistering rage. For near a full year, I'd been undergoing a series of emotions which all joined together into one formless, unidentifiable mess of a blob. I was numb and useless. Recently though, the emotions have begun to separate and I can identify them one by one: great sorrow, and ceaseless anger. And they originate from the same place: the inability of our political and business leaders to confront this crisis in a timely manner that would have saved millions upon millions of lives. Had countries shut down flights from China in a timely manner, the spread of the virus could have been stopped there as the Chinese managed to defeat it utterly. Had our countries, the USA, Canada, the EU, et al, simply shut down for six weeks when the virus was discovered locally, then its spread could have been stopped utterly. However, what we got were halfhearted and token efforts.

Lessons learned — and forgotten — from the horrific epidemics of the U.S. Civil War  Johnathon S. Jones—Stat News   If there's only one thing to take away from this article, it's "the rigid enforcement of public health measures saves lives". There has been too much selfishness in peoples' behaviour, the belief that since the fatality rate is so low then everything will be fine, never taking into account the transmission rate of the virus, and that 1% accumulates, and with a high transmission rate, it accumulates very, very quickly. With a high transmission rate, the mutation or adaptability of the virus grows with every new infection, and every new infection leads into a situation where previous methods of combating the virus also need to adapt. However, with the half-hearted measures undertaken by neo-liberal governments, there has only been the lurching response that has severely under-served the public leading to a stark situation where everything done prior co

  Liberals to release federal budget Monday, with focus on post-COVID-19 economy Jordan Press—CTV News Well, the federal government thinks it's at the point where it can begin thinking about the time to come after Covid-19. Perhaps there's some room for optimism but then again what could be on the horizon may be hidden by the blazing sun. What may be burning is not the sky but instead the landscape. For instance, the news out of India is very concerning. It is as concerning as the news out of China back in November of 2019. The new variant emerging in India needs some serious study; India needs to become a place of concern for travel and trade right now, and flights to and fro should be suspended until more is known. That it is emerging that herd immunity needs only 60% as studies coming out of the UK and Israel is a major relief but if the virus in India is changed enough to avoid current immunization, then any and all efforts right now would be for naught. As things have been