Michigan state of emergency!

[thatonedude]

No. I don’t think the government should be telling me what to do. You could argue leaving your house everyday even in normal situations is a risk.

If you give them this power, what’s next?

People are able to recover quickly and/or able to avoid the virus entirely? That is what would happen next.

Sent from my Pixel 3a XL using Tapatalk

[MWmetalhead]

To answer Mike Oxlong - who posed a fair question...

I would be opposed to forcing everyone to stay home for two weeks. What about first responders & medical professionals? What about caregivers for the elderly and mentally ill? Those people need to be permitted to continue their jobs.

Stores and pharmacies need to remain open for those who need groceries and pharmaceuticals.

I think what the government *could* do is mandate closures of non-essential businesses. This has happened, at a state level, in response to severe weather, so there is certainly precedent.

What the government should have already done is make testing kits and protective clothing more readily available so that the general public has the proper resources available to make the best decisions for themselves & their families.

It is clear to me the CDC director, Dr. Redfield, is in over his head. He did not look well prepared when testifying in front of Congress earlier in the week. He might be a terrific medical professional and scientist (his resume is impressive), but he appears to be a weak executive.

[Deleted User 4520]

I work in retail and I'm just as terrified as the customers who come in hoarding TP, cleaning supplies, food, etc. We were slammed yesterday. We have to clean the register area at set intervals now..kinda hard when its super busy. Also we were told we CANNOT wear gloves or masks at work as it might scare/upset some customers. Well what about those of us working there!? Don't we have a right to protect ourselves by taking precautions? I have considered contacting the ACLU about my rights to protect myself being violated. I'm just not sure contacting HR would do any good tbh. At this point I just don't know what to do.

Stores and pharmacies need to remain open for those who need groceries and pharmaceuticals.

I think what the government *could* do is mandate closures of non-essential businesses. This has happened, at a state level, in response to severe weather, so there is certainly precedent.

[km1125]

I thought it was interesting that New York State starting producing their own hand sanitizers to overcome the local shortages. Surprised we're not seeing production numbers for things like masks and other protective equipment and an emphasis on making sure there's plenty (and also an emphasis on not just wasting what folks already have).

[km1125]

I work in retail and I'm just as terrified as the customers who come in hoarding TP, cleaning supplies, food, etc. We were slammed yesterday. We have to clean the register area at set intervals now..kinda hard when its super busy. Also we were told we CANNOT wear gloves or masks at work as it might scare/upset some customers. Well what about those of us working there!? Don't we have a right to protect ourselves by taking precautions? I have considered contacting the ACLU about my rights to protect myself being violated. I'm just not sure contacting HR would do any good tbh. At this point I just don't know what to do.

Surprised gloves aren't allowed, as it would show you're talking steps to keep things clean. I can see masks being an issue just because of the short supply and if you don't have any on the shelves for folks it would seem like you were hoarding them just for employees. I wouldn't have any issue with shutting down the checkout lanes (especially the self-serve) once every hour or 1/2 hour so they could be wiped down. Then the employee wiping it down is not in close contact with anyone.

[Deleted User 4520]

By not allowing employees to take such precautions just shows how much they don't care about us and care more about the customers feelings and anxieties.

I work in retail and I'm just as terrified as the customers who come in hoarding TP, cleaning supplies, food, etc. We were slammed yesterday. We have to clean the register area at set intervals now..kinda hard when its super busy. Also we were told we CANNOT wear gloves or masks at work as it might scare/upset some customers. Well what about those of us working there!? Don't we have a right to protect ourselves by taking precautions? I have considered contacting the ACLU about my rights to protect myself being violated. I'm just not sure contacting HR would do any good tbh. At this point I just don't know what to do.

Surprised gloves aren't allowed, as it would show you're talking steps to keep things clean. I can see masks being an issue just because of the short supply and if you don't have any on the shelves for folks it would seem like you were hoarding them just for employees. I wouldn't have any issue with shutting down the checkout lanes (especially the self-serve) once every hour or 1/2 hour so they could be wiped down. Then the employee wiping it down is not in close contact with anyone.

[MWmetalhead]

I've seen cashiers at the local Meijer wearing sanitary gloves on "normal" business days.

The people who are hoarding stuff unnecessarily are making things difficult for a lot of folks. I do feel really bad for those who work at Costco, Walmart, Meijer, Target, et al. I hear some stock clerks at Meijer are working 12 to 14 hour shifts. Granted, some of those folks probably don't mind earning some overtime pay.

I would like to pick up a handful of grocery items in the next day or two. Suffice it to say, I will be going nowhere near any Meijer, Target, or Walmart supercenters!

The two grocery stores I visited last Sunday morning served me well. Everything I needed was in stock, and perusing the shelves, few items were out of stock. One store had few customers while I was there; the other was only moderately busy.

[audiophile]

No TP, but normal other than that. TP thing was probably a social media conspiracy.

[MasterB]

Some co-workers were wearing gloves when I working this past week I work at Kalamazoo Public Libary which is now closed until Apr 6.

[tapeisrolling]

Items in short supply could cause a major problem. A friend just had follow-up colonoscopy to colon cancer and the nurses are having to wear the same mask for repeated services that are not invasive due to shortage. Another is an EMT and he said the shortage of the really good protective stuff is getting to a critical level because if Corono is suspected on arrival and it turns out not to be that one more good mask that gets tossed out when one that level was not needed. If these folks get sick who will come get you at an accident or heart attack. Then who will see to your need at the hospital.

An amazing stat coming out from Korea and Italy. The biggest group infected in Korea was the 20-29 age group. They didn't stay home but spent time roaming around passing it on to others. Italy, it was mainly over 50 that had the majority if illness. Just today a large group in Mass. got tagged and the trace back work showed it was young people who hadn't shown the symptom's yet. The best thing to do is stay home.

[audiophile]

Don't have coloscopy unless you are bleeding right now. Honestly I'm not sure why they needed masks prior to covid-19, it's not surgery.

[MWmetalhead]

Went to Woodward Corner Market (owned by Meijer), the Birmingham Kroger, and the Birmingham Speedway this morning.

I did observe clerks at the Kroger and Speedway wearing latex gloves. The Shell & Mobil stations along Woodward are overpriced. Speedway's price has come down to $1.99. I suspect gasoline will be near $1.79 in the days ahead; it can already be had for that price in some communities.

The Woodward Corner Market was not busy at all and Kroger was only moderately busy.

The Kroger shelves were ransacked; it looked like a major hurricane or crippling blizzard was approaching! Cleaning aisle was completely empty except for dishwasher detergent, toilet bowl cleaner, and swiffer dry pads.

The paper towel, kleenex, and toilet paper aisle was 100% empty.

Waffles - gone. Soup - gone. Rice - gone. Full service meat counter - empty. (The self-serve meat aisle was reasonably well stocked, and the deli counter appeared completely stocked.)

The bread aisle at the Kroger was in pretty good shape. Bought two packages of hamburger buns for $1.29 a piece; they were super fresh! (March 26 expiry.)

Now, for the WCM:
- Produce aisle and baked goods section were exquisitely well stocked. TONS of bananas on the shelf.
- Pallets with Meijer brand paper towel and Meijer brand toilet paper were found in two spots through the store. The actual paper products aisle, though, was bare. There were plenty of disposable plastic cups, however.
- Soup aisle was empty; boxes of rice were completely wiped out but there were still a decent number of single-serve rice cups & packets as well as some 16 oz bags of rice on the lowest shelf.
- All ground beef was completely wiped out, except for some hamburger patties.
- Here's the one that shocked me: Bread aisle was COMPLETELY EMPTY! (You could buy fresh loaves of bread in the front of the store from local bakeries as usual, though.)
- Plenty of jugs of white vinegar were in stock, found on an end cap. Good substitute for Lysol. I like mixing white vinegar with Dawn dish soap in a spray bottle for general purpose cleaning.

Both Kroger and WCM had plenty of dry cereal on hand. The snack / junk food aisles were also fully stocked.