What's with all the firearms here?

[Tartansparkles]

I wonder if the 50,000 square footage has a connection to carparking. (Sorry) I don't know what 50,000 square feet looks like but I'm assuming it might be akin to the UK'S B&Q DiY sheds which include decent sized garden centres and everything from kitchen, bathrooms and cushions through to nuts and bolts. These units also come with carparking for hundreds of cars and you know what people are like, everyone wants to park right next to the door. So folks parked next to each other, trying to load purchases into their boots, means social distancing doesn't happen. (The garden centres within B&Q are cordoned off). Compare this with local mom & pop DIY store which is located in a built up area ie no parking. (I did actually visit the local store yesterday for fence paint but there was none left). I do know that Boots the Chemist stores were cordoning off things like hairdye and make up aisles. I did see recent government advice that if a shop is open then customers are allowed to buy whatever that shop sells including luxury items (which kind of conflicts with the B&Q approach although I believe it was in response to some police forces threatening to check what folks had in the shopping basket!).

Not sure if the same adverts are running in England but the Scottish gov. are now running adverts that basically say "we know you're bored and fed up and tempted to go out more often or even visit friends, but don't".

 

[Ally T]

I wonder if the 50,000 square footage has a connection to carparking. (Sorry) I don't know what 50,000 square feet looks like but I'm assuming it might be akin to the UK'S B&Q DiY sheds which include decent sized garden centres and everything from kitchen, bathrooms and cushions through to nuts and bolts. These units also come with carparking for hundreds of cars and you know what people are like, everyone wants to park right next to the door. So folks parked next to each other, trying to load purchases into their boots, means social distancing doesn't happen. (The garden centres within B&Q are cordoned off). Compare this with local mom & pop DIY store which is located in a built up area ie no parking. (I did actually visit the local store yesterday for fence paint but there was none left). I do know that Boots the Chemist stores were cordoning off things like hairdye and make up aisles. I did see recent government advice that if a shop is open then customers are allowed to buy whatever that shop sells including luxury items (which kind of conflicts with the B&Q approach although I believe it was in response to some police forces threatening to check what folks had in the shopping basket!).

Not sure if the same adverts are running in England but the Scottish gov. are now running adverts that basically say "we know you're bored and fed up and tempted to go out more often or even visit friends, but don't".

We have the same sort of adverts in England.

But wait.... the supermarket may stop me from buying hair dye for my grey roots??

 

[1ofakind]

We have the same sort of adverts in England.

But wait.... the supermarket may stop me from buying hair dye for my grey roots??

It's in the same isle as the shampoo which is counted as necessary and allowed....I can buy shampoo and reach the hair color without taking a step. I guess I don't see the big deal. I don't buy hair color but it still doesn't make a lot of sense to me. What if I wanted to do a pick up order with hair color and I never have to go in the store?

 

[Ally T]

It's in the same isle as the shampoo which is counted as necessary and allowed....I can buy shampoo and reach the hair color without taking a step. I guess I don't see the big deal. I don't buy hair color but it still doesn't make a lot of sense to me. What if I wanted to do a pick up order with hair color and I never have to go in the store?

It's in the same aisle here too - I was sort of joking. I have done my own roots for years now, so I always have a box stock. I'm doing my roots tomorrow as it's actually been 2 months. My children told me yesterday that I'm starting to look like Nanny. When the Nanny comments come out, I know I've left it too long

 

[Matata]

 

[1ofakind]

It's in the same aisle here too - I was sort of joking. I have done my own roots for years now, so I always have a box stock. I'm doing my roots tomorrow as it's actually been 2 months. My children told me yesterday that I'm starting to look like Nanny. When the Nanny comments come out, I know I've left it too long

lol ok gotcha. I just stopped a few years ago...it was too much to keep up. I like my hair so much more now but I do sometimes still get a shock when I catch a glance in the mirror, lol.

 

[soxfan]

Posted by one of my friends. WHO IS A DOCTOR.

 

[1ofakind]

Posted by one of my friends. WHO IS A DOCTOR.

When does your friend suppose is the right time and would they treat every area the same regardless of rates of infection/recovery?

 

[Dancing Fire]

When does your friend suppose is the right time and would they treat every area the same regardless of rates of infection/recovery?

Nobody knows when is the right time, no Dr., state governors nor POTUS.

 

[kenny]

This kind of thing is about odds, and degrees of risk.
Shorter quarantine is is more risky, and longer is less risky.

This is not a black and white thing.
There is no "right" time to lift the isolation order.

Why can politicians just say this?
Is it possible people are too stupid to understand such a simple thing?

 

[mary poppins]

 

[mary poppins]

Astroturfing is the practice of masking the sponsors of a message or organization (e.g., political, advertising, religious or public relations) to make it appear as though it originates from and is supported by grassroots participants.

----------

Interesting thing I read this evening.

Quote is from source linked below

There's an imperial ton of astroturfing going on, and it's quite visible in how those groups popped up literally overnight (hint-hint). The thing is that they targeted groups who were... how does one say... more receptive to the message who wouldn't be inclined to look any deeper into what they were joining.

As an example, right now, this is happening in Los Angeles.

Now, here's a screenshot of the description of the "Operation Gridlock Los Angeles" group when it was first spotted by Buzzfeed News.

Concurrently, here's a screenshot of the description of the "Operation Gridlock Tennessee" group.

But, hey... it's Buzzfeed News right? Cool-cool-cool-cool-cool...

Here's a link to the group "Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine" - sitting 55,281 members deep at the time of this post.

Okay...

Now here's a link to the group "Minnesotans Against Excessive Quarantine" - presently with 18,938 members.

Why do these groups have the exact same description?

Let's not stop there. Following their own links: one is from the "Pennsylvania Firearms Association", and the other is from the group "Minnesota Gun Rights" - both with the exact same layout.

Both of these domains are registered with the same registrar and were registered on the exact same day at the same time.

[ ~]$ whois reopenmn.com
[Querying whois.verisign-grs.com]
[Redirected to whois.godaddy.com]
[Querying whois.godaddy.com]
[whois.godaddy.com]
Domain Name: reopenmn.com
Registry Domain ID: 2512322197_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.godaddy.com
Registrar URL: http://www.godaddy.com
Updated Date: 2020-04-08T14:39:18Z
Creation Date: 2020-04-08T14:39:17Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2021-04-08T14:39:17Z

[ ~]$ whois reopenpa.com
[Querying whois.verisign-grs.com]
[Redirected to whois.godaddy.com]
[Querying whois.godaddy.com]
[whois.godaddy.com]
Domain Name: reopenpa.com
Registry Domain ID: 2512322050_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.godaddy.com
Registrar URL: http://www.godaddy.com
Updated Date: 2020-04-08T14:37:30Z
Creation Date: 2020-04-08T14:37:29Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2021-04-08T14:37:29Z

The rest of the whois information is obscured by a proxy organization that provides privacy for whois records (I even use them myself as do many others for privacy reasons), so I cannot tell who owns these domains.

Following the pattern of their sites, I checked for "reopenmd.com", but it never resolved to anything. That said, the DNS lookup itself didn't result in a NXDOMAIN error which tells me the domain does exist.

[ ~]$ whois reopenmd.com
[Querying whois.verisign-grs.com]
[Redirected to whois.godaddy.com]
[Querying whois.godaddy.com]
[whois.godaddy.com]
Domain Name: reopenmd.com
Registry Domain ID: 2515645280_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.godaddy.com
Registrar URL: http://www.godaddy.com
Updated Date: 2020-04-17T04:19:17Z
Creation Date: 2020-04-17T04:19:16Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2021-04-17T04:19:16Z
Registrant Organization:
Registrant State/Province: Florida
Registrant Country: US
Registrant Email: Select Contact Domain Holder link at https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=reopenmd.com
Admin Email: Select Contact Domain Holder link at https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=reopenmd.com
Tech Email: Select Contact Domain Holder link at https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=reopenmd.com

Registered a little more than week later with the same registrar. The thing is, they didn't actually complete their whois information this time, and whoever set it up cheaped out or forgot to pay for the Domains by Proxy service. Although whois information is literally a public record, I'm not inclined to place my account at risk by opening myself up to accusations of doxxing. That said, anyone who feels inclined to can go to https://whois.godaddy.com and search for reopenmd.com. I myself would be personally curious as to why someone in Florida is registering domains claiming to be gun rights organizations in other states.

Seriously, even without that information - who or whomever is responsible for this astroturfing couldn't make this more obvious if they tried. It honestly took me longer to type all of this up to present here than it did for me to find this all. Yet people have taken the bait hook-line-and-sinker.

Meanwhile, the President then starts tweeting "LIBERATE MINNESOTA", "LIBERATE VIRGINIA...", and "LIBERATE MICHIGAN"; and one of the major forces behind the group in Michigan was a political group that has direct ties to and has historically been heavily funded by the family of the Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos (though said family denies direct involvement in last weeks protest)?

In that regard, I'm not alleging some major conspiracy here, but l-o-****ing-l.

Edit: for the record, reopenva.com also exists and has the exact same registry info as reopenmd.com.

[ ~]$ whois reopenva.com
[Querying whois.verisign-grs.com]
[Redirected to whois.godaddy.com]
[Querying whois.godaddy.com]
[whois.godaddy.com]
Domain Name: reopenva.com
Registry Domain ID: 2515650132_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.godaddy.com
Registrar URL: http://www.godaddy.com
Updated Date: 2020-04-17T04:43:47Z
Creation Date: 2020-04-17T04:43:46Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2021-04-17T04:43:46Z
Registrant Organization:
Registrant State/Province: Florida
Registrant Country: US
Registrant Email: Select Contact Domain Holder link at https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=reopenva.com
Admin Email: Select Contact Domain Holder link at https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=reopenva.com
Tech Email: Select Contact Domain Holder link at https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=reopenva.com

Edit 2: Apparently, others have found that a domain for pretty much every other state was registered in the same pattern at the same time.

Edit 3: Holy crap, this blew up! Thanks! I really just have a strong dislike for disinformation, and want people to be empowered to know who is involved with what; and I also want people to know to always apply critical thinking to these things.

Source:

https://www.reddit.com/r/maryland/comments/g3niq3/_/fnstpyl

 

[mary poppins]

To late to edit above, but here's the summary.from poster 8thOrbitArmn

Massive congrats to poster Dr. Midnight for chasing all this down. All these protests have been organized by someone using the exact same language in the exact same format, on multiple websites that all were registered on the same day and time with the same registrar.

 

[nala]

To late to edit above, but here's the summary.from poster 8thOrbitArmn

Massive congrats to poster Dr. Midnight for chasing all this down. All these protests have been organized by someone using the exact same language in the exact same format, on multiple websites that all were registered on the same day and time with the same registrar.

So what are all the possible end goals or outcomes of these protests considering the risks these protesters are taking? I’m making a mental list right now. Would love to hear everyone’s thoughts.

 

[JPie]

@mary poppins why are you shutting down the conservatives and running them off this board? They do not need your attacks! This is just your opinion.

(I’m just getting ahead of the inevitable responses that facts will illicit from the people who need to see them the most.)

 

[Dancing Fire]

@mary poppins why are you shutting down the conservatives and running them off this board? They do not need your attacks! This is just your opinion.

(I’m just getting ahead of the inevitable responses that facts will illicit from the people who need to see them the most.)

There are conservatives on this board?..

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

It's in the same isle as the shampoo which is counted as necessary and allowed....I can buy shampoo and reach the hair color without taking a step. I guess I don't see the big deal. I don't buy hair color but it still doesn't make a lot of sense to me. What if I wanted to do a pick up order with hair color and I never have to go in the store?

The thing is that all non essential goods put a strain on the supply chain. I can't say for sure how the situation is in Michigan. Here in France we are ok. We have never had lasting shortages of anything. However, single groups of produce, eggs or even our small supermarket in town have been out of stock completely.


They are not offering fresh fish anymore.
Because the combination of waves of hoarding with unstable work force is making logistics a mess.
Think about it:
If truck drivers of one company fall ill the remaining will transport only half of scheduled supplies.

If you're a politician you want those supplies to be essential. TP and yeast and flour, instead of paint and decorative plants.

If you explain that to people, the reasonable 80% will say: yeah, sounds logical.

The stupid 20% will run to the stores and hoard another 200 tins of corn


Not talking to you , @1ofakind , but about those protesters:

No, supply is not "at stake". No need to hoard. It's just a time to rethink the mentality of : I want everything my heart desires right now, right here and all for me, me, me, me.

If the healthcare worker can't get TP and produce after his /her shift, because my new rosebushes have taken up that space in the truck I'll happily pass on that for this year.

 

[MarionC]

The thing is that all non essential goods put a strain on the supply chain. I can't say for sure how the situation is in Michigan. Here in France we are ok. We have never had lasting shortages of anything. However, single groups of produce, eggs or even our small supermarket in town have been out of stock completely.


They are not offering fresh fish anymore.
Because the combination of waves of hoarding with unstable work force is making logistics a mess.
Think about it:
If truck drivers of one company fall ill the remaining will transport only half of scheduled supplies.

If you're a politician you want those supplies to be essential. TP and yeast and flour, instead of paint and decorative plants.

If you explain that to people, the reasonable 80% will say: yeah, sounds logical.

The stupid 20% will run to the stores and hoard another 200 tins of corn


Not talking to you , @1ofakind , but about those protesters:

No, supply is not "at stake". No need to hoard. It's just a time to rethink the mentality of : I want everything my heart desires right now, right here and all for me, me, me, me.

If the healthcare worker can't get TP and produce after his /her shift, because my new rosebushes have taken up that space in the truck I'll happily pass on that for this year.

I haven’t seen eggs in a month. Now that Amazon is shut down here things are a bit tighter. I had to order seeds from the States then cancelled the order because I was not sure they would arrive this Spring. I am thrilled that the (essential to me) very long garden hose will still be delivered. It would be difficult to carry water for a big veg garden. Even though Amazon is down apparently they are honoring past orders.
Hard to get whole milk. One quart in the past month.
Got stopped Monday by the police because I was out on the bank holiday, not knowing It was a holiday and grocer closed. He didn’t look at my papers, just firmly said “Go Home!”.
Yesterday walked and ended up in a restricted area of the river. Did not know it until I walked far enough to discover I was on the wrong side of the barriers. Quickly headed home. Did not see a soul during a three mile walk. It’s surreal.

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

I haven’t seen eggs in a month. Now that Amazon is shut down here things are a bit tighter. I had to order seeds from the States then cancelled the order because I was not sure they would arrive this Spring. I am thrilled that the (essential to me) very long garden hose will still be delivered. It would be difficult to carry water for a big veg garden. Even though Amazon is down apparently they are honoring past orders.
Hard to get whole milk. One qua hookrt in the past month.
Got stopped Monday by the police because I was out on the bank holiday, not knowing It was a holiday and grocer closed. He didn’t look at my papers, just firmly said “Go Home!”.
Yesterday walked and ended up in a restricted area of the river. Did not know it until I walked far enough to discover I was on the wrong side of the barriers. Quickly headed home. Did not see a soul during a three mile walk. It’s surreal.

Yep, people are generally really respectful of the lockdown.

Sorry you have had problems in the past. Small local supermarkets are struggling more to get fully stocked.

Do you have a Lidl store?

They have seeds, plants and gardening supplies ATM.
Cheap to boot and good quality.

In the greater Paris region I haven't experienced any lasting shortages at all.
I prefer Lidl now, they have the freshest organic groceries, haven't hiked up prices and run specials like artwork supplies (kids loved that) or gardening. I have never had to wait outside the store either, max 3 people in line in front of me.
Worth a try.

"Hypermarchés" and the like (those big supermarket centers) are open and will have anything.

Shouldn't be a problem to get seeds and hose at all in person.

ETA: don't tell French family you're going to Lidl, though, they'll look at you like a pauper

Just smile and treat them to some of your fresh eggs and milk

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

@Jimmianne : shoot mehr an E-Mail if you need some pointers for shopping.

It has taken me a long time to find specific Items after moving here . Sometimes they are not where you think they would be (where they are at home).

No need to buy seeds in the states. All big gardening chains are closed, but deliver and do curbside pick up (Leroy Merlin, Truffaut... ). Sometimes goods him get here surprisingly fast (clippers via La FNAC -24 hours), sometimes it takes way longer than expected (clothes, 10 days).

If you pick Truffaut, they have disclaimer that their orders will take 15 days, so I'd personally try Leroy Merlin

 

[MarionC]

@Jimmianne : shoot mehr an E-Mail if you need some pointers for shopping.

It has taken me a long time to find specific Items after moving here . Sometimes they are not where you think they would be (where they are at home).

No need to buy seeds in the states. All big gardening chains are closed, but deliver and do curbside pick up (Leroy Merlin, Truffaut... ). Sometimes goods him get here surprisingly fast (clippers via La FNAC -24 hours), sometimes it takes way longer than expected (clothes, 10 days).

If you pick Truffaut, they have disclaimer that their orders will take 15 days, so I'd personally try Leroy Merlin

Kipari how long have you lived here?

I am a avoiding driving to a city during the shutdown. I know I could go to a big chain, but more the chance of exposure. Here about 200 people, everyone known to each other and quickly known if someone may not be well.

 

[missy]

I want everything my heart desires right now, right here and all for me, me, me, me.

If the healthcare worker can't get TP and produce after his /her shift, because my new rosebushes have taken up that space in the truck I'll happily pass on that for this year.

Yes, exactly. I feel the same way.

This kind of thing is about odds, and degrees of risk.
Shorter quarantine is is more risky, and longer is less risky.

This is not a black and white thing.
There is no "right" time to lift the isolation order.

Why can politicians just say this?
Is it possible people are too stupid to understand such a simple thing?

Too stupid or perhaps just too selfish to care about those whose lives are on the line. My guess is a bit of both-stupid and selfish behavior combined is not a good mix.



I had a long conversation last night with one of my friends who is a doctor working directly with Covid 19 patients. The horror is unreal. This virus affects not just one's lungs but can attack one's kidneys destroying them. Many Covid patients are on dialysis now. And we all know it can affect the GI system. But what I didn't know is it causes blood clots to be produced and thrown so a blood clot can go to the brain resulting in a stroke or to the heart or to the toes. Gruesome results.

This virus is VICIOUS. And the longer we flatten the curve the better our resources for treating those who get infected with COVID. AND a full 20% of people who get this virus *will* need hospitalization. That is a HUGE number of people. And she said at her hospital they are working with a 7 day supply of PPEs and she is hoping a shipment comes soon. By the way, I know you probably all know this but once you have to go on a ventilator there is an 85% chance you won't come off it and you will die.

Posted by one of my friends. WHO IS A DOCTOR.

Exactly. Why don't people get this?

 

[NonieMarie]

Your question is a good one. But to add another facet... to many this is not just about lifting some restrictions....the restrictions infringe on the right to visit a neighbor, to go fishing in your boat even if alone, to buy seeds and plant a garden in one's own backyard. These are not things that people feel they should be forced to give up... even in a pandemic. They are afraid these rights -to travel, to engage in commerce/activity that threatens the health of no one, will be a step in the direction to infringe upon other rights. Our rights under the constitution come from our creator, not governments. People get real itchy if the government starts to mess with them.

I find it really rich that these same yahoos are all for stomping on my rights to control my body. Also, they carry guns because they do want to intimidate. The bigger the gun the smaller the d@@k.
It would be interesting to see what would happen in the open carry states, if every demonstrator of Black Lives Matter or Gay rights carried an assault rifle. In the 60's, the laws changed real fast when Black Panthers walked the streets with guns. They carried guns for the same reason, the could and they wanted to intimidate.

 

[NonieMarie]

@Redwood, I would think you would get it considering your husband works for one of these businesses. People are roaming around Home Depots and Lowes because they are bored. I have family members who are doing this as entertainment now. I begged my dad to think of the people working there. The last thing they need is having someone come to the store and infect the workers. We all know you can feel fine, have this virus and pass it to others.

The Governor of Michigan is trying to keep people safe. Your husband’s right to stay alive should be more important than someone being entertained for an hour.

This isn’t the flu.

This is so true. My sister works for Home Depot. She said whole families come in and most ignore the distancing. She is suffocating under the mask it's difficult to be nice to them.

 

[missy]

This is so true. My sister works for Home Depot. She said whole families come in and most ignore the distancing. She is suffocating under the mask it's difficult to be nice to them.

Wow just wow. Here in most stores you are only allowed in one to a max of 2 people from each family and the number of people allowed into all stores are limited so we can maintain 6 feet plus of distance. What state is this in where whole families come in to your sister's store? Unfreakingbelievable. The masses are asses.

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

Kipari how long have you lived here?

I am a avoiding driving to a city during the shutdown. I know I could go to a big chain, but more the chance of exposure. Here about 200 people, everyone known to each other and quickly known if someone may not be well.

Four years. My DH ist French, so we visited very frequently before. But that's not the same...

Deliveries are safe and to me personally driving to a well managed store in one's car and doing pick up or visiting an empty Lidl with gloves and a mask is not riskier than our supermarket, where there are sometimes long Qs. But ymmv. I have a big householdif nine times feed and can't go without milk . . . I personally prefer to go out once a week and get everything rather than trying different shops or trying the same shop different days of the week.

At Lidl I haven't once left the store without an item I needed (well, I had to settle for bagged carrots instead of the ones with greens and maybe differently apples /pear varieties, but that's hardly anything to complain about) . This includes TO, paper towels, eggs, milk, yeast, flour, produce.

 

[redwood66]

So what are all the possible end goals or outcomes of these protests considering the risks these protesters are taking? I’m making a mental list right now. Would love to hear everyone’s thoughts.

What do most protests seek? A change to whatever it is they are protesting. There are plenty of people who feel the governor overstepped. I think it's kind of crazy to be in that big of a group but I'm not inclined to protest anything. Not my thing.

 

[redwood66]

Wow just wow. Here in most stores you are only allowed in one to a max of 2 people from each family and the number of people allowed into all stores are limited so we can maintain 6 feet plus of distance. What state is this in where whole families come in to your sister's store? Unfreakingbelievable. The masses are asses.

It's crazy but what can be done? It's human nature and lots of people are tired of being cooped up. Especially if they're in an area where there's few cases.

DH's store is doing the one entrance and counting thing to limit the number inside. Have been for about a week. People still line up outside to wait their turn.

 

[missy]

It's crazy but what can be done? It's human nature and lots of people are tired of being cooped up. Especially if they're in an area where there's few cases.

Yes I understand but there’s got to be a common sense plan or we will relapse and have to go back to the beginning but worse because the economy will be in tatters and more people dead. Better to take a cautious and slow approach to reopening and we need more testing capability. Just because we want something doesn’t mean we can go about it willy nilly. This virus doesn’t care.

 

[redwood66]

Yes I understand but there’s got to be a common sense plan or we will relapse and have to go back to the beginning but worse because the economy will be in tatters and more people dead. Better to take a cautious and slow approach to reopening and we need more testing capability. Just because we want something doesn’t mean we can go about it willy nilly. This virus doesn’t care.

I edited. One size fits all is not going to work though. It may relapse it may not and I don't think those making the decisions know either. They're best guessing the whole show.