As readers know, we’ve kicked off a recurring series of posts we call “Deep Thoughts By Lauren Boebert,” consigning some of the more bizarre pronouncements from Colorado’s newest Republican member of Congress to posterity before they get deleted or otherwise lost in the din. Rep-.elect Boebert’s…unique blend of homespun frankness and susceptibility to whatever nutty distraction is airing on Newsmax or TOTALLY BY COINCIDENCE the subject of the latest “Q-drop” makes it likely we’ll be doing lots of “Deep Thoughts” posts over the next two years.
This morning, however, we’re setting aside our humor, because this isn’t actually funny at all.
If the vaccine is successful, will the survival rate go from 99% to 99.8%?
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) December 22, 2020
First of all this Boebert’s assumption is factually wrong, the overall case fatality rate for COVID-19 infections in the United States is about 1.8%. As of today, that’s 319,827 American deaths out of a total of just over 18 million total confirmed cases.
We realize that outrage fatigue is the rule today, but what kind of person cracks jokes about 319,827 dead Americans? Earlier this month, there was Boebert’s interview with Colorado Public Radio in which she breezily declared that health care workers had “signed up” for disaster caused by popular disregard of public health orders–almost as bad, perhaps worse depending on your personal point of view. Boebert said at that time she hadn’t decided whether to get the vaccination she’s prioritized for as a member of Congress.
This seems to indicate she’s made up her mind on that, anyway.
The one thing we can perhaps say in Boebert’s defense is her Tweet appears to copy without attribution an even more incorrect observation by right-wing “comic” Chad Prathers, whose bad parody “Friends in Safe Spaces” (don’t watch it, it’s terrible) made him a minor hit on the MAGA tour set:
How will we know the vaccine is working? Will the survival rate go from 99.7% to 99.8?
— Chad Prather (@WatchChad) December 18, 2020
As we have to restate far too often in this day and age, it’s one thing for a comedian to say something outrageous and wrong and stupid. It’s much worse when a member of Congress from Colorado says it, or it least it should be to Coloradans. Republican politicos who downplayed the pandemic from the beginning now using their vaccination appointments as a photo-op have drawn a great deal of deserved criticism this week, but what Boebert did here is probably the only thing that could be worse.
Particularly since, as usual, Lauren Boebert doesn’t know what the hell she’s talking about.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
BY: Ben Folds5
IN: Tuesday Open Thread
BY: The realist
IN: High-Profile ICE Arrest Could Backfire On Trump Administration
BY: The realist
IN: Tuesday Open Thread
BY: Meiner49er
IN: High-Profile ICE Arrest Could Backfire On Trump Administration
BY: ParkHill
IN: Tuesday Open Thread
BY: kwtree
IN: High-Profile ICE Arrest Could Backfire On Trump Administration
BY: Air Slash
IN: Trump’s Economy is Inflicting Pain Everywhere
BY: Republican 36
IN: High-Profile ICE Arrest Could Backfire On Trump Administration
BY: unnamed
IN: High-Profile ICE Arrest Could Backfire On Trump Administration
BY: JohnInDenver
IN: Trump’s Economy is Inflicting Pain Everywhere
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay in the loop with regular updates!
Ask her "At what point does the death toll quit being a punchline?".
The death rate is actually somewhat higher than 1.8, since some of the soaring number of 18 million cases will eventually die. As for me, the three members of my household who were exposed have passed quarantine and tested negative!
The three extended family members who have covid — my daughters fathet-in-law and my granddaughter’s boyfriend’s parents — are still alive and at home, slowly recovering.
How is Mike Bowman doing?
Good morning V (and everyone). Right now my symptoms are moderate; terrible cough and slightly-labored breathing; off-and-on bad headache. Oxygen levels are compromised but sufficient enough to keep me at home. We had a wonderful mother from Wray pass away early this morning from COVID (they had transferred her to a Denver hospital).
Q-bert is disgusting.
Sorry to hear your news.
Thx. She was a special lady.
Sending good energy to you….
My sister and brother in law have recovered from Covid, although they still have some effects like fatigue months later.
Thx kw.
Get well Mr. Bowman, and all the best to you and your family.
Thank you
Michael: hang in there. "This too shall pass."
That was a favorite phrase of my paternal grandmother!
MichaelBowman: Good to hear “moderate” as a descriptor of your illness and that you are able to stay away and let other people use the hospital.
Disgusting is a polite jumping off point to describe the Representative-elect.
I wonder if she makes humor out of heart conditions, too? “As of 2018, 30.3 million U.S. adults were diagnosed with heart disease. Every year, about 647,000 Americans die from heart disease, making it the leading cause of death in the United States. Heart disease causes 1 out of every 4 deaths.” As of yesterday’s update, The COVID Project reported almost 18 million confirmed cases and 311 thousand American deaths — in just under 9 months since the first US deaths, About 60,000 dead in the past month, which if allowed to continue would eclipse heart disease and become the leading cause of death.
Get well soon.
Thx R36
Glad to hear you're doing well enough to stay home. Michael. Rest and drink lots. I'm always for drowning bugs of any kind.
Let’s drown it in your magic soup!!
Did you find someone to make it for you?
Perhaps, a sincere question . . .
. . . from someone who didn't learn percentages in her GED class?
I’m not sure even Taystee could navigate #pewpew through a GED refresher course.
QBert serves as an excellent starting argument for the redistricting breakup of CD-3 since that part of the state is recently totally incapable of electing a qualified and effective representative.
NYT's Jennifer Senior seems to want to dumb down Congress because too many are holders of college degrees.
There are fans of Idiocracy and then there are fans of Idiocracy.
100% in Congress have completed the 6th grade (as did Jennifer Senior, I’m guessing) — look where that’s got us???
I have an alternate theory, that party politics and the way we permit campaign financing knocks off an average of about 63.7 functional IQ points from 95% of Congress . . .
Half of them would flunk kindergarten.
Boebert is a star in the conspiracy – fomenting rag Epoch Times (which originated in Taiwan as an anti-China propaganda outlet).
She's on board with the Epoch Times line of calling the coronavirus the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus. I guess if China is the bad guy, this administration has no responsibility for keeping people well in the USA.
Boebert's Epoch Times interview (one of two) included this gem that Governor Polis' support for the National Popular Vote puts Colorado's water "at risk":
Apparently, she doesn't understand that the governor didn't implement Colorado's participation in the National Popular Vote Compact all by himself. But then, there's a lot that Lauren Boebert doesn't understand.
Don't even try to explain to this imbecile that short of outright dying, there are a host of other medical problems associated with getting a full-blown case of this virus.
There can be permanent organ system damage. (Then again, that can happen by eating her sliders.)
And even with a full recovery, I understand it is a really unpleasant type of ailment to go through.
The minimal and most typical post-existing sympotm is asthma.
Thank god for Romney care!
Which item is the most deadly: Qbert sliders or Qbert opinions?
Opinions. The CDC says about 3,000 die in the U.S. annually from food-borne illness, from a population of 330 million eaters, plus it's pretty tough to transmit food poisoning just by being in the same room with someone who breathes.
There are three separate death rates to consider.
1) The death rate for billionaires and the political powerful (like President) who gets elite, no-limits health care and quick access to any needed experimental cures. So far, this death rate is either 0.0%, or very near to 0%.
2) The death rate for the rest of us who get sick and have to rely on a for-profit health care system to help us. This is the one that is close to 1.8%
3) The third death rate is for when the hospitals overload. This death rate has been up over 10% and I think I’ve seen numbers like 20%.
From the anti-mask, anti-common-sense, campaigns staged by the QOP (GOP just seems quaint), it appears this last state is the goal of Q’bert and her ilk.
"The death rate for billionaires and the political powerful (like President) who gets elite, no-limits health care and quick access to any needed experimental cures. So far, this death rate is either 0.0%, or very near to 0%."
Not quite zero, but close to zero. Remember Herman Cain.
Wyoming’s Jackson Hole has become a redoubt against the coronavirus.