What will we learn?

[12string]

I saw the news about Amazon today.  Their entire Q2 profit was wiped out addressing COVID within their organization.  Worker protection, changes in process, etc.  Stock dropped.  Bezos basically said so what, this is life.  Does this mean a shift somewhat away from profit over all?  They will still make $10b this year.  He's still worth $140b.

I'm hoping this experience leads to a massive priority shift by corporations, government, the wealthy.  It's life, not money.  I can hope.

We ARE learning how to work from home.  If that sticks, there's benefits

Kids who used to be glued to phones texting their friends are now complaining they have to text their friends instead of talk in person.

Little things, there's always a silver lining

[Dottleshead ★]

The problem is not the white collar jobs but the critical working class jobs. You can't bring those in house.

[bikeman564™]

10 minutes ago, 12string said:

We ARE learning how to work from home.  If that sticks, there's benefits

There's only so many job types that can be done from home, and a lot of those were already I reckon. I have a couple friends who work from home normally. But they don't interact w/ people. As aforementioned I can't work from home. I work for a manufacturer and need to be on sight. I don't know the intricacies of everyone's job. Some can be done at home yes, and those that can work remotely now, may be able to permanently. But I would bet not all. Once factories and such begin to open, they'll need to be on sight also.

[12string]

Trying not to get hung up on work from home, we have a thread for that.

What good can you see coming from what we're going through?

I've been getting slammed this week by some people in total panic mode, I'm just looking for signs of hope somewhere

[bikeman564™]

7 minutes ago, 12string said:

What good can you see coming from what we're going through?

I honestly don't know. Me personally nothing People that don't save money, may save more spend less.

[Wilbur ★]

32 minutes ago, 12string said:

I saw the news about Amazon today.  Their entire Q2 profit was wiped out addressing COVID within their organization.  Worker protection, changes in process, etc.  Stock dropped.  Bezos basically said so what, this is life.  Does this mean a shift somewhat away from profit over all?  They will still make $10b this year.  He's still worth $140b.

I'm hoping this experience leads to a massive priority shift by corporations, government, the wealthy.  It's life, not money.  I can hope.

We ARE learning how to work from home.  If that sticks, there's benefits

Kids who used to be glued to phones texting their friends are now complaining they have to text their friends instead of talk in person.

Little things, there's always a silver lining

Just don't expect it to last..

It is always about profit. 

[groupw]

I think more people will decide that fitness matters. Parks and trails are important. 

That personal time has value.

That the movies, TV shows, music, art, etc that helped them deal with isolation are important. The artists should be paid fairly. 

That "unskilled" labor is more valuable to our society than we thought. 

Those are a few. I'm sure I will think of more beyond my post-lunch stupor. 

[petitepedal ★]

People are more important than things or money

[Longjohn ★]

I think people have begun to see who really is essential and it’ snot sports celebrities and movie stars. 
 

I made a grocery run this morning and talked for awhile with the owner/manager. I thanked him for the great job he was doing with his store. He said the next challenge was going to be getting meat. I asked if he would be able to buy from the local slaughter houses. He said they are not set up for that anymore. They got rid of the racks for hanging meat years ago and those butchers have since retired. The ones he has now have never worked with a whole side of beef. I said they could probable learn if they had to. He smiled and said they probably could.

He acquired a large supply of hand sanitizer from a distillery and has them prominently displayed near the registers. He also has disposable gloves near the entrance for anyone who needs them. I had my own. I see people really working together so we can all get through this.

[dinneR ★]

1 hour ago, 12string said:

I saw the news about Amazon today.  Their entire Q2 profit was wiped out addressing COVID within their organization.  Worker protection, changes in process, etc.  Stock dropped.  Bezos basically said so what, this is life.  Does this mean a shift somewhat away from profit over all?  They will still make $10b this year.  He's still worth $140b.

I'm hoping this experience leads to a massive priority shift by corporations, government, the wealthy.  It's life, not money.  I can hope.

We ARE learning how to work from home.  If that sticks, there's benefits

Kids who used to be glued to phones texting their friends are now complaining they have to text their friends instead of talk in person.

Little things, there's always a silver lining

Amazon posted Q1 results not Q2. They posted a 26% increase in revenue and $2.5 billion profit. That was below expectations so their stock dropped 5%. The Q2 projection is $1.5 B profit to $1.5 B loss because of additional costs related to covid-19.

[dinneR ★]

I see silver linings for some. WFH for those who can do it. Clean air because of the transportation reduction related to WFH.

The value of human connection. The value of personal time. A reassesment of what is important. 

[Razors Edge ★]

1 hour ago, 12string said:

What will we learn?

I'm interested to see if we will learn that $2 trillion is far more than say $20 billion.  I'm a fan of pro-activism rather than re-activism, so I hope most folks now realize that had we spent a steady stream of money on the planning and prevention side of things, we wouldn't have to spend a couple magnitudes more on the clean-up effort

I think some stuff - like the ability to WFH more - will stick as folks can now point to it as demonstrably working whereas mgmt often used lack of experience with it as a reason to not try it. Take out and food delivery will probably stay boosted.

I don't see much of the other stuff sticking, since I think the second folks feel comfortable going out again, they will and likely in excess - at least the ones who aren't broke. 

[12string]

1 hour ago, Longjohn said:

I think people have begun to see who really is essential and it’ snot sports celebrities and movie stars

This piqued my interest.  When the leagues closed down, Tons of people went crazy.  As time passes, I hear less complaining.   Yeah, I really miss Hockey, it had been such a good season, I really enjoy watching, rooting for my team.  But the star power?  I so MUCH more miss playing, hanging with my teammates, those are the real stars!

The whole "hero" thing gets blown so far out of proportion.  If everyone is a hero, no one is.  We need a better word.  But I'm glad to see so much support for the medical workers.  The more stories I hear from people in the hospital, the more my heart aches.  I can't even give them the hugs they desperately need.  There's going to be some serious psychological fallout from this.  Not one of them will be the same people they were.   But I'm not sure that's a silver lining change, people always appreciated nurses and doctors.

I am really interested in seeing the long term impact on the pollution/climate.  The earth is getting a HUGE break from the beating it's been taking.  Does this simply delay things, or has some healing happened?

[Dottleshead ★]

Life isn't jocks and actors?!?? What? Get out.

[Razors Edge ★]

7 minutes ago, Dottles said:

Life isn't jocks and actors?!?? What? Get out.

Once NASCAR and the UFC are back in session (tomorrow? today?) - ASAP - you'll eat those words.

[Prophet Zacharia]

3 hours ago, 12string said:

I'm hoping this experience leads to a massive priority shift by corporations, government, the wealthy. 

Happy hour started early?

[Ralphie ★]

I agree with ditching pro spectator sports. Hoo- ha!  

[petitepedal ★]

This was shared to me by a resident..it hit a spot

[Ralphie ★]

To;dr. Readers digest version?

[donkpow]

The was a little ditty on local news about mental health. Turns out the millennials are not fairing well with the isolation of the stay at home orders. Something about they can't get what they need at home.

[MickinMD ★]

21 hours ago, 12string said:

I saw the news about Amazon today.  Their entire Q2 profit was wiped out addressing COVID within their organization.  Worker protection, changes in process, etc.  Stock dropped.  Bezos basically said so what, this is life.  Does this mean a shift somewhat away from profit over all?  They will still make $10b this year.  He's still worth $140b.

I'm hoping this experience leads to a massive priority shift by corporations, government, the wealthy.  It's life, not money.  I can hope.

We ARE learning how to work from home.  If that sticks, there's benefits

Kids who used to be glued to phones texting their friends are now complaining they have to text their friends instead of talk in person.

Little things, there's always a silver lining

Bezos was famous in the 90's and early 00's for sacrificing profits to gain market share and expand the number of markets Amazon was in.

I think he wisely is doing the same thing now.  I don't think a lot of others are in a position to do that because their businesses are more capital-intensive.

My nephew Ryan got a job with Amazon at BWI Airport outside of Baltimore, then caught COVID-19.  He is now recovered, but Amazon wouldn't let him return to work until they get a copy of the letter ok'ing him from the county health department.  He returned Thursday.

[shootingstar]

21 minutes ago, MickinMD said:

Bezos was famous in the 90's and early 00's for sacrificing profits to gain market share and expand the number of markets Amazon was in.

I think he wisely is doing the same thing now.  I don't think a lot of others are in a position to do that because their businesses are more capital-intensive.

My nephew Ryan got a job with Amazon at BWI Airport outside of Baltimore, then caught COVID-19.  He is now recovered, but Amazon wouldn't let him return to work until they get a copy of the letter ok'ing him from the county health department.  He returned Thursday.

Apparently at the huge Amazon warehouse about 35 -40 kms. outside of our city, there has just been reported, some Amazon employees with covid.  Some employees speaking directly to the media, said that Amazon continues to hire temporary workers in spite of this latest outbreak.  A couple hundred workers work at this location...which probably serves a big chunk of Canadian prairie provinces.

There has been sufficient criticism about the culture of Amazon long before covid...how the warehouse workers are timed on their efficiency and not given sufficient time for breaks for bathroom, etc. 

[MickinMD ★]

1 minute ago, shootingstar said:

Apparently at the huge Amazon warehouse about 35 -40 kms. outside of our city, there has just been some Amazon employees with covid.  Some employees speaking directly to the media, said that Amazon continues to hire temporary workers in spite of this latest outbreak.  A couple hundred workers work at this location...which probably serves a big chunk of Canadian prairie provinces.

I don't know much about their operation at BWI Airport, My nephew Ryan had to get a government security clearance for the job after he was hired so he had only been doing actual work for about a week before he was diagnosed with COVID-19.  I don't know the conditions there - I haven't spent a lot of time talking to him since he caught it.

They did NOT send him to be tested.  My sister is a Johns Hopkins senior nurse with lots of connections and she was able to get same-day testing for her family because she's a healthcare worker.  That's how he found out, though he was home sick and coughing and feverish when tested.

[dinneR ★]

19 minutes ago, MickinMD said:

Bezos was famous in the 90's and early 00's for sacrificing profits to gain market share and expand the number of markets Amazon was in.

I think he wisely is doing the same thing now.  I don't think a lot of others are in a position to do that because their businesses are more capital-intensive.

My nephew Ryan got a job with Amazon at BWI Airport outside of Baltimore, then caught COVID-19.  He is now recovered, but Amazon wouldn't let him return to work until they get a copy of the letter ok'ing him from the county health department.  He returned Thursday.

I like how $2,500,000,000 in a single quarter is considered a sacrifice. If only I could sacrifice that much. Yay wealthiest man on the planet! Here's your mask and hand sanitizer.

[BR46]

16 minutes ago, shootingstar said:

There has been sufficient criticism about the culture of Amazon long before covid...how the warehouse workers are timed on their efficiency and not given sufficient time for breaks for bathroom, etc. 

Where I worked everything was timed down to the second. If you washed your hands and went to the break bells you had on a average of 6 to 8 minutes to eat lunch. 

[shootingstar]

25 minutes ago, MickinMD said:

I don't know much about their operation at BWI Airport, My nephew Ryan had to get a government security clearance for the job after he was hired so he had only been doing actual work for about a week before he was diagnosed with COVID-19.  I don't know the conditions there - I haven't spent a lot of time talking to him since he caught it.

They did NOT send him to be tested.  My sister is a Johns Hopkins senior nurse with lots of connections and she was able to get same-day testing for her family because she's a healthcare worker.  That's how he found out, though he was home sick and coughing and feverish when tested.

Govn't security clearance....because it's near the airport or?  Or just a criminal record check? It sounds unusual for a private sector warehouse worker.  In Canada, govn't security clearance required for job ..usually means not only working for the govn't in certain jobs (not all jobs) that require handling confidential info. sensitive operations  OR private firms contracted by govn't to do work in sensitive depts. of govn't.  Often the job ads state the requirement upfront.

So in Maryland, when can a person get tested for covid?  When they exhibit symptoms?  Is testing free?  It is in CAnada.  The criteria and priority depends on province and even certain parts of a province. Calgarians who exhibit symptoms after screened by ...phone, are advised to go to testing centres and they get it. When the lockdown started, it was initially health workers for priority testing.  I suspect it's still the case (it's just not told to us but I doubt the public is going be super protesting now), just now the testing has broadened to the public, with more test kits.  

THis was provided about 2 wks. ago onward because Calgary has the highest numbers of covid cases in the province. Our numbers look high ...because the provincial health authority is diligently doing contact trace testing, where  every person the infected person has met...and that secondary layer of people are tested also.  

I should also add, we don't have "private" hospitals.  All are public hospitals where the majority of funding for operations and capital construction, is directly from govn't.  Then each hospital may engage in major fundraising campaigns where of course, there are corporate and individual donations.  Like many other non-profits.