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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsNYT: Why Telling People They Don't Need Masks Backfired
To help manage the shortage, the authorities sent a message that made them untrustworthy.
By Zeynep Tufekci
Dr. Tufekci is a professor of information science who specializes in the social effects of technology.
March 17, 2020
<snip>
Given that there is indeed a mask shortage and that medical workers absolutely do need these masks more, what should the authorities have said? The full painful truth. Despite warnings from experts for decades, especially after the near miss of SARS, we still werent prepared for this pandemic, and we did not ramp up domestic production when we could, and now theres a mask shortage and thats disastrous because our front line health care workers deserve the best protection. Besides, if they fall ill, we will all be doomed.
If anything, a call for people who hoarded masks to donate some of them to their local medical workers would probably work better than telling people that they dont need them or that they wont manage to make them work. Look, more masks would be great. We are doing our best to ramp up production. Till then, if our medical workers fall ill, we will all be worse off. Please donate any excess maybe more than two weeks worth per person to your hospital sounds corny, but its the truth. Two weeks is a reasonable standard because the C.D.C. and the W.H.O. still recommend wearing masks if youre taking care of someone with a milder illness self-isolating at home, something that will increasingly be necessary as hospitals get overwhelmed.
Research shows that during disasters, people can show strikingly altruistic behavior, but interventions by authorities can backfire if they fuel mistrust or treat the public as an adversary rather than people who will step up if treated with respect. Given that even homemade masks may work better than no masks, wearing them might be something to direct people to do while they stay at home more, as we all should.
We will no doubt face many challenges as the pandemic moves through our societies, and people will need to cooperate. The sooner we create the conditions under which such cooperation can bloom, the better off we all will be.
</snip>
It didn't matter. Hoarders and gougers still emptied shelves at Home Depot, Walmart, medical supply stores. Or they flat-out stole them from hospitals.
dewsgirl
(14,961 posts)only help if you yourself are sick. Other countries weren't putting out such nonsense.SMH
Dennis Donovan
(18,770 posts)dewsgirl
(14,961 posts)Cousin Dupree
(1,866 posts)abuse on some other websites for telling the truth. Its unconscionable that the public was told masks wont help at all. The truth was covered up in the interests of trying to avoid a scarcity. I am beyond disgusted.
dewsgirl
(14,961 posts)the flu, and only the elderly get it bad, I knew better. I've been watching as it methodically spread across country after country, like some demented Pac Man. The way people were acting here in the US, was like no way would the virus dare step foot on American soil, some still are.
SammyWinstonJack
(44,129 posts)Cousin Dupree
(1,866 posts)So manyAmericans think we are exceptional compared to other countries, that we are so much smarter, luckier, special, deserving, etc. etc. Case in point, all those kids at spring break who are so privileged. But I dont want to be too critical, because I was probably somewhat like them when I was young. You know, youre never going to be sick, will never get old, and will always be young and carefree and beautiful! Theyre in for a rude awakening, though, as are many of us.
dewsgirl
(14,961 posts)people are purchasing supplies, they still have very little idea about what's coming. I hope it's not as bad as I fear.
NewJeffCT
(56,827 posts)because so many people still buy it
Cousin Dupree
(1,866 posts)on another site. They are buying it big time. The truth will become common knowledge soon.
NewJeffCT
(56,827 posts)for wearing masks all over.
Squinch
(50,773 posts)was given to us by the authorities who are supposed to be managing this and it was a lie.
Instead of lying why didn't they ramp up production? Why have they STILL not ramped up production enough to meet the demand?
Its fucking masks. Why is this complicated?
denem
(11,045 posts)Because 3M, and the vast majority of other manufacturers are located in China. The plant and equipment does not exist in the States. The Chinese Government banned the export of masks on January 12.
hangaleft
(649 posts)Send the CEO, COO, CFO, Executive VP and Boards of Directors of all corporations who outsourced manufacturing jobs to Northern Italy with no protective gear.
For starters.
Squinch
(50,773 posts)And even today there is STILL nothing official being done about it.
denem
(11,045 posts)but "We want them on the open market (aka profiteering) from the standpoint of pricing"
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/21/world/coronavirus-updates-usa-world.html
Worst.President.Ever
Squinch
(50,773 posts)to do this, Democrats should be very publicly rallyimg companies to volunteer to do it.
And they should do daily press conferences on their progress, publishing the names if companies who are volunteering and those who are refusing.
They should air these press conferences at the same time as Filthy Donnie's daily lie fests. Or just after.
denem
(11,045 posts)with this mob in charge. We'll have all these big beautiful battleships next week
dalton99a
(81,065 posts)Governments and Companies Race to Make Masks Vital to Virus Fight
President Trump resists using emergency powers to compel production, saying companies will voluntarily provide much-needed protective gear.
By Rachel Abrams, Jessica Silver-Greenberg, Andrew Jacobs, Vanessa Friedman and Michael Rothfeld
Published March 21, 2020
In its factory in Charlotte, N.C., Strong Manufacturers has three L-shaped machines that are set up to churn out about 70 masks a minute, or roughly 9 million a month.
But the company sourced the raw materials for the masks from a supplier in Wuhan, China, where the coronavirus outbreak started. Now, the goods arent coming.
Our materials were ready to ship from Wuhan, and they got hung up on the dock as soon as this started, said Alan Bagliore, the chief executive of Strong Manufacturers. He said orders from other suppliers arent expected to arrive for up to four weeks.
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-20/as-airlines-ground-planes-medical-supplies-are-stuck-in-china
Critical Medical Supplies Are Stuck in China With No Planes to Ship Them
By K Oanh Ha
March 20, 2020, 7:35 AM CDT
Michael Einhorns Chinese suppliers of masks and surgical gowns have finally restarted production. His challenge now is to find cargo space to get them to his U.S. customers fast enough.
Einhorn, president of Brooklyn, New York-based Dealmed-Park Surgical, says the small quantities of critical medical supplies he has procured are sitting in warehouses for more than a week before they can get on cargo planes.
We have to wait in line behind the yoga mat guy to get things shipped, he said. The highest priority for shipping should be to get medical equipment out--but its not.
Einhorn says some of his Chinese suppliers have only begun ramping up production in recent days as factories came back online. The company is paying as much as $4,000 for a small pallet to be flown on commercial freight carriers such as DHL Worldwide Express, but it has been told products wont get to the U.S. for as long as 10 days because of limited space.
Squinch
(50,773 posts)here regardless of all these obstacles.
The obstacles were obstacles a month ago. Now they're just excuses.