Author: BlackMask Financial

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BIG UNKNOWN: WHERE ARE PEOPLE GETTING INFECTED?!

Western nations face a big challenge in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic: Ten months into the health crisis, they still know little about where people are catching the virus. The problem is becoming more acute as new cases are breaking records in the U.S. and Europe and pressure grows on authorities to impose targeted restrictions on places that are spreading the virus, rather than broad confinement measures that are wreaking havoc on the economy.

In Germany, authorities say they don’t know where 75% of people who currently test positive for the coronavirus got it. In Austria, the figure stands at 77%. In Spain, the health ministry said that it was able to identify the origin of only 7% of infections registered in the last week of October. In France and Italy, only some 20% of new cases have been linked to people who previously tested positive.

Jay Varma, senior adviser for public health in the New York City mayor’s office, said 10% of the city’s infections are due to travel, 5% from gatherings, and another 5% from institutional settings such as nursing homes. “The vast majority of the remainder—somewhere probably around 50% or more—we don’t have a way to directly attribute their source of infection,” Mr. Varma said. “And that’s a concern.” Nick Note: Here is the problem they are not telling you about. Complete lockdowns work. But since the masses live hand to mouth its devastating the deep in debt loser boozer drug (now legal drugs like cocaine and heroine in many states) users. So the solution is contact tracing. Isolate the pools of infections and quarantine only where you have infections. Sounds reasonable. But their is a little problem. They canNOT trace back over 80% OF THE INFECTIONS. Reality is and they are loath to admit it… the coffee filter toilet paper masks are not doing squat. AND SOCIAL DISTANCING does not work when the virus cloud travels hundreds of feet and the vapor can stay in the air for hours.  You cannot solve a problem you do not know you have. ANd refuse to see. Its social isolation, air filtration and a 1um silicone mask with a ULPA particle filter. OR complete lock down.

PS we got a dual use export license ( till they catch up with us and cancels it) for what is regarded as secret military Boilab Level 4 filters. See when they infect the world with their little cooties they want their people to be protected… as you are seeing not the masses! The ultimate P3 ULPA 15 particle filters are back in stock. Ready to ship for as long as they last. We are having trouble sourcing the special  filter material Borosilicate glass and resign. And our manufacturer cannot guarantee we can export them in the future. But you can get a N95 toilet paper filter with pretty pictures on it at the grocery store and live in a fools paradise……

PS: As a foot note: The HEPA P3 filters they are selling are made with fiberglass paper. Besides inadequate filtration. They contain particles you inhale As in deadly fiberglass particles getting into your lungs that act just like asbestos…. but look at the money you are shaving!

 

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Trump: I concede nothing, fake media declared Biden winner

WASHINGTON/WILMINGTON, Del. (Reuters) – President Donald Trump appeared on Sunday to acknowledge losing the U.S. election but then backtracked and said he concedes “nothing” while a top aide to President-elect Joe Biden called a seamless transition vital for national security and combating the coronavirus pandemic. Biden, due to take office on Jan. 20, defeated Trump in the Nov. 3 election by winning a series of battleground states that the Republican incumbent had won in 2016. The Democratic former vice president also won the national popular vote by at least 5.5 million votes, or 3.6 percentage points, with some ballots still being counted. Trump, who is pursuing long-shot litigation contesting election results in several states, made conflicting statements in a series of Twitter posts in which he initially appeared to admit for the first time publicly that Biden won, then reversed course. Trump also repeated unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud. “He won because the Election was Rigged,” Trump wrote, not referring to Biden by name. “NO VOTE WATCHERS OR OBSERVERS allowed, vote tabulated by a Radical Left privately owned company, Dominion, with a bad reputation & bum equipment that couldn’t even qualify for Texas (which I won by a lot!), the Fake & Silent Media, & more!”

About 90 minutes later, Trump wrote, “He only won in the eyes of the FAKE NEWS MEDIA. I concede NOTHING! We have a long way to go. This was a RIGGED ELECTION!”

“WE WILL WIN!” he added.

Speaking on NBC’s “Meet the Press” program, Biden’s pick for White House chief of staff, Ron Klain, said, “Donald Trump’s Twitter feed doesn’t make Joe Biden president or not president. The American people did that.” The decision by the General Services Administration, headed by a Trump appointee, not to recognize Biden as president-elect has prevented Biden and his team from gaining access to government office space and funding normally afforded to an incoming administration to ensure a smooth transition. Klain called on the agency to formally recognize Biden, saying it is critical to ensure that the president-elect receives intelligence briefings describing national security threats before taking office and to facilitate coordination with the White House coronavirus task force. “Joe Biden is going to become president of the U.S. in the midst of an ongoing crisis. That has to be a seamless transition,” Klain said. Klain also urged Congress to pass bipartisan coronavirus relief legislation. Talks on such legislation stalled before the election. Democratic congressional leaders last week called upon Republican lawmakers to join them in passing a relief measure before the end of the year. “This could be a first example of bipartisan action post-election,” Klain said. Klain added that Biden’s team plans to meet with Pfizer Inc <PFE.N> and other drugmakers starting this week regarding COVID-19 vaccines. Klain previously said a smooth transition is necessary to ensure the government is prepared to roll out a vaccine early next year. Tackling the pandemic will be a paramount priority for Biden, with the United States tallying record numbers of COVID-19 cases in recent days. More than 245,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union” program, Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious diseases expert, also urged speedy transition efforts to help confront the pandemic. Trump’s campaign has filed lawsuits seeking to overturn the results in multiple states, though without success. Legal experts have said the litigation stands little chance of altering the election’s outcome. Election officials of both parties have said there is no evidence of major irregularities. Democrats and other critics have accused Trump of trying to delegitimize Biden’s victory and undermine public confidence in the U.S. electoral process. Before the election, Trump had refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power. Senator Bernie Sanders, one of Biden’s main challengers for the Democratic presidential nomination, criticized Trump’s post-election conduct. “Trump will have the distinction of doing more than any person in the history of this country in undermining American democracy. The idea that he continues to tell his supporters that the only reason he may have lost this election was because of fraud is an absolutely disgraceful, un-American thing to do,” Sanders said on “State of the Union.” John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser turned critic, on Sunday called on Republicans to acknowledge Biden’s victory. Bolton last week accused his fellow Republicans of “coddling” and “kowtowing” to Trump as the incumbent despite his defeat. “I think it’s very important for leaders of the Republican Party to explain to our voters, who are not as stupid as the Democrats think, that in fact Trump has lost the election and his claims of election fraud are baseless,” Bolton said on ABC’s “This Week” program. Biden has won 306 votes in the state-by-state Electoral College system that determines the presidential winner, according to Edison Research, far more than the 270 needed to secure a majority. States are in the process of certifying their election results. The Electoral College meets to formally vote for the new president on Dec. 14. Nick Note: It is painfully obvious that this election is not settled business. And reality is Washington is frozen. This is not good with the virus gone wild and stimulus languishing. Remember even if a virus is approved today it will be April before any meaningful inoculations take place. Between now and then we are of the opinion the economy will see continuing deterioration. Reality is people cannot hold their breaths that long.

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Lock Downs by Christmas! HO HO HO!

https://youtu.be/vBdY6bUFYAU

New coronavirus infections are growing rapidly across the US, experts say, with new hospital admissions also increasing around the country.

Nearly 70,000 new cases were recorded on Friday – the highest number of new infections seen in one day since July. Cases have been trending upward for 48 states over the past week. Only two states, Missouri and Vermont, are recording numbers that are improving. Dealing with the pandemic has continued to be a central issue in the US election. Despite the uptick in infections – and recovering from Covid himself earlier this month – President Donald Trump is still traveling the country for large in-person campaign rallies. At an outdoor event in Nevada on Sunday, Mr Trump said his Democratic opponent Joe Biden “will surrender your future to the virus”. “This guy wants to lockdown. He’ll listen to the scientists,” he said. “If I listened totally to the scientists, we would right now have a country that would be in a massive depression.” Many of Mr Trump’s supporters do not wear masks or practice social distancing at the rallies, and there have been warnings against large gatherings from local health officials. A Biden spokesman called Mr Trump’s remarks “the polar opposite of reality” and blamed the country’s recession on the president.On Monday, Mr Trump denounced top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci as “a disaster” and claimed that more people would have died if he had listened to the respected researcher. Dr Fauci told CBS News earlier that he was not surprised the president had caught coronavirus, given his reluctance to practice safe techniques. “Fauci’s a disaster,” the president said in a campaign phone call that was overheard by reporters. “He’s been here for 500 years,” he said, adding: “People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots.” Mr Trump, who has reportedly had a tense relationship with Dr Fauci since March, called him “a nice guy”, but said he would have fired him if not for the negative press that would result.

What are the latest numbers?

In the US, there have been around 8.1 million coronavirus infections and over 219,000 deaths. Across the world, over 40 million cases have been recorded. Cases in the US dipped to around 34,000 per day by early September, but are now averaging around 55,000 per day. On Friday, the US nearly topped 70,000 cases in one day, which would have beat the single day record for new cases set in July. Ten states on Friday hit their all-time high for new cases reported in a single day: Colorado, Idaho, Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, New Mexico and North Carolina. On Saturday, new cases fell to over 57,000. On Sunday, the daily infection rate fell again to over 48,000. As infections rise, hospital admissions have also risen in 39 states over the past two weeks. Wisconsin, a crucial presidential swing state, is among the hardest hit, with nearly 10% of the state’s hospital beds currently occupied by Covid-19 patients. The state has now erected a field hospital on the grounds of the Wisconsin State Fair Park to serve as an overflow facility for hospitals. Experts say the death toll is not expected to rise as rapidly as it did in the beginning of the pandemic, as many of the new cases are in young people who are more likely to survive the disease caused by the virus. Health officials warn that infections are likely to get worse during colder months, when people tend to congregate indoors more often. In his interview with the CBS 60 Minutes programme, Dr Fauci said the situation would need to get “really, really bad,” before he would advocate for a national lockdown. “First of all, the country is fatigued with restrictions,” said Dr Fauci, who has led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984 and is a member of the White House coronavirus taskforce. “So we want to use public health measures not to get in the way of opening the economy, but to being a safe gateway to opening the economy.”He added: “Put ‘shut downs’ away and say, ‘We’re going to use public health measures to help us safely get to where we want to go’.” Nick Note:  Let me as plain as my respirator mask you should be using if you want to live, Lockdowns are coming.

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Biden won due to rigged election – Trump

President Trump on Sunday appeared to acknowledge that President-elect Joe Biden had won the 2020 race for the White House — but chalked up the outcome to the election being “rigged.” “He won because the Election was Rigged,” Trump wrote on Twitter. Trump then rattled off a series of reasons why he believed that the victory was handed to the Democratic presidential candidate. “NO VOTE WATCHERS OR OBSERVERS allowed, vote tabulated by a Radical Left privately owned company, Dominion, with a bad reputation & bum equipment that couldn’t even qualify for Texas (which I won by a lot!), the Fake & Silent Media, & more!” he continued. Trump had previously accused the company, Dominion Voting — which supplies voting machines throughout the US — of deleting 2.7 million votes for him across the country and changing 221,000 votes cast in Pennsylvania for him to favor Biden. The company said in a statement that it “denies claims about any vote switching or alleged software issues with our voting systems.”  Nick Note:  Trumps great white hope is a national Emergency and the insurrection act. With his cronies now  in firm control of the military and Pentagon he could do this…. I am not saying he will do this. But he is laying the ground work. The Plague is out of control. If thing get really bad this is a rode he could go down. Let me put it to you this way. All options are on the table.

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Biden faces tough choice of whether to back virus lockdowns

WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden faces a decision unlike any other incoming president: whether to back a short-term national lockdown to finally arrest a raging pandemic. For now, it’s a question the president-elect would prefer to avoid. In the week since he defeated President Donald Trump, Biden has devoted most of his public remarks to encouraging Americans to wear a mask and view the coronavirus as a threat that has no regard for political ideology. But the debate has been livelier among members of the coronavirus advisory board Biden announced this week. One member, Dr. Michael Osterholm, suggested a four- to six-week lockdown with financial aid for Americans whose livelihoods would be affected. He later walked back his remarks and was rebutted by two other members of the panel who said a widespread lockdown shouldn’t be under consideration. That’s a sign of the tough dynamic Biden will face when he is inaugurated in January. He campaigned as a more responsible steward of America’s public health than President Donald Trump is and has been blunt about the challenges that lie ahead for the country, warning of a “dark winter” as cases spike.

But talk of lockdowns are especially sensitive. For one, they’re nearly impossible for a president to enact on his own, requiring bipartisan support from state and local officials. But more broadly, they’re a political flashpoint that could undermine Biden’s efforts to unify a deeply divided country.

“It would create a backlash,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security who added that such a move could make the situation worse if people don’t comply with restrictions. “Lockdowns can have consequences that diminish the value of such an approach.” During his first public appearance since losing the election, Trump noted on Friday that he wouldn’t support a lockdown. The president, who has yet to publicly acknowledge Biden’s victory, would likely reinforce that message to his loyal supporters once he’s left office. Still, the pandemic’s toll continues to escalate. The coronavirus is blamed for 10.6 million confirmed infections and almost a quarter-million deaths in the U.S., with the closely watched University of Washington model projecting nearly 439,000 dead by March 1. Deaths have climbed to about 1,000 a day on average. New cases per day are soaring, shattering records. The latest came Friday, when more than 184,000 people tested positive, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Several states are beginning to bring back some of the restrictions first imposed during the spring. But leaders in much of the country are proceeding with caution, aware that Americans are already fatigued by virus-related disruptions. Indeed, after Osterholm made his comments, a number of Biden’s task force members went out to publicly disavow lockdown possibilities. Dr. Vivek Murthy, the former U.S. surgeon general who’s serving as one of the co-chairs on Biden’s coronavirus advisory board, said the group is looking at a “series of restrictions that we dial up or down” based on the severity of the virus in a given region. “We’re not in a place where we’re saying shut the whole country down. We’ve got to be more targeted,” Murthy said on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “If we don’t do that, what you’re going to find is that people will become even more fatigued. Schools won’t be open to children and the economy will be hit harder, so we’ve got to follow science, but we’ve also got to be more precise.” Speaking on CNBC, Dr. Celine Grounder, an infectious-disease specialist at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and another task force member, said that, “as a group, really the consensus is that we need a more nuanced approach.” “We can be much more targeted geographically. We can also be more targeted in terms of what we close,” she said. During the campaign, Biden pledged to make testing free and widely available; to hire thousands of health workers to help implement contact tracing programs; and to instruct the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide clear, expert-informed guidelines to businesses, schools and local officials on reopening in regions where they’ve closed. To prepare for possible surges in cases, he’d prepare Department of Defense resources to provide medical facility capacity, logistical support and doctors and other medical personnel if necessary. Biden would also use the Defense Production Act to ramp up production of masks, face shields and other personal protective equipment to help alleviate shortages at hospitals. But Biden himself fueled some of the confusion about his stance on lockdowns during the campaign. He initially told ABC he would “listen to the scientists” if they advised him to shut down the country, and then took a more nuanced position. “There’s going to be no need, in my view, to be able to shut down the whole economy,” he said at a town hall in September. Even if a nationwide lockdown made sense, polling shows that Americans’ appetite for a closure waning. Gallup found that only 49% of Americans said they’d be “very likely” to comply with a monthlong stay-at-home order because of an outbreak of the virus. A full third said they’d be very or somewhat unlikely to comply with such an order. Kathleen Sebelius, who was the health and human services secretary during the Obama administration, said Biden would be wise to keep his options open for now, especially as Trump criticizes lockdowns. “It’s a very dicey topic” politically, she said. “I think wisely, the president-elect doesn’t want to get into a debate with the sitting president about some kind of mandate that he has no authority to implement.” Nick Note: Reality is the beloved  wear the N95 coffee filter toilet ( kill the cats)  mantra DOES NOT WORK. Reality is only extreme separation is the ONLY think that works. And the public are confused and scared. And the coming lock down even if it is state by state is coming.

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U.S. Justice Alito says pandemic has led to ‘unimaginable’ curbs on liberty

Nov 13 (Reuters) – U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito said the COVID-19 pandemic had led to “previously unimaginable” curbs on individual liberty, singling out restrictions on religious events. The justice, who is seen as a conservative, told a meeting of the Federalist Society late on Thursday he was not underplaying the severity of the crisis or criticizing any officials for their response. But he added: “We have never before seen restrictions as severe, extensive and prolonged as those experienced for most of 2020.”

“The COVID crisis has served as sort of a constitutional stress test,” he said during his address over a video link for the conservative organization’s annual conference https://bit.ly/2H21TvK.

Alito, who was appointed by Republican President George W. Bush in 2006, referred to restrictions on gatherings that had affected religious events. “Think of worship services! Churches closed on Easter Sunday, synagogues closed for Passover in Yom Kippur”, he said. “It pains me to say this,” Alito added, “but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right.” The justice said freedom of speech was also under threat. “Although that freedom is falling out of favor in some circles, we need to do whatever we can to prevent it from becoming a second-tier constitutional right,” he said. Alito’s remarks on free speech echoed his words from 2016 at the same event when he referred to college campus culture that conservatives say stifles free speech to avoid offending political sensibilities on matters such as gender, race and religion. Social norms had created a list of things that was now unacceptable for students, professors and employees to say, he added on Thursday. “You can’t say that marriage is a union between one man and one woman”, he added. “Until very recently that’s what a vast majority of Americans thought. Now its considered bigotry.”Nick Note: The freedoms you ARE losing and WILL lose will never be returned to you. A Pandemic is the perfect tool of oppression..Enjoy!

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Dow closes nearly 400 pts in the green

Stocks finished higher Friday as Wall Street rebounded from the previous session’s declines that came amid soaring coronavirus cases. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 399 points, or 1.37%, to 29,479, the S&P 500 rose 1.36% and the Nasdaq gained 1.02%. For the week the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 4.1% and the S&P 500 moved up 2.2%. The Nasdaq Composite eased 0.6%. Cisco Systems  posted stronger-than-expected fiscal first-quarter earnings as services and security revenue offset a slump in sales for network equipment amid the global coronavirus pandemic.  The stock finished up 7.1% to $41.40 in trading Friday. Walt Disney  rose more than 2.1% Friday after the media and entertainment giant posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter results on growth in its Disney+ streaming business. Stocks had finished lower Thursday as a resurgence of the coronavirus worried Wall Street that new restrictions aimed at curbing the pandemic would lead to a halt in any economic recovery. The U.S. set a record Thursday of more than 160,000 new coronavirus cases, while hospitalizations for covid-19 of more than 67,000 also set a national record. In California, coronavirus cases surpassed 1 million, according to Johns Hopkins University.  New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio could shut down the city’s school system, the nation’s largest, as early as Monday.  Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot issued a 30-day stay-at-home advisory, asking the city’s residents to cancel Thanksgiving plans and stay at home.

Powell said the “the main risk we see” to an economic recovery “is clearly the further spread of the disease here in the United States.”

“We’ve got new cases at a record level. We’ve seen a number of states begin to reimpose limited activity restrictions, and people may lose confidence that it’s safe to go out,” Powell said.  “We’ve said from the beginning that the economy will not fully recover until people are confident that it’s safe to resume activities involving crowds and people.” He also called for further economic support from Congress. But progress there has stalled and reports said Thursday that the Trump administration has walked away from talks on a relief package and will leave it up to Congress to revive negotiations with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Nick Note: This stock market is a wipe out waiting to happen. Lock downs are coming. You may notice oil has priced in reality. Their is no vaccine, Even if approved it will take 2 years to get crowd immunity assuming the vaccines work and immunity lasts. Their is no stimuli program and will not be till 2nd quarter next year.

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More than 130 Secret Service Agents infected with coronavirus

According to The Washington Post, the virus outbreak has dramatically impacted the president’s security detail at the same time as members of his staff continue to fall ill. One former supervisor told the Post: ‘Being down more than 100 officers is very problematic. That does not bode well for White House security.’ Secret Service officers guard President Trump and Vice President Pence’s official residences, and also provide security for trips, as well as other campaign events. Advertisement Trump advisor Corey Lewandowski became the latest presidential aide to announce a positive Covid test result on Thursday, with Chief of Staff Mark Meadows announcing his diagnosis earlier this week. President Trump sparked fury after making Secret Service agents take him for a ‘drive-by’ past fans the day after he was taken to hospital with a coronavirus infection (Picture: AP) White House spokesman Judd Deere told the post that the Trump administration takes ‘every case seriously.’ He declined to comment further on the Secret Service outbreak, with a Secret Service spokesman also declining to comment. Trump was criticized by public health officials for holding crowded rallies throughout fall, with many attendees seen without masks. His final two days of campaigning saw him make 10 different stops, with at least 20 Secret Service agents required to protect him at each stop. Wisconsin.  Contact tracing is now underway to try and establish where the agents picked the virus up, with campaign rallies and the White House itself among the suspected locations They also suspect the White House itself could have been the location where multiple staff members were infected. President Trump caught coronavirus in early October, and spent three nights at Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, receiving specialist treatment. Many Secret Service personnel were reportedly furious after Trump insisted on a ‘drive-by’ for supporters on his first day at the hospital. That saw two Secret Service agents forced to don heavy PPE and drive him past fans and journalists in a hermetically sealed SUV, less than two days after the president received his positive Covid test. Many of Trump’s aides are said to have ignored guidance to wear masks at work, instead relying on regular rapid tests to try and stop the virus taking a hold at the president’s address. A total of 10.569million Americans have so-far been infected with coronavirus, with over 242,000 people killed across the US. President Trump is said to have last met with his coronavirus task force last month, but tweeted hailing the success of a prototype vaccine earlier this week, Nick Note: please take notice of the fact Trumps Secret Service detail ALL wore N95 toilet paper coffee filters masks. Did anyone stop to think maybe the masks are not working… DAH!

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At least 5 passengers on first Caribbean cruise in months tests positive for COVID-19

At least five people who were aboard the first Caribbean cruise ship in months tested positive for COVID-19, according to a CNN report.

 

NBC reported earlier on Wednesday that a passenger tested positive for the virus, citing a report from Gene Sloan, a reporter for the website The Points Guy who was on the ship. Sloan said the captain announced that the passenger aboard SeaDream 1 tested positive on a “preliminary basis.” NBC noted it was not clear what “preliminary basis” means. Sloan said that all passengers were asked to return to their cabins to isolate and that the ship’s crew was also isolating. The Hill has reached out to SeaDream Yacht Club, which owns the ship, for comment. SeaDream 1 is the first cruise vessel to begin sailing in the Caribbean since March when the coronavirus was declared a pandemic.  Coronavirus cases are now skyrocketing across the U.S., raising alarms as people move inside to escape the colder weather. There were 53 passengers and 66 crew members onboard SeaDream 1 at the time the announcement was made, according to Sloan.  Every passenger on board had to test negative for the virus several days prior to boarding and again on the day of boarding. Another round of testing was conducted Wednesday when the passenger tested positive.  The ship left Barbados on Saturday and had traveled to Saint Vincent, Canouan Island, and Tobago Cays, according to Sloan. Passengers had not come into contact with island locals, he wrote.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention first barred cruise sailing in mid-March, and renewed the order in April and July. It later lifted the order to allow “simulation” cruises to sail in the U.S.  Cruise ships proved to be dangerous for the spread of the coronavirus after hundreds aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan contracted the virus in February. Several ships docked outside U.S. waters ran into similar issues before cases started escalating in the U.S. Nick Note: Its all about the money. I want to remind you of  a few things. The air-con system JUST LIKE THE AIRLINES has HEPA Filtration. It does not work on a airlines. The reason why you can’t tell is people are off planes in a matter of hours and not tested. Your smart people figure it out The people on the death boat cruise to hell are on board for days with N95 toilet paper coffee filters and tested positive. N95 masks and HEPA filtration does not work on a cruise ship or airliners either.

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Virus surge breaking infection records across the US

Texas on Wednesday became the first state with more than 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases, and California closed in on that mark as a surge of coronavirus infections engulfs the country. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said all restaurants, bars and gyms statewide will have to close at 10 p.m. starting Friday, a major retreat in a corner of the U.S. that had seemingly brought the virus largely under control months ago. He also barred private gatherings of more than 10 people. Texas, the second-most populous state, has recorded 1.02 million coronavirus cases and over 19,000 deaths since the outbreak began in early March, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. California, the most populous state, has logged more than 995,000 cases. The U.S. has recorded over 240,000 deaths and more than 10.3 million confirmed infections, with new cases soaring to all-time highs of well over 120,000 per day over the past week. Health experts have blamed the increase in part on the onset of cold weather and growing frustration with mask-wearing and other precautions. Cases per day are on the rise in 49 states, and deaths per day are climbing in 39. A month ago, the U.S. was seeing about 730 COVID-19 deaths per day on average; that has now surpassed 970. Among the many health officials sounding the alarm was Dr. Julie Watson of Integris Health in Oklahoma. “We are in trouble,” she said. “If nothing is done soon to slow the rise in cases, our hospitals will be more overwhelmed than they already are and we won’t be able to be there for all of those who need it.” Oklahoma’s health department said Wednesday that 1,248 people were hospitalized for confirmed or probable coronavirus, shattering the previous one-day record of 1,055. Texas reported 10,865 new cases on Tuesday, breaking a record set in mid-July. One of the hardest-hit places is the border city of El Paso; its county has nearly 28,000 active cases and has suffered more than 680 COVID-19 deaths. The American Medical Association renewed its plea for mask-wearing, physical distancing and frequent hand-washing. “With the holidays quickly approaching, each of us must do everything possible to reduce the spread of COVID-19,” AMA President Susan Bailey said. “Failing to do our part will prolong the suffering and disruption to our lives and inevitably lead to more deaths of our friends, neighbors and loved ones.” Meanwhile, many traditional Veterans Day celebrations gave way to somber virtual gatherings Wednesday. Many veterans homes have barred visitors to protect their residents from the virus. In New York City, a quiet parade of military vehicles, with no spectators, rolled through Manhattan to maintain the 101-year tradition of veterans marching on Fifth Avenue. More than 4,200 veterans have died from COVID-19 at hospitals and homes run by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and nearly 85,000 have been infected, according to the department.

Around the country:

— The NFL’s Minnesota Vikings said it will close its remaining home games to fans, as the state blew past its record for new deaths in a day. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced new restrictions on bars and restaurants and said he wishes the neighboring Dakotas would take more aggressive steps to slow the spread of the coronavirus. He said this summer’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota was “absolutely unnecessary” and helped spread the virus beyond that state.

— Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine issued new orders on mask enforcement at businesses, while threatening to close bars, restaurants and fitness centers if infections keep surging. The Republican governor shifted the authority over mask enforcement from the counties to the state. If a business receives more than one violation, it must close for 24 hours. He’s also requiring businesses to display ‘No Mask, No Service’ signs and refuse service to customers who don’t comply. But DeWine’s orders Wednesday were not as far-reaching as in March, when Ohio became one of the first states to go into lockdown.

— In Nebraska, which is setting records for COVID-19 hospitalizations, new restrictions took effect Wednesday. Those include a requirement to wear masks at businesses where employees have close contact with customers for more than 15 minutes, such as barbershops, and a limit on large indoor gatherings to 25% of a building’s capacity. Gov. Pete Ricketts and his wife have gone into quarantine after being exposed to someone with the virus.

— North Carolina reported its highest single-day increase in coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic, with 3,119 people — 8% of those tested — testing positive for the virus.

— Kentucky posted a record daily high for new confirmed cases, at 2,700, as the governor implored people to wear masks to counter the accelerating outbreak.

— A group of Utah teachers is encouraging colleagues statewide to call in sick Thursday and use the day to get tested for the virus. Some teachers believe the action could prompt state officials to do more to increase classroom safety.

— In Sioux Falls, the largest city in hard-hit South Dakota, Mayor Paul TenHaken cast a tie-breaking vote that defeated a proposed mask mandate. Violations would have carried a $50 fine.

— North Dakota continues to have the most new COVID-19 cases per capita in the nation, according to Johns Hopkins data, with one in every 83 residents testing positive in the past week.