Sturgis 2020 Yay or Nay?

Been there done that.....Pass regardless of the current health situation. 

Posted by Jim Wright: 

Sturgis, South Dakota. 

250,000 bikers, maybe more. Maybe a LOT more. 

In my previous profession, I -- or, more likely someone like me but whose speciality was biological rather than informational -- might have looked at a gathering like this in an adversary country and developed tactics for sending in infected/contagious vectors to spread the pandemic and thus weaken the target nation. 

I'm not saying we do this, mind you. 

But as a thought exercise. Planning. We pay people to think about such things. People like me, for example, back in the day. 

Hell, our OWN government did that to our OWN people, and I'm not just talking smallpox blankets on the wild frontier. 

See, on September 20, 1950, the US military began conducting experiments into biological warfare. Mostly they were interested in learning how such biological weapons would spread through a modern urban population. So, they parked a US Navy ship off the coast of San Francisco and used a giant air cannon to spray microbes into the prevail winds, which would then carry the various diseases onshore and towards the city. They did this for seven days. And it worked. A hell of a lot of people got sick. At least one death is attributed to the program, possibly more. This went on until the 1960s in various cities across the country. Some of those microbes are STILL alive in those areas to this very day. 

This is how information, military intelligence, can be turned into a weapon. You look at a nation, at how they see the world, in our case a half a million people who gather in the middle of a pandemic because it's their god given right and damn the consequences, and you see vulnerabilities, weaknesses to be exploited. 

Immoral? Or sure, you bet. I mean, you didn't have an illusions that war is moral, did you? Or politics. Hell, look up the E36 M3 the CIA tried on Fidel Castro, everything from poisoned pants to exploding cigars.

Sure it's immoral. Unethical? Of course. Nobody gives a E36 M3 about morality when global power is at stake. This is the moment, the United States is weak, fractured, run by idiots. Sure it's immoral. Sure it's unethical. Just as pushing information into a target population via any one of a hundred vectors, social media for example, is unethical and immoral and yet here we are on that very platform. 

They're doing it to us. 

We're doing to them. 

They're just better at it. 

How do you develop defenses and countermeasure for such attacks? 

Well, in the case of germ warfare, we sprayed our own cities and set down to watch what would happen. 

So, am I suggesting that our government would infect Sturgis for some such nefarious purpose? See how COVID spreads? 

Is that what I'm saying? 

The thing is, right now? It wouldn't even be be illegal. Immoral perhaps. Unethical, certainly. For you, for me, for a government or an intelligence agency. But not illegal (understand I'm using the word "illegal" in the military sense, in the Intelligence Agency sense,  in the government run by Donald Trump or Vladimir Putin sense. I.e. if you got plausible deniability, it ain't illegal). People come to Sturgis from all over the world. People who might have the disease going to a public gathering where a quarter million attendees aren't bothering to take any precautions, because in South Dakota, it's their choice. They call it freedom. 

Ironically, I'd be willing to bet you can find one hell of a lot of those "Watch Out For Motorcycles" bumper stickers in that crowd. Watch out for motorcycles. I mean, who wants to be killed or maimed, right? 

But they won't even take that minimal amount of precaution when it comes to an infectious disease. 

As I said, ironic. 

AM I saying our government would do that, for whatever reason?

No, I'm not saying we'd do that. Don't be silly. 

But our enemies just might."

Conspiracy stuff aside, given the current situation with COVID-19, I wouldn't go and potentially expose myself and others.  It isn't worth it.

Do you have a trailer to bring your bike? 

Soooo.....  looks like they are going pretty full bore with this.   I thought based on someones note about the city not really wanting them it might not.

I don't see any researchers in the shot below, but I think I can spot a somewhat "scientific" looking guy in leather chaps in the back there...

...should be an interesting experiment.

aircooled said:

Soooo.....  looks like they are going pretty full bore with this.   I thought based on someones note about the city not really wanting them it might not.

I don't see any researchers in the shot below, but I think I can spot a somewhat "scientific" looking guy in leather chaps in the back there...

...should be an interesting experiment.

I would think all those doctors and lawyers would know better than to gather in a group like that. 

joey48442 said:

I would think all those doctors and lawyers would know better than to gather in a group like that. 

Mostly dentists instead of MDs

It is a big no from me. But it would be a no during normal times though.

In reply to aircooled :

I read an article that said even though the city made it clear they didn't want them there, many participants basically said, "Go ahead and cancel it, we are still going to show up anyway."

And here I thought it was all us under-40s that were entitled.

Nay. Not now, not ever. Not my thing. It will be interesting to see what happens, though.

Even in normal times I am glad I live nowhere near that cluster-berk.

Bunch of tattooed, overweight, drunk, sweaty guys who are wearing entirely too much black leather....   

I mean, I love the punk rock scene, but those groups, noooooo....

Apexcarver said:

Bunch of tattooed, overweight, drunk, sweaty guys who are wearing entirely too much black leather....   

 

I mean, I love the punk rock scene

you leave gimpy out of this, mustangboy

In reply to Patrick (Forum Supporter) :

LOL

z31maniac said:

....And here I thought it was all us under-40s that were entitled.

A-hole is not an age specific affliction.

if it does have a super spreader , the virus will have a nice ride all over the country , 

I did not see a mask , even the Security guys ( big guys, blue button down shirts and shades) did not wear a mask

I wonder what the crowd would look like if they had the Vintage races at Laguna Seca starting today !

z31maniac said:

In reply to aircooled :

I read an article that said even though the city made it clear they didn't want them there, many participants basically said, "Go ahead and cancel it, we are still going to show up anyway."

And here I thought it was all us under-40s that were entitled.

Try something like that in China and see what happens. 

If it was my scene and I had the time I'd go. But I'm not a harley guy and the bikes I rode were not really welcom

aircooled said:

z31maniac said:

....And here I thought it was all us under-40s that were entitled.

A-hole is not an age specific affliction.

I know, I was just being cheeky. 

No worries, I was being cheeky also 

(I think inconsiderate or self-absorbed might be a better term though)

Judging from the webcams right now, I’m thinking it’ll be a super spreader event.  It’s in the 90’s there.  Based on how many bikes are parked downtown vs. how many people are on the street, there’s gotta be a lot of people hanging out in bars and restaurants.

At least it is nowhere near as crowded as it usually is.

Edit: Generally, I’d have no interest in going, as I am only marginally interested in Harleys, and I hate crowds.  I’d be interested in checking it out at the current crowd level, if it weren’t for Covid.

I'm tired of the fear mongering and hiding. I wish I was there. 

bobzilla said:

I'm tired of the fear mongering and hiding. I wish I was there. 

Why don’t you go? Sounds like you need a vacation. Maybe you’ll stop mislabeling “smart public health practices” as “fear mongering and hiding” after a little R&R. 

In reply to bobzilla :

Come to my town.  I have 3 friends that would like to meet you.  Maybe shake hands, lick your face.  Might even share their devices that are used to try to bring back lung capacity.

Jerry said:

In reply to bobzilla :

Come to my town.  I have 3 friends that would like to meet you.  Maybe shake hands, lick your face.  Might even share their devices that are used to try to bring back lung capacity.

There's no reason to be a dick. 

bobzilla said:

Jerry said:

In reply to bobzilla :

Come to my town.  I have 3 friends that would like to meet you.  Maybe shake hands, lick your face.  Might even share their devices that are used to try to bring back lung capacity.

There's no reason to be a dick. 

I second the motion.