How safe is it to go to tournaments right now?

Agree. At this point in time, I wouldn't hesitate to go to such a tournament in Dallas, unless my immune system was damaged.

Also, look on the bright side - If by some freak chance you actually contracted the Corona virus and died, at least you'd get your name in the papers...

Tuvalu is one of the best countries on Earth and turtles deserve more recognition, these are facts.

It's also the least visited country in the world.

How tuva get tu Tuvalu? 

Yep, I realized that :-P

im not going to one know i still need to review my openings so no plus theres corona virus

Not to worry.  Unless you are in the slowest 2% of the inhabitants.  Well, the slowest 1% now.  The formerly slowest 1% are not extant anymore.

PRetty sure Im in it.

1. Chess4PK wrote:
   1e41-0 wrote:

   Close contact to hundreds of people for extended periods of time?

   I experience that at lunch every day in my school.

Lunch every day at a school might be a bad idea right about now. Near here a school is shut down because an employee has the coronavirus. Any place where hundreds of people are in close contact is going to be a breeding ground for the disease. Because the virus can last on objects for days I would expect not only lots of school closures, but also a few canceled chess tournaments. At least until a vaccine or anti viral drug is perfected. If the virus can last on objects for days it doesn't seem unreasonable that some of the unknown origin cases are from something bought online or shipped from China. 

You'd think most people would have learned from early days of HIV about falling for every rumor and conjecture about spreading a virus...but no, people still do.  They run out and buy out every store of expensive masks when masks are far less of a mitigating factor than simple handwashing, and they post on Facebook and give thumbs up for every chain letter story about how somebody got it by touching a caveman frozen under a glacier, etc. and then to make matters much worse, they try to give uninformed advice about things they have no real knowledge of...ironically spreading misinformation in a manner akin to a virus .  It's not only useless, it actually makes things much harder for everybody trying to wade through the mountains of crap to find real facts.

By the way, feeling that someone gets the flu only on years they get flu shots is just about the most definitive case of confirmation bias I've ever read.  Good thing you were probably vaccinated as a child, or you'd be telling us you avoid vaccinations because you only get measles after being vaccinated for measles ...

The OP is fear-mongering.  Want to know if it's safe to go a chess tournament?  Check real sources of real information.

Is it a pharmaceutical release, is it the earth trying to balance the ecosystem out, or is it simply the evolution of micro organisms? Who knows. But it seems that death is only 30% likely with coronavirus, regardless of it obviously alluding to the coroners. 

For once I agree with almost everything you say. I agree checking with "real" sources is the best way to get real information. For now not very much is known about this virus, so even real sources dont have all the information some might need. But what is known is enough for common sense people to take common sense measures. Closing down a school (or chess tournament) isn't fear mongering. It's common sense. If the latest science says this virus can last on objects for days, it could be reasonable to conclude some cases are not direct human to human contact, but rather transmitted via an inanimate object, like something bought online, or, potentially, a chess piece.

I guess I need to go sentence by sentence here :/...

"For once I agree with almost everything you say."

That's not even the first time you've said that to me .

"I agree checking with "real" sources is the best way to get real information."

Yay. Something to build on...?

"For now not very much is known about this virus, so even real sources dont have all the information some might need."

So much for that .  You don't "need" information that even the experts working on the problem don't have yet.  That's how and why people start spreading misinformation to begin with, to fill "gaps" that don't need to be filled until real information is available.

"But what is known is enough for common sense people to take common sense measures."

Not really, no.  First, microbiology and viruses do not fall within the realm of "common sense" for anybody.  You could say that it is common sense to follow medical professionals' advice on high-level, generalized virus knowledge...that's as close to "common sense" as you're going to get.  Second, you have unwittingly fallen into the small of set of 2 people that have used that very same "common sense" argument on this exact issue with me this week.  The other person was an 80 year old relative, who has stopped riding the bus because they live in an area with a lot of Asians (yeah, WTF) even though there are no cases in her city.  That is how people try to apply common sense...to justify fearful overreactions with little to no basis in reality.

"Closing down a school (or chess tournament) isn't fear mongering. It's common sense."

Treating this as one sentence since it should have been .  Closing down anything can absolutely be fear mongering.  Your school anecdote might be legit (we don't actually know since you didn't tell us enough information), but for every facility being closed down for legitimate reasons, there are more being shut down for BS reasons as a result of fear mongering and/or people feeling like they know better and need to be the hero.

"If the latest science says this virus can last on objects for days, it could be reasonable to conclude some cases are not direct human to human contact, but rather transmitted via an inanimate object, like something bought online, or, potentially, a chess piece."

By your logic it could be reasonable to conclude that leaving your house and touching anything other human beings have even been near is life-threatening.  Better sequester yourself in a safe room, and bring a shotgun so if a relative tries to give you some soup a little too earnestly, you can shoot them.  Oops, wait, blood splatter.  Better use a stun gun.  Oops, wait, proximity...they might touch you.  Blow gun dart...oops, poison is too slow.  Damn.

Better try from the other end...stop all shipping/transportation of goods worldwide.  Oops, several billion people starved to death.  Shoot.

Or, you could just stop trying to use common sense to extrapolate a bunch of baseless actions and live your life, calmly waiting for real information from real sources.  A virus has emerged from a Chinese area geographically analogous to Kansas City in the midwest.  There's been some spread to other countries.  It has killed some people, so far less than half as many as DUI deaths each year in the US (but you don't see people running on the streets in terror).  Authorities will let you know if it spreads to your area and you really need to start worrying about it, and even if they fall down on the job, other *reliable* outlets will let you know.  Until then you can keep your eyes peeled for real news about it and keep yourself informed.  Don't pay attention to anecdotal stories or rumors, or any "facts" about the virus that do not come directly from reliable sources.  Don't go to Costco and buy yourself the makings of a post-apocalyptic survival kit.  Don't check all your Amazon packages with tweezers and latex gloves because somebody on a chess site is paranoid...er, applies their common sense and determines unilaterally that shipments are dangerous.  Done.  What else do you need to know/do?  Nothing.  

Slightly more reliable source:

'Officials are not too worried, for now, about casual contact, because federal officials think the coronavirus is spread only through “close contact, being within six feet of somebody for what they’re calling a prolonged period of time,” said Dr. James Watt, interim state epidemiologist at the California Department of Public Health'

  https://finance.yahoo.com/news/medical-expert-on-coronavirus-dont-panic-prepare-for-the-worst-right-now-205533137.html

This might be time for one of those YouTube pranksters to pull a corona prank on a moving bus... hopefully nobody jumps out a window. Passenger starts coughing and flailing on his seat... oh my God!

You know if president shrub junior were still in charge there'd be reports of corona carriers standing at major mall entrances... "We all wondered why he was just standing there for days without any food or water."

You know birds love to migrate, let's hope there won't be a case of Texans shooting them out of the sky.

😣

   There are 0 cases in the Antartica......so,..either we freeze it, or we burn it.

I didn't read all of your response, it was just too long. But I did notice the top story when I signed on a few minutes ago. The CDC says the virus can last on inanimate objects for up to 9 days. So to me it's just common sense that closing a school, or canceling a chess tournament are reasonable and not fear mongering. If they are right and it really can last for 9 days without any human contact, then it seems possible some of these no know origin cases could be from buying something online or some other casual non person contact.

Here's what the CDC actually says about how to handle things (will this also be too long for you to read?  If so, then I think we've found the real problem here):

There is currently no vaccine to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus. However, as a reminder, CDC always recommends everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory diseases, including:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
• Follow CDC’s recommendations for using a facemask.
  • CDC does not recommend that people who are well wear a facemask to protect themselves from respiratory diseases, including COVID-19.
  • Facemasks should be used by people who show symptoms of COVID-19 to help prevent the spread of the disease to  others. The use of facemasks is also crucial for health workers and people who are taking care of someone in close settings (at home or in a health care facility).
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
  • If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.