In the last couple of weeks, Stillwater has gone up one notch for cities with most cases from 12 to 11. Early this summer it shot up to no 8 after restaurants, bars, gyms and salons reopened. Hopefully, totals won't go past no. 8 in coming weeks.

You can bet they will move up before the end of summer. It's becoming pretty obvious that the trend is for larger cities to peak out first because they got to the suppression threshold at a higher rate. Now what we don't know is what will happen when fall comes around. How much that raises the R value. Norman and Stillwater are probably going to see a starp increase in cases because of the colleges and also they haven't seen the same amount of cases Tulsa and OKC has had

In the spirit of consisteny I assume you have no problems with folks smoking in a park.

and lets not also forget that we have now learned that Hollywood has gotten every Zombie movie ever made wrong, because none of them have shown the group who is protesting that their rights to be able to go out and party with zombies is being infringed upon.

Numbers are delayed today due to 'technical difficulties'.

the problem is that just because you can choose something for yourself doesn't mean you should unknowingly choose it for others. For example, one of the people in that bar picks it up, doesn't show any symptoms, and delivers the virus directly to his or her professor who beings it in to their home exposing their spouse and kids. This really is like a man not wearing a condom saying he shouldn't be responsible for his partners wellbeing. Well, wrong.

They best wear a their face condom to class then! :tongue:

In the spirit of consisteny I assume you have no problems with folks smoking in a park.

If smoking is allowed in the park...sure, by all means. People that don't want to be around people smoking can go to a park where smoking isn't allowed.

If smoking is allowed in the park...sure, by all means. People that don't want to be around people smoking can go to a park where smoking isn't allowed.

but if smoking isn't allowed in the park, then you are okay with that as well? so the government can make some rules regarding public safety?

but if smoking isn't allowed in the park, then you are okay with that as well? so the government can make some rules regarding public safety?

I never said the government couldn't make rules regarding public safety. I said that the mayor of Stillwater was doing his best to walk the line between protecting customers who want to attend bars and restaurants while at the same time allowing the bars and restaurants to continue operating. I also said that if you're putting all your faith in the government to protect people who are WILLINGLY putting themselves in harms way...you're going to be disappointed.

I do think that at the end of the day you can't keep every public place closed forever and people, especially young college aged people, are going to gather and do what they want regardless where they are allowed to do it which makes most rules difficult to enforce especially as long as students are living away from home. That said, as long as hospitalizations for younger people don't increase substantially in college towns in this part of the country, I don't see colleges moving back online.

I’m saying that everyone in the bar used their own free will and chose to go. Anyone who didn’t want to be in that situation could choose not to be a customer of that establishment. ...

This is bullsh*t. If someone that's there of their own free will gets infected, and then infects someone else, that someone else has absolutely no say in the matter and could end up injured for life or dead (yes, they could also be fine, but who knows what lottery number anybody's going to come up with - could win, could die, could have no symptoms, etc.). It's not just about one single person deciding that if they go to a bar unmasked that they will be the single lone person that has to possibly suffer the consequences, airborne contagious viruses don't work that way. It's called PUBLIC health for a reason.

This is bullsh*t. If someone that's there of their own free will gets infected, and then infects someone else, that someone else has absolutely no say in the matter and could end up injured for life or dead (yes, they could also be fine, but who knows what lottery number anybody's going to come up with - could win, could die, could have no symptoms, etc.). It's not just about one single person deciding that if they go to a bar unmasked that they will be the single lone person that has to possibly suffer the consequences, airborne contagious viruses don't work that way. It's called PUBLIC health for a reason.

The premise of the comment I was responding to was that the mayor of Stillwater was only appeasing the business owners and wasn't thinking of the CUSTOMERS who also vote. You are talking about a bunch of people who are not CUSTOMERS of the establishments that the mayor was trying to make more safe for the CUSTOMERS that patronize them. You all should really read the entire thread before pitching a fit about something completely unrelated to what I was responding to.

Unless you're advocating for all bars to be closed...your concerns will be a risk until a vaccine is developed. Are bars in OKC or anywhere else in OK requiring people to wear masks for the entire time their in the bar after entering? Also as Bunty said above, the Tumbleweed isn't in Stillwater and isn't subject to their mask ordinance...so something at a higher level would be needed to regulate it.

You can bet they will move up before the end of summer. It's becoming pretty obvious that the trend is for larger cities to peak out first because they got to the suppression threshold at a higher rate. Now what we don't know is what will happen when fall comes around. How much that raises the R value. Norman and Stillwater are probably going to see a starp increase in cases because of the colleges and also they haven't seen the same amount of cases Tulsa and OKC has had
16338
:tongue:

I see your point but the idiots converging there are going to cause unwanted consequences for everyone, including the closure of OSU. There are a lot of OSU students there who are trying to get in-person instruction, enjoy their lives, and also adhere to basic guidelines to limit the spread of the virus. The people at the Tumbleweed probably aren’t even all OSU students.

I don’t blame the mayor here totally. What a sh-t job he has right now. There are probably folks who want him strung up for even suggesting a mask ordinance in the first place. In many ways, he is just a patsy for the university, trying to keep that college money flowing through Stillwater.

But it isn’t going to matter in three weeks or so when the university shuts down to in person instruction and most of the kids scatter to the wind. Hope the parties were EPIC.

Yeah I don't disagree with you that what the Tumbleweed allowed to go on their was dumb (though apparently legal since it wasn't in city limits). I can't say what I would've done in college...we were all playing beer pong tournaments while swine flu was ripping through campus so I'm not optimistic about our common sense at the time... but as 33 year old, definitely wouldn't want to be in that big of crowd crammed together right now. I did attend a 150 person indoor wedding in Fort Worth a few months ago and to the bride and groom's knowledge, no one ended up with Covid from attending it. People wore masks at the beginning but as the drinks started flowing...mask usage by anyone not working the event dropped to zero. My dad and a bunch of his friends went to Sturgis last week so it will be interesting to see if any of them come down with it over the next few weeks.

The premise of the comment I was responding to was that the mayor of Stillwater wasn't thinking of the CUSTOMERS who also vote. You are talking about a bunch of people who are not CUSTOMERS of the establishments that the mayor was trying to make more safe for the CUSTOMERS that go there. You all should really read the entire thread before pitching a fit about something completely unrelated to what I was responding to.

Unless you're advocating for all bars to be closed...your concerns will be a risk until a vaccine is developed. Are bars in OKC or anywhere else in OK requiring people to wear masks for the entire time their in the bar after entering? Also as Bunty said above, the Tumbleweed isn't in Stillwater and isn't subject to their mask ordinance...so something at a higher level would be needed to regulate it.

I've read every single post in this thread since it started. It doesn't matter if you're referring to the customers or passersby or people smoking in a park or cows, it's a completely wrong assertion to say (which I believe you're saying) "It's not a problem because the people are there of their own free will".

Personally, yes, I believe all bars should be closed, but because the American economy is so completely f*cked up and depends on things that it shouldn't depend on to keep going, and our governments are also completely f*cked up WRT measures to help closed businesses and unemployed workers, that won't work. As I've said, I'm fairly ashamed to be an American during this, we've botched the response pretty much completely, our way of life is not sustainable (naked greed and capitalism and plutocracy run amok and we're a complete dog-eat-dog country), and we're reaping the consequences of the past who-knows-how-many decades of really ridiculous economic policy that only makes the rich ungodly amounts richer and is screwing everybody else.

As I posted way back, there's an article that tells how this could all be under control in 4-6 weeks, there are plans out there for that, they're painful, but are they as painful as what we've gone through and what we will go through in the future?

I don't go to bars, so I have no idea what they're doing, but I suspect almost every bar in the country that's open is failing at protecting people, some in major ways, some in minor ways.

I've read every single post in this thread since it started. It doesn't matter if you're referring to the customers or passersby or people smoking in a park or cows, it's a completely wrong assertion to say (which I believe you're saying) "It's not a problem because the people are there of their own free will".

Personally, yes, I believe all bars should be closed, but because the American economy is so completely f*cked up and depends on things that it shouldn't depend on to keep going, and our governments are also completely f*cked up WRT measures to help closed businesses and unemployed workers, that won't work. As I've said, I'm fairly ashamed to be an American during this, we've botched the response pretty much completely, our way of life is not sustainable (naked greed and capitalism and plutocracy run amok and we're a complete dog-eat-dog country), and we're reaping the consequences of the past who-knows-how-many decades of really ridiculous economic policy that only makes the rich ungodly amounts richer and is screwing everybody else.

As I posted way back, there's an article that tells how this could all be under control in 4-6 weeks, there are plans out there for that, they're painful, but are they as painful as what we've gone through and what we will go through in the future?

I don't go to bars, so I have no idea what they're doing, but I suspect almost every bar in the country that's open is failing at protecting people, some in major ways, some in minor ways.

When the conversation was based on whether the mayor was working in the best interest of the Customers vs. Business Owners...that assertion was absolutely correct when those were the two groups that the discussion was based on. It's the business' job to protect the customers to the best of it's ability while they're patronizing the business and the city government's job to set the guidelines and create the best environment to make protecting their customers possible (which I believe the mayor of Stillwater is trying to do). If you want to move the goal posts and expand it to something I wasn't even responding to just to make a point...that's great but don't scream THAT'S BULL****! and act like I'm advocating for the euthanasia by virus of everyone in Stillwater.

Though if we're talking about real responsibility...it's the customer's responsibility to protect other people that he/she comes in contact with after patronizing the business or attending an event, especially if they have to be in contact with individuals with an elevated risk (in which case they probably shouldn't patronize establishments like bars and restaurants frequently anyway).

615 new cases today.

17 new reported deaths; 2nd only to April 21st.

16338
:tongue:

Lol, Good catch.

615 new cases today.

17 new reported deaths; 2nd only to April 21st.

that death number keeps staying way to high...

that death number keeps staying way to high...

7-day rolling average at an all-time high.

615 new cases today.

17 new reported deaths; 2nd only to April 21st.

Yikes

7-day rolling average at an all-time high.

and for all of those people who say that driving a car is more dangerous... we just past the average number of motor vehicle, and pedestrian deaths per year for the state, has been hovering around 655 for the past few years... and that is numbers for a whole year. we are still at 5 months with this.

Nationally, we are also at nearly 175,000 deaths in less than 6 months and continue to lose about 1,000 people every day.

By way of comparison, we lost 420,000 in World War II over several years.

Yeah I don't disagree with you that what the Tumbleweed allowed to go on their was dumb (though apparently legal since it wasn't in city limits). I can't say what I would've done in college...we were all playing beer pong tournaments while swine flu was ripping through campus so I'm not optimistic about our common sense at the time... but as 33 year old, definitely wouldn't want to be in that big of crowd crammed together right now. I did attend a 150 person indoor wedding in Fort Worth a few months ago and to the bride and groom's knowledge, no one ended up with Covid from attending it. People wore masks at the beginning but as the drinks started flowing...mask usage by anyone not working the event dropped to zero. My dad and a bunch of his friends went to Sturgis last week so it will be interesting to see if any of them come down with it over the next few weeks.

My family member contracted it at an OUTDOOR wedding. They were distanced and wearing masks but she volunteered to help the bride's mother "clean up" (moving chairs and tables, etc.) and contracted it from her. It then passed to the bride and groom and both of the bride's parents. The wedding was sparsely attended.

The bigger issue here is the universities are trying to save themselves financially (totally reasonable) but really can't control what will happen off campus. It's doomed to fail and it's only a matter of time because as you say, many if not most of the students will congregate one way or another, and the virus will quickly spread throughout campus, getting professors and staff sick, getting parents sick when kids go home to "do laundry," and maybe even get grandma and grandpa sick. A lot of these kids have parents who think this is a hoax so they will be complicit in their own infections, but the ripple in the pond will expand outward. People go to OU and OSU from all over the state, all over the country, and all over the world.

I think these early examples show why this won't work, and our major schools will be online-only very soon, just as North Carolina announced it would be yesterday.

615 new cases today.

17 new reported deaths; 2nd only to April 21st.

Pete, do they still report on the counties in which the deaths occurred, and the age group associated with the deceased? I ask because I'm not really seeing that data right now.

Pete, do they still report on the counties in which the deaths occurred, and the age group associated with the deceased? I ask because I'm not really seeing that data right now.

I see this, but they don't give you daily, just total.
https://looker-dashboards.ok.gov/embed/dashboards/76

I see this, but they don't give you daily, just total.
https://looker-dashboards.ok.gov/embed/dashboards/76

N95 masks (don't have any BTW) and latex gloves are the key to stopping this. Paper masks and no gloves? Ha, good luck

Paper masks and no gloves? Ha, good luck

but they are better than nothing... but yes, N95 masks and gloves are significantly better

N95 masks (don't have any BTW) and latex gloves are the key to stopping this. Paper masks and no gloves? Ha, good luck
Way too many studies can be found that compare cloth masks to just say cloth masks don’t work. Some are worse than nothing, some do something but very varied levels and some that are of good design and multiple layers of something like quality terry cloth are actually pretty good. I have three different types of N95 masks made by 3M and Norton so they’re quality stuff. Two of them fit very well and I would trust very much. One just doesn’t seal no matter how I move it around so just saying N95 masks work also isn’t a valid statement. A well made, multilayered terry cloth mask could work much better than an ill fitting N95.

My opinion is carrying sanitizer and using it often is much better than wearing gloves. Unless you change gloves pretty much every time you touch something they’re spreading germs as much as bare hands. What’s important is your hands being sanitary before touching your face or anything you’re going to be putting in your face.

N95 masks (don't have any BTW) and latex gloves are the key to stopping this. Paper masks and no gloves? Ha, good luck

You have to use the glove properly too. If you are discipline enough to use latex gloves properly, your probably more likely to wash your hands better.
And you have to actually change the mask out every so often. Filters don't work really well when their dirty.

Who knows what the benefit masks bring, but I do know politicians have used them as a cop out to avoid lock downs. They work great for preventing lock downs in that case!

I still haven't seen anything to really disprove my belief that the more populated cities are at least temporarily approaching a R below 1 for this time of year as they approach 1.5 to 2 percent confirmed total infected. Mask mandates move that peak point a few days back at most.

Way too many studies can be found that compare cloth masks to just say cloth masks don’t work. Some are worse than nothing, some do something but very varied levels and some that are of good design and multiple layers of something like quality terry cloth are actually pretty good.

This is straight up health misinformation. Please do more research before you share because misinformation is a primary reason the U.S. is failing so bad in this crisis. There's a ton of research that various types of cloth masks make a huge difference. Moreover, the recent study that suggested that masks (like gaiters) can break up droplets and cause more harm has already been challenged and the researchers have cautioned it's been misinterpreted. Cloth masks work. Researchers have been clear on this since (save the failure of the CDC and WHO for the first couple months) the beginning of the pandemic. Do better.

A transcript of an interview with Dr. Fauci. A good interview that puts wearing gloves into perspective. One must accept the knowledge and expertise of the nations leading immunologist to take anything from it.

Matthew McConaughey had questions about coronavirus. So he chatted on Instagram with Dr. Anthony Fauci
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.houstonchronicle.com/lifestyle/renew-houston/health/amp/Matthew-McConaughey-had-questions-about-15485376.php

This is straight up health misinformation. Please do more research before you share because misinformation is a primary reason the U.S. is failing so bad in this crisis. There's a ton of research that various types of cloth masks make a huge difference. Moreover, the recent study that suggested that masks (like gaiters) can break up droplets and cause more harm has already been challenged and the researchers have cautioned it's been misinterpreted. Cloth masks work. Researchers have been clear on this since (save the failure of the CDC and WHO for the first couple months) the beginning of the pandemic. Do better.
Ok. I’m confused. Your argument seems to say that various cloth masks offer different levels of effectiveness which is exactly what I said. I said that many types do very well. Read better.

https://twitter.com/jeffreyatucker/status/1295776800421937157?s=21


Perhaps were seeing such huge deaths because were the most obese and diabetic country in the world, and Oklahoma leads the country that’s already #1.

https://twitter.com/jeffreyatucker/status/1295776800421937157?s=21


Perhaps were seeing such huge deaths because were the most obese and diabetic country in the world, and Oklahoma leads the country that’s already #1.I’m 61, need the lose 30 to 40 pounds and am on meds for high cholesterol and high blood pressure. I had very minimal symptoms. So being older, fat and out out of shape isn’t a you’ll get it bad sentence. This is too odd a virus to assign results based on physical conditions. If so I should be dead. I do have continuing issues but even they are getting better every week.

My point is EVERYONE needs to look at this virus like I could get it and maybe be fine or maybe die and who knows who will be which.

https://twitter.com/jeffreyatucker/status/1295776800421937157?s=21


Perhaps were seeing such huge deaths because were the most obese and diabetic country in the world, and Oklahoma leads the country that’s already #1.

Just wait until the population of people at sturgis starts to spike in covid cases. Those people are everything stereotypical about Oklahoma x10!!

One thing that concerns me with the colleges (especially ones like OSU that are somewhat isolated from major population centers) is that students will travel there from all over the state/country, live in high-density situations they wouldn't otherwise (dorms, greek housing, etc.), and then if the outbreaks get bad and they cancel in-person classes later in the semester, many of those students could travel back to their homes and potentially start spreading to populations that were previously isolated. Heck, I guess even if in-person classes remain, many students will travel back home for long weekends, holidays, etc.

As Pete mentioned - today's high death count brings the 7-day average of deaths to a new record high at 9.1. Yesterday was technically a new record for the 7-day death average too, but not by any significant margin. (1000th decimal).

So far in August, only a single day had 0 deaths reported: Sunday, August 9th. Rolling 7-day death totals also hit a new all-time record at 64.

Month Summary
Projected case totals now putting August below July, but it appears that August will rank as #2 most deadly by the weekend, and highly likely that August will end as the most deadly month.
https://i.imgur.com/E3nBaes.png

Average Cases & Deaths
https://i.imgur.com/K99pAeY.png

PW405, thank you for your work

PW405, thank you for your work

Thanks! I wish I had a little more confidence with data science & advanced analytics techniques, but if my plots help to paint a more complete & easier to interpret picture of the key data points for viewers, I'm happy with that.

These are unprecedented, tough times. We all must do our best to be kind to one another and fight this virus.

The day before Utah Jazz player tested positive, I went to a concert at Criterion. I almost didn't go because it was a weeknight, and I'm not in my 20's anymore. Looking back on that night... it ended up serving as a weird "final chapter" of the "old days".

I miss those days.

One thing that concerns me with the colleges (especially ones like OSU that are somewhat isolated from major population centers) is that students will travel there from all over the state/country, live in high-density situations they wouldn't otherwise (dorms, greek housing, etc.), and then if the outbreaks get bad and they cancel in-person classes later in the semester, many of those students could travel back to their homes and potentially start spreading to populations that were previously isolated. Heck, I guess even if in-person classes remain, many students will travel back home for long weekends, holidays, etc.

As Pete mentioned - today's high death count brings the 7-day average of deaths to a new record high at 9.1. Yesterday was technically a new record for the 7-day death average too, but not by any significant margin. (1000th decimal).

So far in August, only a single day had 0 deaths reported: Sunday, August 9th. Rolling 7-day death totals also hit a new all-time record at 64.

Month Summary
Projected case totals now putting August below July, but it appears that August will rank as #2 most deadly by the weekend, and highly likely that August will end as the most deadly month.
https://i.imgur.com/E3nBaes.png

Average Cases & Deaths
https://i.imgur.com/K99pAeY.png

I'll try and stay positive. The death rate is actually much lower than total cases. April 199 deaths off of 3,053 cases. July 154 deaths off of 22,695 Either we are getting better at treating it or it's slightly weaker than before.

Ok. I’m confused. Your argument seems to say that various cloth masks offer different levels of effectiveness which is exactly what I said. I said that many types do very well. Read better.

Yes, we agree different masks work differently. That's not how your post started.

While pretty much all experts agree that masks—including cloth ones—make a big difference in reducing COVID spread. You started your post with "Way too many studies can be found that compare cloth masks to just say cloth masks don’t work. Some are worse than nothing..." Please show me how the overall literature suggests that "cloth masks don't work." Claiming the research shows this is health misinformation and can cause harm.

No hard feelings. Just think we need to speak about this carefully considering how rampant misinformation has spread.

I was in Norman last night and Campus Corner was generally very busy.

I just don't see how the virus doesn't spread rapidly on college campuses. You can't put 20,000 young adults in a small amount of real estate and expect them to be careful.

I'll try and stay positive. The death rate is actually much lower than total cases. April 199 deaths off of 3,053 cases. July 154 deaths off of 22,695 Either we are getting better at treating it or it's slightly weaker than before.

or the testing is just better

I was in Norman last night and Campus Corner was generally very busy.

I just don't see how the virus doesn't spread rapidly on college campuses. You can't put 20,000 young adults in a small amount of real estate and expect them to be careful.

If OU makes it to Labor Day I'll be surprised.

Yes, we agree different masks work differently. That's not how your post started.

While pretty much all experts agree that masks—including cloth ones—make a big difference in reducing COVID spread. You started your post with "Way too many studies can be found that compare cloth masks to just say cloth masks don’t work. Some are worse than nothing..." Please show me how the overall literature suggests that "cloth masks don't work." Claiming the research shows this is health misinformation and can cause harm.

No hard feelings. Just think we need to speak about this carefully considering how rampant misinformation has spread.

I didn’t say cloth masks don’t work. I did say that some materials really don’t work at all and that is completely true. That’s not only not misinformation but valuable information. The bulk of my post was about how some cloth masks work very well. I have seen a couple petri dish experiments testing different masks types/materials and petri dishes at various distances that show multilayer cloth, especially terry cloth can work very well. However, fleece tests grew as much or more in the petri dishes than no mask at all. Lots of other materials worked at different levels of efficiency.

I wonder how other Oklahoma Universities and colleges will be in a week or two? Will they also wind up going to online again? Looks like some of the other big name universities in the country are going in that direction.

I wonder how other Oklahoma Universities and colleges will be in a week or two? Will they also wind up going to online again? Looks like some of the other big name universities in the country are going in that direction.

I'm sure OU and OSU have a number of positive tests or hospitalizations that will shut them down. Based on the reports of all the partying and shoulder to shoulder in bars already a week before school starts, it won't take too long.

Will they keep athletes on campus and attempt football? $$$ will decide.

I'm sure OU and OSU have a number of positive tests or hospitalizations that will shut them down. Based on the reports of all the partying and shoulder to shoulder in bars already a week before school starts, it won't take too long.

Will they keep athletes on campus and attempt football? $$$ will decide.

If about all students have mild to no symptoms, why would they want to bother with getting tested? If OU or OSU don't shut down that will probably be the reason why. Still, I hope students are masking up and taking other precautions, knowing they may not be one of the many lucky comes who won't come down quite miserably sick.

I was in Norman last night and Campus Corner was generally very busy.

I just don't see how the virus doesn't spread rapidly on college campuses. You can't put 20,000 young adults in a small amount of real estate and expect them to be careful.

I was walking/jogging around Boomer Lake in Stillwater Tuesday evening and saw around 30 unmasked people, presumably students, gathered at a shelter. I hope it being outdoors People there were riding around in pickup cabs. Some masked, some not.

If about all students have mild to no symptoms, why would they want to bother with getting tested?.

Because they can spread it to lots of other people unless they quarantine.

I didn’t say cloth masks don’t work. I did say that some materials really don’t work at all and that is completely true. That’s not only not misinformation but valuable information. The bulk of my post was about how some cloth masks work very well. I have seen a couple petri dish experiments testing different masks types/materials and petri dishes at various distances that show multilayer cloth, especially terry cloth can work very well. However, fleece tests grew as much or more in the petri dishes than no mask at all. Lots of other materials worked at different levels of efficiency.

My Doc told me that the cloth surgical masks will not stop the virus. N95 masks would keep it out. The problem is, N95 masks are hard to find so they recommend a cloth mask as an alternative. He stressed wearing latex gloves and hand sanitizer.

597 new cases.

Another 17 reported deaths; the 7-day rolling average is now over 10/day, an all-time high.

597 new cases.

Another 17 reported deaths; the 7-day rolling average is now over 10/day, an all-time high.

I think our cases peaked a few weeks back and we are now seeing the deaths from those peaks. So hopefully now that cases are tending down. We will peak on deaths and that will start trending down as well in the next week.

These deaths are probably (my guess) from those peak weeks

If about all students have mild to no symptoms, why would they want to bother with getting tested? If OU or OSU don't shut down that will probably be the reason why. Still, I hope students are masking up and taking other precautions, knowing they may not be one of the many lucky comes who won't come down quite miserably sick.

Students are not masking up, and not enough to make a difference, at least when they are off campus. It's just not logical to ask young people not to socialize, or to only do so wearing masks. It won't happen. It is a false hope.

My Doc told me that the cloth surgical masks will not stop the virus. N95 masks would keep it out. The problem is, N95 masks are hard to find so they recommend a cloth mask as an alternative. He stressed wearing latex gloves and hand sanitizer.

So the cloth surgical masks that pretty much everybody (including doctors and nurses) employed by a hospital/clinic wears are useless against the virus, according to your doctor? What kind of mask were they wearing when they told you this?

My Doc told me that the cloth surgical masks will not stop the virus. N95 masks would keep it out. The problem is, N95 masks are hard to find so they recommend a cloth mask as an alternative. He stressed wearing latex gloves and hand sanitizer.

Your doctor must not have told you that the cloth surgical masks work fine if the other party is also wearing a mask. Shame on your doctor for contributing to the problem.

I stopped in O'Connell's on Campus Corner last night to watch part of the Thunder games and there were big groups in there; the only people wearing masks were the staff.

If they are going to have those huge bars open, students are going to pack in and not be wearing masks. I'm sure this is happening all across the country now.

Classes don't even start at OU until the 24th.

I stopped in O'Connell's on Campus Corner last night to watch part of the Thunder games and there were big groups in there; the only people wearing masks were the staff.

If they are going to have those huge bars open, students are going to pack in and not be wearing masks. I'm sure this is happening all across the country now.

Classes don't even start at OU until the 24th.

I think it’s been happening for some time. Just getting more attention now that college are open and that’s the topic of discussion.

I think it’s been happening for some time. Just getting more attention now that college are open and that’s the topic of discussion.

I don't know about bars in Stillwater, since I've been staying out of them, but I generally feel safe in restaurants. The way they're arranged, it's not too hard to stay 6 ft. apart from tables and people. Most instances, the waiter tells me I will need to put my mask back on when leaving the table, but not everybody does it.

The point being that students have been effectively out of school since March.

Now, for the first time since the pandemic really kicked into gear, they are pretty much back and going out in droves.

That will have to have a big impact on the spread of the virus.

Students are not masking up, and not enough to make a difference, at least when they are off campus. It's just not logical to ask young people not to socialize, or to only do so wearing masks. It won't happen. It is a false hope.

Young people do a fairly decent job of it at Mexico Joe's in Stillwater. The older people are a little more inconsistent about having masks on when they leave their table. But, overall, I feel safe when dining there. Social distancing isn't always followed at the bar, though. I assume people seated next to each other are friends. Maybe a major reason why Mexico Joe's did away with happy hour was to discourage a fully seated bar.

Young people do a fairly decent job of it at Mexico Joe's in Stillwater. The older people are a little more inconsistent about having masks on when they leave their table. But, overall, I feel safe when dining there. Social distancing isn't always followed at the bar, though. I assume people seated next to each other are friends. Maybe a major reason why Mexico Joe's did away with happy hour was to discourage a fully seated bar.

Well, good for that restaurant for making responsible decisions. And restaurants in general, though I choose not to patronize them, are probably doing as much as possible to stay open. I wish them luck on that.

I'm talking about 18- to 22-year-old people overall. For some, this is the first time they have been on their own. I can assure you the things I did at 18 and 19 were far worse than not wearing a mask (although, they didn't put others in harm's way, mostly myself). I feel bad that these kids cannot just let loose and have fun like I was able to do. But the costs of them doing that will ultimately be worse, not just for society, but for themselves, because universities will shut down as a result of their actions. It's just a matter of time.

I stopped in O'Connell's on Campus Corner last night to watch part of the Thunder games and there were big groups in there; the only people wearing masks were the staff.

If they are going to have those huge bars open, students are going to pack in and not be wearing masks. I'm sure this is happening all across the country now.

Classes don't even start at OU until the 24th.

Six days ago Clark was talking about closing bars after touring CC and observing non compliance with public health mandates.

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