Covid-19 Cures, Chase Sapphire Changes, Hertz Inside Story, Science Fiction Timeline

We bring you all the Covid-19 cures, al the Chase Sapphire changes, we go deep into the Hertz inside story, bring you THE science fiction timeline, we mourn the over 100,000 dead from the pandemic catastrophe we are living through, we are being buried by the information apocalypse, visit Lubang Island and other abandoned world wonders, go scuba diving in Jordan, revisit a lady on a motorbike trip around the world, make fun of MLM schemes and a lot more!

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I’ll see you Monday. Be excellent to each other.

COVID-19

Let’s start with an article about them cures out there: Do any Covid-19 ‘cures’ actually work? The latest word on hydroxychloroquine and remdesivir. And the word is not good…while you realize we have a long way to go…and science is messy.

Fast science is happening. It has to happen. But the rest of us (especially those of us who make science public and well-known) need to be extra careful to make it clear that fast science is not the same thing as good science, because sometimes people will die.

So, I guess the theme of today’s Covid-19 coverage is, well, how much we still don’t know about it! Learning to Live in the Valley of Uncertainty. Article opens with this paragraph and…you get the idea!

The more we learn about COVID-19 and the best practices with which to combat it, the clearer it is that we are living still in a valley of pandemic ignorance. We are suffering and dying at historic rates but the laws governing the ebb and flow of the virus remain maddeningly inscrutable. Even when the news is good — with case rates stabilizing even through a period of “reopening,” for instance — we don’t really know how to explain it. And when the news is scary — as it was when a new syndrome suddenly arose, affecting kids long thought practically invulnerable — we struggle to contextualize it.

but let me emphasize my point ok?

But the public-health uncertainty is much bigger and more profound than American incompetence. The disease remains something of a mystery in patients; just as frustratingly, it remains a mystery at the population level, where social and political decisions must be made, and where nevertheless we have only something approaching best guesses about best practices. At first, epidemiological models made projections that were too high, then too low; lockdowns seemed first our last defense against a pandemic deluge, but the benefits are growing increasingly uncertain. We still have only the crudest understanding of which social-distancing policies work and which might be excessive; of the effects of seasonality; of why certain countries have been relatively spared despite quite limited precautions and others have fared quite poorly despite aggressive interventions.

Now, let’s switch the theme to…the flood of “information” shit online that is drowning so many who fall for it! The Information Apocalypse Is Already Here, And Reality Is Losing. And let’s stick with this conspiracy crap for one more: Bill Gates Conspiracy Theories Have Circulated For Years. It Took The Coronavirus Pandemic To Turn Him Into A Fake Villain. We are being drowned by dumb phucks all around us, WTF!

Very interesting page. This guy just set up a script (I think, not like I know what doing that is!) that links to every mention online of the term The New Normal.

Many countries have done well in handling the pandemic. Decisive, early action worked wonders! Heck, some countries did not even take the drastic desperate step of complete shutdowns. But one country that does not get the respect it deserves is, please sit down,  COVID Underdogs: Mongolia. Read it, compare it to us here in the USA, and cry while shaking your head being angry at our lack of leadership!

Starting in January, Mongolia executed a perfect public health response, and they have never let up the pressure since. COVID-19 did not just leave Mongolia alone. Mongolia kicked its ass.

Kottke.org mentioned the article about about Mongolia too. And he wrote this which explains why I was led to cry as I mentioned above…

I have to tell you true: I got really upset reading this. Like crying and furious. The United States could have done this. Italy could have done this. Brazil could have done this. Sweden could have done this. England could have done this. Spain could have done this. Mongolia listened to the experts, acted quickly, and kept their people safe. Much of the rest of the world, especially the western world — the so-called first-world countries — failed to act quickly enough and hundreds of thousands of people have needlessly died and countless others have been left with chronic health issues, grief, and economic chaos.

Brazil is becoming THE clusterphuck of the pandemic, even surpassing us here in the US. Guess who is leading both countries, coincidence? Death and denial in Brazil’s Amazon Capital. The pictures in the article from Manaus are heart breaking.

We are being drowned in shit online. So, articles like this are very helpful: How to stop friends and relatives from spreading misinformation about Covid-19. I should take some of this advice instead of starting out with “listen to me you dumb phuck!” 🙂

Losing 100,000 people in less than 100 days is unbelievably tragic. And it was all preventable…but let’s not go there again. We Haven’t Properly Mourned the 100,000 Lives Taken by Covid-19.

I have ten links in this section already, saving some for next Monday then.

MILES & POINTS

HOT CREDIT CARD OFFERS: New: The CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum now offers 70k AA miles. The IHG Rewards Club card offering 140k points too, highest ever. For a standard workhorse card I recommend the 60k Chase Sapphire Preferred card. For a standard premium card I recommend the 50k Chase Sapphire Reserve card. For a standard 2% cash back card I recommend the Citi Double Cash card. Available with my links. Lets move on!

Chase came out with enhanced benefits for its Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve cards: Chase Announces Major Temporary Benefits On Sapphire Reserve/ Preferred (1.5 Cents Cashout; Easy Travel Credit; $450 Renewal). Most of my readers have or can not get the cards again. But maybe they are good for your newbie relatives/friends? If they want to step up from a 2% cash back card that is. I welcome questions in the comments and email. And I really welcome if you decide a rewards credit card is a good decision for you and you use my links to help me keep going and not crash and burn like so many other bloggers, thanks!

A very interesting page with the IHG & IHG Rewards Club Brand And Point Distributions as of May 2020. I wonder how this will look like AC (After Covid).

The German government is going to bail out Lufthansa with about $10 billion and become a 20% shareholder. Do you remember when we did stuff like this during the Financial Crisis and everyone was screaming “Socialist” at Obama? Now, not a peep. Oh wait, Lufthansa does not like the terms of this bailout…for now.

Oh, LATAM filed for bankruptcy. If you recently bought miles using the affiliate links of your favorite bloggers who kept pumping them, rest assured that the bloggers already got paid while you have to wait a little bit longer to see what happens with your miles…

I never understood the fascination with all things Disney. Apparently, they are going to reopen and it will be BYOB BYOM…M=Mask.

TRAVEL

Did you know back in 1982 this lady rode her motorcycle around the world? Well, now you do! Our Zoom Date with Britain’s First Woman to Explore the World (Alone) by Motorbike. Great stories and I really like her house, wow!