[Bored chemist]

sometimes internally for diseases such as tropical sprue, epilepsy,

Their use for epilepsy (which is not an infection) shows that they didn't really know what they were doing.

[CliveG]

God watched as he let man's freedom to kill himself do just that.

And then God decided to kill even more.
Nice guy, isn't He?

I am on oxygen anyway so if things get tough I do not need to go to hospital.

True.
I'm in reasonably good heath- luck me.
If I'm taken ill in such a way that my lungs are unable to extract enough oxygen from air then (with luck) I will get taken to hospital and supplied with pure oxygen.
That gives me roughly 5 fold more "leeway" on oxygen capacity.

If you are already on oxygen and you get the same level of lung damage, you will die.
So, yes, you will need to go to hospital- specifically the morgue.

Being on oxygen already is not a benefit in this case.

Have you considered that without God the world could be far worse off?

God is a force for good. Humankind has a propensity for evil - just look at our history. We can blame Satan, but greed and destruction of enemies is a rather strong evolutionary trait.

Rather than try to find contradiction and tear down institutions whose overall impact has been beneficial, why not be more tolerant and accept the benefits?

The oxygen concentrator gives nearly pure oxygen. I use the same nose-piece as in the hospital. I have an oximeter to check my oxygen levels and can adjust from low (2 liters per minute) to a higher (6 liters per minute) amount if needed.

Perhaps my biggest defense is that I have really great genes and have been able to survive some things that kill others.

[CliveG]

sometimes internally for diseases such as tropical sprue, epilepsy,

Their use for epilepsy (which is not an infection) shows that they didn't really know what they were doing.

You may be right. It was hit and miss. Perhaps it had a small effect by altering the ionic balance in the neurons slightly

[CliveG]

The demographic of the victims of spanish flu, on one hand and corvid 19 , on the other is instructive.

One killed mainly the "fit  young adults" the other mainly the elderly.
Which shows that they are rather different conditions (albeit with some similarity).
That's supported by the fact that they are different families of viruses.

So why do you keep trying to conflate them?

With the development of modern antibiotics in the 1940s, the use of silver as an antimicrobial agent diminished.

There's a reason for that; it's not as good.

One - Learn from history using the parts that give comparative analysis.
Two - As antibiotics become less effective and silver has not lost any effectiveness there may come a point that silver has an advantage over antibiotics.

You do know that the immune system is reduced when treating a virus with an antibiotic - although this may indirectly help by lessening the cytokine response. I do not take antibiotics unless I have to, and then I only take the least amount needed to allow my immune system to do the rest. Have done so for ages.

[Bored chemist]

Have you considered that without God the world could be far worse off?

Have you considered that , if He cared about us it would, necessarily be be better off, but  it isn't.

We can blame Satan,

But, as in the crusades or ISIS or the Nazi persecution of Jews, it's generally more sensible to either blame God, or leave Him out of it.

Rather than try to find contradiction and tear down institutions whose overall impact has been beneficial, why not be more tolerant and accept the benefits?

And... once again...  get yourself a mirror and stop trying to undermine science.

Then have a look at which side of history  religion has been on.
By telling Christians that they are in God's image, it promoted racism.
By  publicising Leviticus, it encouraged encourages homophobia.
And by telling people  where to get their slaves it set back the anti slavery  movement.
And  by proclaiming stupid nonsense about witches (among other things) it set back the sex equality movement.

So, yes, sure; look to "institutions whose overall impact has been beneficial,".

You will not find the churches there.

[Bored chemist]

As antibiotics become less effective and silver has not lost any effectiveness

Got evidence?

[Bored chemist]

You do know that the immune system is reduced when treating a virus with an antibiotic

Nobody with appropriate education treats viral infections with antibiotics.

[Bored chemist]

You may be right. It was hit and miss. Perhaps it had a small effect by altering the ionic balance in the neurons slightly

Or, like yout silver hat, it was a really good placebo (placebos work better if they are something exotic)

[CliveG]

The same point I made about masks. Choose your source and use common sense.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/07/is-coronavirus-mutating-into-a-more-deadly-strain-face-masks-covid-19-myths-busted
Claim: ‘Face masks don’t work’
Wearing a face mask is certainly not an iron-clad guarantee that you won’t get sick – viruses can also transmit through the eyes and tiny viral particles, known as aerosols, can penetrate masks. However, masks are effective at capturing droplets, which is a main transmission route of coronavirus, and some studies have estimated a roughly fivefold protection versus no barrier alone (although others have found lower levels of effectiveness).

If you are likely to be in close contact with someone infected, a mask cuts the chance of the disease being passed on. If you’re showing symptoms of coronavirus, or have been diagnosed, wearing a mask can also protect others. So masks are crucial for health and social care workers looking after patients and are also recommended for family members who need to care for someone who is ill – ideally both the patient and carer should have a mask.

[CliveG]

You do know that the immune system is reduced when treating a virus with an antibiotic

Nobody with appropriate education treats viral infections with antibiotics.

Go to your local GP and complain about a chest infection and see if you first get tested before you get your antibiotic. Does the doctor even ask the questions to differentiate the bacterial from viral?
However, the bottom line is that you agree.

[Bored chemist]

You do know that the immune system is reduced when treating a virus with an antibiotic

Nobody with appropriate education treats viral infections with antibiotics.

Go to your local GP and complain about a chest infection and see if you first get tested before you get your antibiotic. Does the doctor even ask the questions to differentiate the bacterial from viral?
However, the bottom line is that you agree.

I did not say that I agreed.
I pointed out that, since there are no good clinical settings in which the process would happen, there can be no evidence of what the consequence would be.

I don't agree, and I think you (or others)  have made it up

[Bored chemist]

Go to your local GP and complain about a chest infection and see if you first get tested before you get your antibiotic.

I get told it's probably viral.
I might get offered antibiotics to prevent secondary (bacterial) infection.

Did you not understand why antibiotics are sometimes prescribed in those circumstances?

[CliveG]

Have you considered that without God the world could be far worse off?

Have you considered that , if He cared about us it would, necessarily be be better off, but  it isn't.

We can blame Satan,

But, as in the crusades or ISIS or the Nazi persecution of Jews, it's generally more sensible to either blame God, or leave Him out of it.

Rather than try to find contradiction and tear down institutions whose overall impact has been beneficial, why not be more tolerant and accept the benefits?

And... once again...  get yourself a mirror and stop trying to undermine science.

Then have a look at which side of history  religion has been on.
By telling Christians that they are in God's image, it promoted racism.
By  publicising Leviticus, it encouraged encourages homophobia.
And by telling people  where to get their slaves it set back the anti slavery  movement.
And  by proclaiming stupid nonsense about witches (among other things) it set back the sex equality movement.

So, yes, sure; look to "institutions whose overall impact has been beneficial,".

You will not find the churches there.

The current popular history of the Churches emphasizes the faults and diminishes the benefits. The global rise of anti-Christians in the media adds greatly to the distortions.

And a biased emotive mind just makes the overall picture worse. Either you educate yourself in a objective way, or you keep spouting the same anti-religious (mostly anti-Christian) rhetoric.

[CliveG]

Go to your local GP and complain about a chest infection and see if you first get tested before you get your antibiotic.

I get told it's probably viral.
I might get offered antibiotics to prevent secondary (bacterial) infection.

Did you not understand why antibiotics are sometimes prescribed in those circumstances?

I educate myself to tell the difference now. When I need antibiotics I know it. Usually because I cannot get a room hot enough to get rid of it by myself, or am on holiday. I do not take antibiotics as a prophylactic.

[Bored chemist]

The same point I made about masks. Choose your source and use common sense.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/07/is-coronavirus-mutating-into-a-more-deadly-strain-face-masks-covid-19-myths-busted
Claim: ‘Face masks don’t work’
Wearing a face mask is certainly not an iron-clad guarantee that you won’t get sick – viruses can also transmit through the eyes and tiny viral particles, known as aerosols, can penetrate masks. However, masks are effective at capturing droplets, which is a main transmission route of coronavirus, and some studies have estimated a roughly fivefold protection versus no barrier alone (although others have found lower levels of effectiveness).

If you are likely to be in close contact with someone infected, a mask cuts the chance of the disease being passed on. If you’re showing symptoms of coronavirus, or have been diagnosed, wearing a mask can also protect others. So masks are crucial for health and social care workers looking after patients and are also recommended for family members who need to care for someone who is ill – ideally both the patient and carer should have a mask.

That rather misses the point.
Yes, a mask is a good idea if you are with someone who is infected.
But virtually nobody is actually infected.
South Africa currently has 3 reported cases (if I read the news correctly) in a population of 60 million.

[Bored chemist]

I educate myself ....

Badly, judging by what you have posted.

[Bored chemist]

The current popular history of the Churches emphasizes the faults and diminishes the benefits. The global rise of anti-Christians in the media adds greatly to the distortions.

And a biased emotive mind just makes the overall picture worse. Either you educate yourself in a objective way, or you keep spouting the same anti-religious (mostly anti-Christian) rhetoric.

And, when you have finished wittering meaninglessly, it will still be the case that the churches encouraged or supported racism, sexism, homophobia, slavery and so on.

There is no evidence that the churches per se did much good.
There is plenty that they did harm.

[CliveG]

The current popular history of the Churches emphasizes the faults and diminishes the benefits. The global rise of anti-Christians in the media adds greatly to the distortions.

And a biased emotive mind just makes the overall picture worse. Either you educate yourself in a objective way, or you keep spouting the same anti-religious (mostly anti-Christian) rhetoric.

And, when you have finished wittering meaninglessly, it will still be the case that the churches encouraged or supported racism, sexism, homophobia, slavery and so on.

There is no evidence that the churches per se did much good.
There is plenty that they did harm.

Is it just possible that the whole of society around the world supported racism, sexism, homophobia, slavery and other norms now considered immoral? And not very long ago either. Do you not see the need for historical context? Was secular and atheist society any better? Their only saving grace is that they essentially have no history - good or bad.

I can tell you that in my research on various religions I also took another look at Christianity. And found that a number of stories that paint the Church in a bad light are often distorted.

Once more you set up a straw-man of expecting perfection and then tarring everything with the same jaundiced brush. You do it with God and you do it with the Christian and Muslim religions. The others you give a pass for various reasons.

What are your solutions to get humankind to work cooperatively? Or are you an anarchist destructionist who sees no meaning to life and therefore destruction is not problematic?

[CliveG]

The same point I made about masks. Choose your source and use common sense.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/07/is-coronavirus-mutating-into-a-more-deadly-strain-face-masks-covid-19-myths-busted
Claim: ‘Face masks don’t work’
Wearing a face mask is certainly not an iron-clad guarantee that you won’t get sick – viruses can also transmit through the eyes and tiny viral particles, known as aerosols, can penetrate masks. However, masks are effective at capturing droplets, which is a main transmission route of coronavirus, and some studies have estimated a roughly fivefold protection versus no barrier alone (although others have found lower levels of effectiveness).

If you are likely to be in close contact with someone infected, a mask cuts the chance of the disease being passed on. If you’re showing symptoms of coronavirus, or have been diagnosed, wearing a mask can also protect others. So masks are crucial for health and social care workers looking after patients and are also recommended for family members who need to care for someone who is ill – ideally both the patient and carer should have a mask.

That rather misses the point.
Yes, a mask is a good idea if you are with someone who is infected.
But virtually nobody is actually infected.
South Africa currently has 3 reported cases (if I read the news correctly) in a population of 60 million.

The point was that there is media distortion to say masks offer no protection and are a waste of time. They then backtrack a bit to say the reason is that they are not used correctly. If that is the case, the solution is to educate people to use a mask properly. Once more - the motivation is to prevent an excessive demand on masks. Do what China did and set up a factory to churn them out. The media make themselves untrustworthy at a time trust is needed.

We have 3 confirmed cases. Who knows how many more? And when it takes hold, the huge numbers with AIDS are at extreme risk I would think.

Because no-one has immunity there is no reason that every person on the planet will get one or both of the current strains (L and S). And if (perhaps when) it mutates, it will go around one more time, or perhaps more. I fully expect to get it. And that everyone I know will get it.

[CliveG]

I said that my personal feeling (not backed by Tarot) was that Amy Klobuchar might have a shot at the presidency. When she failed so badly I thought that was the end of that thought. But if she becomes Biden's running mate and he gets ill at a critical stage then she might just end up as the Democratic contender. Is it possible? Life is strange. I like her as a good middle of the road contender.