Is the virus spread a serious issue in the rural areas? Maybe the State of Oregon should have the National Guard go around to all of the rural residences? I'm sure they will come up with some idea to combat those that don't want the vaccine. After all, isn't this the state that didn't allow one to pump their own gas?

Oregon and New Jersey.

I... I don't even have the words to describe my reaction to this. I just stared at this line for several moments in befuddlement.
We don't need smiles. We need to have as few people get sick as possible and not choking morgues and ERs, many of whom probably also fought masks and thought, "It'd never happen to me," as some of the most aggressive people against protective measures have already died from this thing.
Now, as for the hearing impaired thing, I concur there. That's a real issue for those who have to read lips. I have no answer to that as most people either can't find or don't want masks with clear windows for their mouths in such a case.
But if it's matter of getting this pandemic under control or a choice few who need smiles (seriously, I had to stop while typing that, still floored that I'd ever have to write that), I'm just fine with never seeing another smile as long as I live, if that's what it takes.

Wow! I've never started a thread with this much traction before! And it's not even about #1361!

Let me check if the five persons I knew who died of Covid-19 are still dead. Fact check. They are still dead.

Brian

Ok Mr. Mitchell, I'll try again with some correct (hopefully!) math. You posted:
The virus has killed 0.18% of the US population in just 17 months. It is just not possible to go back to "normal" after a loss like that.

World War II claimed 0.30% of the entire US population and the US fought in that war for four years.

As I posted before, my child is too young to be vaccinated. I also happen to live in a state where, as of yesterday June 3, 2021, only 32% of the state's population is fully vaccinated..... so, no, I am not yet changing my stance or actions.

As is typical for too many people................

..... you are repeatedly avoiding answering the question asked.

Is it therefore possible to presume or conclude you (and the others that avoid the answer to the question) have no interest in, or goal of, "getting back to normal"? That they have determined or concluded that their lives must be forever controlled by the virus, and there is no hope of ever returning to "normal"?

I was hearing such "doom and gloom" perpetually on September 12, 2001, and for weeks afterwards. Oddly enough, save for a bunch of "Kabuki theatrics" at airports, we as a nation are pretty much back to pre-9/11 "normal"...........

Relevance to rail preservation:
If we are determined to let the "new normal" destroy society as we knew it before this virus, then to be honest we should just give up rail preservation entirely. Just quit. No train rides. No retiree volunteers--too scared to come out and be exposed. No museum visitors. Just give up, move to virtual "museums" online, and call the scrappers. No museum anywhere is worth risking EVEN ONE life, right?

I think "back to normal" has to mean a somewhat different normal than before. My grandparents lives were changed by such things as the 1918 pandemic, the Salk vaccine, etc...... and it seems our lives must be changed by this one unless we really want to do it again with the next variant that comes along - and learned nothing from it. There's a lot that wasn't entirely attractive in the "old normal" that could be changed for the better from my perspective. besides, considering the pandemic separately from the whole of the environment that developed it seems too narrow. Preservation and historic education will matter more during the recovery from the recovery that's (hopefully) going to occur during the next couple years unless we decide we don't want to learn from it after all.

So how low do the numbers have to go before some of you realize that covid isn't the same threat that it was six months ago. At the rate that the numbers are dropping, it will nearly disappear from the US months before the TSA mask mandate is lifted. Its dropping at almost 1,000 cases per day. At that rate in a month covid will become extremely rare to find in the US.

Everyone, TAKE THE WIN. Now lets move on and rebuild.

Perhaps it would be wiser to think about how long those numbers need to stay low before folks feel comfortable that there won't be another setback. That graph is a combined overall USA total and does not show how local areas had ebbs and flows in their illness rates. There's more than one YouTube video of an athlete celebrating just a few feet before the finish line and losing the race.

It really is not helping that what should have been a strictly Public Health issue became a political wedge issue. After all, mask wearing in Asia has been fairly common for years and it's not a wedge issue there.

It's Tyranny that your toilet has to be connected to a sewage system. Why can't we just throw the chamber pot contents out the window like back in the Freedom days?

Where I live it's obvious that some folks who could not have been vaccinated due to the age related roll out limits immediately stopped masking. Since I'm an old fart and fully vaccinated, I don't feel threatened, but $&#*:'" them. Honesty has no value for them.

Brian

Sigh…. Go back and read my post on page 3. The above chart shows cases per total population. That is misleading. About half the population has been vaccinated. If you take the vaccinated out of the equation, calling that your adjusted rate:

Maine, Colorado, Washington, Rhode Island, Wyoming, West Virginia, Oregon, Florida, Michigan and Pennsylvania all have daily case rates per 100k around twice the national adjusted rate, essentially the same case rate they had overall in January. About 25% of the population is totally ignorant and refuses the vaccine. That’s on them if they get sick or worse. However, it raises monetary costs for everyone if they have to be hospitalized. The other 25% need to quit putzing around and take care of business.

The death rate per 100k, which lags behind the case rate, in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois, New Jersey, Maine and Florida are 50% higher than the adjusted national rate. Since the vaccines are near 100% successful in preventing death, including the vaccinated in the death rate hides the actual rate among the unvaccinated.

Keep in mind that the US is the most vaccinated country. The rest of the world as a whole is doing rather poorly and having to contend with more virulent strains. Is the pandemic over? I think not. I think it’s rather cavalier and ultimately selfish to pretend otherwise. The data is out there and not difficult to find if you care to educate yourselves instead of listening to politically driven sound bites that don’t make a lot of sense. Don’t ever believe something just because you wish it to be true.

That said, and to get back on topic, I don’t think the TSA/FRA order is out of line.

Steps down from soapbox….

America is blessed with folks who think it is perfectly OK to punch your docents hard enough to knock their teeth out. Witness the recent airline flight attendant incident.

What are your organization's plans to handle such an event?

Brian

BREAKING NEWS!
Minutes ago, pro golfer Jon Rahm just finished his round in Dublin, Ohio and had a massive lead. He was told as he was walking off that he had tested positive today, for C-19, despite negative tests all week.
Rahm is required to withdraw from the tournament.It was not stated whether he had been vaccinated.
I guess the lesson is, no one is exempt, and it ain't over until the phat lady quits sneezing.

The 50% of people that have been fully vaccinated are more than ready to return to normal everyday life. I would guess that most of them are ready to burn their masks. There has been 1900 cases of unruly airline passengers over mask wearing reported to FAA. There are a few people that have a medical reason to wear masks and other people may be just extra cautious. That's find, let them wear masks. But we as individuals and as country need to resume normal life, again. The risks are down to acceptable levels for most people.

I would like to know what caused the extra cautious CDC to abruptly change their guidance. TSA/FRA may want to look at it, too. If we have an uptick in cases in the unvaccinated population, it's only going to be half as bad as it would have been last year, before half of the population had gotten vaccinated.

We used to have smoking / non-smoking seating areas... or reserved and non-reserved. Couldn't we figure out something like asking "vacc or non-vacc" and go by what people tell us (no check)... or "masked or non-masked"? Give the choice in the matter back perhaps?