When is it time to panic

Short version. Yesterday I talked to a person that today tested positive for Covid. It was a short conversation at 6 foot distance. 

I doubt I'm infected but tomorrow I'm supposed to go back in the office. I asked my boss what they want me to do.

Her reply- Tests are free and you don’t need a doctors note to get one if you feel that strongly about it, but even if for some reason you did get it you would need to wait 7-14 days to get tested because the virus doesn’t show in tests immediately. Just be cautious, where a mask at work, especially when speaking to others or when your up and walking around the building. I think your fine. Glad to have you back, Marc, let me know when you get to the office tomorrow.

What do you think?

In reply to Bent-Valve (FS) :

I like your boss. 

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

alfadriver (Forum Supporter) said:

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

ProDarwin said:

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

I'd also like to see the stats normalized for age, risk category, and population density. 
 

If they were, I am confident most of us would find much less to be fearful of. 

I think lots of people don't fear it.  What they fear is potentially transmitting it to someone that is high risk.

Yep. That's still fear. 

You have a very interesting definition of fear, Paul.  

For sure, not one I agree on.  Even on a professional leve, since my job directly impacts human health on a very low limit relative to 50 years ago in the same aspect.  And more inteesting that you regularly post about building safety- structural, electrical, pumbing, etc- which suggests that much of the work you have done professionally is about protecting other's safety.

Hang on...

I have no idea why several of you have felt the need to jump on me about this.

I did not define fear.  I simply recognized that ProDarwin said,  "What they fear is potentially transmitting it to someone of high risk".  Correct.  There is a fear.  I fear that too.  It is a compassionate fear, and perhaps justified.  ProDarwin said people are afraid, and I agreed with him.  That is all.

As an essential worker who has continued traveling through several states and trying to live in the complete chaos of mis-information in the real world, you're damned right I was afraid of bring this home to my 94 year old father who lived in my house with me.  Suggesting I care less is thoroughly insulting.

I suggested we could find LESS to be fearful of.  Managing fear is a very reasonable and important concept that a lot of you seem to be overlooking.  We need to work at it.  Balance.

I never said don't be compassionate.  I never said don't care.

PROPAGATING fear is unhealthy.  I am watching my mother (and others in her care facility) wither away because they can't reign in the fear, and don't know how to balance the information coming in.  Some of the info is complete BS. Frankly, fear mongering is not compassion.  It's killing people.  And fear mongering is not better just because it is posted on a car website.

I am personally responsible for handling COVID response and safety for hundreds of people.  NO ONE has gotten sick under my watch.

If some of you feel better using me as your whipping boy, have at it.  Glad I can help make you feel better about yourselves.  Seems thoroughly unproductive to me.

In this thread, you've become a bit terse and condescending vs how you normally interact on the forum. I think especially the "Yep still fear" seemed pretty flippant and dismissive. 

Of course, that's just my opinion, and it's worth exactly what you paid for it.

In reply to z31maniac :

I'm sorry if it comes across that way. This thread has a lot of fearful BS in in, and it's pretty hard to stay level headed. 
 

That comment was a specific response to a specific comment. 

I will not be putting long diatribes in this thread. This thread is no better than a political discussion, and I have made the choice to post as few words as possible to avoid adding to the noise. 
 

I won't be changing anyone's opinion. No reason to bicker. 
 

Short responses are not the same as terse responses. I'm sorry if they sound that way. But please consider how you choose to interpret them as well. 
 

I have been doing the best I can to remain sane and do my job well while managing a lot of BS info. I have 2 COVID responders living in my house with me.  I work in a company that is deeply embedded in a COVID hot spot. My job is to keep my family safe, and the people who work under me and around me as well.   It's not my job to change people's opinions. 
 

If y'all need a whipping boy, happy to oblige. 

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to z31maniac :

I'm sorry if it comes across that way. This thread has a lot of fearful BS in in, and it's pretty hard to stay level headed. 
 

That comment was a specific response to a specific comment. 

Like I said, just offering my own insight on to why you may have been dogpiled on for that one. 

The last few months have gotten everyone annoyed, upset, short fuse, etc. I was backing out of a parking spot yesterday at the store, apparently this highly offended the woman waiting to turn out of the aisle. She apparently thought I wasn't paying attention and was going to back into her car. 

There was plenty of room, and I then pulled up next to her to turn the opposite direction out of the aisle. While waiting for it to clear, she rolled down her window and began screaming some unintelligible nonsense while giving me the bird. 

Everyone is on edge, and has been for awhile, and of course being online we don't get the tone and other nonverbal cues.

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Bent-Valve (FS) :

I like your boss. 

I'm too close to the situation so I needed outside input.

I didn't know if I took it as too lax or appropriately cautious.

Thanks.

In reply to z31maniac :

I understand that. 
 

It was a true statement, though brief. I think it's important to examine ourselves and how we react. 
 

So, my crime was being brief?  Or terse?  And that warrants dogpiling on someone?  That's no way to promote healthy conversation. 
 

Consider it. 

In reply to Bent-Valve (FS) :

Your boss spoke truth, and tried to downplay fear. That's pretty good leadership.
 

She's right. If you are uncomfortable, take action. She'll see you at work. 

In reply to Bent-Valve (FS) :

Hey, man, I can't help much, but I can anecdotally chat with you.

I've had two minor operations since the beginning of May. (carpal tunnel release, outpatient, local anesthetic, minor, etc.)

Both times, I had to have a covid test two days prior. We all know this disease may lie dormant, we may all be carriers, the swab test varies wildly in accuracy as a function of time since infection., or at least, I believe all that to be true.

The night before my most recent procedure, I got a late warning that there was a case at the small community college where both my S.O. and I work. When I showed up for the operation, I of course, wore a mask, and was scrubbed with the antiseptic soap they had given me two days prior.

I told the lady at the door, and my admitting nurse about the case on campus, and was admitted anyway. This is a round about way of saying the doctors believe in the effectiveness of a mask and hand washing. Maybe be extra diligent with hand washing, and call out at the slightest chill?

No one seems to have good answers, and I catch myself judging people who engage in what I see as risky behavior, but I keep my mouth shut. I'm only responsible for me.

Be well, and let your conscience be your guide. 

In reply to wheelsmithy (Joe-with-an-L) (Forum Supporter) :

Yes, masks and handwashing are effective to prevent spreading.

Your situation also evidences that the medical professionals did not consider what you described as an exposure.  (it's not, according to the CDC).  The admitting nurse probably also asked if you had been in close proximity to that person, or exhibited any symptoms.

I'm trying to avoid saying much since I have been accused of being terse and condescending, but I figured you might want some reassurance.

Good to see I'm still a terrible person and kill old people. Way to stay classy. 

In reply to SVreX (Forum Supporter) :

My boss does well with trying to downplay fear, but I think takes it too far, as he downplays this virus so far as he's nearly to the point of denying that it's a big deal at all, and that all the guys not wearing masks are some sort of freedom fighters standing up against oppression and tyranny. Or at least that's what my coworkers all think. The guys I work with, all very intelligent guys otherwise, will say things like "you can still smell a fart even through your underwear, so how is some fabric going to stop a virus??"  It's quite maddening when people you admire and look up to in a lot of ways are science deniers. 

bobzilla said:

Good to see I'm still a terrible person and kill old people. Way to stay classy. 

Who said that?

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to z31maniac :

I understand that. 
 

It was a true statement, though brief. I think it's important to examine ourselves and how we react. 
 

So, my crime was being brief?  Or terse?  And that warrants dogpiling on someone?  That's no way to promote healthy conversation. 
 

Consider it. 

Paul, 

You also asked me to consider the mental aspects and economic cost outside of health costs. I did it as best I could, thoroughly, with full explanations of the limitations of my knowledge and data. 

You told me that you "only read about half of it, and stopped. There was nothing to learn"

That isn't a good way to promote healthy conversation.

Consider it. 

In reply to mtn (Forum Supporter) :

I didn't understand it. I'm not a statistician.  My son is, but I'm not too smart in that.  The only thing I understand about statistics is how easy it is to manipulate them. 
 

I didn't figure I should make a lot of noise about something that made no sense to me. Would it have been better for me to argue?

If you are knowledgeable in a subject and I am not, I think the best way to promote a healthy conversation is to listen. That's what I did. 
 

What would have worked better for you?

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to mtn (Forum Supporter) :

I didn't understand it. I'm not a statistician.  My son is, but I'm not too smart in that.  The only thing I understand about statistics is how easy it is to manipulate them. 
 

I didn't figure I should make a lot of noise about something that made no sense to me. Would it have been better for me to argue?

If you are knowledgeable in a subject and I am not, I think the best way to promote a healthy conversation is to listen. That's what I did. 
 

What would have worked better for you?

That you ask and learn. You're smart and capable of learning. I know you are because I've seen it here on the board - and you're capable of teaching. So ask, if you don't understand something, rather than say it is too long or it uses statistics. Almost none of the "statistical analysis" I've been doing is complex. Most, if not all of it is just division. The only understanding necessary is what the numbers are - and I've tried to provide the explanation of what they are. If i haven't, I'd like to be called out so that I'm not coming across as incomprehensible. 

In reply to mtn (Forum Supporter) :

Thank you for the offer, but I really am too buried to dig into that. People's lives are dependent on me doing my job well. 
 

The only thing I am trying to say throughout this thread is that the statistical info doesn't jive with what I see in the real world. Anecdotal?  Yes. But a much larger cross section than many people get a chance to see. 
 

I come to this site to learn, and share some of the things I see. My perspective and experience is different than the mainstream view of this thread. I can see my viewpoint is not welcome.  So, I try to be respectful and largely remain silent. 

No, you are probably not gonna change my opinion either (though I do listen). Is that important?

DMV must be open now, there's a line outside the building. Good thing it's summer, and not 5 below.

I'm sure the DMV will only have every 3rd window staffed, to facilitate social distancing. Oh wait...

Remdesivir to cost $3000 per treatment if you have insurance

Isn't this the same drug they were donating intially because it cost them $10 for a ten day course?

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

It looks like they did donate some initially, but I think the drug is actually hard to produce from a chemistry standpoint. You need expensive catalysts like platinum and therefore the capacity for Gilead (or anyone) to produce the drug is bottlenecked by the amount of platinum (or whatever) they own. 

I think at one point Gilead said they were confident they could produce 1 million doses by the end of the year but couldn't promise much more than that. 

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/06/china-moves-forward-with-covid-19-vaccine-approving-it-for-use-in-military/

China has approved an experimental COVID-19 vaccine for use in its military after early clinical trial data suggested it was safe and spurred immune responses—but before larger trials that will test whether the vaccine can protect against SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Interesting. They certainly didn't waste any time.

In reply to Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) :

China's track record as a shining beacon of human rights does not inspire much confidence in the efficacy of such a vaccine...

Yeah, we used to do stuff like that also:

Not as much as an experiment of course.  I wouldn't really expect any unwanted side effects though, just a potential for it not to be as effective as they might want (maybe unwarented confidence?).

joey48442 said:

In reply to SVreX (Forum Supporter) :

My boss does well with trying to downplay fear, but I think takes it too far, as he downplays this virus so far as he's nearly to the point of denying that it's a big deal at all, and that all the guys not wearing masks are some sort of freedom fighters standing up against oppression and tyranny. Or at least that's what my coworkers all think. The guys I work with, all very intelligent guys otherwise, will say things like "you can still smell a fart even through your underwear, so how is some fabric going to stop a virus??"  It's quite maddening when people you admire and look up to in a lot of ways are science deniers. 

I also like "its like trying to keep mosquitos out of your yard with a chain link fence."

Sneeze Guards, do keep people with the virus from spreading contaminated droplets, but cloth does not stop something as small as a virus. What is unscientific about that?

If I was unfortunate enough to be stuck in a densely populated area, where keeping some distance is imposable, I would need to take more steps, but I was "social distancing" long before the panic.