The Very-Many-Questions-Not-Worth-Their-Own-Thread Thread XLI

[EgonSpengler]

I do think the direct effects of the pandemic are being felt more acutely and more pervasively than the Cold War's was. In terms of the global economy, I think it's premature to say that the damage done to the world economy by the pandemic isn't recoverable. It's certainly a big moment of change, but the nature of that change is yet to be determined. Here in the US, the number of people moving, quitting jobs, or finding that they can work remotely is large and growing, but the scope and effect of that are still in the future. Companies are downsizing their offices; families are relocating out of big, expensive cities. The "retail apocalypse" and housing crises were happening already, but it seems like the pandemic has accelerated both. Nobody knows what business travel will look like after the pandemic as receded.

 

[H4run]

Impossible to say yet .
My guess: Certainly bigger than 9/11. Cold war... well, that was more than 40 years of potential annihilation. Let's hope Covid doesn't get there...

Yea I fail to includes that the cold war also result in mass purge from both side, from Indonesia to Cambodia, and lots of proxies war. But 911 also resulted in massive life changing, peoples who born in mid 90s perhaps don't realize how relax things were pre-911 (which I believe you are not included, perhaps you born around late 80s), I mean it changes how society works, and it gives more power to the state to scrutinize their citizen behind security reasons, huge and enermous prisons complex whom prisoner never get trial or own the right to defend themselves, massive civilian causalities in Iraq, Afghanistan, and caused instability in the middle-east, also give a room for terrorism to spread due to the rabid foreign policies.

But covid, is just another crazy turning point in history. It's just total nuts. I hope society and economy would not be collapse in the near future.

 

[H4run]

I do think the direct effects of the pandemic are being felt more acutely and more pervasively than the Cold War's was. In terms of the global economy, I think it's premature to say that the damage done to the world economy by the pandemic isn't recoverable. It's certainly a big moment of change, but the nature of that change is yet to be determined. Here in the US, the number of people moving, quitting jobs, or finding that they can work remotely is large and growing, but the scope and effect of that are still in the future. Companies are downsizing their offices; families are relocating out of big, expensive cities. The "retail apocalypse" and housing crises were happening already, but it seems like the pandemic has accelerated both. Nobody knows what business travel will look like after the pandemic as receded.

No matter how much I was complaining about the old world, the pre-2020, now I just want to get back there. lol, this is beyond my wildest imagination and the monster that creeping in the future you would not know what kind of behemoth awaited for us at front.

 

[Birdjaguar]

The Iron Curtain was a real thing and had an enormous economic impact on those behind it for a very long time.

 

[Synobun]

If I stated, Covid is possibly to be a greater event and crisis than the cold war and 911, in the scale on how it affect our-life, damage world economy to the point that it would hard near impossible to recover again, where the pre-covid world life can possibily be something that forever we put back in the past, we would unable to come back there again. how true is this statement?

We still unable to measure what is the peak of this pandemic yet, I mean the virus has an ability to by-pass our immune system through rapid mutation, this might not be the first pandemic in human history, but this is the first in the terms that the virus is very contagious, this is happening when world network and flow of peoples are connected in a way that we have never seen before. So many government and expert actually don't know how to react to this, the combination of that and many other factors makes this particular pandemic is our first experience.

It's definitely bigger than cold war, and it has a potential to be bigger than that of 911.

What do you guys think? I'm not historian here, my comparison might be absurd, that's why I'm asking here.

Governments know how to react; they just choose not to.

In terms of impact, I don't think this will really influence much, by itself. The power systems in place have only strengthened during the pandemic. The social division and wealth redistribution will lead to other problems that were already inevitable. They might just happen a little faster now.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Governments know how to react; they just choose not to.

In terms of impact, I don't think this will really influence much, by itself. The power systems in place have only strengthened during the pandemic. The social division and wealth redistribution will lead to other problems that were already inevitable. They might just happen a little faster now.

Your generation will remember it.

 

[Farm Boy]

I think governments definitely do not know how to navigate this. This is the A game. Unfortunately. 2020 was the sort of year guiding lights went out.

 

[Synobun]

Your generation will remember it.

Remember? Sure. But I don't think the pandemic itself will rank highly in the doom jar. The conditions that caused and are causing the extended misery were already in place before the pandemic happened. It expedited the process. Everything that has happened has been a core facet of modern economics and geopolitics for decades. I don't envision there being any kind of fundamental shift because of COVID-19; the whole issue with late-stage capitalism and environmental collapse is a lack of agency in the people and an inability to force change. It will take more than this to change the game, and if that does happen, the pandemic won't be seen as "what set it off."

I think governments definitely do not know how to navigate this. This is the A game. Unfortunately. 2020 was the sort of year guiding lights went out.

An unwillingness to do the right thing is not equal to not knowing what the right thing is.

 

[H4run]

Governments know how to react; they just choose not to.

In terms of impact, I don't think this will really influence much, by itself. The power systems in place have only strengthened during the pandemic. The social division and wealth redistribution will lead to other problems that were already inevitable. They might just happen a little faster now.

I don't know, things pretty chaos here, they prolong again the lock-down till mid-august. In the news fruits of fruit sellers are rotten, mass amount of peoples losing their job, containment but peoples marching on the street they are protesting against the lock-down, they do believe about the severity of the virus but they also feel it's impossible if their source of income is to be halt-down, because there are no help from the government to cover their daily need, they are asking to open up the lock-down and in return apply a strict covid health-protocol, as long as they can have their income back.

More and more peoples fell to wild money-lenders. The government also divided between those who think relaxation is required because after each lock down it takes months (iirc 4-5 months) to gain back the economy to twenty percent from what it lost due to lock-down, while it's impossible to lock peoples down especially when they still need to fulfil their daily needed by their own.

But I really hope things will get better soon, and these things not as bad as I thought it is.

 

[Synobun]

I don't know, things pretty chaos here, they prolong again the lock-down till mid-august. In the news fruits of fruit sellers are rotten, mass amount of peoples losing their job, containment but peoples marching on the street they are protesting against the lock-down, they believe the virus but they also cannot lock-out at home having nothing to eat, they are asking to open up the lock-down with a strict covid health-protocol.. More and more peoples fell to wild money-lenders. The government also divided between those who think relaxation is required because after each lock down it takes months (iirc 4-5 months) to gain back the economy to twenty percent from what it lost due to lock-down, while it's impossible to lock peoples down especially when they still need to fulfil their daily needed by their own.

But I really hope things will get better soon, and these things not as bad as I thought it is.

Right, but that is something that has been integral to politics and economics for a while now. This happens during recessions and depressions without a pandemic. (Of course, with significantly less dying involved.)

Your government's failure to handle the situation isn't unique in this instance. It would have failed with any other problem, and has in fact been failing this whole time. The pandemic exposes; it does not create.

ETA: I'm not being snarky against Indonesia here, by the way. Most countries failed. Most countries have cohorts of people who are trying to fail, and it is in their best interests to fail.

 

[Birdjaguar]

@Synsensa The pandemic is not over and it is way too early to predict its impact on world affairs or on our economic models. I doubt that anyone in 2001 predicted a 20 year war in Afghanistan. Keep in mind that in the next 10 years many more Boomers will retire and their roles will be filled by GenXers and Millennials.

 

[Farm Boy]

Somebody has to do everything. Everything that got done this past year, someone did.

 

[Samson]

I doubt that anyone in 2001 predicted a 20 year war in Afghanistan.

Of the people who were aware of the history of Afghanistan there are more who predicted a long drawn out asymmetrical conflict than who predicted a short war with a democratic country emerging after.

 

[H4run]

Of the people who were aware of the history of Afghanistan there are more who predicted a long drawn out asymmetrical conflict than who predicted a short war with a democratic country emerging after.

True, it's always a tough territory to conquer since 7th ac, Umar 1 said it's an arid and poor region filled with vigilant peoples who fight really hard. Going far further by how the Pasthun rebels leaded by Hotak abolish the 200 years Safavid empire.

After that the great game that preceded British occupation of Afghanistan, which occupation fail very horribly due to another Pasthun freedom fighters fought back. After that the Soviet attempt, which again fail horribly, my question is, what you expect the change of pattern for American occupation?

I mean, occupying modern Afghanistan is an easy task, perhaps it tooks you only a week with strong air bombardment and follow up with land units coming in, but to hold that territory? It's not called a Graveyard of Empire for nothing.

 

[Farm Boy]

No freaking ports, so smart. But it was easier to "deal with" than NK nuclearizing(if we remember concurrent events) and the PRC was basically ok enough with them getting missiles to do the buzz off thing. You'll note the fallouts from that are paying due now. We upped our missile defense game, the PRC developed faster missiles, and now are expanding raw arsenal significantly. All things from point a to here. Lots and lots of stupid in invading Afghanistan.

 

[Takhisis]

@Synsensa The pandemic is not over and it is way too early to predict its impact on world affairs or on our economic models. I doubt that anyone in 2001 predicted a 20 year war in Afghanistan. Keep in mind that in the next 10 years many more Boomers will retire and their roles will be filled by GenXers and Millennials.

I stronkly suspect their roles will be fulfilled by AI, myself.

 

[thetrooper]

What levels of sulphate can we expect in seawater, brackish water, fresh water (river) and groundwater?

Furtermore is IC a viable option to detect such quantities?

 

[Kyriakos]

Other than small fish (anchovies, sardines) what would be a good and relatively cheap source of collagen?

 

[Samson]

Other than small fish (anchovies, sardines) what would be a good and relatively cheap source of collagen?

Chewing the joints and bone ends of chicken. If you roast a chick there are many bits of collagen. The biggest bit is the end of the sternum, but all the joints have layers over the bone ends.

If you stew the chicken for a long time, or better yet pressure cook it for a couple of hours, all those will turn into jelly, or dissolve into the sauce to thicken it and the collagen will be absorbed easily. Then you can chew the ends of the long bones. This will give you some more collagen, and also lots of calcium and hyaluronic acid which are also good for building bone.

 

[Kyriakos]

So, in the long run, which source of the two would be better? Half a chicken costs roughly as much as two small packs of anchovies