I can't blue star this enough. It's so true.SouthTex99 said:
I think the RGV is guilty of many things that exacerbate the hospitalization and death count. The tri-county area is poor, disproportionately obese, and disproportionately diabetic. I have been told the area is underserved medically, fewer MD's per capita than any area in the country. Hidalgo County by itself is reporting more daily deaths in the last 6 days than Harris County which is 5X the size. The area is tight-knit. You can shut down every business, every school and every govt building but families will gather and they will gather in numbers. It's part of the culture here. I think its a beautiful thing but in a pandemic it's a curse.
So feel free to critique the RGV, there's plenty there to do it. But you don't get to use illegal immigration on this one. These are full fledge Americans that are suffering on a New York scale.
By the way, I'm harsh in criticizing my own RGV home because I love it here. I think this place is what Southern California was in the early 1900's. As the decades go by the RGV will boom and become the next great Texas and great American success story. Young population, great weather, great food, beaches, people and culture. I think USMCA will double down on what NAFTA did for the upper Valley over the last 30 years and the sky is the limit. We need to protect this place.
Reaching capacity in the upper RGV
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Last: 3 yr ago by PJYoung
Keegan99 said:
The more egregious flaw is that it assumes US hospitalizations are exclusively from the population that lives on the US side of the border.
It makes no such assumptions, it just outlays the census of the various hospitals and ICU units in major cities.
I never said anything about illegals.
Coming over to shop, buy their goods, and go home? So they couldn't transmit the virus while doing any of that?
The border community is a singular entity. It defies all reason to presume that an outbreak on one side of the border would not spill over to the other.
We're seeing it in Texas. We're seeing it in Arizona. We're seeing it in California. What happens in Mexico affects border communities in the US.
Coming over to shop, buy their goods, and go home? So they couldn't transmit the virus while doing any of that?
The border community is a singular entity. It defies all reason to presume that an outbreak on one side of the border would not spill over to the other.
We're seeing it in Texas. We're seeing it in Arizona. We're seeing it in California. What happens in Mexico affects border communities in the US.
That assumption was made when you cited figures per 100k population.
I was just looking at that. 4 of the top 7 counties in terms of deaths yesterday were not border/south Texas
Hidalgo
Dallas
Cameron
Harris
El Paso
Bexar
Nueces
Hidalgo
Dallas
Cameron
Harris
El Paso
Bexar
Nueces
Dallas/Harris/Bexar should always show in the top 5-10 just because they are the most populous in the state
Harris is a little interesting given it's more populated than 25 other states.
Right it's the others that aren't even close in terms of population of Harris/Dallas/Bexar that's a little worrisome.
Based on experience, past and current, as I am in Mexico, along the border, everyday and stay over there some I want to point out some things that I think are germane to all these trains of thought.
- The combined population, based off of best and realistic estimates, of the McAllen-Mission-Edinburg MSA combined with the Reynosa/Rio Bravo/Diaz Ordaz municipalities is right at 2 million people, give or take. That means that there is, for the most part, a population that is sharing people back and forth that is bigger than all but probably two of Texas's most populated counties.
- The McAllen-Mission-Edinburg MSA is the poorest of all the US areas that are considered to be MSA's. That is bad. If you add in the Mexican brethren they are even poorer.
- Since March 21st hardly any pure non-permanent resident Mexicans are allowed into the United States. Mexican Nationals have died at the bridges trying to get emergency medical care, and they will not let them in, period. There is no more casual shopping back and forth.
- The border areas have a lot of dual citizens, these can come and go in either country. If I had to guess, and this is only a guess, I would bet that probably 15% of the population in the McAllen-Reynosa area ae dual citizens and or permanent residents.
- The Mexican side of the border, at the onset, had little if any Covid cases. It was after the US stimulus payments that their cases shot up, this was due to a lot of US living Mexicans going back to Mexico and or traveling through the area.
- Basically, for practical purposes one of the top 5 MSA's, in terms of population, has about 60% of its population dependent on mass transportation of the 3rd world kind to get around. After the US stimulus checks and as soon as the assembly plants went back to work the cases in the RGV and on the Mexican sky rocketed. Many of us with local opinions believe the Mexican side mass transportation was the catalyst.
- Don't look now, but Mexico is getting more jacked up and more screwed up than it was at the height of the DTO wars. Last week the Mexican President, a blithering idiot, put the military in charge of all Mexican customs. He has cabinet members resigning, the economy is in shambles. The RGV will never be a showpiece of the nation with great quality of life for all as long as Mexico is a train wreck and what Mexico is experiencing right now is an epic train wreck. As goes Mex, goes the RGV.
- The RGV has a tremendous amount of unhealthy people, especially older infirm people, and they are being decimated by the China virus, it is that simple. The Mexican side has more.
- The Mexican side has very poor health care and infrastructure by Mexican standards, much less compared to US standards. If you all think a pandemic is bad, just wait until the next slow moving hurricane drops 25 inches of rain in the area. It will make Harvey in Houston look like a water park.
I love the border culture. I was there frequently when we lived in Laredo, but I do believe that while Los Dos Laredos are also fighting covid, the general health care available there is better. Several Mexican doctors had their children at the school where I taught. My son had surgery by an ortho there in a hospital across. Of course that was in the 90s. I know that all along the Rio, the border towns function as one community and many familties are split on both sides.
That said, one other factor was the statewide closing of schools. Many sent their kids to grandparents in Mexico..even up in the area where I teach. Usually a family trip down and back was involved and familty gatherings while they were there. These are some of the kids we were never able to get to engage in online because they did not have internet in Mexico. So the illness spread from the US to Mexico and back. However the stimulus was not the only factor. My families that worked in essential jobs that were not high paying, suddenly had kids and needed the grandparents in Mexico to babysit since there were not in school. Most of the kids are my ELL kids and they spent summers in Mexico routinely.
That said, one other factor was the statewide closing of schools. Many sent their kids to grandparents in Mexico..even up in the area where I teach. Usually a family trip down and back was involved and familty gatherings while they were there. These are some of the kids we were never able to get to engage in online because they did not have internet in Mexico. So the illness spread from the US to Mexico and back. However the stimulus was not the only factor. My families that worked in essential jobs that were not high paying, suddenly had kids and needed the grandparents in Mexico to babysit since there were not in school. Most of the kids are my ELL kids and they spent summers in Mexico routinely.
Absolutely correct. The stimulus checks kinda served as a catalyst or travel aid to a lot of people. But you are 100% right that a lot of kids got taken to family in Mex for care.Quote:
That said, one other factor was the statewide closing of schools. Many sent their kids to grandparents in Mexico..even up in the area where I teach. Usually a family trip down and back was involved and familty gatherings while they were there. These are some of the kids we were never able to get to engage in online because they did not have internet in Mexico. So the illness spread from the US to Mexico and back. However the stimulus was not the only factor. My families that worked in essential jobs that were not high paying, suddenly had kids and needed the grandparents in Mexico to babysit since there were not in school. Most of the kids are my ELL kids and they spent summers in Mexico routinely.
The Round Rock St David's hospital has treated almost exclusively Hispanic Americans and Mexican nationals.
Keegan99 said:
I never said anything about illegals.
Coming over to shop, buy their goods, and go home? So they couldn't transmit the virus while doing any of that?
They haven't been able to do that since March 21st.
Thank the Lord the hospitalization #s have finally backed off a bit in Hidalgo County.
ICU #s dropped from 257 to 192, the lowest since July 8th.
ICU #s dropped from 257 to 192, the lowest since July 8th.
That's great!
The one area you don't hear a lot from until now is Starr County, and how they literally forming death panels to see who gets treatment or not.
The one area you don't hear a lot from until now is Starr County, and how they literally forming death panels to see who gets treatment or not.
Kind of odd data on the available ICU beds. Did they open new care facilities?
Border readies for protracted war on coronavirus, flu, slew of viruses that peak in fallPJYoung said:Keegan99 said:
I never said anything about illegals.
Coming over to shop, buy their goods, and go home? So they couldn't transmit the virus while doing any of that?
They haven't been able to do that since March 21st.
Quote:
El Paso and other border communities from California to South Texas face unique challenges in containing the spread of COVDI-19. The most obvious is they share a border with Mexico and despite non-essential international travel restrictions many U.S. citizens and permanent legal residents haven't stopped crossing the border.
In El Paso, vehicle traffic crossing into Juarez is evidenced by long vehicle lines starting around 4 p.m. From the south, traffic remains constant from dawn to dusk.
Ocaranza on Monday told county commissioners formal channels of communication need to be established with Mexican authorities. Such communication already exists with Juarez, but it needs to be formalized to the point that a Mexican official needs to be part of the task force.
Juarez as of Monday has reported 3,738 confirmed coronavirus cases and 617 fatalities for a 16.5% mortality rate. That's 10 times higher than El Paso's death rate.
Hidalgo County had 45 more folks die today. While the rest of the state is trending down, the Valley still seems to be on the high end.
https://news.google.com/articles/CAIiEGiO77Cs4IrK-bbCKfl6-3EqGAgEKg8IACoHCAowlOzSATCaiDUw1aKsBQ?hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen
How coronavirus devastated Texas's vulnerable borderlands
The pandemic has overwhelmed hospitals in the state's lowest-income, primarily Hispanic communities.
How coronavirus devastated Texas's vulnerable borderlands
The pandemic has overwhelmed hospitals in the state's lowest-income, primarily Hispanic communities.
Article comparing my west texas home town with the valley.
And why local health authorities are in the best position to make rules rather than anything statewide.
And why local health authorities are in the best position to make rules rather than anything statewide.
Starting to stabilize just under 1 in every 1000 people but wouldn't be too surprised if it continues to track beyond that threshold.
But by all means, nice way to show your ass there.
1 in 1000+ risk is a more than acceptable risk level to just continue on with your daily life without fear and ignore COVID.Fitch said:
Starting to stabilize justunderover 1 in every 1000 people but wouldn't be too surprised if it continues to track beyond that threshold.
But by all means, nice way to show your ass there.
If the population from the Mexican side were added in, along with the Mexican side deaths the RGV would way down in deaths per 1000.
The numbers have been used to sow fear and almost panic in this area when in reality the true case numbers when factoring in the total interacting population is lower. No matter, the deaths and afflictions to all touched by this disease are terrible and sad. But the true reality when objectively looked at is not the horrible picture that is painted by the media.
To think that stats are counted for an area where there is an interconnected population, about 70% higher, a few hundred yards away across bridges, bridges that even in a time that limits crossings are seeing tens of thousands people crossing a day, is just really not accurate.
The McAllen convention center was turned into a several hundred bed overflow facility about 3 weeks ago, I don't know about today, but about 10 days ago it had 8 patients in it.
Some of the things going on right now along the border are just absurd and are being propagated by incompetents. Adding the Mexican side and the US the population of the RGV is about 200K more than San Antonio, with about 50% of the hospital beds, including the Mexican side. So in a pandemic WTF do people think is gonna happen in this area?
Yesterday, at many international bridges, US customs began extensive questioning about travel which ended up resulting in hours, like in several, delays for US citizens crossing back from Mexico. This is a punitive measure meant to dissuade travel to Mexico. The officers are being tasked with deciding "essential vs. non-essential", yet no criteria has been given to what constitutes each category. At the Federal level this is a big screw up and terrible policy.
Either close the border; lock, stock, and barrel or go back to normal. And if something of this nature is to be implemented do it in a logical manner. As with so much that this presidential administration has done in regard to the border, it is just glossy BS with no true lasting impact, and expensive and stupid. My gosh this country has become idiotized at a high level.
The numbers have been used to sow fear and almost panic in this area when in reality the true case numbers when factoring in the total interacting population is lower. No matter, the deaths and afflictions to all touched by this disease are terrible and sad. But the true reality when objectively looked at is not the horrible picture that is painted by the media.
To think that stats are counted for an area where there is an interconnected population, about 70% higher, a few hundred yards away across bridges, bridges that even in a time that limits crossings are seeing tens of thousands people crossing a day, is just really not accurate.
The McAllen convention center was turned into a several hundred bed overflow facility about 3 weeks ago, I don't know about today, but about 10 days ago it had 8 patients in it.
Some of the things going on right now along the border are just absurd and are being propagated by incompetents. Adding the Mexican side and the US the population of the RGV is about 200K more than San Antonio, with about 50% of the hospital beds, including the Mexican side. So in a pandemic WTF do people think is gonna happen in this area?
Yesterday, at many international bridges, US customs began extensive questioning about travel which ended up resulting in hours, like in several, delays for US citizens crossing back from Mexico. This is a punitive measure meant to dissuade travel to Mexico. The officers are being tasked with deciding "essential vs. non-essential", yet no criteria has been given to what constitutes each category. At the Federal level this is a big screw up and terrible policy.
Either close the border; lock, stock, and barrel or go back to normal. And if something of this nature is to be implemented do it in a logical manner. As with so much that this presidential administration has done in regard to the border, it is just glossy BS with no true lasting impact, and expensive and stupid. My gosh this country has become idiotized at a high level.
https://www.themonitor.com/2020/08/25/state-cuts-mcallen-makeshift-hospital-half-hospitalizations-decline-2/
McAllen reduces the urgently established Covid Temp hospital by half. Only 7 patients were ever treated at this deal that was made a big deal about, I think it has been open less than a month.
That lather that was and is worked up in the RGV due to Covid situation has been impressive to watch and disappointing to experience.
McAllen reduces the urgently established Covid Temp hospital by half. Only 7 patients were ever treated at this deal that was made a big deal about, I think it has been open less than a month.
That lather that was and is worked up in the RGV due to Covid situation has been impressive to watch and disappointing to experience.
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