Spam Spam Spam Humbug 138.5 – The Coronavirus Episode
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Podcast Topic(s)
It was probably inevitable that at some point, we’d have an episode devoted more or less entirely to discussing the impact of the global coronavirus pandemic. Or a half-episode, as the case may be, since this week Golem Dragon, Harmony Dragon, Draxenath, and WtF Dragon are continuing the discussion which began last week.
Some of that discussion (which was recorded prior to Easter) is a bit out of date now, given how quickly different countries, states, provinces, and other jurisdictions have instituted and modified their responses to the spread of the virus over the past few weeks. Children’s author Mo Willems, for example, hasn’t done a “Lunch Doodles” episode in about three weeks’ time (as of this writing).
Still, this week’s topics begin with COVID-19, its origin in China, and some of the disinformation that has surrounded it since the initial outbreak in Wuhan. At the time this episode was recorded, the United States had just become the country with the highest number of recorded COVID-19 cases, surpassing even China’s numbers…but the discussion touches on whether those numbers can even be trusted. (The same sort of doubt is also case on Russia’s numbers, which — at least at the time — were oddly low.)
Also new, at the time this episode was recorded, was the debate about the economic impact of coronavirus-related shutdowns (e.g. of businesses); will things really ever return to something approximating the old normal? At least in WtF Dragon’s home city, as many as half of all small businesses expect that they will end up shutting down permanently as a result of an extended period of lockdown; what will be the impact of that, and is it even possible to recover from it? And will that impact be felt, to that degree, elsewhere?
Moving on to some happier — but still related — topics, WtF Dragon notes that Facebook’s kid-focused Messenger Kids app takes a very lax attitude toward collecting accurate information about the children using it; for a Facebook-based app, it affords parents a surprising opportunity to keep their kids’ information private. Also discussed is the shift to online learning (WtF Dragon’s kids are all using Google Classroom now), and to online Scouting (e.g. issuing challenges the Scouts can complete at home, holding virtual meetings via Zoom). The challenge — for some — of shifting to working from home also comes up; WtF Dragon has been supporting his father in making the switch, mostly successfully.
But eventually, the discussion shifts back to COVID-19, the risk factors for the disease and some of the peculiarities of its lethality — or lack of lethality — in certain age cohorts. The various measures that have been enacted by different polities are discussed, with some commentary on what seems to be working, and what seems not to be working.
Toward the end of the episode, the topic of religion comes up, with WtF Dragon and Golem Dragon noting some of the successes and struggles they’ve seen and felt as their churches have shifted away from public services and toward online services. WtF Dragon also discusses some of the intricacies of Catholicism when it comes to the Mass, some of the different liturgical rites found in the Catholic Church, and some of the syncretism and accommodationism that can be found in these different rites, or in Mass rites celebrated in different regions.
Community & Patronage
As always, this episode of Spam Spam Spam Humbug is brought to you by our Patreon backers; thank you to everyone who supports Spam Spam Spam Humbug and the Ultima Codex by that means. And, as always, a hearty thank you to our co-producers: Seth, Goldenflame, Chris, Dominik, Violation, Cranberry, Christopher, Bruce, Dark Wraith Dragon, Helgraf, Gronkh, Pascal, and Thorwan.
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Music
Ultima V – Stones 2001 Remix by DJ Lizard
Ultima VI Gates of Creation by OC ReMix
Ultima 6 Theme (from Punchfest) by Lorto Dragon
Image
The inevitable discussion.