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Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

reuters.com

181–190 of 223 posts

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#181
post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apologies, I thought you were genuinely curious.

Your answer was that you don't know through. You just assume that the information would be easy to obtain by calling to hospital. (Which is not a way to distribute information many people need simultaneously anyway, even if it worked). Multiple people who called ended up being sent (or told to call) from one place to another.They after series of calls ended up being told they cant get tested due to rules on who is be…

I do know..and most who care and plan ahead know. Acting out ignorance (whether deliberately feigned or even true ignorance) isn't advancing productive discussion. Of course testing is currently rationed for the most vulnerable/susceptible..you are not a consumer ordering a Big Mac in that drive-thru line, at least not yet, although that frequency and ease should be the outcome of widespread testing effort.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because Walmart already has the infrastructure to (a) set up drive-through testing sites, (b) employees to perform the tests, and (c) the distribution network to get this test to the majority of America very quickly. Your local hospital, not being part of a larger chain or system, does not. These tests are all drive through, that is why you don't need PPE to go in, because you don't need to go in. I don't understand…

"I don't understand the HN hivemind that American companies wanting to help out Americans is a bad thing. " In no way do I feel that way. But, I personally don't need anything from large corporate America bullshitting about the seriousness of what lay ahead. Reactions, particularly from grociers and retailers just in the last two days have been surprisingly good though. Still, I don't need an article or website givin…

Large corporate American represents some of the most logistics-capable organizations to have ever existed on the planet. I don't understand the disdain.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because Walmart already has the infrastructure to (a) set up drive-through testing sites, (b) employees to perform the tests, and (c) the distribution network to get this test to the majority of America very quickly. Your local hospital, not being part of a larger chain or system, does not. These tests are all drive through, that is why you don't need PPE to go in, because you don't need to go in. I don't understand…

Okay, if I haven't made it clear. Where do US citizens go get tested in each state? The answer is NOT Walmart!

I mean, it is... THat is the plan at least.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Trump rejects the framework of communicating in correct facts, relying on emotional platitudes instead. Yes, he uses words that people understands. No non-tech, non-finance person would know what alphabet is. Regular americans do not know that Google, Inc (a publicly traded company) decided to change its name to Alphabet Inc (still traded under GOOG though, because apparently this snafu is good enough for the NYSE)…

"People are stupid" is the reason Trump won?

No, people don't talk in technicalities and prefer plain language. This is the problem most engineers have in talking with people.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#185
post #155
post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He hasn't worked in real estate for 30 years. Not since Trump Taj Mahal went down in flames. He does hotel management and branding. His other ventures have also all gone down in flames with a few resulting in fraud lawsuits. All that being said, when in the last 5 years has he displayed more than a facile understanding of anything besides women's bodies? He again suggested this week that the US could refinance it's d…

>He again suggested this week that the US could refinance it's debt like a mortgage. This reads as dumbing down the explanation of interest rates enough for the american population to understand or in other words >>he does or says is filtered for his base and/or for self-preservation.

Per my comment, it could be but I haven't seen a shred of evidence that that's true. There isn't, in fact, any way to refinance the national debt or anything analogous to refinancing debt. In the past he's suggested we could default on some debt the way he has with his myriad failed businesses, but that would be an obvious disaster. I have never seen any public or private statements that indicate he has any understanding whatsoever beyond his nonsensical public statements. The only stuff we've seen leaked show the exact same levels of ignorance. His official actions all support the theory that he is truly an ignorant moron.

Show me any evidence to the contrary.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The important part is not google vs alphabet, it’s the fact that their site will only be available for the Bay Area.

And that there isn't 1700 people working on it.

Good point. The most important part of the speech is the number of engineers working on it. If we have 1699 it might not work but if only we could know we had 1700 then we would all be saved /s.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...or maybe trump heard something in a briefing and said what he thought he understood, instead of what he'd been told. And without, you know, coordinating or having the speech fact checked before delivering it to millions of people. The dude doesn't do process... See also, walking back the "no trade with Europe" thing a few days ago. He doesn't get a lot of slack (outside the right wing machine) because he's repeate…

I personally think Trump is doing a great job. Unfortunately he inherited a dysfunctional CDC, but at least he was one of the quickest to shut down flights between China and other infected areas, unlike eg Trudeau up north who took his sweet time. Talk about someone who shouldn't get a lot of slack eh

And um, when does one have to stop blaming the previous administration for the current's failings? He did not inherit a "dysfunctional CDC" that is pure BS. He has called COVID-19 a hoax, that it would but just like the cold, that you could go to work with it, and that the number would "soon be zero" (number of cases).

He has no idea what he is doing and only cares about his own reelection regardless of the risk that puts Americans in.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...or maybe trump heard something in a briefing and said what he thought he understood, instead of what he'd been told. And without, you know, coordinating or having the speech fact checked before delivering it to millions of people. The dude doesn't do process... See also, walking back the "no trade with Europe" thing a few days ago. He doesn't get a lot of slack (outside the right wing machine) because he's repeate…

I personally think Trump is doing a great job. Unfortunately he inherited a dysfunctional CDC, but at least he was one of the quickest to shut down flights between China and other infected areas, unlike eg Trudeau up north who took his sweet time. Talk about someone who shouldn't get a lot of slack eh

Yes, the best way to fix something dysfunctional is to slash its budget, repeatedly make statements contrary to what they actually say, and downplay worldwide pandemics.

Without conceding the point of prior dysfunction, I have to say that trump has yet to find a bad situation that he can’t make worse.

Re: Alphabet, Walmart join U.S. effort to speed up coronavirus testing

#190
> “I want to thank Google. Google is helping to develop a website, it’s gonna be very quickly done, unlike websites of the past, to determine whether a test is warranted and to facilitate testing at a nearby convenient location,” Trump said.

It's important to watch the press conference on this topic for context.

The website is supposed the be the front line in the CDC's revamped testing effort. There are still far too few tests for everyone to get one, so they are being rationed. The website was to be the first stop made by a person who wanted to get tested.

No website, no coordinated testing effort.

All indications are that the president's announcement was premature and caught Alphabet, Verily, and Google flat-footed.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/03/13/google-says-its-not-p...

The president's bald-faced attempt to use this bogus announcement to elevate the stock market should be transparent to anyone paying attention. The presser was held just before the market close, just for this reason.

This is very, very bad.

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