[kj] "PUT ON YOUR MASKS ...AND ANIMAL SKINS..."

[jpwhkj at aol.com]

My own experience has been a pretty easy one.  I'm fairly sure myself & my missus have had it, very mildly, and probably the kids as well (even more mildly).  I know a few people who have definitely had it.  One was really bad - several months later he's still suffering the after-effects.  He's a fit guy in his late thirties/early forties (and is a doctor).  He'll survive, but it's been rough.  I know about half a dozen others who have had a nasty bout, been laid low for 1-4 weeks, but only 1 of them had to go to hospital, and all have now (1-3 months later) made a full recovery.  I know one person whose dad died, aged 70-ish, but very fit.
Other parts of London have been much worse hit - generally the poorer parts, where people had less scope for remote working, more tightly packed living conditions, more reliance on public transport, etc etc.  Ditto other parts of the UK.
On a national and global level, I don't accept the "hindsight" defence.  Governments are there primarily to protect their people, and the prospect of a pandemic is hardly a new thing - we've had multiple occasions in the last 20 years that could have turned into pandemics but didn't.  It was either #1 or #2 on the national risk register.  So we should have been better prepared.
But in Jan & Feb, our (UK) government was too busy posturing about Brexit and fighting with the civil service and the BBC, to pay attention to what was happening in China.  Sure, I believe that the Chinese govt probably covered up / downplayed what was happening, but it *was* getting reported.  (And the UK govt should know that the Chinese govt would be covering up / downplaying it, so they should have been able to interpret what was going on and come to some approximation of the truth.)  So we had a couple of months in which we could have made *some* preparations, probably relatively cheaply, and without too much disturbance to normal life... but we didn't, with the effects that can be seen.  Whatever other qualities Johnson may or may not have, attention to detail and doggedness just aren't on the list, and that's exactly what we've needed.
Around the rest of the world, some govts have done well (e.g. NZ) and some have done badly (e.g. USA, Brazil).  Doubtless national circumstances have played a major part (don't they always) but good leadership matters, and where it's been on display, the benefits have been obvious.  I don't think that's hindsight.
As for Jaz and his theories.  I haven't watched the video, mostly because Jaz's viewpoint on these matters is relatively predictable and sadly tedious. Jaz has made some great music over the years, mostly when he's been part of a group effort consisting of Geordie, Big Paul, and Youth or Raven.  He's delivered some great live performances, again as part of Killing Joke.  But (IMHO, obviously) he's a very poor guide to what's happening in the world, or indeed what *will* happen.



-----Original Message-----
From: fatpotanga <fatpotanga at gmail.com>
To: A list about all things Killing Joke (the band!) <gathering at misera.net>
Sent: Fri, 17 Jul 2020 17:45
Subject: Re: [kj] "PUT ON YOUR MASKS ...AND ANIMAL SKINS..."

My take is pretty much the same as yours Alex. Totally agree with everything you've said.
It's one of those things nature throws out once in a while to try and keep populations under control, and we'll eventually bat it back and wait for the next one while we as a species continue to grow exponentially.
Trump aside, I think any criticism of any governments handling of this anywhere in the world is largely based on hindsight. It's an unprecedented situation where you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.
Jaz. Truth be told I'm getting a tad bored of. I remember reading years ago "I still have all ravens SMS messages." With no phone? That's impressive. And all that bollocks about the internet and singing "kiss my internet goodbye" on a live version of intellect. But now...?I get that it's a bit if theatre, but the same act, for me, has become a bit monotonous.



On Fri, 17 Jul 2020, 17:01 GREG SLAWSON, <gregslawson at msn.com> wrote:

Alex is correct a big chunk of Americans are ignorant and fascists and others who are not believe in stupid conspiracy theories. On the plus side the majority are against the Nazi minority, tens of millions are protesting police murders, and a majority are trying to contain the virus.

Sent from my iPhone
On Jul 17, 2020, at 10:59 AM, Alex Smith <vassifer at earthlink.net> wrote:



Good morning, all....
I'm sure some of you have seen Jaz's latest video blog entry via his new black'n'red page. If not, the link is out there... it's Jaz speaking to his cellphone (he must have one, now?) from somewhere in Central America, where he's working on some new classical music (a piano concerto). 
Content-wise, it's typical Coleman ... talking up his latest project ("The Day the Earth Went Mad") and suggesting that its success has been  unprecedented ... which I think *might* be a *bit* of an overstatement, but I haven't seen any figures to suggest one way or the other. 
Beyond that, Jaz speaks elliptically about the current world health crisis, affirming that he believes nothing is accidental on a geopolitical level (translation: the pandemic was somehow orchestrated? ... or, at the very least, being used as an opportunity by "them"). He gravely asserts repeatedly throughout the clip that he will not succumb to "compulsory vaccination" and alluding to comments Bill Gates allegedly made about curtailing overpopulation. He also alludes to own own precognitive prowess for predicting such things. All in a day's work for our Jaz, of course.
He does *NOT* get into the mask debate, although I'm quite certain he has thoughts on the matter. He does not sport a mask in the clip, but then... he appears to be alone during proceedings.
My question here is this, dear Gatherers... where do YOU stand on these issues? 
I know Jaz has pretty much never met a conspiracy theory he didn't like, but I cannot say that I share his view on this point. I don't have enough faith in my fellow man to be able to orchestrate such things. Sometimes a tremendous calamity is just that .. a tremendous calamity. You, of course, may beg to differ.
Here in the States, of course, it is the very definition of a clusterfuck. While New York has managed to more or less get onboard and bring the infection rate down (which is not to say it won't spike up again), seemingly the rest of the nation simply cannot get their heads around it. While I'd always harbored by own preconceptions about my fellow countrymen, this crisis has only confirmed them. By and large, Americans are selfish, arrogant, myopic and willfully ignorant. Prove me wrong.
I do not pretend to know what is going to happen next, but as there is no vaccine at the moment, I have no great hope of a return to "normalcy" occurring any time soon. I raised this point on the Jaz Coleman Facebook page, and earned a quick rejoinder suggesting that I am basically being conditioned into craving a vaccine via propaganda. Personally speaking, I find this worldview somewhat dim. 
Our government already has more of my information than can be quantified by my social security number, my tax information and pretty much all my vital statistics, to say nothing of the the phone I regularly carry around with me. 
I don't believe COVID-19 was created in a lab. I also don't believe it's a hoax. There are still morgues in the streets of New York City. It's all very real. 
I don't believe wearing a mask is an impingement on my personal, Constitutionally protected freedoms. At worst, it's a mild inconvenience. As has been said elsewhere, if you think wearing a mask is uncomfortable, WAIT `TIL YOU TRY THE VENTILATOR.
Myself and my immediate family have all been safe and healthy, but we do know several folks who've been infected, and their stories of their experiences are fairly harrowing.
What are YOUR feelings and experiences with this, so far? 
Alex in NYC






































_______________________________________________
Gathering mailing list
Gathering at misera.net
https://pairlist4.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/gathering

_______________________________________________
Gathering mailing list
Gathering at misera.net
https://pairlist4.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/gathering

_______________________________________________
Gathering mailing list
Gathering at misera.net
https://pairlist4.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/gathering
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://pairlist4.pair.net/pipermail/gathering/attachments/20200717/6f16126b/attachment.html>