'Monsters exist, but they are too few in number to be truly dangerous. More dangerous are the common men, the functionaries ready to believe and to act without asking questions'
- Primo Levi
No President, Prime Minister, Dictator nor a King can plant the seeds of tyranny without legions of enablers.
But in order to rule with an iron fist of tyranny, otherwise decent people, must be rendered bystanders.
Count on your fingers how many people you know who stood up.
Amen! I am in awe of the masses that allow the lies to become truths in their own minds - even if they are living the actions of truth they are believing the verbal lies! One could assume it is a social experiment! Let’s allow 100,000’s to cross the border and tell everyone “that’s not happening, the border is secure.” Children are the least affected by Covid -“let’s vaccinate and boost children and demand they wear masks in perpetuity!” Why? Well, the school board says so!!
One can hardly blame the liars, at this point it’s the populace that blindly follows ..... Truly, how does this end?
Many people have a deep need to belong to their chosen tribe. I talked to my pro-vax MD sister about it. She was always smart and wanted to fit in more as a kid, and that need seems to modulate her critical thinking. I gave up on fitting in at a young age.
“Fitting in” never appealed to me either - peer pressure all of that never mattered. I chose to think for myself, to be kind, and polite. I never wanted to stand out by following or by being a rebel, just being me was enough. Saved me from a lot of issues especially as a teenager. Setting an example as an adult who truly looks into things and educates themselves ought to be the norm … too bad that even professionals are forsaking their reputations and their professions to “fit in” and go along regardless of the lasting effects to humanity and to America.
it includes educated people, writers of critical/political /dystopian fiction. i'm just reading '' stone gods'' by j winterson , from 07. it describes a society as envisioned by the resetters, with the main character at odds. i wonder what she's doing/thinking/writing now.
Well, I've heard speculation that once "the Science's" manufactured, self replicating spikes invade enough of the water supplies, we've achieved an extinction level event. I'm reminded of Vonnegut's "ice nine" here.
But they weren’t bystanders, every one who remained silent-- when the schoolchildren were masked and their unvaccinated coworkers lost their jobs-- were actively complicit.
Unfortunately most people have been brainwashed by the media. Fear and loathing from the cabal and the media sychopants have done a great job terrorizing the lemmings. There are just to many cowards everywhere ...sad
Thank you, Chris Bray. All the truth happens on Substack.
True. Sadly, this is nothing new and has been coming upon us, glacier-slow. In 1972, the (Frank) Church Commission exposed that government was planting lies within the media. That's nothing new, since FDR used media to his advantage. FDR was anti-Semitic, but "needed the Jews in radio" to sell going to war. (Source: An Empire of Their Own by Neal Gabler).
What's also important to remember, is that liberals tend to be spoiled, immature, lacking in responsibility, so any "current thing" that comes along, they jump on it to temporarily feel like a
superhero. Then, when the Democrat lies fall apart, as they always do - they're let down, and more anger ensues.
What's being pushed down everyone's throat for the "common good" and "greater good" is unconstitutional and anti-freedom. Also, read John Droz' 3-part article on this very subject on Substack. His newsletter is worth subscribing to, also.
I know two families where there was obvious (to me) vaccine injury. Before they realized they may have been injured they tolerated my anti mandate stance but now they avoid me like the plague :)
Amazing how many people will ignore the obvious Covid vax injury of a family member just to keep their own cognitive dissonance at bay. That's supreme selfishness if you ask me.
My last remaining elder (my late Mom's sis) is having TIA after TIA. She's now on medication, which will, hopefully, make a difference.
Her HS pal had beaten her cancer. She and her husband both got the jab. HS Pal's cancer not only returned, but aggressively. She was dead within six months. Her husband had a massive stroke 2 months after that. Now those kids are without both parents.
This is repeating all over the United States...and the world.
And this goes into the training of the AI systems. From my chat with ChatGPT after reading this post.
Q:what is a convincing argument that cloth masks help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses
A: A convincing argument that cloth masks help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses is that they can significantly reduce the amount of respiratory droplets that are expelled by the wearer when they talk, cough, or sneeze. These droplets are the primary means by which respiratory viruses such as COVID-19 are transmitted. By blocking or trapping these droplets, cloth masks can reduce the chance that the virus will be passed on to others. Additionally, cloth masks can also help protect the wearer from inhaling respiratory droplets that may contain the virus. Studies have shown that cloth masks can reduce the spread of respiratory viruses by blocking up to 50-60% of droplets.
Q: do you have a reference for those studies?
A:I apologize, as a language model, I do not have the capability to provide you with specific studies that support my previous statement. However, there have been multiple studies that have shown the efficacy of cloth masks in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses. For example, a study published in Health Affairs in 2020, showed that the widespread use of face masks, including cloth masks, can slow the spread of COVID-19 and can save lives. Another study published in The Lancet in 2020 found that wearing a mask can reduce the risk of infection by up to 85%.
It's important to note that the effectiveness of cloth masks may vary based on factors such as the type of mask, the fit of the mask, and the materials used. In general, masks made from tightly woven, high thread count cotton or multiple layers of fabric are most effective in blocking respiratory droplets.
Q: this is a contradictory position, first you state that as a NLP you don't access to specific studies but then you reference 2 of them
A: I apologize for any confusion. As a language model, I do not have the capability to access specific studies, but I do have the ability to understand and process natural language text, so I can generate responses based on what I have been trained on. What I've said before it's based on the information that I have been trained on, and it's possible that what I said is not accurate or complete.
It's important to note that different studies might have different results, and the evidence supporting the use of cloth masks in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses is still evolving. It's always best to consult with the current literature and guidelines from reputable sources such as WHO and CDC.
Q: Is it correct to conclude that if you were not trained on studies that show negative or no effect of masks on reducing the spread of respiratory viruses that you would on indicate positive results?
A: As a language model, my responses are based on the information that I have been trained on. If I was not trained on studies that show negative or no effect of masks on reducing the spread of respiratory viruses, it's likely that I would indicate positive results when answering questions about the effectiveness of masks. However, it's important to note that the evidence supporting the use of masks in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses is still evolving, and different studies may have different results. It's always best to consult with the current literature and guidelines from reputable sources such as WHO and CDC. It's also important to mention that even when the data shows that masks are effective, they are not a substitute for other prevention measures such as physical distancing, hand hygiene, and vaccination.
Yes the left only knows how to lie, hence the programmers have been instructed with the FAKE narrative, lie or your cancelled. I blame the CORPROTOCRACY . WE CAN TAKE THEM DOWN by not spending on their products. Also shop local with your neighbors.F… the kleptocracy🫡
I saw that thread through Euggypius, and I too had to check out the comments, having some fragile hope that he was being pounded into the dirt for his hysteria. But nope. I had to read the first one twice, accusing him of putting people in *danger* by suggesting it was safe to eat without a mask. I thought it was sarcasm! To be fair, there were some sane people on there, but the number of insane people is frankly depressing.
If we could agree on a reality and just disagree about how to react to it, I would have some semblance of optimism for the future. But we can't even agree on a reality.
Get people to renounce the difference between what they want to hear and what is actually the case.
....If I follow the arrows to stand in a circle with a mask on, while waiting behind plexiglass, I am definitely safe to shop at my favorite new trendy store during the pLaGUe...
That and the free-fall of our educational system. One size fits all education. A generation raised to believe that words are violence. Safety over all! Sicherheit über alles!
Even the physical stuff... When you think about it, the idea of avoiding all physical harm is deranged. It's not possible, even if you destroy every other good thing in your life pursuing it.
When discussion becomes completely impossible due to the breakdown of even the possibility of communication following the dissolution of even the most elementary common priors, bad things start to happen.
That could be why that city manager sent the cops to your house. Not that you'd threatened him, but simply because you'd questioned him and therefore revealed yourself as one of the ontic xenos who doesn't reside in his conceptual universe and with whom he therefore could not communicate. Deep down, at some primal level, he sensed that this inevitably means violence. He then assumed that clearly you must think the same. You asked what you thought was a simple question, he heard an Ork screaming WAAAAAGH and sent the imperial guard to intimidate you. Not realizing the officer lived in your conceptual universe and not his, and would therefore not intimidate you at all.
chris, you've done it again. there's a certain heaviness that has settled on me. i live on a lovely street and wonder how my neighbors or tenants would feel about me if they only "knew." my right next door neighbor loves me but also has opined that unvaccinated parents should have their children removed from their care! i wonder if that goes for cats?
i have had to rethink every single relationship that i have and will have to rethink relationships that i haven't even imagined yet. i've lost so much respect for so many people. call me shallow, but i can't feel the same about anyone who a) still has an "In this house we believe...." sign on their front lawn, b) flies a ukranian flag, c) regularly posts photos of needles going into their upper arm flab with self congratulatory updates on the number of boosters they've had, d) wears a mask outside. i could go on but that's a lot of people who i just don't like so much anymore.
and that doesn't even include the people who A) openly called for unvaccinated people to die, B) cheered when they did, C) blamed unvaccinated people for continuing the pandemic, D) were happy enough to see inalienable rights taken away, E) were comfortable with the discrimination inherent in a two tiered society. those people are lost and cannot be forgiven or invited back into my life.
an old friend is visiting Savannah this weekend and wants to see us while she is so close. in 2019, this would have been a cause for joy. but today my BF asks "didn't you say she posted very pro-vaccine stuff on her facebook page? didn't she say insulting things about the unvaccinated?" so here we sit, pondering the possible awkwardness of a dinner with an old friend. how delicate will we have to tread? what if the subject comes up? what if she asks me why i no longer work for the Spoleto Arts Festival where she was once on my costume crew? i'm to the point where i no longer care and if asked i will be indelicately direct which could make for an unpleasant evening.
we spent today feeling a little sick, wondering if we should beg off, my BF reliving the last dinner he had with his friend in NYC (once he was allowed in a restaurant there again), a man he had mentored, that descended into an uncomfortable argument over- he can't even remember the precipitating event but knows he doesn't want a redo.
at this point, i feel like there are maybe 10 people i feel unabashedly comfortable around. 3 of them are vaccinated and two of them live in germany so we're not around them all that much.
but i walk through my life, suspicious of everyone, wondering what role they will play in destroying the freedoms we have heretofore taken for granted in this country. will they not rest until the authorities have come to my door and force vaccinated me? it doesn't help to listen to the new PM of NZ threatening to search out unvaccinated people to achieve 100% compliance. not that we're near NZ but i realize that these people will not take NO for an answer.
i have nightmares of angry vaccinated zombies burning my house down in a purifying ritual and i wake up in a cold sweat with a dread that is difficult to shake even in the light of day.
for the most part i'm fine and we go on with life as usual which is pretty easy to do in the free state of SC but there is a wall between me and everyone else now. there are no unencumbered exchanges, no automatic trust, no simple human relations.
it's as if we live on two separate planets with no connection.
My wife and I joined friends for a gathering on their outdoor patio during “Lockdown Summer” in 2020. We live in Massachusetts. There were seven of us at the gathering.
The topic turned to the behavior of Floridians and the willingness of Governor DeSantis to permit a modicum of freedom there. One of the other guests stated, without hesitation, that Floridians who do not voluntarily behave like Massachusetts residents (i.e., with masks, distancing, etc.) should die! I will note that the offended woman is a highly educated attorney.
My wife, who is from Florida, and whose parents and many other family members live in Florida, told this guest that she just wished her parents dead! Things got ugly fast, and the gathering broke up within 15 minutes. What is wrong with these people? I welcome replies with thoughtful theories, especially Chris’s..
That woman just revealed her true nature. Simple as that. Her fancy diploma can't hide the darkness of her soul.
Media and, astonishingly, the government directed their ire at the unvaccinated, blaming us for the continuing "pandemic." It became acceptable to openly express hatred, so many people took advantage of it and unloaded on maskless, unvaccinated untermenschen. Comedians and newspapers cheered for the deaths of those who sensibly refused to be injected with poison. These are truly vile human beings and I sincerely hope that they accept every booster offered to them.
This was all deliberate. With globalist puppets like Dr. Peter Hotez and actors Sean Penn and Tom Hanks continuing to denigrate the unvaccinated and those who refuse to wear useless masks, I suspect that they will again unleash hatred on us in the not-too-distant future.
I was not raised with any political affiliation or leanings. Somehow, in my twenties, I discovered a book by the stoic philosopher Epictetus by accident. That led to Plato, Aristotle, Confucius, and finally to Bastiat, Rand, and Hayek, among many others. I became a small "l" libertarian. Why not? I was in my twenties and freedom sounded great to me. I began debating people at work about philosophy, politics, society, morals. This was in the '90s. Even back then, I was called a racist, selfish, heartless, fascist. I remember one guy listening to what I thought was a well reasoned point, and when I finished he simply said, "Fascist", and walked away. These people were every bit as authoritarian then as they are now.
i've had similar experiences and i think one of the reasons is that people who live their entire adulthood in the hothouse leftist environments of academia (esp the humanities) and the big cities have almost zero experience debating opponents and defending beliefs.
it's simply de facto in these places that anyone who quibbles with even one sentence of left dogma is some sort of bigot, closeted or otherwise. it makes them feel morally superior and also saves them from the burden of thought.
"burden of thought". I know many like this and I'm amazed. If I had a dollar for every time I'm told I over-analyze! I ENJOY thinking. I have a million theories about a million different topics. There's nothing better than new facts completely upsetting what I thought I knew and having to rethink everything. I think they call it "learning".
The replies to Bob Wacthers Twitter essay about how he’s ready to visit small groups of people in well ventilated places with 5 boosters without a mask (maybe) really deserves a bracket tournament to see who had the craziest reply.
Sorry to hear about Greg Foley (didn’t know who he was, but May he rest in peace) but after reading this, I’m not surprised he succumbed to Covid. “Prof Foley (59) had cystic fibrosis, received a double-lung transplant 20 years ago and was on dialysis after the donated organs eventually failed. His were the kind of “underlying medical conditions” we read about in the pandemic statistics.” Shameful that anyone would try to make his case look like a typical
I was like you Chris, I bit the city officials and the local health officers on their ankles, and wouldn't let go until they answered me, like a rabid dog. WHY can't the gardeners mow our lawns, they're mowing yours! WHY does the sign say 'No Beach Access' when there clearly is? WHY do all the outdoor benches have yellow tape on them? WHY did you festoon our city with blue nylon ribbon to show strength? WHY are the cops parked all over the place? I never stopped.
Also, my family and my group of lifelong friends gradually stopped talking to me, and I was completely shunned when I didn't get the shot. Shocking and sad, I'm still not over it.
When Burbank USD fired it’s unvaccinated teachers and staff, including my daughter’s beloved kindergarten teacher, I asked the other class parents to sign on to a letter of objection. Only 9 of 16 parents agreed to participate. Several of the 9 parents had no problem firing an unvaccinated teacher, they were only annoyed that their kid was personally impacted.
With that and knowing that 85% of my neighbors dutifully trotted out to vote for Adam Schiff and Joe Biden, I have no interest in befriending my fellow Burbankians. We have nothing in common.
Same discussion in the South Pasadena USD, where they fired five school staffers (unidentified, but at least one teacher) for failing to receive the Sacrament of Obedience. Widely supported here.
😡 BUSD didn’t disclose how many teachers and staff were terminated. They also tried to cover it up. In the case of our teacher they claimed they couldn’t tell us why she left because personnel matters are confidential. (But a teacher’s private health information like vaccination status isn’t confidental!) Burbank hasn’t rescinded the vaccination requirement for employees, and I expect your district hasn’t either.
I’ll add another detail... Don’t know if any of you followed the Tin Horn Flats saga: it was a bar that refused to close in 2020, and when the authorities padlocked the doors, the owners removed the doors from their hinges... Anyway, on the local Nextdoor the thing people were angry about was that the bar wasn’t FOLLOWING THE RULES like the other good businesses that closed when the government told them to.
It was a bit of a complicated story, the owner seems to have been in Thailand at the time and his 21 year old son was running things. I was cheering them on as they were the only business in our city that refused to obey. You can see they got the book thrown at them and the city’s lawsuit seems to be ongoing. (The other complaint by people on Nextdoor was that Tinhorn Flats food wasn’t any good, anyway. 😂)
I see them in the pharmacy at my grocery store, with dark circles under their eyes, filling out paperwork for another booster, pushing their masks higher up on their noses. Aisles are packed with personal shoppers and parking lots have been converted to pick-up lanes; masked drivers pulling up for their groceries. Things will never be the same.
I know polls can be wrong but I’ll never forget how high the numbers are for crazy stuff like taking kids…putting people in camps…tracking people…the worst of the worst ideas…in this Rasmussen article/poll
With numbers like this I can’t go back to thinking about this country as I used to do.
With the take over of all of our institutions by the anarcho-communists, huge portions of our population are comfortable with giving up all or most of their liberty in return of some vague promise of security. This belief is drilled into them by all the right people and if you acquiesce, you can be a "good person". Those who question the state are "bad people". Also, being one of the "bad people" can have real world consequences, such as in employment, education, and having all your inalienable rights curbed, or like in the 6 January political prisoners, eliminated.
I sell PPE and know the masks are useless, even dangerous, but I see all sorts of folks wearing them outdoors. Ditto the injections, even though as the bodies mount up and more people become ill, at least that is becoming more obvious to even the most brain-dead conformists. That's why your Stack, plus all the others who resolutely and bravely point out the truth, is so important. We won't be able to educate many parts of our society. There will always be those, who like Japanese soldiers still fighting WW2 in the Philippines, in the 1960's, won't ever give up.
What's implicit in the three twitter replies is the failure to recognize liberty as a good. If liberty is recognized as more valuable than bodily health then the calculus changes entirely.(even assuming the other sides claims about the health benefits of their interventions)
They ask us to sacrifice for the common good, but the whole idea of America is sacrificing health and safety to obtain freedom. 'Give me liberty or give me death' are the words that the Covidians really and truly can't parse at all.
I would further blow their minds by arguing that free and active people tend to be healthier, while basement-sheltering fear goblins tend to sicken themselves. Freedom often correlates with healthfulness.
Why Chris, next you'll be saying that viral loads decrease in wide open spaces and that sunshine disinfects. Let me add a like to that 'Chris Bray is Stupid and Evil' thing that pops up whenever I open your substack. But even if freedom doesn't correlate with health it's better to be a dead lion than a live dog, unless you are a Skye terrier or a Giant Schnauzer.
BTW Basement-sheltering Fear Goblins(BSFG) don't just sicken themselves, they sicken me too.
'Monsters exist, but they are too few in number to be truly dangerous. More dangerous are the common men, the functionaries ready to believe and to act without asking questions'
- Primo Levi
No President, Prime Minister, Dictator nor a King can plant the seeds of tyranny without legions of enablers.
But in order to rule with an iron fist of tyranny, otherwise decent people, must be rendered bystanders.
Count on your fingers how many people you know who stood up.
Amen! I am in awe of the masses that allow the lies to become truths in their own minds - even if they are living the actions of truth they are believing the verbal lies! One could assume it is a social experiment! Let’s allow 100,000’s to cross the border and tell everyone “that’s not happening, the border is secure.” Children are the least affected by Covid -“let’s vaccinate and boost children and demand they wear masks in perpetuity!” Why? Well, the school board says so!!
One can hardly blame the liars, at this point it’s the populace that blindly follows ..... Truly, how does this end?
Many people have a deep need to belong to their chosen tribe. I talked to my pro-vax MD sister about it. She was always smart and wanted to fit in more as a kid, and that need seems to modulate her critical thinking. I gave up on fitting in at a young age.
“Fitting in” never appealed to me either - peer pressure all of that never mattered. I chose to think for myself, to be kind, and polite. I never wanted to stand out by following or by being a rebel, just being me was enough. Saved me from a lot of issues especially as a teenager. Setting an example as an adult who truly looks into things and educates themselves ought to be the norm … too bad that even professionals are forsaking their reputations and their professions to “fit in” and go along regardless of the lasting effects to humanity and to America.
Group-think is the currency for belonging; I can’t abide it.
Yeah my spidey-sense antenna goes full mast when everyone is doing or saying the same thing.
Maybe they need history lessons?
forgetting extermination is part of the extermination...
Seriously, we've become a nation of cowards.
What the peeps don't understand is that they will keep pushing you as long as you keep "moving". Take a stand or watch tyranny unfold in increments.
Sad.
it includes educated people, writers of critical/political /dystopian fiction. i'm just reading '' stone gods'' by j winterson , from 07. it describes a society as envisioned by the resetters, with the main character at odds. i wonder what she's doing/thinking/writing now.
Well, I've heard speculation that once "the Science's" manufactured, self replicating spikes invade enough of the water supplies, we've achieved an extinction level event. I'm reminded of Vonnegut's "ice nine" here.
Having one’s own well and septic system becomes another of many rural blessings.
But they weren’t bystanders, every one who remained silent-- when the schoolchildren were masked and their unvaccinated coworkers lost their jobs-- were actively complicit.
Yeah when you get down to it that's true.
I struggle with it. But ultimately that could be unhealthy to not give it up.
But I have told plenty of people that if they want to get together in the future then we're going to have a covid talk first.
And I've told those closest to me exactly what you said
What do the people say in defense of their behavior? I’m genuinely curious.
Not a lot. But they know.
And that's why I let them know it would be unacceptable if it happened again.
I also let them know that if they try to bring masking or mandates back, THERE WILL BE BLOOD. And I'll be first in line.
They need to see how serious this is by seeing how serious it is to people like us.
My overall message is:
What happened was VERY dangerous
🗨 When truth is replaced by silence, the silence is a lie.
Upvoted for reference to Primo Levi. I have his books. And I guess I don't need 10 fingers.
I live among the Amish who did. Sadly they are not fighters.
The downright off presumption of shared moral universe <-- Innit the root why the paradigmatic rascal Poe‘s Law never tires of winning? 😇
It seemed reasonably appropriate when dealing with randos on interwebz; quite a shock to learn the same goes for families and neighbours 🤦
Unfortunately most people have been brainwashed by the media. Fear and loathing from the cabal and the media sychopants have done a great job terrorizing the lemmings. There are just to many cowards everywhere ...sad
Thank you, Chris Bray. All the truth happens on Substack.
True. Sadly, this is nothing new and has been coming upon us, glacier-slow. In 1972, the (Frank) Church Commission exposed that government was planting lies within the media. That's nothing new, since FDR used media to his advantage. FDR was anti-Semitic, but "needed the Jews in radio" to sell going to war. (Source: An Empire of Their Own by Neal Gabler).
What's also important to remember, is that liberals tend to be spoiled, immature, lacking in responsibility, so any "current thing" that comes along, they jump on it to temporarily feel like a
superhero. Then, when the Democrat lies fall apart, as they always do - they're let down, and more anger ensues.
What's being pushed down everyone's throat for the "common good" and "greater good" is unconstitutional and anti-freedom. Also, read John Droz' 3-part article on this very subject on Substack. His newsletter is worth subscribing to, also.
Dumbocraps are also, many times, narcissists. --- 1) It's all about them. 2) They are never wrong. 3) It's not, ever, their fault.
Agree - California born - plenty of first-hand experience!
I know two families where there was obvious (to me) vaccine injury. Before they realized they may have been injured they tolerated my anti mandate stance but now they avoid me like the plague :)
Our family has been ripped apart over it. The Feds KNEW and did it anyway. Intentionally.
Amazing how many people will ignore the obvious Covid vax injury of a family member just to keep their own cognitive dissonance at bay. That's supreme selfishness if you ask me.
My last remaining elder (my late Mom's sis) is having TIA after TIA. She's now on medication, which will, hopefully, make a difference.
Her HS pal had beaten her cancer. She and her husband both got the jab. HS Pal's cancer not only returned, but aggressively. She was dead within six months. Her husband had a massive stroke 2 months after that. Now those kids are without both parents.
This is repeating all over the United States...and the world.
Pride cometh before a fall. And a haughty spirit before destruction.
How many times can I like this comment? ☝🏻☝🏻☝🏻
Shame and cognitive dissonance on their part. I suspect my own sister died as a result of the vaccine. But I can’t prove it.
And this goes into the training of the AI systems. From my chat with ChatGPT after reading this post.
Q:what is a convincing argument that cloth masks help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses
A: A convincing argument that cloth masks help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses is that they can significantly reduce the amount of respiratory droplets that are expelled by the wearer when they talk, cough, or sneeze. These droplets are the primary means by which respiratory viruses such as COVID-19 are transmitted. By blocking or trapping these droplets, cloth masks can reduce the chance that the virus will be passed on to others. Additionally, cloth masks can also help protect the wearer from inhaling respiratory droplets that may contain the virus. Studies have shown that cloth masks can reduce the spread of respiratory viruses by blocking up to 50-60% of droplets.
Q: do you have a reference for those studies?
A:I apologize, as a language model, I do not have the capability to provide you with specific studies that support my previous statement. However, there have been multiple studies that have shown the efficacy of cloth masks in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses. For example, a study published in Health Affairs in 2020, showed that the widespread use of face masks, including cloth masks, can slow the spread of COVID-19 and can save lives. Another study published in The Lancet in 2020 found that wearing a mask can reduce the risk of infection by up to 85%.
It's important to note that the effectiveness of cloth masks may vary based on factors such as the type of mask, the fit of the mask, and the materials used. In general, masks made from tightly woven, high thread count cotton or multiple layers of fabric are most effective in blocking respiratory droplets.
Q: this is a contradictory position, first you state that as a NLP you don't access to specific studies but then you reference 2 of them
A: I apologize for any confusion. As a language model, I do not have the capability to access specific studies, but I do have the ability to understand and process natural language text, so I can generate responses based on what I have been trained on. What I've said before it's based on the information that I have been trained on, and it's possible that what I said is not accurate or complete.
It's important to note that different studies might have different results, and the evidence supporting the use of cloth masks in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses is still evolving. It's always best to consult with the current literature and guidelines from reputable sources such as WHO and CDC.
Q: Is it correct to conclude that if you were not trained on studies that show negative or no effect of masks on reducing the spread of respiratory viruses that you would on indicate positive results?
A: As a language model, my responses are based on the information that I have been trained on. If I was not trained on studies that show negative or no effect of masks on reducing the spread of respiratory viruses, it's likely that I would indicate positive results when answering questions about the effectiveness of masks. However, it's important to note that the evidence supporting the use of masks in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses is still evolving, and different studies may have different results. It's always best to consult with the current literature and guidelines from reputable sources such as WHO and CDC. It's also important to mention that even when the data shows that masks are effective, they are not a substitute for other prevention measures such as physical distancing, hand hygiene, and vaccination.
Yes the left only knows how to lie, hence the programmers have been instructed with the FAKE narrative, lie or your cancelled. I blame the CORPROTOCRACY . WE CAN TAKE THEM DOWN by not spending on their products. Also shop local with your neighbors.F… the kleptocracy🫡
Many of them were happy to go right along with the brainwashing
I saw that thread through Euggypius, and I too had to check out the comments, having some fragile hope that he was being pounded into the dirt for his hysteria. But nope. I had to read the first one twice, accusing him of putting people in *danger* by suggesting it was safe to eat without a mask. I thought it was sarcasm! To be fair, there were some sane people on there, but the number of insane people is frankly depressing.
If we could agree on a reality and just disagree about how to react to it, I would have some semblance of optimism for the future. But we can't even agree on a reality.
That's the whole idea Lillia:
Get people to renounce the difference between what they want to hear and what is actually the case.
....If I follow the arrows to stand in a circle with a mask on, while waiting behind plexiglass, I am definitely safe to shop at my favorite new trendy store during the pLaGUe...
That and the free-fall of our educational system. One size fits all education. A generation raised to believe that words are violence. Safety over all! Sicherheit über alles!
Sheesh...I was raised on "sticks and stones may break your bones, but WORDS will never hurt you". Elementary school.
That’s obviously white supremacy. And racist.
Even the physical stuff... When you think about it, the idea of avoiding all physical harm is deranged. It's not possible, even if you destroy every other good thing in your life pursuing it.
For sure! We even played dodge ball - bam! Laughed the whole time.
Good point. Safety culture is insidious (and inherently futile).
"No slave left behind"....
When discussion becomes completely impossible due to the breakdown of even the possibility of communication following the dissolution of even the most elementary common priors, bad things start to happen.
That could be why that city manager sent the cops to your house. Not that you'd threatened him, but simply because you'd questioned him and therefore revealed yourself as one of the ontic xenos who doesn't reside in his conceptual universe and with whom he therefore could not communicate. Deep down, at some primal level, he sensed that this inevitably means violence. He then assumed that clearly you must think the same. You asked what you thought was a simple question, he heard an Ork screaming WAAAAAGH and sent the imperial guard to intimidate you. Not realizing the officer lived in your conceptual universe and not his, and would therefore not intimidate you at all.
chris, you've done it again. there's a certain heaviness that has settled on me. i live on a lovely street and wonder how my neighbors or tenants would feel about me if they only "knew." my right next door neighbor loves me but also has opined that unvaccinated parents should have their children removed from their care! i wonder if that goes for cats?
i have had to rethink every single relationship that i have and will have to rethink relationships that i haven't even imagined yet. i've lost so much respect for so many people. call me shallow, but i can't feel the same about anyone who a) still has an "In this house we believe...." sign on their front lawn, b) flies a ukranian flag, c) regularly posts photos of needles going into their upper arm flab with self congratulatory updates on the number of boosters they've had, d) wears a mask outside. i could go on but that's a lot of people who i just don't like so much anymore.
and that doesn't even include the people who A) openly called for unvaccinated people to die, B) cheered when they did, C) blamed unvaccinated people for continuing the pandemic, D) were happy enough to see inalienable rights taken away, E) were comfortable with the discrimination inherent in a two tiered society. those people are lost and cannot be forgiven or invited back into my life.
an old friend is visiting Savannah this weekend and wants to see us while she is so close. in 2019, this would have been a cause for joy. but today my BF asks "didn't you say she posted very pro-vaccine stuff on her facebook page? didn't she say insulting things about the unvaccinated?" so here we sit, pondering the possible awkwardness of a dinner with an old friend. how delicate will we have to tread? what if the subject comes up? what if she asks me why i no longer work for the Spoleto Arts Festival where she was once on my costume crew? i'm to the point where i no longer care and if asked i will be indelicately direct which could make for an unpleasant evening.
we spent today feeling a little sick, wondering if we should beg off, my BF reliving the last dinner he had with his friend in NYC (once he was allowed in a restaurant there again), a man he had mentored, that descended into an uncomfortable argument over- he can't even remember the precipitating event but knows he doesn't want a redo.
at this point, i feel like there are maybe 10 people i feel unabashedly comfortable around. 3 of them are vaccinated and two of them live in germany so we're not around them all that much.
but i walk through my life, suspicious of everyone, wondering what role they will play in destroying the freedoms we have heretofore taken for granted in this country. will they not rest until the authorities have come to my door and force vaccinated me? it doesn't help to listen to the new PM of NZ threatening to search out unvaccinated people to achieve 100% compliance. not that we're near NZ but i realize that these people will not take NO for an answer.
i have nightmares of angry vaccinated zombies burning my house down in a purifying ritual and i wake up in a cold sweat with a dread that is difficult to shake even in the light of day.
for the most part i'm fine and we go on with life as usual which is pretty easy to do in the free state of SC but there is a wall between me and everyone else now. there are no unencumbered exchanges, no automatic trust, no simple human relations.
it's as if we live on two separate planets with no connection.
My wife and I joined friends for a gathering on their outdoor patio during “Lockdown Summer” in 2020. We live in Massachusetts. There were seven of us at the gathering.
The topic turned to the behavior of Floridians and the willingness of Governor DeSantis to permit a modicum of freedom there. One of the other guests stated, without hesitation, that Floridians who do not voluntarily behave like Massachusetts residents (i.e., with masks, distancing, etc.) should die! I will note that the offended woman is a highly educated attorney.
My wife, who is from Florida, and whose parents and many other family members live in Florida, told this guest that she just wished her parents dead! Things got ugly fast, and the gathering broke up within 15 minutes. What is wrong with these people? I welcome replies with thoughtful theories, especially Chris’s..
That woman just revealed her true nature. Simple as that. Her fancy diploma can't hide the darkness of her soul.
Media and, astonishingly, the government directed their ire at the unvaccinated, blaming us for the continuing "pandemic." It became acceptable to openly express hatred, so many people took advantage of it and unloaded on maskless, unvaccinated untermenschen. Comedians and newspapers cheered for the deaths of those who sensibly refused to be injected with poison. These are truly vile human beings and I sincerely hope that they accept every booster offered to them.
This was all deliberate. With globalist puppets like Dr. Peter Hotez and actors Sean Penn and Tom Hanks continuing to denigrate the unvaccinated and those who refuse to wear useless masks, I suspect that they will again unleash hatred on us in the not-too-distant future.
Here's a scary read from Dr. Byram Bridle in Canada from last April:https://viralimmunologist.substack.com/p/fiction-disguised-as-science-to-promote?utm_source=profile&utm_medium=reader2
Excellent bit of history but i think its relevant to the last three years and perhaps what is to come:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8DBd3SkuS8
Yinz guys ever heard of Proscription? You kinda just exp. a mild form of it
i prefer it when Team Tolerance Love Wins! gets all eliminationist...it's the only time they're ever being honest.
I was not raised with any political affiliation or leanings. Somehow, in my twenties, I discovered a book by the stoic philosopher Epictetus by accident. That led to Plato, Aristotle, Confucius, and finally to Bastiat, Rand, and Hayek, among many others. I became a small "l" libertarian. Why not? I was in my twenties and freedom sounded great to me. I began debating people at work about philosophy, politics, society, morals. This was in the '90s. Even back then, I was called a racist, selfish, heartless, fascist. I remember one guy listening to what I thought was a well reasoned point, and when I finished he simply said, "Fascist", and walked away. These people were every bit as authoritarian then as they are now.
i've had similar experiences and i think one of the reasons is that people who live their entire adulthood in the hothouse leftist environments of academia (esp the humanities) and the big cities have almost zero experience debating opponents and defending beliefs.
it's simply de facto in these places that anyone who quibbles with even one sentence of left dogma is some sort of bigot, closeted or otherwise. it makes them feel morally superior and also saves them from the burden of thought.
"burden of thought". I know many like this and I'm amazed. If I had a dollar for every time I'm told I over-analyze! I ENJOY thinking. I have a million theories about a million different topics. There's nothing better than new facts completely upsetting what I thought I knew and having to rethink everything. I think they call it "learning".
Astonishing!
The replies to Bob Wacthers Twitter essay about how he’s ready to visit small groups of people in well ventilated places with 5 boosters without a mask (maybe) really deserves a bracket tournament to see who had the craziest reply.
I submit this, and I know it’s a surprise, but yes, pronouns in Bio
https://twitter.com/drchristinemann/status/1616489674171613196?s=46&t=REkE6b2Fjx-atpnfMqF6Aw
yuck
Sorry to hear about Greg Foley (didn’t know who he was, but May he rest in peace) but after reading this, I’m not surprised he succumbed to Covid. “Prof Foley (59) had cystic fibrosis, received a double-lung transplant 20 years ago and was on dialysis after the donated organs eventually failed. His were the kind of “underlying medical conditions” we read about in the pandemic statistics.” Shameful that anyone would try to make his case look like a typical
Covid case.
Living to 59 with cystic fibrosis is almost unheard of. Wow
living 20 years with a double lung transplant is even more unheard of!
anyone with pronouns in their bio is immediately discounted
LMFAO!~
You don't feel safer when banks require a mask to get money from the teller?
😹
Perfect analogy! Virtue signaling is such an intensely competitive sport...
I like the one that explains all the carnage we're seeing is caused by getting Covid over and over.
I was like you Chris, I bit the city officials and the local health officers on their ankles, and wouldn't let go until they answered me, like a rabid dog. WHY can't the gardeners mow our lawns, they're mowing yours! WHY does the sign say 'No Beach Access' when there clearly is? WHY do all the outdoor benches have yellow tape on them? WHY did you festoon our city with blue nylon ribbon to show strength? WHY are the cops parked all over the place? I never stopped.
Also, my family and my group of lifelong friends gradually stopped talking to me, and I was completely shunned when I didn't get the shot. Shocking and sad, I'm still not over it.
When Burbank USD fired it’s unvaccinated teachers and staff, including my daughter’s beloved kindergarten teacher, I asked the other class parents to sign on to a letter of objection. Only 9 of 16 parents agreed to participate. Several of the 9 parents had no problem firing an unvaccinated teacher, they were only annoyed that their kid was personally impacted.
With that and knowing that 85% of my neighbors dutifully trotted out to vote for Adam Schiff and Joe Biden, I have no interest in befriending my fellow Burbankians. We have nothing in common.
Same discussion in the South Pasadena USD, where they fired five school staffers (unidentified, but at least one teacher) for failing to receive the Sacrament of Obedience. Widely supported here.
😡 BUSD didn’t disclose how many teachers and staff were terminated. They also tried to cover it up. In the case of our teacher they claimed they couldn’t tell us why she left because personnel matters are confidential. (But a teacher’s private health information like vaccination status isn’t confidental!) Burbank hasn’t rescinded the vaccination requirement for employees, and I expect your district hasn’t either.
They have not. I told them they will, and they don't believe me yet.
I’ll add another detail... Don’t know if any of you followed the Tin Horn Flats saga: it was a bar that refused to close in 2020, and when the authorities padlocked the doors, the owners removed the doors from their hinges... Anyway, on the local Nextdoor the thing people were angry about was that the bar wasn’t FOLLOWING THE RULES like the other good businesses that closed when the government told them to.
Oh my, I didn’t realize City of Burbank dedicated an entire web page to the incident: https://www.burbankca.gov/tinhorn-flats
Tin Horn Flats = Heroes
It was a bit of a complicated story, the owner seems to have been in Thailand at the time and his 21 year old son was running things. I was cheering them on as they were the only business in our city that refused to obey. You can see they got the book thrown at them and the city’s lawsuit seems to be ongoing. (The other complaint by people on Nextdoor was that Tinhorn Flats food wasn’t any good, anyway. 😂)
That took a lot of guts to stay open at that time in California. I give 'em a lot of credit.
My worry for about a year has been that 5% or 10% of Americans are permanently impaired by covid anxiety, and that's why life will never be the same.
They must be marginalized and the masking must be rejected in full.
I’m afraid it’s 20-30%.
There's gonna be some effed up kids in the future. Go to an airport and see how many parents are still masking small children.
I see them in the pharmacy at my grocery store, with dark circles under their eyes, filling out paperwork for another booster, pushing their masks higher up on their noses. Aisles are packed with personal shoppers and parking lots have been converted to pick-up lanes; masked drivers pulling up for their groceries. Things will never be the same.
I know polls can be wrong but I’ll never forget how high the numbers are for crazy stuff like taking kids…putting people in camps…tracking people…the worst of the worst ideas…in this Rasmussen article/poll
With numbers like this I can’t go back to thinking about this country as I used to do.
https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/partner_surveys/jan_2022/covid_19_democratic_voters_support_harsh_measures_against_unvaccinated
Just hearing that j biden esq. seem to have 40% "approval" of late frightens me (4 out of 10 people are that f'd up?!)
Exactly, my thoughts! I was truly shocked! 😱😳🤯
With the take over of all of our institutions by the anarcho-communists, huge portions of our population are comfortable with giving up all or most of their liberty in return of some vague promise of security. This belief is drilled into them by all the right people and if you acquiesce, you can be a "good person". Those who question the state are "bad people". Also, being one of the "bad people" can have real world consequences, such as in employment, education, and having all your inalienable rights curbed, or like in the 6 January political prisoners, eliminated.
I sell PPE and know the masks are useless, even dangerous, but I see all sorts of folks wearing them outdoors. Ditto the injections, even though as the bodies mount up and more people become ill, at least that is becoming more obvious to even the most brain-dead conformists. That's why your Stack, plus all the others who resolutely and bravely point out the truth, is so important. We won't be able to educate many parts of our society. There will always be those, who like Japanese soldiers still fighting WW2 in the Philippines, in the 1960's, won't ever give up.
Danny Huckabee
What's implicit in the three twitter replies is the failure to recognize liberty as a good. If liberty is recognized as more valuable than bodily health then the calculus changes entirely.(even assuming the other sides claims about the health benefits of their interventions)
They ask us to sacrifice for the common good, but the whole idea of America is sacrificing health and safety to obtain freedom. 'Give me liberty or give me death' are the words that the Covidians really and truly can't parse at all.
I would further blow their minds by arguing that free and active people tend to be healthier, while basement-sheltering fear goblins tend to sicken themselves. Freedom often correlates with healthfulness.
Why Chris, next you'll be saying that viral loads decrease in wide open spaces and that sunshine disinfects. Let me add a like to that 'Chris Bray is Stupid and Evil' thing that pops up whenever I open your substack. But even if freedom doesn't correlate with health it's better to be a dead lion than a live dog, unless you are a Skye terrier or a Giant Schnauzer.
BTW Basement-sheltering Fear Goblins(BSFG) don't just sicken themselves, they sicken me too.
This video:
https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/1246935687041110025
Produced this response:
https://twitter.com/francispouliot_/status/1246986000238288897
Which I still think about every single day.