Boomers Not Taking This Seriously
My Mother-in-law left Friday for Florida for three weeks with her sister to use her timeshare. They are 70 and will be 1000 miles from home with no support in what is likely the worst state in America to be in right now. This is despite their children begging them not to go.
I have heard from other friends that their Boomer parents are also not taking this as seriously as they should given a possible 6-10% death rate for that cohort. I know users of this blog are all ages, but lots of us have parents in that age group, are your parents taking this seriously?
March 24th, 2020 at 12:08 PM ^
Yes, its extremely frustrating. Because this attitude is making the situation worse. A lot of people are overreacting and turning into complete shut-ins but that's preferable to people not taking it seriously enough. Everytime someone doesn't take the precautions it prolongs this shitty situation and makes it worse for all of us. We all have to be on the same page.
Someone on here made a great point ( I can't remember who and I apologize): use football as a motivator. Tell people: unless you don't want the NFL to happen, get your ass inside.
The more quickly and thoroughly we all do our part, the sooner this will be over.
I'm afraid it's already too late for football season. Packing hundreds of thousands of people in stadiums week after week and having fans and teams travel around the country just seems incredibly reckless without a vaccine or 100% containment. I doubt we'll get either of those things by September. Maybe if we had taken the South Korea path of massive testing and militant isolation back in Jan/Feb, we could still have a football season, but I'm just not counting on it at this point which really bums me out.
March 24th, 2020 at 11:43 AM ^
I am s h o c k e d that that particular institution isn’t taking this seriously.
March 24th, 2020 at 11:52 AM ^
Give it a month—they'll be reassessing their views then.
The virus cannot be prayed away.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:46 PM ^
People who have no minds of their own deserve to look like clowns.
If there was one university in the entire country that I had to guess would defy shutting down and ask students to return to campus, its would've been Liberty. Go ahead and try praying it away, you ignorant turds. See how far it gets you.
Maybe Freeze can lead on-campus Bible study for everyone.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:49 PM ^
Unlike the gay?
They should've entered the NCAA tournament - maybe they could've won!
Yes it can and my experience trumps (no pun intended) your opinion.
March 24th, 2020 at 11:42 AM ^
Very poor title, OP.
This "Boomer" made his last purchase yesterday evening (ordered and picked up a pizza) anywhere other than online for the next 2 weeks, as I've decided to go one step further than Gov. Whitmer has ordered by starting a 2-week self-isolation period.
I'll still walk and bike for exercise but keep >6 ft distance from others and have been informing my adult children and other close relatives of my decision. But realizing that there's a distinct possibility that I may have been exposed inadvertently at some point to COVID-19, it's only the right thing to do.
March 24th, 2020 at 11:43 AM ^
Florida the worst state to be in right now? I contest... Try NY, California...
March 24th, 2020 at 12:36 PM ^
I’d way rather be in NY or CA than Florida. Healthcare quality in the south is terrible compared with other regions even in good times.
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/health-care
March 24th, 2020 at 12:59 PM ^
Intersting. On your list, FL is 29th, not great, but not Mississippi. Still better than Ohio and Indiana. Michigan is 24th. Access is what drives FL down, quality and public health are above average.
I don’t know any snow bird, who given the chance, does have major surgeries set up to be done in their state of summer residence. Since I work with retirees, that is a lot of anecdotal experience
March 24th, 2020 at 11:44 AM ^
Just tell them to wait 15 days...I just heard that the U.S. would be back to business as usual by then.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:48 PM ^
Literally nobody said that. But just like others you distort what was said.
March 24th, 2020 at 11:47 AM ^
My in-laws are taking this kinda seriously. FIL has cancer and they're very worried about that, but they are going out when they need stuff. They are awful at making lists and remembering what they need when they go out, so they have gone out multiple times because they forgot they needed something.
As far as I know, my parents (dad, step-mom, and mom) are all taking it seriously. I don't think my mom has left her house at all during this and she's been able to work from home. My dad and step-mom are really healthy for being in their mid-sixties, so I am not panicked about them going out when they have to, but I don't think they've gone out much unless they're watching some of their 18 grandkids.
I have heard some horror stories about boomer parents not giving a crap about what's going on, but most of those are from social media and second-hand accounts.
March 24th, 2020 at 11:51 AM ^
Have they tried calling Costco’s PR department to publicly and/or privately shame the company? It’s step 1
March 24th, 2020 at 11:54 AM ^
Spriiinggg Breeeaaaaakkkk!
March 24th, 2020 at 11:55 AM ^
The death rate of being old is 100%. If your wife's mom doesn't care, why do you?
March 24th, 2020 at 11:56 AM ^
Florida beaches were packed with kids two weeks ago, many of them stone cold Bernie loving socialists. I don't think this is a generational or political leanings issue by any means.
Your 24 year old looks like he's 50. Probably from too much clubbing.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:38 PM ^
You have no information on these students political beliefs, they’re just as likely to be OSU attending sons of jet ski dealers
March 24th, 2020 at 12:46 PM ^
Au contraire, I have college aged kids ... with friends that pass through my home about anytime they head anywhere. I have beau coup information on at least two group of student's beliefs.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:38 PM ^
double
March 24th, 2020 at 11:57 AM ^
No...two retired physicians refuse to leave a very infected hot zone.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:01 PM ^
All you can do is take care of your own affairs.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:02 PM ^
Florida is a great place to be. It's gonna be in the 90's there this week. Heat and sunlight destroy viruses.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:09 PM ^
It's pretty clear that it doesn't wipe out this one or stop the need for the precautions. India's shutting down for 3 weeks at least, and it's plenty warm there.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:15 PM ^
Actually sunlight does. So does IV vitamin C and other natural cures. Laying out is one of the best things you can do.
Protecting people is not why this was rolled out.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:18 PM ^
^^^^^ IDIOT (with tin-foil hat) ^^^^^
March 24th, 2020 at 12:19 PM ^
Is this true? If so how is it that so man cruise ships being affected and the prevalence of this virus in some pretty warm and sunny places...I mean even Jamaica is on lock down...
March 24th, 2020 at 12:24 PM ^
There are a lot of places inside a cruise ship that are not exposed to sunlight.
Sunlight supposedly kills the virus, but after like 2 hours. If an infected person coughs on you in the sun you are still going to get sick. If you touch the rail they coughed on and touch your mouth in less than 2 hours, you're going to get sick....
March 24th, 2020 at 12:05 PM ^
Not all boomers. I have not been in a room or closer than 15ft with anyone other than my wife since March 4th. Working from home. I have not been in a grocery store, I've had our stuff delivered. We wash hands after handling the mail. I am a boomer. This is no joke. I live in Seattle but NYCity looks like it might become the next Italy.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:07 PM ^
Seattle is one of the worst places to be. You want heat and sunshine.
You also want humidity. Seattle is at 79% today, somewhat under their daily average of 100%.
Sunshine, maybe. Heat probably doesn't really matter. https://www.accuweather.com/en/health-wellness/uv-radiation-from-the-sun-increases-by-a-factor-of-10-by-summer-and-could-be-key-in-slowing-covid-19/703393
March 24th, 2020 at 12:06 PM ^
Many Boomers are taking this seriously as posted above me. Some Boomers are smart enough to keep some perspective on this virus. Why was the H1N1-Swine Flu outbreak not taken seriously some 10 years ago?
Let's all just do our part to keep this outbreak at a minimum. I'd hate to see this outbreak be a precedent for the next time that will make it easier to impose severe restrictions to our liberties and the damage the economy again.
"Why was the H1N1-Swine Flu outbreak not taken seriously some 10 years ago?"
Agree 100% - Nothing shut down and we got through it.
Be smart .. wash hands, etc .. stay home when you can but no reason to overreact.
Because competent officials quickly rolled out a coordinated national prevention strategy?
Yes ... which was smart and a good move. Wasn't a total shut down though.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:08 PM ^
Boomers elected Trump, so... yeah.
March 24th, 2020 at 12:12 PM ^
Vote. Stop whining like a bitch.
This ^
March 24th, 2020 at 12:10 PM ^
My father is 91 years old and just began dialysis. His response when I told him that he can't go out because if he gets coronavirus, he's pretty much done?
"I'm going to die soon anyway."
The reality is that the only thing left for him to do is to go to the grocery store. Everything else is closed...his bridge club, the DSO, movies, etc. My mother passed away three years ago, and now his lady friend refuses to even leave her house or see my father.
That's the issue here with anyone maybe 80+ years old. Being that old can be very lonely...and then you add in being almost completely isolated...and I can see why some of them are going on like nothing's wrong.
People that old are interesting to watch as they have zero fucks left to give - generally. I haven't met many that are afraid of dying, they almost seem surprised to wake up every morning.
My dad is pretty much playing with house money at this point.
Diagnosed with kidney failure at 70. The doctors told him to think about "getting his affairs in order."
We had an 80th birthday party for him, at which he told me that we'd be celebrating his 90th birthday without him.
He often referred to how he would definitely predecease my mother.
Here we are in 2020...and he's 91 and in good health other than the kidney issue and still comfortably lives on his own in the house I grew up in...and my mother passed away three years ago.
He's been cut off from everything he likes to do and must be getting very lonely, so it's hard to forcibly get him to give up going to the grocery store.