🐝🌸

#COVIDisAirborne #WearAMask

what are we here for if not to help each other

[Becca Peter @DefectiveBecca]

After Brad made this tweet, the EPA changed how they report data and took several air quality stations offline from the summary data due to quality issues with the data.

https://t.co/h5qGwfIXPM

[Yams Charania @BostonJerry]

REMINDER: Ticketmaster/LiveNation require touring artists to sign NDAs that prohibit them from mentioning COVID as a reason for cancelling shows.

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@veganandangry these masks are my favorite! has nose wire and is latex free. I usually get black but they do have various color options! https://t.co/7lLt1Ejin9

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@salvagingyouth yes omg !! 🥺

[ᴘᴏᴛᴀᴛᴜᴍ @pot8um]

Divine (Harris Milstead) was only 42 at the time of his death. He passed in his sleep of a heart attack.

While Chappell Roan’s homage is beautiful and noteworthy, I’d be remiss not to remind everyone of the rest of this important conversation you’re not ready for.

Artists are hosting superspreaders during a pandemic.

SARSCOV2 is an airborne neurovascular disease that affects every organ system. It wreaks havoc of all volumes. In addition to hundreds of fucked-up symptoms, it’s also been dropping people dead in the middle of the day, killing people in their sleep, etc, for nearly half a decade now. And it’s all preventable. WE JUST DON’T FEEL LIKE PREVENTING IT.

So in the spirit of true solidarity for the queer community, the disabled community, and humanity as a whole, PLEASE PROTECT YOURSELVES & EACH OTHER. Wear a mask in public spaces. When worn correctly, masks are long proven to reduce transmission. It’s the simplest act of solidarity. And if you have access to masks but choose not to wear them in public, you are causing harm by contributing to the spread of a preventable virus.

The pandemic didn’t end because people stopped talking about it. They wanted us back to work as quickly as possible and it worked. This shitshow is ongoing with no end in sight. Not only are our leaders failing us, but we’re also failing each other.

Make Pride events & public life accessible for disabled & high-risk people. High-risk folks aren’t the only ones at risk, though. You are too. And if you’re doing nothing to protect your health, it’s only a matter of time before your card is pulled.

What’s it gonna take to start caring?

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@healingfromlc am in the midst of my third hospital stay in the last 2 months. been wearing headstrap kn95 and n95s every time for the whole time, with air purifier blasting at my face. It’s probably the safest part 🙃

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@The_Ragnarok0 Geoff said on the most recent episode of FFace that they have to give the mask to WB :/

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@1goodtern been masked and paying attention since the beginning. will be til the end ❣️ I appreciate your feed and everyone else of shared awareness and action

[Dr. Lucky Tran @luckytran]

It isn't a coincidence that more protestors are wearing high quality KN95 or N95 masks these days. For years COVID safe advocates and mask blocs, who are connected to diverse organizing groups, have worked hard to educate allies and provide communities with free respirator masks.

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@a_lil_bow happy birthday 🎉 glad to see others giving themselves the best present, protection from unnecessary illness ❣️ stay safe out there

[Harriet Carroll: Long Covid Scientific Consultancy @angryhacademic]

I dont think #POTS experts realise how all-consuming the first line treatments can be:

🚰Drink loads of water...that you can't retain because part of POTS is water-retaining endocrine dysfunction (and going to toilet every 30 minutes with orthostatic intolerance is a breeze 🙄)

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@markdixontweets did a double take when I read squirrel hill!! thank you for existing, neighbor. 😷❣️

[Dr. Deepti Gurdasani @dgurdasani1]

.@torontolibrary has apparently removed Refaat's poem under pressure from zionists. Refaat was a poet who wrote about his own death - before the IDF murdered him. He'd want this poem to be shared to keep his hopes, and his spirit alive. Please share.

[Danielle Langlois @DanielleLangWa]

TOTALLY UNOFFICIAL INFO ON #H5N1 (compiled because previous threads have old/incomplete info. If you've read all the other threads, very little of this is new except 1a, 2b, 2c.)

1. H5N1 currently has a 50% KILL RATE IN HUMANS.
There have only been about 1000 cases (of this specific subtype of Avian Flu) globally. Technically speaking, this is still a “low risk” situation for a lot of us. But we DO need to know about it, because the possibility exists that this situation could quickly go from being low-risk to HOLY CRAP THIS IS 500x MORE LETHAL THAN COVID. All that’s required is for the virus to get into a person and mutate into something which can spread human to human. We really don’t want the virus to gain the ability to do so. We want the humans to live.

We also want the ANIMALS to be healthy:

a) In addition to killing tons of chickens, H5N1 is lethal to CATS. (This could become an issue for people's pets, especially if they venture outdoors, or if someone tracks the virus back into the home on their paws or shoes.)

b) H5N1 isn't always killing the cows, which creates a concern about the milk, because it took at least one dairy farm a while to notice. Infected milk could be getting into our food supply. (Ugh, I know. But that’s what happens when companies self-police, and only test for viruses once the animals appear to be sick.)

c) Those crazy WILD BIRDS poop wherever they want. Some of them are sick (but not too sick to travel) and they are helping spread this virus by dropping infected poop onto our backyards and farms.

2) ANIMAL PEOPLE ARE THE BEST.

a) Got Chickens? It is more important than ever that you wear an N95 mask, goggles, and gloves when dealing with birds, bird litter, etc. (I’m assuming that you know this, and just ignore it. But if this is new info, definitely look this stuff up.)

b) Stay away from DEAD/SICK BIRDS. They’re probably going to start showing up in the park, or on your hike. It’s already happening. Call Animal Control, and definitely don’t let your cat eat it. Don’t rescue sick birds, either. (I know, so cute, but: science)

c) If your BIRD / CAT / GOAT / PIG or other animal GETS SICK, it might be H5N1. Use precautions to protect yourself -- especially with the pig, since they’re usually the best gateway for these virus mutations to jump to people.

3) COOK YOUR FOOD ALL THE DAMN WAY (but yes, I know, I'm not the boss of you. These are emphatic suggestions because the situation calls for it.)

a) NO PINK MEAT. NO RUNNY EGGS. NO RAW MILK. Since farms self-monitor (and hey, no one is perfect) it is possible that some infected animal products, including chicken, beef and eggs, could make it into the commercial food supply, especially since there’s a lag between time of infection, noticeable symptoms, and death.

b) Scientists and doctors on Twitter are saying things like "as long as you cook your food, you should be fine." But the problem is that they're not explicitly saying "cook it longer than you ordinarily do," despite the fact that the majority of Americans don't fully cook their beef, and many Americans don't fully cook their eggs. That’s a huge disconnect that needs more attention.

c) Tons of people are pushing hard against the "cook your food" thing. This is risky (but predictable) behavior:

- The Raw Milk folks have been tempting fate for years.
(Because: Conspiracy!)

- Bodybuilders love to slonk raw eggs.
(Because: Slimy = Manly?)

- 76% of Americans prefer steak partially cooked.
(Because: Flavor!)

4) PASTEURIZATION: Yikes. Are you ready for this? This is the one that really messes with my anxiety. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of well-intended misinformation about pasteurization out there. It is coming from people who should know better, including professionals quoted in the (cough cough) New York Times. People insist that pasteurization always kills the virus, despite having no data to prove that this is true in every food product where it might be found. In fact, some of them on Twitter have even cited a study which has shown that it’s not true. (This study claims H5N1 is temperature stable --that's bad-- in dried egg whites.)

4a) According to a very well respected virologist, there's a lot that we don't know yet about pasteurization’s efficacy killing H5N1 in milk, because this is the first time this virus has infected cows. New kinds of studies are needed. (Presumably, scientists are working on it right now.)

4b) Some scientists suspect that ultra-pasteurized products might be safer than pasteurized ones, but until we have more data on H5N1, we won’t know this definitively.

4c) The FDA has acknowledged (since 2010) that some infected eggs and chickens could make it into the food supply. (5 and 3 day windows, respectively.) The people who run these operations do watch for illness, but modern farm operations are huge, so they may not notice an illness until an animal dies.

5) If you have symptoms of H5N1 (respiratory virus + flu symptoms + conjunctivitis/eye issues) and have been in contact with a potentially sick animal, call your doctor. They have simple treatments they can use, and the sooner you get them, the better!

****

Disclaimers:

I am not an expert.

I have not stated that anything is definitively safe. We don't know what we don't know.

I'm not trying to scare you, nor am I intending to infringe on your liberty or beliefs. You do you, darlin'.

These types of situations tend to be fluid, and the knowledge base evolves over time. What seems certain at week three may be considered dead wrong by month twelve. (Remember when the CDC said Covid wasn't airborne?) We do our best with what we have, and work together because we are all on Team Humanity.

I encourage you to remain calm but stay focused on this issue. Personally, I plan to exercise caution because 50% sounds like terrible odds. I hope that you will do the same, because your life matters.

If you want me to cite sources, feel free to DM or ask below.

****

Big hugs, folks. Don't stress.
Knowledge is power!
Let's be smart about this. ❤️

[James Throt MBBS, MD, PhD, FRCPath @JamesThrot]

Millions of tweets like this and still so many not grasping the reason why this may be occurring. It’s a global issue.

How many times can I keep shouting the same thing and it not sink in?

COVID CAUSES DAMAGE TO THE FRONTAL AND TEMPORAL LOBES.

THIS CAN CAUSE SOCIOPATHY.

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@mothman_vevo yes bc I do sometimes

[Hiroshi Yasuda (保田浩志) @Yash25571056]

WHO released an updated laboratory biosafety guidance related to COVID-19.
In this interim guidance, SARS-CoV-2 is classified as a Biosafety Level 2 (BSL-2) agent.
Moderate-risk agents such as HIV and Salmonella, are assigned to this level.
This implies that modern people are no longer concerned about living in BSL-2 laboratory environments.

'Laboratory biosafety guidance related to SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19): Interim guidance, 11 March 2024'
https://t.co/PrgZnPnUNC

[Amanda Abbott @quackduck314]

If you're looking for a P100, or other elastomeric respirator, or to change from an N95 mask, have I got a thing for you!

I like data, and masks, so this was an obvious thing for me to make. I've collected 60+ and measured them. Find one that fits you!

https://t.co/UnTwIFMkmX

[🐝🌸 @Beckawww]

@the_indoorkid obviously heartbroken and hoping for the best for everyone, but you are the stand out. you are undoubtedly so talented and have so much to offer. I’ve been absolutely loving it’s a choice and other rtp adjacent stuff you’ve been doing. keep it up and take care ❣️