An update on Florida's COVID reporting

A couple weeks ago I dared to suggest that Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis was being something less than fully honest about deaths by COVID in his state.
I was roundly attacked here for besmirching the governor's good name. I had the audacity to suggest that a Florida governor was anything less than truthful and without sin. Can you even imagine that! A governor from Florida lying? How absurd!
I believe, "How dare you, sir" was a commonly used phrase here, and I was challenged to several duels with old-timey pistols after being repeatedly slapped across my face with gloves.

Well, there's been a few updates that I thought I would share.
For starters, this is the report in question.

The Miami Herald reports that Florida changed its methodology in its reports of COVID-related deaths earlier this month. Rather than providing data on deaths after their causes have been determined, the state is now reporting deaths on the date that they occurred.

The seemingly insignificant change has drastic repercussions. If Florida had continued using the old method of reporting deaths, it’s tally on Monday would have shown an average of 262 daily deaths in the state for the previous seven days. Instead, it only reported 46 “new deaths” per day for the previous seven days, a measure that is about 82 percent lower than what it ought to be.
...
“If you chart deaths by Florida’s new method, based on date of death, it will generally appear — even during a spike like the present — that deaths are on a recent downslope. That’s because it takes time for deaths to be evaluated and death certificates processed,” according to The Herald. “When those deaths finally are tallied, they are assigned to the actual date of death — creating a spike where there once existed a downslope and moving the downslope forward in time.”

OK. Some people might say that 82% is significant. I'm not saying that I think 82% is significant. Just that some people might.
Now that we all understand the issue at hand, this report came out from an entirely different Florida newspaper.

Throughout the COVID-19 crisis in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration engaged in a pattern of spin and concealment that misled the public on the gravest health threat the state has ever faced, a South Florida Sun Sentinel investigation has found.
...
The Florida Department of Health’s county-level spokespeople were ordered in September to stop issuing public statements about COVID-19 until after the Nov. 3 election.

State officials withheld information about infections in schools, prisons, hospitals and nursing homes, relenting only under pressure or legal action from family members, advocacy groups and journalists.

The governor highlighted statistics that would paint the rosiest picture possible and attempted to cast doubt on the validity of Florida’s rising death toll...

Obviously the Sun Sentinel is a bastion of the radical socialist antifa left that is engaging in the smears of a true American hero. The Miami Herald too.
DeSantis would never be anything less than transparent and forthcoming. After all, if he were to try and suppress information about COVID deaths in his state it might cause some people to think that he was trying to hide something.

The Florida Department of Health is trying to scuttle a public-records lawsuit seeking information about COVID-19, arguing that requested reports don’t exist and that the underlying data is confidential.
...
“(The) plain language of Chapter 119 (the state public records law) makes clear that there is no obligation for a public entity to create or otherwise compile public records not routinely developed or maintained by the entity,” a motion to dismiss the case said. “Rather the decision to do so is inherently discretionary and cannot be the basis for liability under the Public Records Act.”

Also, the department’s attorneys contended that the underlying information, which health-care providers and laboratories submit to a state database, is confidential under another law and that the surgeon general has discretion about releasing the information. Newly appointed Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo doubles as secretary of the Department of Health.

Wow! What an amazing coincidence. The newly politically appointed Surgeon General just happens to double as secretary of the Department of Health, and that is being sued for suppressing information about a politically embarrassing health crisis in the state.

What are the chances of that?!? I mean, just wow. I'm sure that Gov. DeSantis was as shocked as I was when he learned that Ladapo held both positions. It's too bad that DeSantis is totally powerless to do anything about this obvious appearance of conflict of interest.
I guess DeSantis is just another victim in this messy business.

Just to be clear, I am totally not being sarcastic at all.

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Or maybe not

A network of health care providers pocketed millions of dollars selling hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin, and online consultations, according to hacked data provided to The Intercept. The data show that vast sums of money are being extracted from people concerned about or suffering from Covid-19 but resistant to vaccinations or other recommendations of public health authorities.

America’s Frontline Doctors, a right-wing group founded last year to promote pro-Trump doctors during the coronavirus pandemic, is working in tandem with a small network of health care companies to sow distrust in the Covid-19 vaccine, dupe tens of thousands of people into seeking ineffective treatments for the disease, and then sell consultations and millions of dollars’ worth of those medications. The data indicate patients spent at least $15 million — and potentially much more — on consultations and medications combined.

The Intercept has obtained hundreds of thousands of records from two companies, CadenceHealth.us and Ravkoo, revealing just how the lucrative operation works. America’s Frontline Doctors, or AFLDS, has been spreading highly politicized misinformation about Covid-19 since the summer of 2020 and refers its many followers to its telemedicine partner SpeakWithAnMD.com, which uses Cadence Health as a platform. People who sign up then pay $90 for a phone consultation with “AFLDS-trained physicians” who prescribe treatments such as hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin to prevent and treat Covid-19. The drugs are delivered by Ravkoo, a service that works with local pharmacies to ship drugs to patients’ doors. Of course, that’s if patients ever get the consultation; many customers told Time they never received the call after paying.

The data from the Cadence Health and Ravkoo sites was provided to The Intercept by an anonymous hacker who said the sites were “hilariously easy” to hack, despite promises of patient privacy.

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@gjohnsit
It’s impossible to overstate the amount of nonsense being disseminated about all things COVID. It’s also probably safe to assume that the greater share comes from those making the larger profits. Who benefits, and how much are questions that need to be asked, as always.

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Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men for the nastiest of motives will somehow work for the benefit of all."
- John Maynard Keynes

@ovals49 on the periphery of msm like Vox, HuffPo, Rolling Stone, TI and some mainstream-friendly podcasters have all been singing the same song as the corp media, Big Pharma and public health. Vaccines Only Until Pfizermectin Is Ready seems to be the theme.

The other day after many months of staying away I dipped into some Thom Hartmann Radio Show, the Portland Liberal who turns out not to be so liberal about civil liberties and notions of freedom and self-autonomy on the vaccines. His hostile tone to the occasional caller expressing concerns about the vaccines was in lockstep with the social media companies -- they don't want to see or hear any comments casting doubt on the vaccines or, as they and Thom put it, comments which will tend to cause people not to get the vaccines. So Thom censors like the other public platforms and calls for draconian vaccine mandates, including encouraging hospitals not to treat unvaccinateds. You would think he's on the payroll of Merck or has some financial agreement with the CDC.

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@wokkamile
Exponentially.

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Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men for the nastiest of motives will somehow work for the benefit of all."
- John Maynard Keynes

@gjohnsit necessary to go through any RW-inclined doctors' group to get IVM, although the pro-establishment Intercept's hit piece is just another pro-Big Pharma propaganda article against cheap, safe and effective treatments. Imagine, people being resistant to the recommendations of public health officials like Fauci! I'm shocked!

FLCCC is the group of more politically benign doctors who are helping many to access effective and cheap Covid treatments like IVM. Some like me prefer to go through the telemedicine route with their list of doctors prescribing IVM, paying a not unreasonable fee for the doctor's consult time on Zoom, but currently there are options to get the same safe and effective product w/o prescription using Canadian or Indian sources.

IVM is such a safe drug, it really shouldn't need a prescription, but I'm pleased with the doctor I chose and her approach to Covid is largely in synch with flccc's and I have the additional peace of mind of being able to fairly quickly contact her for customized treatment should the need arise.

As for FL fudging the numbers, it wouldn't surprise. I understand there's been a lot of fraud occurring at hospitals where admins apparently have been encouraging doctors to list vaccine-related deaths as Covid deaths, to get the $$ from the CARES Act which wouldn't be available if listed as a vaccine death. This also helps to keep vaccine deaths artificially low, even as VAERS shows deaths from these vaccines are in the 14-15k range just in this country, which if that were true would be a scandal.

But some like Steve Kirsch and Dr Jessica Rose credibly say the actual vaccine death figure is actually much higher, or roughly 200,000. So there are probably quite a few people in various positions, local, state and national, who've been cooking the books.

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@wokkamile

The obstacles now in place to prevent IVM and Quercetin from getting into the hands of people is very telling as to where the priorities lie at the heart of the insurance / pharmaceutical driven health care system. Like you, I had to do the Telehealth route, as my primary MD wouldn't prescribe it (per FDA guidelines) and I had to bully my pharmacist into filling the script. Our bodies and our decisions are where healthy choices belong, not with some bureaucratic monster IMO.

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@QMS @QMS illogical is why so many in public health, political circles, media and on the chat boards are so opposed to anyone having access to a cheap, effective and safe drug like IVM if that's their preferred choice on Covid.

If it works either to prevent or treat, then that's a plus for society as it stops community transmission and in treating it keeps people out of doctors' offices and hospitals. And if somehow it doesn't work, it's no more harmful than a sugar pill. Yet some on the boards are so concerned! about people taking IVM.

Meanwhile there are plenty of reasons to be concerned about getting these vaccines, about 14,000 of them on death alone per the govt's own VAERS numbers, while at the same time their effectiveness is waning to the point of a 3d booster having to ride to the rescue, after only 9 months of 2 shots. Unsafe and ineffective, yet mandated. And liberals are okay with this. ...

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CB's picture

them on a down slope. I don't understand your point. The actual deaths have not been hidden.

The daily and the 7 day average show it going down. The 14 day average will eventually follow (just as it lagged on the up slope).

Here's graph of daily deaths which shows it is definitely going down. It appears to have peaked at 394:
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/usa/florida/
They are now tenth worst in deaths/million compared to 23 at the beginning of current spike which makes for a poor showing. But the state is not the worst. It shows the daily case rate as having turned the curve and is now going down. There are many states where cases are still on the rise. It's like a horse race where each takes the lead then falls back. It's not over till they cross the finish line.

Here's graph of 7 or 14 day average deaths:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/graphics/graphic-tracking-cor...
You can see individual weekly spikes that you speak of due to reporting method/timing. The largest spike was 1554 on Sept 15 at which point it started to go down. All the states show similar spikes in reporting. If you scroll down at this site you will see a graph of the states where the hot-spots are. Florida's is quite cool.

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@CB @CB setting up dozens of free monoclonal antibodies treatment centers across the state has helped bring down the hospitalization and death numbers. https://floridahealthcovid19.gov/monoclonal-antibody-therapy/ I don't think Biden made a good move recently trying to limit the supply.

Monoclonals, per flccc.net, are apparently effective if given by day 7 of symptoms, but expensive and need to be administered by a HCW, not for at-home use. So, much better than nothing and probably helping to keep people alive and out of hospitals. Of course, the state distributing IVM as is done in Uttar Pradesh India would be even better, but it's clear that our sold-out and corrupted federal health officials won't allow that and apparently all of our pols are too stupid, lazy or bought off to challenge the vaccines-only state of affairs.

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@CB

I don't understand your point. The actual deaths have not been hidden.

We know from multiple sources that DeSantis is intentionally suppressing COVID information. And you've decided to not acknowledge it.
Or if you do acknowledge it, you've decided that it's irrelevant, as if DeSantis' suppressing of information has no effect on the quality of the information. When has that EVER been true?
Especially when the very first article I pointed to shows that DeSantis' suppression changed the results.

That's your choice. But if that's the case then I'm going to ignore your feedback, because that's my choice.

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CB's picture

@gjohnsit
lying to the CDC when COVID cases are submitted on a daily basis? Or are you saying DeSantis just makes a statement by manipulating dates of cases when talking to the press that isn't true?

While it reports its numbers to the CDC daily, its reports to the public on total cases, hospitalizations and deaths are only made on a weekly basis.

That could only cover his ass for a week. It just shifts the curve for a week. Eventually the curve is shown. That's what I posted. Florida is on the down slope.

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@CB

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CB's picture

@gjohnsit
They are simple and to the point.

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@CB
So there's no point. Sadly.

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CB's picture

@gjohnsit
I'm listening. Why won't you answer them?

What I got out your diary is that DeSantis was faking the COVID cases to show that Florida has gotten over the worst and is starting to recover. But from the CDC reports he is correct. Are these wrong?

BTW, I'm not supporting the asshole. I'm just trying to figure out why the US has/is doing so poorly by world standards, despite having the best health care in the world. You yourself have stated the pandemic is waning and soon to be finished.

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@CB
Let's add this up:
1. DeSantis fired and imprisoned scientists that claimed DeSantis was rigging the data.
2. Two Florida newspapers accused DeSantis of suppressing the real COVID data and misleading the public.
3. DeSantis changed COVID reporting rules in multiple ways, including how the cases are defined.
4. DeSantis has fought multiple lawsuits demanding public data.

And your opinion is that ALL of these efforts have had ZERO effect on the data.

That makes DeSantis possibly the most incompetent politician in America. It's an incredible amount of effort to go through to have no results. Don't you agree?
You'd think that with that much effort that even the most incompetent politician would have SOME effect.

Meanwhile on the other side, you are trusting the CDC. I thought your crowd didn't trust the CDC.
The CDC made no effort to suppress data, but instead merely flip-flopped on a few issues and they became an untrustworthy source....until now.

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CB's picture

@gjohnsit

Florida's COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations Continue to Drop
NBC 6 5 hrs ago

Florida added just over 5,800 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday, as the state's weekly case average and hospitalizations continued to drop to levels not seen since the summer surge.

The 5,819 new cases brought the state's seven-day average to 5,874 according to figures reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Florida's seven-day average had peaked at nearly 21,800 in mid-August but has been steadily declining since late August.

Statewide COVID-19 hospitalizations also continued to drop, down to 5,924 on Wednesday, according to the Florida Hospital Association. Hospitalizations had reached just under 17,000 in August.

The association said hospitalizations in the state have dropped 24.5% in the past seven days.

Florida's COVID-19-related death toll rose to 54,071 on Wednesday, an increase of nearly 500 since last Friday, when there were 53,580 deaths. The 7-day average of reported deaths has also been declining, though it can take up to several weeks for deaths to be confirmed and reported

.

Florida hospitals' COVID-19 inpatient numbers continue to drop
Tue, Sep 28
...
The 6,423 patients were in 234 Florida hospitals, down from 6,731 patients in 260 hospitals in a Monday report. The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients was less than half of the total at the beginning of September. In all, 79 percent of Florida hospital beds were reported as being used Tuesday.
...

I gave two sources for Florida's case numbers and they both showed drops so that's what I posted. If the CDC is the one collecting the original data and faking it then there is nothing you or I can do. We have no other recourse. The overall numbers for the entire country could be false.

I don't care if DeSantis is a crook, liar and/or asshole. I just want to know how the country is doing with the virus and why the death rate has been rising despite higher vaccination rates.

https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/covid-vaccinations-vs-covid-death-rat...

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All I can say is WOW. And not in a positive way.

"Gish Gallop is a technique, named after the creationist Duane Gish who employed it, whereby someone argues a cause by hurling as many different half-truths and no-truths into a very short space of time so that their opponent cannot hope to combat each point in real time."

I have learned at last that there is no conversation to be had here regarding Covid 19 or the vaccines. The power of right wing "thought" and conspiratorial world views is gaining across the country, while concern for others is taking a nose dive. Funny but not funny to see it on a site like this which grew out of a progressive Democratic movement (Bernie support). I feel like I've fallen down the proverbial rabbit hole.

I have no more answers, gjohnsit, but I will continue to appreciate your willingness to try to break through the barriers to balance.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@Fishtroller 02 the way many here bring a skeptical eye towards the pronouncements and edicts of officialdom. It's consistent in that the leading group of doctors and experts in promoting IVM, the FLCCC, is fronted by an IC expert who's a Bernie supporter. So much for the RW influence.

As for "conspiratorial world views", it would be naive and ill-informed not to recognize the way Big Pharma/Big Vax entities have captured or heavily influenced our public health officials, politicians and media in recent decades, in the US and around the world. Yet from what I've seen, the pro-vax side goes about their commenting with absolutely no acknowledgment given to how corrupting these influences are, and how the interwoven linkages among them all are an entirely reasonable way to assess the sorry situation of Covid response that we see today. Sometimes conspiracy is the right answer, and this is one of those times.

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@wokkamile

So now I am "naive" and "ill-informed"?

Thanks.

The numbers of people getting vaccinated is going down quite rapidly in the US. So all your IVM, FLCCC whatever anti-vaxx groups are getting their way.

Bully for you.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@Fishtroller 02
Unless the vaccinated are dying at a faster rate than the unvaccinated?
Vax rates are around 70% Pretty good without government coercion. so, of course, coercion is needed to boost sales. It's all about profits. Not public health.

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

@The Voice In the Wilderness

The numbers of people in this country on a daily basis who are getting vaccinated is going down because there are more people refusing to be vaccinated. Has nothing to do with death rates.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

CB's picture

@Fishtroller 02
scheduled to be vaccinated.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8yivIJajBE]

Current vaccine rate for children:
Age.. 1st.. 2nd
12-15 53.9% 43.3%
16-17 61.6% 51.3%

How do feel about vaccinating children 5 to 11?

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@Fishtroller 02
The numbers of NEWLY vaccinated people each day is going down, not the total number of vaccinated people.

But that is to be expected as those on the fence, at least some, j7ump to the never vax side.
The totally recalcitrant won't even be dissuaded by threats of firing.

And since we vaccinated have to mask and socially distance (while the unvaxed do neither) because we can still catch it and spread, what is point of 100% vaccination? I get they want the numbers down to manageable numbers, but at what cost? And is it an achievable goal?
"What profiteth it a man to gain the whole world but lose his own soul?"
Restated: "What does it do to a democracy to force every one to vax, but become a tyranny in the process"? Oh, I forgot, there is an escape hatch for religious crazies. (But not for skeptical persons wary of big government and big pharma)

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

@The Voice In the Wilderness I

Bid Pharma and our medical system (that's why at 70 I have not seen my doctor for 10 years, but have a bag full of various supplements). I also have not had flu vaccines or the shingles, pneumonia shots either. HOWEVER, I did a lot research about the history of the mRNA technology (which may very soon be used to treat melanoma) and concluded that it was most likely safe and important for us to utilize to maintain overall public safety and health.
And by the way, a Pew poll showed that us atheists have a very high rate of vaccination while evangelical Christians have a very low rate.
We gave up our rights to tyranny when we allowed our government to pass the Patriot Act, so that is already accomplished.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@Fishtroller 02

concluded that it was most likely safe and important for us to utilize to maintain overall public safety and health.

When I was 20 I would have trusted them and been eager to get the new technology. That was 1965. Everything since then tells me to ytust neither Big Business nor their servant, the US government.

My objection is to MANDATORY vaccination, at least for ten years.

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

@The Voice In the Wilderness

I also oppose mandatory vaccines. But I also know that any employer, including the federal government, military etc. can make vaccines a job requirement. I learned that working not only for a public school system, but for a physics facility that is under the auspices of the Dept. of Energy.

And so it goes...

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@Fishtroller 02
And they never made me have a vaccination. But I never left the country.

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

CB's picture

@The Voice In the Wilderness

Meet The 40 New Billionaires Who Got Rich Fighting Covid-19

Some made their fortunes developing new vaccines and promising antibody treatments, while others sell much-needed diagnostic tests and personal protective equipment.

Shortly after the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a global pandemic on March 11, 2020, markets collapsed and economies around the world plunged into recession. At the same time, hundreds of billionaires fell from the ranks of Forbes’ World’s Billionaires list, capturing a snapshot of the pandemic’s impact on the fortunes of the world’s wealthiest people.

One year later, things couldn’t be more different: a record 493 new billionaires joined the list this year, propelled by a red-hot stock market and unprecedented economic stimulus. Among those newcomers are at least 40 new entrants who draw their fortunes from companies involved in fighting Covid-19...
...

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@The Voice In the Wilderness

is 56.4 % for both shots.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

CB's picture

@Fishtroller 02
From CDC:
≥ 18 Years of Age 77.1% 66.7%
≥ 65 Years of Age 93.5% 83.2%

As far as I'm concerned, the only people that should be vaccinated is if they have one or more comorbidity such as BMI of 30.0 or higher, cancer, diabetes, heart, etc.

The drugmakers are now testing the vaccine in children aged 6 months to 2 years and 2 to 5 years. The data is expected in the fourth quarter, This is fucking disgusting.

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@CB
Are they using welfare families? "We stick your kids or we will take them away and stick them anyway"

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

@Fishtroller 02 is probably going down, as the low-hanging fruit is already counted, and those compelled to vax by law or employer join their ranks less enthusiastically. The final 30% or so were always going to be a difficult sell, and for me it's a No Sale.

IVM prescriptions are way up since August, and perhaps FLCCC has played an influential role in getting out the good word in the small places where it's voice is not suppressed. But if IVM and FLCCC were truly "getting their way", IVM would be distributed en masse to the public by local and state govts throughout the land, and FLCCC would be hailed as heroes and long ago have been featured numerous times on the cables. Biden would invite Dr Kory to the WH to receive a Presidential Medal of Freedom. There would be talk of putting Dr Kory's face on Mt Rushmore. Most important of all, he would be the leading contender to be named Time's Person of the Year!

But alas this is not happening. Just the opposite -- IVM continues to be in the gunsights of officialdom, with attempts continuing to suppress its distribution, and attacks on doctors who prescribe it and pressure on pharmacies not to fill the scrips.

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vtcc73's picture

@Fishtroller 02 It seeks to discredit not the story but the author's credibility. It's a passive aggressive-ish enough comment to not clearly run afoul of the boundaries set here by JtC. It doesn't actually address supposed flaws in the author's essay beyond "Nuh huh". I think bad faith is an appropriate description.

The irony is that you have zero problem throwing a tons of nonrelated stuff into your comments, drawing dubious conclusions, and vaguely arguing from authority. That's a Gish Gallop. This essay is about as on topic as is possible with multiple sources and perspectives.

This and many of the comments to this essay are one reason I'll post an essay soon that I've written and binned several times over the past several months. The straw that broke the camel's back, if you will. It's time I stop coming here only out of morbid curiosity but saying little to nothing.

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"Ah, but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now..."

@vtcc73

My comment to the author of this essay was supportive of his work here, especially in light of how he has taken so much flak for his positions.

If you are not referring to my comment to gJohnsit, then I'm at a loss as to what your are referring to.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@vtcc73

You thought I was calling gjohnsit's essay a gish gallop. I was referring to the responses he got to his 9/13 essay. I hope he understood that too!

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

gulfgal98's picture

that the public has a right to know. I am posting this without comment except that the governor of Florida is doing everything he can to prevent the public from getting the information they deserve to have in order to be able to make informed decisions concerning this pandemic and their own health decisions.

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Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

@gulfgal98
As I understand it, C99P is naturally built upon the premise of skepticism and questioning of power.
And here you have a powerful man deliberately suppressing information that the public should know.
If you don't find that disturbing, if you don't question the quality of information that is being filtered by DeSantis, then I believe that something is wrong with your decision making.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

We are being gaslighted on a massive scale.
Chris Martensen gets to the bottom of it all in this interview.
https://www.peakprosperity.com/its-about-control-an-interview-with-david...

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann
Please give me an example of when powerful people in the government are intentionally suppressing and withholding information from the public, and it didn't matter?
When have powerful people intentionally distorted the numbers, and it didn't matter?

I'm glad that I posted this, because I think I can expose some logic flaws in a non-offensive way.

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CB's picture

@gjohnsit @gjohnsit
She is just saying that numbers can be manipulated by gas-lighting and thus become meaningless.

I agree. I've looked at enough data to realize they vary depending on the source. I've learned over the years to NOT depend on the federal government or other vested interests. Look at the twist and turns we've experienced since COVID showed up - from both sides of the house.

Cui bono is the operative word....

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@CB
Just a few comments above you refer to official numbers and use them to imply that everything is fine coming out of Florida.
I pointed out that we know for certain that the numbers are being manipulated for political ends.
Now you are saying "that numbers can be manipulated by gas-lighting and thus become meaningless."
I'm having a hard time figuring out exactly what you are trying to say, CB. You seem to be all over the place, except for your political position.

No offense intended, but I think you are trying to shoehorn the facts into your preferred position.

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CB's picture

@gjohnsit
for Florida. They both matched. Everything points to a decrease in cases and deaths.

Florida COVID trends continue in promising direction

Florida reports 5,819 new COVID cases, 4 deaths

Florida COVID-19 map: What do the trends mean for you?

I pointed out that we know for certain that the numbers are being manipulated for political ends.

Considering the numbers come from the individual counties I don't see how DeSantis can fudge the raw figures. He can change the timing of officially recording cases but eventually everything gets averaged out and will eventually show the trend. For a time Florida didn't publish cases/deaths on the weekends - for reasons that should be obvious. Several other states also didn't.

Are you saying that there were NOT 54,067 deaths to date and he is somehow hiding them? You certainly didn't supply any proof other than a change to the timing of reporting to prove that cases/deaths were not going down.

Now you are saying "that numbers can be manipulated by gas-lighting and thus become meaningless."

Operative word "can be manipulated". Do you not think the government continually gaslights the public over their war mongering and politicking by fucking over the numbers? For example how many troops and mercenaries are left in Syria, Iraq or Yemen and what are they doing? The ultimate gaslighting is the US brings "democracy" to foreign nations.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@gjohnsit @gjohnsit
Unfortunately, we are being subjected to mind manipulation and your comment proves it. I have posted numerous videos on this. If you haven't bothered to watch them, that's on you. You need to look at ALL information to be discerning and make an informed decision.

Edited to add - my daughter's grandfather-in-law died of natural causes and they tried to put covid on his death certificate. The government is evil and gaslighting us all. If you don't believe it, that's on you.

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann

we are being subjected to mind manipulation and your comment proves it.

The comment that you claim is proof of my mind being manipulated (I'm assuming by the government) is: "Please give me an example of when powerful people in the government are intentionally suppressing and withholding information from the public, and it didn't matter?
When have powerful people intentionally distorted the numbers, and it didn't matter?"

1) I'm explicitly saying powerful people in the government are lying to you, and then I show you evidence of it.
2) You respond by saying that it doesn't matter.
3) I ask you for any example at any time in history when powerful people in the government are manipulating information to achieve political ends, and it didn't matter.
4) Your response is that, to paraphrase, my asking these questions is proof that my mind has been captured by the government.

That's insane.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@gjohnsit @gjohnsit is Fauci

"Please give me an example of when powerful people in the government are intentionally suppressing and withholding information from the public, and it didn't matter?
When have powerful people intentionally distorted the numbers, and it didn't matter?"

Edited to add - watch the video and THEN ask me questions or comment on what I'm saying - otherwise, no credibility can be claimed.

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

@Raggedy Ann
I only made it about 5 minutes. It didn't even pretend to be balanced and it made all sorts of assumption.
So I gave it a try.

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Raggedy Ann's picture

@gjohnsit
Five minutes is an insult.

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

than whatever is going on with the numbers in FL or whether they are basically honest, is what the CDC/FDA are doing with their VAERS numbers and reports on cases, which is not to publicly disclose their reports as they first indicated they would , and to not acknowledge to the public the alarming signs about these vaccines with the huge number of serious adverse events and deaths.

Have the CDC or FDA officially acknowledged any causal connection between taking these vaccines and reported deaths from the vaccines, or more than 2-3? Currently their own VAERS numbers show deaths from the vaccines as above 14,000. Is it remotely believable that only 2 or 3 of the deaths of 14k reported were caused by the vaccines?

At what point, after how many deaths by vaccine are reported should we expect the fed public health agencies to step up and show a sense of urgency? Or is their silence indicative of a coordinated program to keep a firm lid on the bad news.

This is a deep and even deeper dive into the VAERS numbers, what the CDC/FDA are supposed to do with them and their reports, and rebuttals to objections to the VAERS data. https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/safety-signals-covid-vaccine...

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@wokkamile

with the anti-vaxx stuff. I really admired his Waterways Alliance and all its work.

It looks like he and Mercola just got banned from You Tube.

You may want to look for another source for the VAERS discussion.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@Fishtroller 02 was written by Josh Guetzkow, a senior lecturer in the Department of Sociology & Anthropology and the Institute of Criminology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He received his Ph.D. from Princeton University and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University.

Great job of analyzing the VAERS numbers, which are a huge embarrassment for the pro-vaxers. No wonder the FDA/CDC don't want them talked about in the media. If the MSM had been doing its job of informing the public and early on, the vax rate would never have exceeded 20% in this country and there would have been a massive outcry to stop the program.

As for RFK Jr, the org and site he created, CHD, carries some very helpful info as with the cite above, info that the msm will not publish.

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@wokkamile

I could throw a dozen reports about the safety and efficacy of the mRNA vaccines your way in response, but I have no intention now of wasting my time with it.

If only 20% of the country was vaccinated, we'd be hurting even more now. And your solution, IVM, still has not shown itself to be the "miraculous cure" claimed by Kory and FLCCC. In fact, Kory recently admitted that he and his daughter got Covid despite being on an IVM prophylactic dosage. This after testifying to the Senate the IVM would cure Covid and stop transmission of the virus.

The hyperactive anti-vaxx pro-IVM crowd has done nothing to help people. I just read that healthcare workers in many areas, who were praised as heroes last year, are now afraid to be identified in the community because of the attacks on them by anti-vaxxers.

All of this is beyond sad.

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"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin

@Fishtroller 02 shoes, I would have called a halt to these vaccines many months ago citing the VAERS numbers of unacceptably high numbers of serious injuries and deaths. I certainly wouldn't have waited as we saw possibly some 150-200k dead from the vaccines (per Dr Jessica Rose and Steve Kirsch) and approx 500k seriously injured. And likely many more dead and seriously injured to come from those already vaxxed as we look down the road 3-5 yrs.

My view is VAERS numbers give us a rough approximation, and probably a bare minimum, as to the drug's impact on recipients. And bc they are usually filed by HCWs who take a non-trivial part of their work day to fill them out properly and accurately, bc there is basically a criminal penalty for filing false info, and bc these HCWs would not bother if they didn't have a strong indication that there was a vaccine-caused adverse event, these numbers are not to be taken lightly or ignored.

And even if we just accept the govt's own numbers at face value and not those of Dr Rose, the numbers are still way too high. These mRNA drugs are showing they are still in the experimental stage, didn't undergo adequate testing, and we have no info on long-term effects, such as would have been found if proper l-t studies had been required, as they usually are for vaccines.

Unsafe as well as ineffective, as the pro-vaxxers no longer talk about their effectiveness in stopping the spread, as trends in other highly vaccinated countries are proving. It could be that Drs Vanden Bossche and Malone are right, that it's the vaccines themselves that are driving variants and keeping this virus a threat, and not the unvaccinated.

In the 1976 Swine Flu fiasco, the vaccine was pulled after about 500 GBS injuries and 50 deaths. 500 and Fifty. And that's about where I'd draw the line and pull the plug.

But where do you draw the line? Or do you believe the CDC/FDA that there are no vaccine-caused deaths?

As to the hardworking Dr Kory, who has actively been caring for Covid patients by the hundreds and thus at great risk for exposure, neither he nor others in the FLCCC have ever promoted IVM as a 100% guarantee. Nothing ever is. But 90% or so protection is rather good. And unlike the experimental mRNA drugs, it's entirely safe. He went through the FLCCC post-infection protocol and recovered quickly, and importantly has nothing to worry about wrt long-term effects from the IVM.

The key to putting this virus to bed has been clear for months: put IVM into the hands of as many people in the world as possible. It's cheap and quickly manufactured, so this is very doable. Maybe 90% of people would use IVM regularly to prevent if it were given out freely or very cheaply. There will always be those breakthrough infections, and those who don't/won't take the prophylactic and who then get infected, but by that point HI will have been reached and the virus will be only a flu-like seasonal matter. And treatable with IVM, so no serious side effects or deaths.

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zed2's picture

There is an important recent science discovery that explains studies from a decade or more ago that found that medical products that contained thimerosol (which contains mercury) caused birth defects. Its not about the vaccines. Its about the thimerosal and other chemicals that cause a specific problem because of the changed expression of two genes Fyn, and c-Cbl. Pregnant women can supplement with NAC to prevent this problem which is caused by envirinmentally relevant amounts of mercury and many other pro-oxidant substances. Which all converge on the same pathway . There are innumerable pro-oxidant toxicants. My gut feeling is that the chemical industry knows this and has known it for a long time and are trying to hide it by attacking anybody who mentions the need for a different ap0proach to toxic substance action levels. Big parts of the country are becoming more and more contaminated by elemental mercury, mostly from burning coal from certainb parts of trhe country which contains a LOT of mercury. Which turns back into mercury vapor when its burned. Women of child bearing age should take supplemental NAC daily or their risk of problems is significantly higher. This is a very important paper that everybody should be aware of. Pro-oxidant toxicants, of which there are a great many, and they are common, Especially Mercury in the environment which are now understood for this very important reason to be very dangerous to pregnant women and developing fetuses. This is a huge problem in the North East US.Also, farming now is dangerous, because the mercury permeates the top layers of the soil. Tilling the soil releases mercury vapor so people in areas where farming is done should be aware of the danger. Living downwind of tilling dramatically increases your exposure to mercury vapor and flux.

Mercury in soil in a riparian environment (where there are streams and clay) turns into methylmercury. A powerful neurotoxin. We should stop burning coal. Burning wood also releases mercury vapor (although much less of it) as does composting. Composting also creates and releases LSD like compounds into the air of neighborhoods near industrial composting operations. Aspergillus fumigatus is the "most successful" fungal pathogen. Rising temperatures are making the likelihood of fungal illness increase rapidly. As it is making fungi that can survive at our higher body temps more common. This may be the most dangerous and unrecognized threats posed by global warming. (See papers by Dr. Arturo Cassiadevelli and others) Fungi and our bodies high temperatures helped the mammals survive the great Fungal Spike at the Permian/Triassic transition, and resultant high levels of mycotoxins due to large die offs in the "winter" that must have lasted some tome after the huge meteorite.. The sudden event and subsequent changes may have helped wipe out the giant dinosaurs in the last great extinction, we had our body heat which made our bodies more resistant to even the most thermotolerant fungi..but this time we may not be so lucky.

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zed2's picture

Trade agreements are being used so big corporations can sue regulators for simply doing their jobs in regulating dangerous medicines aand pollutants. Its terrifying that governments are being sued when things like Chernobyl and Fukushima make science's opion of what is safe and what is dangeous change. Investors are being levated into gods who can do no wrong, governments must financially compensate them for losses of their property if they change laws in ways industry does not want. they do things they know are dangerous, its their fault. They should not be able to dump the cost they should suffer ionto taxpayers. But now trade agreements are doing exactly that.

They don't care, Corporations increasingly do, but they should not- Really should not oWN governments or policy.

Th trade agreements and things like the new tort of indirect expropriation are why politicians lie so much. For reasons like the one mentioned elsewhere in this thread, polluting industries are creating a world that may no longer be safe, where peoples lifespans are maybe 40 before they start dying of cancers, much shorter if they choose the most polluted parts of the country which will be sacrificial zones. Wherever incomes are low are where the polluters pollute since the lost wages of the unemployed being minimal or nothing makes it a great place for polluters. Also, legal tendancy is to make healthcare prices less and les affordable so the poor cant get care and this prevents a medical evidence from being created. Like the three monkeys industry wants less not more information.

That's how the American system works.

We have agreed to regulate less and less, never more, in trade agreements. All laws and other measures must always make them more profitable, not less. Its a one way ratchet.

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zed2's picture

covering up the horrid state of patients there. As long as they have lots of money to spend they are welcome in sunny Florida. Just make sure the elevation of your property is high enough.

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@zed2
scientist fired after refusing to slant data

Florida’s former top coronavirus data scientist has launched a website showing far more COVID-19 information than she said the state allowed her to report as an employee, including statistics contradicting Florida’s official coronavirus numbers and the push to reopen the state.

Former Health Department geographic data scientist Rebekah Jones has created FloridaCOVIDAction.com, which asserts that the state’s widely read public-facing dashboard under reports how many people have tested positive for the pathogen. Florida also overcounts how many have been tested, Jones said, to the benefit of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ push to reopen the state after two months of quarantine.

Naturally, DeSantis reacted in a calm and measured way

Images of state agents drawing guns as they raided the home of the fired Florida Department of Healthdata scientist Rebekah Jones on Monday were met with alarm by fellow researchers and academics across the United States.

“Brazen actions by Florida authorities demand greater transparency to protect the free flow of information and rights of the public,” the American Association of Geographers wrote in a statement posted to Twitter.

Armed Florida Department of Law Enforcement agents executed a warrant on Jones’ Tallahassee home Monday morning, seizing her computer, phone and several hard drives.

That makes perfect sense. As does this

In a statement sent Monday, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement confirmed to Insider that Jones had turned herself in to the Leon County Detention Facility and had been arrested on one charge of "offenses against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks, and electronic devices."

"Evidence retrieved from a search warrant on December 7 shows that Jones illegally accessed the system sending a message to approximately 1,750 people and downloaded confidential FDOH data and saved it to her device," a FDLE spokesperson said in a statement.

OMG! She released raw COVID data to the public?
For some reason not everyone agreed

A man appointed to a commission that recommends judicial appointments to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has resigned citing the search warrant served on a former Department of Health employee who has criticized the state's COVID-19 data.

Ron Filipowski announced his resignation from the 12th Circuit Judicial Nomination Commission on Twitter on Tuesday, saying a raid at the home of Rebekah Jones was unconscionable.

But according to some people, we should still trust Florida's COVID data

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What are we to make of this:

CMS post-vax covid deaths.jpg

CMS = Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

This is purported to be based on recent data (provided by one or more whistleblowers) of post-vax deaths among Medicare recipients - who make up about 18% of the US population.

Full presentation at https://renz-law.com

A key thing to consider aside from the sheer numbers is how such deaths would be reported. The 14-day part is important because within that time frame a person is not 'fully' vaccinated and considered 'un' vaccinated.

Which could mean that there is a possibility that a significant percentage of the 'un-vaccinated' that are clogging up the hospitals are, in fact, not people who have refused the vax, but people who are actually suffering negative outcomes from the vaccines themselves.

There are a number of whistleblower reports (mostly from nurses) from the US and abroad that claim that a big percentage of the people they are seeing are not the actual unvaxxed, but people suffering from negative outcomes post-vaccination.

Such as this

And this (HHS-run hospital, Phoenix, AZ):

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CB's picture

@Blue Republic
when we have to rely on whistle-blowers (Such as this) to find out the truth on how the country is handling the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. This is a DIRECT result of having Big Pharma and other corporations in control of the CDC.

The CDC is in bed with Big Pharma

Pronouncements, guidelines and recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set the standards for mainstream medicine in America and hold great sway with patients and around the world and with the World Health Organization because the CDC is considered independent and free of industry relationships. The organization even features the following disclaimer with its recommendations: “CDC, our planners, and our content experts wish to disclose they have no financial interests or other relationships with the manufacturers of commercial products … CDC does not accept commercial support.”

But that statement is blatantly false, as recent research by The BMJ (formerly the British Medical Journal) shows. In fact, the CDC gets millions of dollars annually from Big Pharma and then turns around and recommends testing and drugs created and marketed by those same companies, and this is often done upon the contributing company’s demand.
...
The legal drug business is a multibillion-dollar scam on the people, and government has no interest in keeping people “safe.” I laugh when people claim government agencies are necessary to protect the people from drug makers and the other “greedy capitalists.” Many government agencies are funded by corporations and serve as revolving-door job programs between government and the corporations they supposedly oversee.

Meet The 40 New Billionaires Who Got Rich Fighting Covid-19
Some made their fortunes developing new vaccines and promising antibody treatments, while others sell much-needed diagnostic tests and personal protective equipment.

This is why ivermectin and other generic, low cost drugs, are outright banned despite hundreds of studies showing efficacy in ameliorating infection by COVID-19 - especially in the crucial first days of infection. The only thing the CDC recommends we do if we suspect we are coming down with the disease is to isolate at home and wait until breathing is difficult or laboured before seeking medical attention so as to not overload the system. By then the disease has taken control and has overwhelmed your immune system.

Following that procedure has also been to the benefit of medical corporations because there are tremendous financial incentives to profit handsomely. Unfortunately the subsequent side-effect of those recommendations is death.

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I give a shout out to the living dead
Who stood and watched as the feds cold centralized
So serene on the screen
You were mesmerised
Cellular phones soundin' a death tone
Corporations cold
Turn ya to stone before ya realise
They load the clip in omnicolour
Said they pack the 9, they fire it at prime time
Sleeping gas, every home was like Alcatraz
And mutha fuckas lost their minds

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