Coronavirus
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Posted by brotherbock cmegus 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 6:24 AM
#26

cmegus wrote:
brotherbock wrote:
lbxzero wrote:
My 2 cents on this subject in general:
I feel the staff should have an info page on basic hygiene and communicatible diseases.  Namely, it serves as a public service announcement.  Contagious diseases are a common part of society in general.  That is how we should be treating this coronavirus outbreak.  This is a part of every day life.  COVID-19 should not be getting any special treatment over the Flu.
My position on these diseases and mortality rates is that it is a general number that discards important information like the conditions around the people who die.  I will tell you that the common people at highest risk of mortality of any disease are people who are malnurished.
If there is a page on hygiene and such as I have described, I am not finding it on the website.

For COVID-19 it seems to be smokers at high risk too, which makes a lot of sense.

Wow. Fake news alert.G
 

I know. It is implausible that smokers would have more trouble with a disease that infects the lungs and kills via pneumonia.

Posted by squirecam cmendell 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 6:47 AM
#27

cmendell wrote:
Most of those other events getting canceled were to take place in the next month or two.  Gen Con is rather further out.  While it's far too early to be making predictions, I see three primary ways this can play out:
1) The virus is contained and burns itself out within the next couple months
2) The virus isn't contained (which is to say the existing containment measures prove inadequate and it "breaks out" and probably burns itself out within the next couple months anyway, on account of it's fairly prodigious communicability.
3) The virus is contained enough to slow it's spread, but not enough to stop it, and it either breaks out months from now or keeps slowly creeping along and is in any case still a notable threat by ~May/Juneish and the powers that be decide to cancel out of an abundance of caution (which would be perfectly understandable)

I hate to break it to you, but this isn’t chicken pox. You can get it again. If the virus isn’t contained, it will not burn itself out. It can keep going.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/woman-catches-coronavirus-twice-confirming-21587251

Posted by squirecam hahnarama 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 6:50 AM
#28

hahnarama wrote:
kevinrg wrote:
hahnarama wrote:I'm not worried about getting sick, what I have a concern about is this. Let's say Pandemic Season 3 breaks out and Gen Con is forced to cancel the 2020 show. What does the EULA say about refunds?  Do we get our $$$ back or are we SOL ? 
If Gen Con is cancelled that means the situations has become concerning enough to get to that point.  If Gen Con is cancelled going to be part of a whole bunch of things being cancelled (sporting events, comic conventions, concerts and basically anything with large groups of people).   Personally, a refund would be the least of my concerns.
Geeze Kevin thanks for the insightful input.
Personally I think lack of information is breeding fear and uncertainty, more people are still dying from the good ol flu vs Capt Trips 2020 version
They canceled the Osaka Game Market and the Geneva Auto Show already. It's not like GC being axed is not a real possibility. I'm also pretty sure it's nothing they ever thought they would need a contingency plan for because it's not mentioned in the Gen Con LLC: Terms of Service 2020 edition.
Game On! 
 

If the Olympics can get cancelled, then so could Gencon. As you say, other things are being cancelled.

Posted by wmarshal 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 3:03 PM
#29

I plan to attend GenCon so long as it’s not cancelled, but if there becomes a need to cancel the con due to the Coronavirus I’ll be sad, but not too put out. I’d rather not be at a nexus for something like the Coronavirus to spread if that’s still a concern later this year. Issues around refunds and such are secondary for me. 

Posted by squirecam wmarshal 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 5:20 PM
#30

wmarshal wrote:
I plan to attend GenCon so long as it’s not cancelled, but if there becomes a need to cancel the con due to the Coronavirus I’ll be sad, but not too put out. I’d rather not be at a nexus for something like the Coronavirus to spread if that’s still a concern later this year. Issues around refunds and such are secondary for me. 

Agreed.

Posted by vulcanspock 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 8:28 PM
#31

'pull the plug' on gencon???  wow.    not enough drama in your life?

anyone who wants to hide in their basement can do so.   but leave the rest of us out of it.

Posted by brotherbock vulcanspock 5 years agoon 3/1/2020 at 11:00 PM
#32

mollymolly wrote:
'pull the plug' on gencon???  wow.    not enough drama in your life?
anyone who wants to hide in their basement can do so.   but leave the rest of us out of it.

Not enough derision in your life?

My bet is that GC goes as planned. But here are events that have been canceled because of COVID-19:

The Game Developers Conference: ~30,000 attendees scheduled for March in San Fran.
FB Developers Conference: ~5,000 attendees scheduled for San Jose in May
Mobile World Congress: ~110,000 attendees scheduled for Barcelona this past week
According to the IOC, a decision about whether to cancel the Olympics will be made in May.
The Louvre is closed indefinitely.

So it could be that this whole thing has largely blown over by August, or it could be that COVID-19 is pretty much everywhere by then anyway but is receding in numbers infected, and therefore canceling a big event isn't needed anyway. Or it could be worse in August--or more properly, it could be worse in the mid to end of June when GC would have to make the decision. In the face of all that, it seems like unwarranted bravado to say that expressing concern about further events being canceled is equal to 'hiding in the basement'.

Posted by squirecam brotherbock 5 years agoon 3/2/2020 at 1:51 AM
#33

brotherbock wrote:
mollymolly wrote:
'pull the plug' on gencon???  wow.    not enough drama in your life?
anyone who wants to hide in their basement can do so.   but leave the rest of us out of it.

Not enough derision in your life?My bet is that GC goes as planned. But here are events that have been canceled because of COVID-19:
The Game Developers Conference: ~30,000 attendees scheduled for March in San Fran.
FB Developers Conference: ~5,000 attendees scheduled for San Jose in May
Mobile World Congress: ~110,000 attendees scheduled for Barcelona this past week
According to the IOC, a decision about whether to cancel the Olympics will be made in May.
The Louvre is closed indefinitely.
So it could be that this whole thing has largely blown over by August, or it could be that COVID-19 is pretty much everywhere by then anyway but is receding in numbers infected, and therefore canceling a big event isn't needed anyway. Or it could be worse in August--or more properly, it could be worse in the mid to end of June when GC would have to make the decision. In the face of all that, it seems like unwarranted bravado to say that expressing concern about further events being canceled is equal to 'hiding in the basement'.

Right. It could be affected. Or it may not. Too early to tell. But I imagine that there will have to be at least a few months notice to people if it is cancelled.

Posted by brotherbock squirecam 5 years agoon 3/2/2020 at 2:30 AM
#34

squirecam wrote:
brotherbock wrote:
mollymolly wrote:
'pull the plug' on gencon???  wow.    not enough drama in your life?
anyone who wants to hide in their basement can do so.   but leave the rest of us out of it.

Not enough derision in your life?My bet is that GC goes as planned. But here are events that have been canceled because of COVID-19:
The Game Developers Conference: ~30,000 attendees scheduled for March in San Fran.
FB Developers Conference: ~5,000 attendees scheduled for San Jose in May
Mobile World Congress: ~110,000 attendees scheduled for Barcelona this past week
According to the IOC, a decision about whether to cancel the Olympics will be made in May.
The Louvre is closed indefinitely.
So it could be that this whole thing has largely blown over by August, or it could be that COVID-19 is pretty much everywhere by then anyway but is receding in numbers infected, and therefore canceling a big event isn't needed anyway. Or it could be worse in August--or more properly, it could be worse in the mid to end of June when GC would have to make the decision. In the face of all that, it seems like unwarranted bravado to say that expressing concern about further events being canceled is equal to 'hiding in the basement'.

Right. It could be affected. Or it may not. Too early to tell. But I imagine that there will have to be at least a few months notice to people if it is cancelled.

Yep, that's the tough part. They need to balance letting people know as early as they can so we can try to do damage control on our vacation/travel plans--with waiting as long as they can to see if they really do need to cancel. :/ The longer you wait, the more information you have available and the less likely it is that you cancel when you 'didn't need to' in the end. But the longer you wait, the harder it is for all the attendees (less ability to reschedule different plans, tell work that you're not taking that week off, cancel flights, etc.). It's a matter of risk tolerance that the GC staff has to play on behalf of everyone. I do not envy them that decision.

FWIW, I'm driving, and given that it's not during the semester, my own work plans would be unchanged, so it would only be hotel deposits that I'd be out personally. So I personally would be fine with them waiting as long as they can. But someone flying from another continent or across the country, with a job schedule less forgiving? They may want to know much earlier than I would need to. Tough decision. Hopefully things will be much clearer by event reg.

Posted by mvotruba 5 years agoon 3/3/2020 at 6:37 AM
#35

My problem isn't Gen Con getting cancelled (and hence getting a badge refund), my problem is the nonrefundable airfare which is much more than the badge cost.  Luckily, hotel and car rentals that are just reservations at this point can be cancelled.

I have not purchased my flight tickets yet, but the closer we get, the higher the costs generally get along with worse flight times.

As Brotherbock mentioned above...Perhaps it is too early for Gen Con to make a call, but I hope some decision can be made in the near future so my gaming group and I can either move forward with our plans for 2020, or if we should start looking at 2021.

The issue goes beyond our choice to attend or not.  Some of us are more than just a short car ride away.  Our choices to attend are impacted by airlines and other organizations. 

Posted by nytenor 5 years agoon 3/3/2020 at 8:39 AM
#36

Does anyone have any knowledge about supply chains being disrupted for exhibitors - assuming  a fair amount of items sold at GENCON are manufactured overseas.  I would imagine lead time is needed to process and manufacture goods. 

 

Posted by matthias9 mvotruba 5 years agoon 3/3/2020 at 2:45 PM
#37

voice_of_reason wrote:
My problem isn't Gen Con getting cancelled (and hence getting a badge refund), my problem is the nonrefundable airfare which is much more than the badge cost.  Luckily, hotel and car rentals that are just reservations at this point can be cancelled.
I have not purchased my flight tickets yet, but the closer we get, the higher the costs generally get along with worse flight times.
As Brotherbock mentioned above...Perhaps it is too early for Gen Con to make a call, but I hope some decision can be made in the near future so my gaming group and I can either move forward with our plans for 2020, or if we should start looking at 2021.
The issue goes beyond our choice to attend or not.  Some of us are more than just a short car ride away.  Our choices to attend are impacted by airlines and other organizations. 

They have made a call, though.  As staff posted above:  "At this time we are not planning any changes regarding Gen Con 2020."

Could circumstances change?  Yes.  But, that has been true every year, not just this one.  Air travel was shut down for a couple days after 9/11.  No one can predict the future. 

As others have stated above, if we start shutting down the world, the amount of money I am out for this trip will be the least of my concerns at that point.

Posted by buffythecatslayer 5 years agoon 3/3/2020 at 4:49 PM
#38

Already a few airlines have stopped charging change fees because of the Coronavirus.  If things get worse, and more events get cancelled, most airlines will suspend their change fees, so it's unlikely you'll be out the airfare if they have to cancel Gen Con.  Also, by the same token, the housing company will probably have to waive at least part of the $50 cancellation fee.

Posted by elvinlord 5 years agoon 3/3/2020 at 5:19 PM
#39

I work in public health.  We have been getting regular updates from the CDC.  The CDC is shifting from containment mode to mitigation mode.  The risk remains low but to expect widespread community based spreading of the virus.

The problem is we have no vaccines or medicines to help with mitigation nor do we have good information on the ease or transmission or lethality.  Any info out of China is suspect as the government flat out lies.

Normal seasonal flu has a lethality of 0.1 percent. The worst has about 2 percent.  Right now it looks like this virus is in the upper levels of lethality and ease of transmission.  That will undoubtedly change as we get more information.

Do I think this virus will burn itself out and gencon will go as normal, abeit with more plague doctor cosplay, yes.  Do I think there is a above normal chance of the con being called off due to ban on large public gatherings, yes. Am I changing my plans no.  Would I think twice about pulling the trigger on large nonrefundable purchases, yes.
 

Posted by qwaserity 5 years agoon 3/3/2020 at 7:17 PM
#40

And for the love of all that is holy:

If you are sick, PLEASE don't come to GenCon. I have a fear not of the disease but of just getting the disease because someone was too dumb to not come to work or game night. I caught the flu last month because someone came to game night after spending a day teaching in a school filled with plague rats... I mean kids. And even though the carrier got a flu shot, he didn't wash and touched all of the lovely cards and dice that game night. Nothing like getting the flu and having it kick in just as you leave work on Friday.

Posted by azurered 5 years agoon 3/4/2020 at 3:44 AM
#41

They just cancelled the Arnold Classic in Columbus. We only got 3 days notice. This pulls in 200k people and makes the city $53m. Reading between the lines it seemed that the organizers wanted to push forward, but the state put a stop to it.

Posted by eldrad12000 5 years agoon 3/4/2020 at 6:27 AM
#42

Am I worried, yes. But there is not much I can do, other to watch and wait.

Posted by kd8esu azurered 5 years agoon 3/4/2020 at 9:00 PM
#43

azurered wrote:
They just cancelled the Arnold Classic in Columbus. We only got 3 days notice. This pulls in 200k people and makes the city $53m. Reading between the lines it seemed that the organizers wanted to push forward, but the state put a stop to it.
It clearly looked like Ohio DCP were the ones that were going to stop it.

While that is a state away from Gen Con; it starts to put Origins into more questionable territory as it's also at the GCCC (not to mention the Pride Parade and all the other big events that happen in that area that weekend).

Granted, we're still just under 5 months for Gen Con.  We have time to get a better understanding on if it's going to be the Extinction Level Event that some are saying it's going to be or if it's a bad bug that we'll forget about in a few years, or something in the middle.
I stated on the first page, don't be concerned with it disrupting Gen Con just yet.

Posted by brooks 5 years agoon 3/4/2020 at 9:48 PM
#44

Ohio DCP? I live in Columbus and haven't heard of that organization/office and a search only turned up Ohio Deferred Compensation. Did you mean the Ohio Department of Health or something similar?

Simply curious as that's been big news locally.

For the record, they did not cancel the Arnold Classic. The athletes will still be competing, but it will be closed to the public until the finals in strongman and bodybuilding late Saturday. However they did completely shut down the associated Fitness Expo. Still a huge deal that effects thousands of people, but the event itself is still going on. 

…

Edited to correct information on the finals the public is allowed to view. 

Posted by brooks brooks 5 years agoon 3/5/2020 at 12:02 AM
#45

brooks wrote:
Ohio DCP? I live in Columbus and haven't heard of that organization/office and a search only turned up Ohio Deferred Compensation. Did you mean the Ohio Department of Health or something similar?

Simply curious as that's been big news locally.

For the record, they did not cancel the Arnold Classic. The athletes will still be competing, but it will be closed to the public until the finals in strongman and bodybuilding late Saturday. However they did completely shut down the associated Fitness Expo. Still a huge deal that effects thousands of people, but the event itself is still going on. 

…

Edited to correct information on the finals the public is allowed to view. 


The organizers announced today they are going to admit spectators unless the city and/or state expressly forbid them to. 
 

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