The Men Head to Campus, The Women Hang Back

[Fairfield Fan]

What happens if that 5% is your starting backfield?

I believe that "5%" figure means that of all the Covid-19 tests given in a state or country, if under 5% come up positive, then you can begin to reopen. I believe the CDC/WHO thinking is that those 5% can be isolated and their contacts traced and also isolated. So that makes it safe enough to open some facilities/businesses, though always with social distancing and masks. It also presupposes large-scale testing, which no state has been able to achieve. Connecticut is ranked about 10th of the 50 states in per capita testing.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

There are about one thousand reasons why someone has a fever. A great majority of positive test results come without symptoms. I stand by my statement. Instead of temperature checks, they should be testing; if that is impossible, then they shouldn’t be open for business. The U.S. is currently diagnosing more daily cases than at any time since the Pandemic began. Discretion is always better than valor.

I'm not a doctor, but given my very high vulnerability, I've been paying close attention. I believe that the temperature taking is an initial screen. If someone comes up with an elevated temperature, then they're kept out of the venue/business/airplane. But that's just the first step. Then that person is questioned about having been exposed to a Covid-10 patient in the past, and a Covid-19 is administered to him/her. And the person is sent home and told to self-isolate until the results are known. That way, those who are pre-symptomatic, yet likely contagious, can be identified and isolated as soon as possible.

Of course at UConn, what happens? If someone comes up positive in a dorm, then that dorm is supposed to self-isolate or be entirely quarantined. But how would that work? And how do you keep a couple of hundred college kids from attending class? And if you do, do they lose a semester's work? A semester's tuition and fees?

[ ]

But now we're seeing little Italys developing in Arizona, Texas, Florida, Iowa, the Dakotas, and elsewhere. And all it takes is one plane load of people from Florida or Texas landing at Bradley, or deplaning at Laguardia and getting driven to Westport or Milford, and the disease is back in business.

And what about the kids arriving on campus who are from Texas? Florida? Iowa?

If universities start up again, I fear that they will shut down quickly, but not before thousands are sickened, and scores of professors are hospitalized and then die.

 

[CTrefugee]

There are about one thousand reasons why someone has a fever. A great majority of positive test results come without symptoms. I stand by my statement. Instead of temperature checks, they should be testing; if that is impossible, then they shouldn’t be open for business. The U.S. is currently diagnosing more daily cases than at any time since the Pandemic began. Discretion is always better than valor.

"Worthless" is not the same as "There is a better way."

 

[Sifaka]

"At least 30 LSU football players have recently been quarantined because they have tested positive for COVID-19 or have had contact with someone who did.

LSU is not unique in the rash of COVID-19 cases. At Clemson last week, 21 football players tested positive. Kansas State had 14 test positive, while Texas had 13.

"The reality is every Louisianan needs to do a gut check on whether he or she has been slacking off on taking proper precautions," Gov. John Bel Edwards said on Thursday as the first wave rolled onward in Louisiana last week."

source: OPINION: Will Louisiana wake up now that COVID-19 has hit LSU football?

It is not just about the players, their right (!) to participate, or any breast-beating declaration of rugged individualism. We and they are members of communities.
The actions of one affect the health of others. These are not statements of ideology, but of objective reality.

 

[j66kicker]

Hmmm.....I wonder how the fans at Clemson and Alabama will feel about that?

Yeah that $$ doesn’t come from football being played as an intramural sport. (Could Cam Newton have marketed his services to SEC schools for $180-200,000?)

BTW the 20+ Clemson football players who tested positive last week may be a tad over 5%.

 

[bluedevil]

Actually, I never get above 97 degrees on their forehead thermometer at my physical therapist. Guessing my "fat cells" are screwing up the readings

Might want to go with the rectal thermometer...

 

[hoopsfan22]

Baloney. Following federal guidelines was a BS excuse for a screwup. Most states did not condemn their nursing home patientsn as did NY. What about the deaths/million data at the link I gave? How do you explain NY being 10 times the death rate of most states. Delusional. Cuomo brilliant !!?? Ha !

We also had to learn about this virus and how to treat it in real time. If you told me all the places that got hit early had the highest death rates I would not be surprised. If the initial surge were to hit again, we know a few more things this time around regarding treatment which will lead to better outcomes and lower death rates. Other states that have their surges after the northeastern states will have the benefit of their experience.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

It's clear that the virus raged in Italy, then Spain, and that France was hit hard. The disease came into New York from Italy, as scientists have proven. New York City is a closely interwoven fabric with Fairfield County and northern New Jersey. We here being devastated before we understood what was happening.

But the governors of the Northeast states banded together and enacted shutdowns earlier than most other states. Yes, we were hit hard with hospitalizations and deaths. But the concerted efforts of the states in this region have resulted in rates of new infections in the 1-2% range, with deaths of a dozen or less every day, far less than we've had in the recent past. So the lockdowns have been working.

By contrast, southern and western states have largely ignored pleas from the CDC for stricter measures. Florida and the Carolinas have opened up completely. Meat packing plants in the midwest have proven to be disease vectors. Arizona's infections have put hospitals into emergency mode.

So while the Northeast is now in a position, as is Western Europe, to have surpassed the worst and is looking at a safe reopening, the rest of the nation is seeing an explosion of new infections. So while western Europe is largely safe (except Sweden), America as a whole is suffering 20,000 new infections a week.

So the problem for college sports is that our division I programs are regional and national in nature, and football can't function if Penn State has to travel to Texas-Austin to play a game and risk serious infection. Women basketball players might be relatively safe in Storrs, but would put themselves at great risk if they were to play at Duke, or South Carolina, or travel to Tennessee.

That's the danger. If only we had all coordinated and were emerging from this viral nightmare at the same time...

Sorry, that would be 20,000 new infections PER DAY in America.

 

[eebmg]

If the human race had a little sense and empathy.

 

[oldude]

Population density impacts death rates ? Northeast residents are older than the rest of the country ? Co-morbidity - northeasterners are less healthy ?

I presented the hard numbers in my link. You waved your hands.

CT, we will have to agree to disagree on this. [ ]

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Actually, I believe you'll find that residents of New England are healthier than the rest of the country. Morbidity is influenced, as we're finding out, by air pollution (it's worse in our neck of the woods), population density, poverty, age.

But infections and hospitalizations are rising very fast elsewhere in the country, while they're tailing off in the Northeast. So even if somewhat younger people won't die at the same rate, people who get sick are likely to suffer immensely. And as in Arizona where emergency procedures have been enacted to create hospital beds outside of hospitals themselves, a lot of people are becoming very, very sick.

And that's what will affect our basketball season.

 

[CTrefugee]

So northeast population density is decreasing and air pollution is declining. Interesting. Is it all the people leaving ?

 

[EdSaid]

There has been some discussion about moving college football to the spring. Obviously, that creates a lot of logistics issues, but the thought is that the season could begin after the flu season ends and perhaps a vaccine might just be available by that time.

I like that idea. I always thought baseball was better suited to the fall season in the north. Lets flip flop them.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

So northeast population density is decreasing and air pollution is declining. Interesting. Is it all the people leaving ?

Connecticut is the 45th most densely populated state in the nation. New York City and the NY and NJ suburbs are very densely populated. And MA is also densely populated, especially the Boston area. So we have lots of people in a narrow area and in CT and NY hundreds of thousands taking commuter rail every day to go into the city, or from Manhattan into the CT suburbs (in fact more doing that than the reverse). And our air quality, especially ozone pollution, is among the nation's worst. And doctors are correlating poor air quality with higher rates of infections and serious cases. Not a mystery.

Regarding "all the people leaving," our population is slightly higher today than it was a decade ago.

 

[jabstep]

The number I'm hearing is 5% for acceptable virus spread. I dont think anyone expected that no one would test positive for pro/college teams. But, if they can keep the spread to 5% or less, I think you can still play the games.

What about if it hits your quarterback room. Ready hike OMG everybody went the wrong way. The best suggestion I have heard is moving to the spring and I think all fall sports should consider it. I have mentioned before we have no JV for the Girls BB team. What happens if it gets into the locker room.

 

[cohenzone]

Sports just happen to be relatively unimportant compared to health despite what we’d all prefer.

On a related note, a very good source tells me that UConn officials really have no special info on foreign players who didn’t stay in the US during the pandemic so we are rreliant on US policy on allowing travel from other countries. Plain old students will be able to distance learn if that is offered. Athletes are in the same boat. Anyone know If our Canadian players stayed on campus? A couple of QBs in that group.

 

[BrysonDeMan]

Population density impacts death rates ? Northeast residents are older than the rest of the country ? Co-morbidity - northeasterners are less healthy ?

I presented the hard numbers in my link. You waved your hands.

and what states are having death rates increasing at an alarming rate? i don't see it in the numbers

 

[BrysonDeMan]

Sorry, that would be 20,000 new infections PER DAY in America.

is there any info out there breaking down the severity of these new cases? i was under the assumption that we were trying to ease hospitalizations but that most people would end up getting the virus and surviving (and many of those with mild to no symptoms). you can never succeed if you are trying to avoid getting people sick.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

"45th" = typo?? CT is the FOURTH most densely populated state in the nation, behind, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

List of U.S. states by population density - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

simple.wikipedia.org

Note: If you count the District of Columbia as a "state", it is 9X more densely populated than NJ, since it's almost entirely urban.

Yes, typo. Thank you. 4th most densely populated state.

Thanks.

 

[OT#71]

outside temp is irrelevant.

I work in healthcare. When they started screening with that type of thermometer as we entered work, the outside temperature absolutely made a difference. We would often have to wait a few minutes and be checked again because of an artificially low reading when entering the building in February.

 

[veryolddog]

What they are finding in Southwest Texas is that people may test positive for the virus but are not getting sick. They are quarantined for 14 days, usually at home, and then are free to go. But when I was in Texas a few weeks ago, you would not know that there was a shut down. Business as usual and full employment except for eating establishments because there are restrictions on seating. Life is going on. And business is thriving.

The last that I heard, there was going to be a vaccine by the end of the year. I am informed about all of the fears about vaccines, but I would get one just like I get a flu shot every year. I also get a pneumonia shot when it is time.

From what I have read in this thread, we should all give up and lay down and die.

 

[oldude]

What they are finding in Southwest Texas is that people may test positive for the virus but are not getting sick. They are quarantined for 14 days, usually at home, and then are free to go. But when I was in Texas a few weeks ago, you would not know that there was a shut down. Business as usual and full employment except for eating establishments because there are restrictions on seating. Life is going on. And business is thriving.

The last that I heard, there was going to be a vaccine by the end of the year. I am informed about all of the fears about vaccines, but I would get one just like I get a flu shot every year. I also get a pneumonia shot when it is time.

From what I have read in this thread, we should all give up and lay down and die.

I think there is a misunderstanding between the terms “quarantine” and “isolation.” The recommended 14 day quarantine applies to individuals who have been exposed to someone with Covid-19. I have seen some quarantine guidelines for as little as 10 days. At the end of the 14 or 10 day quarantine, if an exposed individual does not develop the virus they are free to go about their business, although it is advised they take precautions such as mask wearing and social distancing.

Isolation, either at home or in a hospital is what is required for an individual who tests positive. There is no prescribed length of time for someone to be isolated as there is a wide range of time that an individual can be infected. My son had a 40-yr old individual who worked for him test positive. He was really sick for one day only, but it was 30 days before he shed the virus and was allowed back at work. In order to get out of isolation, CDC guidelines require that an individual who had tested positive, subsequently tests negative on two successive days.

 

[Steelerone]

I think that the NCAA and the rest of the college athletic industry would disagree.

And isn't it sad that one of the groups that we look to for leadership and responsible decisions winds up being the fox in the chickenpen.

 

[Steelerone]

What they are finding in Southwest Texas is that people may test positive for the virus but are not getting sick. They are quarantined for 14 days, usually at home, and then are free to go. But when I was in Texas a few weeks ago, you would not know that there was a shut down. Business as usual and full employment except for eating establishments because there are restrictions on seating. Life is going on. And business is thriving.

The last that I heard, there was going to be a vaccine by the end of the year. I am informed about all of the fears about vaccines, but I would get one just like I get a flu shot every year. I also get a pneumonia shot when it is time.

From what I have read in this thread, we should all give up and lay down and die.

VOD, I was going to do that yesterday but my wife reminded me of the "to do list". Then I remembered that there are only 180 days left for shopping before Christmas. It just never ends.

 

[temery]

Note: This is not an opportunity to debate COVID, nor the gov or school's handling of the potential threats cause by the virus. It has never ended well, nor will it ever end well.

If you insist on discussing this, take it to the 'pool.

This board is for UConn women's basketball. Admins/mods should not have to review every single post and reply to decide whether it crosses the line, or is intended (bait)/or unintended to result in a discussion that ends up way off topic.