Tag: coronavirus

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CNN Anchor Chris Cuomo Tests Positive For Coronavirus

CNN anchor Chris Cuomo (via Instagram)
CNN Anchor Chris Cuomo has announced he’s tested positive for coronavirus. Via Twitter, Cuomo (brother to New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo) wrote, “I have been exposed to people in recent days who have subsequently tested positive and I have fever, chills and shortness of breath. I just hope I didn’t give it to the kids and Cristina. That would make me feel worse than this illness!” Cuomo adds that he is quarantined in his basement and will continue to do his evening shows from there.

Chris Cuomo (image via Instagram)

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Italy: Violin Twins Go Viral Covering Coldplay’s ‘Viva La Vida’

Here’s a feel-good moment for your Monday afternoon. These talented twins in Sicily have gone viral with their amazing rendition of Coldplay’s ‘Viva La Vida’ during a quarantine lockdown in Italy. Mirko and Valerio, shared the performance on YouTube, along with the caption (translated): “We thought we’d spend a bit of time with you all, from north to south. For us, music is a source of relief, and we hope you guys can use it too.” “‘Viva la Vida’ by Coldplay seemed like the perfect song for this Sunday, full of sunshine and hope.” Watch the viral violin twins’ performance below.

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NYC: Homocon Hosts ‘Corona Potluck’ Party During Health Crisis

(image via NY Post)
Gay conservative Lucian Wintrich, who founded ‘Twinks 4 Trump,’ decided the best way for him to cope with the ongoing coronavirus threat was to host a ‘Corona Potluck’ party at his home in New York City’s East Village. “They can’t diagnose us all,” declared Wintrich’s invitation for the March 14 shindig. “Don’t wash your hands. Bring your favorite dish!” The artwork for the invitation included a little boy covered with spots on his face. Note – at the time the invitation was sent the “can’t diagnose us all” part of the invite was true as there was a shortage of COVID-19 tests available. That’s still the case in some parts of the country. “The majority of folks I invited, if they got it, would recover fairly quickly and build up an immunity to the present form of COVID19,” Wintrich told the New York Post. “It was relatively inspired by the chickenpox parties that were all the rage in the 90s.” In the 1990s “chickenpox parties” were a trend among parents as a way to inoculate their children against the chickenpox virus later in life. The idea was to expose their kids to disease while young so they would develop natural immunity, but the practice fell out of favor once a vaccine was developed. Note – Medical experts haven’t confirmed if people develop an immunity to COVID-19 after recovering from the disease. It’s disconcerting that Wintrich says “the majority” of invited friends would recover quickly. So, he invited people who he felt might NOT recover quickly? Admitting the health threat is “serious to a degree,” Wintrich added, “I wouldn’t hang around folks over the age of 50 and risk infecting the more vulnerable.” It’s important to note that while seniors have been identified as being more ‘at risk’ from serious illness due to coronavirus, younger people are not considered ‘safe’ from infection. A 40-year-old attendee of the Winter Party festival in Miami earlier this month died in less than a week from complications due to coronavirus. After founding ’Twinks 4 Trump,’ Wintrich gained dubious notoriety for being briefly credentialed as a White House reporter for the alt-right blog Gateway Pundit. His boss, openly gay Jim Hoft, admitted he sent Wintrich to ask ridiculous questions and basically annoy the White House press corps.
L-R Jim Hoft, Lucien Wintrich (image via Gateway Pundit)
The Post spoke to two attendees of the party to get their perspective on the contrarian approach to the ongoing health threat. One attendee, who asked to remain anonymous to avoid repercussions from friends and co-workers, referenced World War II as part of his rationale for taking part in the event. “When Britain was being bombed by Nazi Germany during the blitz, they kept the f–king stores open. People went about their lives,” they told the Post. “We get a flu … and we shut everything down. … We have completely handed over our civil liberties … and anyone who wants to go out and live a normal life is semi-ostracized.” Brian Alacorn, 24, said he went to the party because “Lucian is my friend and he texted me.” “I thought I shouldn’t, because of the social distancing – but my friends were already outside and I just kinda went.” The event took place after all Broadway theaters had been shut down and the governor had declared a state of emergency. Just hours after the ‘potluck party’ ended the New York City Health Department issued guidelines telling people “even if you are not sick, stay home as much as you can: work from home, study from home and avoid all unnecessary interactions and events.” At this writing, there have been 790 coronavirus-related deaths in New York City alone. (source: New York Post)

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Trump Extends Shutdown Guidelines Past ‘Aspirational’ Easter Target

Donald Trump announced an extension of his administration’s “15 days to slow the spread” shutdown guidelines for 30 more days as the reality of increasing coronavirus infections and deaths set in. Public health officials and governors had urged him to change course from lifting the shutdown on Easter Sunday. Via Axios:

The president set April 30 as the new deadline for the social distancing guidelines in a Sunday evening briefing from the White House.

Driving the news: With the original 15-day period that was announced March 16 about to end, officials around the country had been bracing for a premature call to return to normalcy from a president who’s been venting lately that the prescription for containing the virus could be worse than the impacts of the virus itself.

“We had an aspiration” of Easter, Trump said, but when he heard the numbers of potential deaths, he realized he couldn’t push a reopening of the economy as soon as he previously had foreshadowed.

Trump explained his turnaround by saying his government’s modeling shows the peak death rate will likely come in two weeks. He said that 2.2 million people could die if the government did nothing and the public didn’t do the social distancing. “Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before the victory is won,” he said.

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Terror Charges For Woman Who ‘Intentionally’ Coughed On $35K Worth Of Groceries

(image via Facebook)
A woman in Pennsylvania entered a Gerrity’s Supermarket on Wednesday afternoon this week and proceeded to intentionally cough on fresh produce, a small section of the bakery, meat case and grocery items, alleges the store’s co-owner Joe Fasula. Writing on the store chain’s Facebook page, Fasula says the woman is known “to be a chronic problem in the community.” “While there is little doubt this woman was doing it as a very twisted prank, we will not take any chances with the health and well-being of our customers,” writes Fasula. “We had no choice but to throw out all of the products she came in contact with. Working closely with the Hanover Township health inspector, we identified every area that she was in, we disposed of the product and thoroughly cleaned and disinfected everything.” Fasula adds, “Although we have not yet quantified the total loss, we estimate the value to be well over $35,000.” “The only silver lining to this travesty is that it gave us the unfortunate opportunity to test our protocols and demonstrate how seriously we take your safety,” said Fasula in closing. “At one point, we had over 15 employees involved in the disposal and clean up.” The Hill is now reporting the woman has been charged for making terrorist threats via her coughing stunt.

Margaret Cirko, 35, allegedly “intentionally contaminated” grocery items by coughing and spitting on them, claiming to be sick while attempting to steal a pack of beer, according to the Hanover Township Police Department.

The incident resulted in the store disposing of $35,000 worth of produce, meat, and other essential items. Cirko was sent to a mental health hospital to be evaluated after her arrest.

Cirko was charged with two felony counts of terroristic threats using a biological agent, one count of criminal mischief, and misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and attempted retail theft.

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Dr. Anthony Fauci Talks Real Facts About COVID-19

So, if you want to ask the questions about coronavirus you really want answers to from a world-renowned infectious disease expert without an orange cheeto grandstanding, here’s your chance. Lilly Singh chats with Dr. Anthony Fauci on many of the misconceptions about the virus and knocks down a lot of myths about the ongoing threat. If you want the Cliff Notes version, basically: • Coronavirus is not the flu – it is 10x more lethal. Don’t believe those folks comparing it to the flu. • Coronavirus has a short amount of “hang time” in the air but is mainly transmitted via droplets sneezed or coughed into the air that land on you immediately. • The virus can live on surfaces for different periods of time, more so on metal and plastic, less so on clothing. Wipe down surfaces in your home with disinfectant. • Fauci says respiratory viruses, in general, survive better in cold, dry weather as opposed to hot, moist weather. Regarding coronavirus, scientists aren’t sure but Fauci has hope the warmer weather may help. • Face masks can help but aren’t a sure thing. Fauci estimates they help to the tune of 50% prevention. • There is no cure. There will be no vaccine for a year to a year and a half. There aren’t any drugs proven to help protect against coronavirus. • More men are being diagnosed than women, but no one knows why. Perhaps men have more underlying conditions than women…? • No evidence that Advil makes the virus worse. • Because of the size of the United States, there’s no way to tell how long before things go back to “normal.” Expect several weeks Watch Fauci and Singh chat below in more detail.

(h/t Boy Culture)

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Miami Winter Party Attendee Dies Due To COVID-19

Israel Carreras (image via Facebook)
From WSVN in Miami:

Miami-Dade County has reported its first two coronavirus-related deaths, and one of them has been identified as a 40-year-old man with no prior health issues or complications, according to family members.

Israel Carreras was identified as the first death in Miami-Dade, Friday. Later that evening, a 79-year-old man was reported as the county’s second death.

Carreras succumbed to the virus after his friends said he contracted it during the Winter Party Festival in Miami, where several other cases of the virus had appeared.

Carreras’s partner, Franco Conquista, told WSVN he stayed with Carreras at his home, taking care of him for two days, as he also had been infected. Conquista says Carreras eventually found it difficult to breathe so he went to the hospital. But after four or five days the doctors put him in an induced coma because he was really agitated. The sleep state keeps patients who might be anxious about breathing from removing a respirator out of panic. Carreras never regained consciousness. The 40-year-old Cuban native had lived in South Florida for several years, and friends described him as a hard worker who often clocked in around 14 hours per day at a warehouse. He also drove as an Uber driver in order to save money to send to his family in Cuba each month. As Conquista is still self-isolating himself, he wants people to know “this is serious.” “They need to stay at home,” he told the news station. “It doesn’t just kill old people. This poor boy had only 40 years old. It can kill anybody, so just stay home and think of other people. Try to save other people’s lives. Just because you are not affected directly doesn’t mean that people are not suffering from this.”

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Trump Wants His Signature On Stimulus Checks As If He’s Giving Americans Money

Donald Trump (photo: public domain)
The Wall Street Journal reports Donald Trump would like to see his signature on the stimulus checks that will be sent out after he signed a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package into law Friday, according to an administration official. Normally such checks would be signed by a disbursing officer, not the president. Trump always wants “credit” for everything that happens in the country, and a check bearing his signature could appear to some as if the Donald is giving Americans these funds when actually the American people are writing the checks.

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News Round-Up: March 27, 2020

Ryan Worley (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Chippendales’ Ryan Worley (above) has the right idea for a Friday night. Man, this week kinda kicked my butt… How are you folks doing? Thinking best thoughts everyone’s way. • Fox News: Former Vice President Joe Biden bests President Donald Trump by nine points in a 2020 ballot test, in the first Fox News Poll since Biden became the de facto Democratic nominee. Notably, Biden has an eight-point edge in battleground states (48-40 percent). However, Biden’s advantage grows to 25 points, 57-32 percent, in close counties (where Hillary Clinton and Trump were within 10 points in 2016). • NewNowNext: Click over to read a deep dive into the many husbands of “Joe Exotic,” one of the stars of the bizarre docu-series Tiger King. I watched the first two episodes last night after seeing everyone talk about it. It’s quite the odd assortment of big cat ‘private zoo’ characters. • Out Music: Bounce into the weekend with this new cut from Bright Light Bright Light – “This Was My House,” a sugar-rush of dancefloor pop featuring Madonna’s longtime backing vocalist duo Niki Haris and Donna De Lory. “The song is about how the safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community have been fractured of late with a palpable uprising of anti-LGBTQ+ and xenophobic rhetoric, which is scarily even more real now as these public spaces are closed for the foreseeable future due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the artist.

• NY Daily News: New Yorkers should be prepared for the city to remain in “pause” due to coronavirus through May even as President Trump gives Americans “false hope” the country will reopen by Easter next month, Mayor de Blasio said Friday. “We have to be ready for that and I think it’s going to spread in the country,” de Blasio said when asked if the city would be closed through May. “This idea of Easter is, unfortunately, a false hope. It would be better for the president to be blunt with people that we’ve got a really tough battle ahead.” • KIT212: Kenneth rounds up the best of local gay rags in the U.S. and around the world including DNA Magazine featuring Nordic hottie Patrik Isoaho (below).

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Asked If Everyone Who Needs Ventilator Will Get One, Trump Snaps ‘Don’t Be A Cutie Pie’

Donald Trump (screen capture)
A reporter at a press conference asks a question hoping to get a direct question. But that doesn’t happen with Donald Trump. At today’s White House press briefing ABC News’ Jonathan Karl asked Trump, “Are you able to guarantee, to assure these states, these hospitals, that everybody who needs a ventilator will get a ventilator?” “Here’s what I’ll tell you – I think we’re in really good shape,” replied Trump. “This is a pandemic the likes of which nobody’s seen before. I think we’re in great shape. Ventilators are a big deal. We’ve distributed vast numbers of ventilators, and we’re prepared to do vast numbers. I think we’re in great shape. I hope that’s the case. I hope we’re going to have leftovers so we can help other people, other countries.” You’ll note the Trumpster didn’t answer the question. Still looking for an answer, Karl repeated, “Will everyone who needs one be able to get a ventilator?” “Look, don’t be a cutie pie, ok?” snapped Trump. “Nobody’s ever done what we’ve done. Nobody’s done anything like we’ve been able to do. And everything I took over was a mess. It was a broken country in so many ways, in so many ways other than this. We had a bad testing system, we had a bad stockpile system, we had nothing in the stockpile system. So I wouldn’t tell me what you’re — you know, like, being a wise guy.” Still no answer as to if everyone who needs a ventilator will get one. Just a word salad. Watch the exchange below.

After being critical of some states’ governors, Trump was asked what more he wanted the governors to do? Trump answered, “I want them to be appreciative. I don’t want them to say things that aren’t true. I want them to be appreciative.” He added later, “You know what I say? If they don’t treat you right, I don’t call.” So, for Americans to get help from the federal government, Trump needs his butt kissed. Got it.