Tag: Coronavirus

UPDATED! Pandemic Diary, May 22nd, 2021: Cruel Summer

Photo by Martin Sanchez on Unsplash

Today is officially Day 433 since I began working in self-isolation from home for my university library system. The Victoria Day long weekend marks the beginning of summer up here in Winnipeg, but I am not in a summery mood at all.

Both Winnipeg’s mayor, Brian Bowman, and Manitoba’s premier, Brian Pallister, have called upon the Canadian federal government to send healthcare workers and contact tracers to cope with the worst situation we have been in since the pandemic started (even worse, they are squabbling with each other). This past week, Manitoba has broken records for both the number of those infected with COVID-19 and for those who are in intensive care in hospital. In fact, the circumstances are now so bad that we have begun to ship patients next door to cities in northwestern Ontario and even as far afield as Ottawa (and they are still having troubles of their own in Ontario). Things are pretty fucked up here right now.

The entire province is essentially on lockdown, and I am in a black, despairing mood, stuck in my apartment. The province even sent out an emergency warning to everybody’s cellphones last night (usually only used for child abductions), to sternly warn people to stay home and only go out for essentials. (I would have normally saved it and pasted it into this blogpost for posterity, but why bother?)

I have gone 15 months without a hug, or being in close proximity to anybody but a doctor. I cannot get a straight answer from anyone as to when I can get my second shot of COVID-19 vaccine, or even what brand I will get (my first shot was Oxford/AstraZeneca, but I could receive Moderna or Pfizer for my second shot, or maybe not?). I am losing my psychiatrist, and it is unlikely that I will be able to find a new one who can take me on as a patient. I am angry and tired and just plain FED. UP.

So forgive me if I use this blog, normally about social VR, to vent. This is turning into a cruel summer. I leave you with the following tweet, with which I agree wholeheartedly:

I only want to see one more [Brian] Pallister press conference. At it he will:

1. Ask for forgiveness from Manitobans for the incompetent performance of his government, resulting in far too many avoidable COVID-19 deaths;

2. resign;

3. instruct his successor not to repeat his mistakes.

UPDATE May 23rd, 2021: Today CBC News reported:

When Premier Brian Pallister says Manitobans are living through the darkest days of the pandemic, there are plenty of measures to back that up.

For starters, there are more COVID-19 infections in this province than ever before. On Saturday, the seven-day average daily case count rose to 482, a new pandemic record.

That works out to a daily infection rate of 34.3 new COVID cases each day for every 100,000 people, the highest infection rate among Canadian provinces and U.S. states. Alberta is a distant second, with 20.6.

New infections today lead to more hospitalizations down the road. During this third wave of the pandemic, a greater proportion of COVID hospital patients require intensive care.

The number of COVID-19 patients in Manitoba ICUs hit a record 80 earlier this week and is technically higher now. There were 74 COVID-19 patients in Manitoba ICUs on Saturday and seven more Manitoba patients in Ontario hospitals, some now located as far away as Ottawa.

In living memory, Manitoba has never had to ship ICU patients out of province simply to relieve the pressure on hospitals that are now struggling to deliver basic care. Hence Pallister’s request on Friday for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to send Manitoba nurses and respiratory therapists.

As well, Winnipeg’s five-day test positivity rate reached a new pandemic record of 16.8 per cent Saturday.

In its analysis, the CBC lays the blame for this situation firmly at Brian Pallister’s feet:

Sadly, Manitoba can not vaccinate its way out of an immediate hospital crisis. The time for long-term solutions ended in early April, when COVID-19 cases in this province began an exponential rise.

When the top priority in this province would appear to be staunching the spread of COVID-19 in Winnipeg, the epicentre of the pandemic, non-essential businesses remain open, office workplaces are not compelled to allow their employees to work from home and manufacturers are not taking a break to give the alleged circuit breaker more teeth.

Only the province could order such measures, which were implemented in part during an April 2020 first wave that turned to be a ripple in Manitoba.

Instead, the province has opted against the most effective measures at its disposal during its greatest time of need.

…Manitoba’s premier is throwing shade at a U.S. president — and asking the Canadian prime minister for help — while this province declines to do everything it could to combat a third wave that’s been gaining momentum for eight weeks.

There were many voices calling for a short, sharp lockdown weeks ago, calls which Brian Pallister and his ministers ignored. And yet he has the gall to suggest that it is Manitobans themselves who are to blame. Countless Manitobans have become sick, and some have died, due to Brian Pallister’s ineptitude.

I am absolutely incandescent with anger this weekend, walled within my apartment to protect my health and safety as one in six Manitobans tests positive for COVID-19. The next few weeks are going to be ugly, and much of it could have been avoided if we had had a truly effective, proactive, competent provincial government.

And I vow that, if I should survive this pandemic unscathed, I will do everything in my power to ensure that the opposition wins the next Manitoba election. Enough is enough.

Pandemic Diary, May 10th, 2021: We’re Number Three (But We’re Not Winning the Bronze Medal)

I am sitting here at my computer, on Day 421 since I began working from my apartment in self-isolation for my university library system, and I am totally and completely pissed off at my government.

Things are not going well here in Manitoba. In fact, Manitoba is now third highest out of all Canadian provinces and U.S. states when comparing COVID-19 cases per capita:

Manitoba is now 3rd worst (source: CTV News)

On Mother’s day the government announced that all K-12 schools in Winnipeg and Brandon will close on Wednesday, and switch to online remote learning. Frankly, there’s not too much more that can be shut down at this point, except for non-essential retail stores (and I expect that will come soon, too). We are in, for all intents and purposes, a third pandemic lockdown on the cusp of summer. At this point, I am only leaving my apartment to pick up my groceries which I ordered through the Walmart website, to get my winter tires switched to summer tires at my local car dealership, and to see my doctor about my diabetes.

Premier Brian Pallister and his government say that they are being “proactive”, but that’s not true at all. They ignored the advice of doctors and scientific experts, who warned that this would be coming. If they had bothered to be proactive, they would have pushed harder to get more Manitobans vaccinated sooner. If they had bothered to be proactive, they would have had a short, sharp, full shutdown earlier, instead of this plodding, piecemeal approach.

Now, we are all going to have to go through a longer, more painful lockdown to avoid overloading our already-stretched-to-the-breaking-point healthcare system. So yes, I am pissed off. All of this could have been avoided with the proper leadership. I hope Manitobans remember this massive clusterfuck when it’s time to go to the polls in the next provincial election. Brian Pallister and his team deserve to have their asses handed to them on a platter.

Pandemic Diary, May 1st, 2021: Yearning for a Crystal Ball

The view of the woods behind my apartment

Today is officially Day 412 since I began working from home in self-isolation for my university library system, since my world was upended. I’m sitting on my patio in my apartment, looking at the newly-budding trees in the woods behind me, and it feels as if Spring has finally arrived here in Winnipeg. I hear the birds chirping, and smell that one of my neighbors is barbecuing.

While I am enjoying the sunshine, maskless, a neighbour barrels around the corner of my building, also maskless, taking a shortcut around the building to find me sitting here. She briefly passes within six feet of me on her way to the garbage dumpster. Shit. It just goes to show how you can never be too careful. (My neighbor gives me a wide berth by following the sidewalk on her return trip. I would wave, but she resolutely refuses to make eye contact.)

My neighbourhood was recently added to the list of provincial COVID-19 hot spots, and therefore anyone over 17 who lives or works in the neighborhood can now go get vaccinated. I got my first shot (Oxford/AstraZeneca) on March 18th, and I am due to get my second shot in July. I take some comfort from the fact that even just the first shot will be enough to protect me from serious illness or death (at least, according to the scientific research published about the current variants of the coronavirus), but I still worry whenever there’s a slip up, such as my neighborhood getting within 2 meters, as brief as it was. I still worry. I find it hard to shut off the worry sometimes.

Last night I text chatted with my brother in Alberta, two provinces to the west, which had recently reported a worrying increase in cases (in fact, they now have the highest per-capita rate of positive COVID cases by far). I was greatly relieved to hear that both he and my sister-in-law, who are in their fifties, received their first COVID-19 vaccinations yesterday at a local pharmacy.

I find that often lately, I am anxious and distracted, having to force myself time and again to quit doomscrolling on social media and the news media, go sit outside, and relax. I listen in on countless Clubhouse rooms about the catastrophe currently happening in India, and I feel so helpless. I read about anti-mask rallies in cities all across Canada, and I get enraged.

This pandemic is taking an emotional toll on me, at a time when I should be feeling more optimistic about the summer to come. I pray that we will not see anything like the crisis and chaos erupting in south-east Asia. I hope that the increasing pace of vaccination will protect us all, and that our lives can return to normal.

Oh, what I would give for a crystal ball, to be able to see the future!

Photo by Arthur Ogleznev on Unsplash

UPDATED! Pandemic Diary, April 26th, 2021: You Can’t Fix Stupid

Hundreds of mostly-maskless, non-socially-distanced Manitobans crowded the grounds at The Forks in Winnipeg on Sunday, April 25th, 2021, in protest of COVID-19 restrictions (Source: Global News)

Today is official Day 376 since I first began working from my home for my university library system on March 16th, 2020. Today, and every Monday (at least until the government announces a third lockdown which I feel is inevitable), I am working in my office, weeding the reference collection of the agriculture library, which remains closed to faculty, staff, and students until further notice. I am making slow but steady progress in determining what to keep in reference, what to move to the circulating collection, what to upgrade to a full-text electronic version, and what to throw away.

Yesterday, hundreds of Manitobans gathered to protest the current COVID-19 restrictions at the Forks in Winnipeg, next to the Canadian Museum of Human Rights. Global News reported:

Hundreds of Manitobans gathered around The Forks on Sunday, rallying against COVID-19 restrictions.

Most protesters could be seen without masks and not social distancing while dozens of signs were posted in the ground surrounding a podium for speakers.

…

Clare MacKay, vice president of strategic initiatives and executive director of The Forks Foundation, told Global News on Friday the group was not granted access to the space.

“We have not been asked for, nor would we be in a position to grant, permission for this group to be on site,” MacKay said.

The Forks closed its doors Sunday afternoon due to safety concerns surrounding the rally.

You can’t fix stupid, people. And this pandemic has certainly shown us all just how many stupid people there are here. I have zero sympathy for these idiots, who are putting themselves and their contacts at risk. Here’s video of the event:

These protesters will soon have even more to complain about. This afternoon, the Manitoba government announced a new series of public health orders. The new restrictions, starting April 28th, 2021, and in effect for at least the next four weeks, include the following:

  • Zero visitors to private residences, either indoors or outdoors (except for one designated visitor for those people who live alone);
  • Indoor gatherings are prohibited, and outdoor gatherings are limited to a maximum of 10 people in public spaces;
  • Outdoor restaurant patio dining is restricted to a maximum of 4 people;
  • Food courts in shopping malls must close;
  • Retail stores will be restricted to 25% capacity or 250 people, whichever is lower. Shopping malls will be restricted to 25% capacity (although how they are going to enforce this part in malls with multiple entrances is beyond me);
  • Church, synagogue, and mosque services will be limited to 25% capacity or 10 people, whichever is lower, and mask-wearing is required;
  • Gyms and fitness centres will be limited to 25% capacity, and all gym users must stay at least 3 metres (9 feet) away from each other.

I’m very glad I visited my mother and stepfather on Sunday, and brought some home-baked cookies as an early Mother’s Day gift; it looks like we will not be getting together for Mother’s Day this year.

In my opinion, the incremental approach of the Manitoba government is simply not good enough at this stage of the pandemic. The majority of new cases are coronavirus variants of concern, most of which have been shown to be more easily transmissible, and some of which make younger people sicker. Lacking any domestic vaccine production, we are still far, far behind the U.S. and other countries in our vaccination program. Under the circumstances, I feel strongly that non-essential retail stores, churches and gyms should be closed completely, as they were last November during our second wave, in order to bring the number of new cases and deaths down to as low a level as possible (the so-called “zero COVID” approach taken by the three Northern territories and the Atlantic provinces here in Canada, and in countries such as Australia and New Zealand).

The government says that they are trying to avoid a full shutdown, but I predict that they are going to be forced to implement one anyways, as cases and deaths increase. They are promising to crack down hard on people who are flouting public health orders, but they’ve been saying that all along, with little evidence of success. For example, the premier stated that some of the people who attended Sunday’s rally were issued tickets, but he had no specifics (you’d think he would have gotten that information before the press conference today).

There just seems to be a whole lot of stupid going around, both in a government that is too timid to take the necessary bold steps to halt transmission in its tracks, and in a populace who are getting lazy, rebellious, and non-compliant after more than a year of restrictions.

Under the circumstances, the best that you can do is to take care of yourself, STAY HOME as much as possible, and listen to the doctors and the scientists.

Stay home, people! (graphic from the City of Vancouver)

UPDATE April 28th, 2021: Chris Sky, who spoke at the Winnipeg anti-mask rally on Sunday, was arrested after speaking at a similar rally in Thunder Bay, Ontario. And apparently, only two people were fined as a result of the Winnipeg rally (the tickets come with a $1,296 fine).