My big boss' general practice has been to require people to be at the office during normal business hours because it helps collaborative work, ensures that people are available if clients or co-workers need to get in touch with them, etc. But she's been quite reasonable about working from home in this situation, and in fact ordered everyone who could to do so well in advance of the states closing non-essential businesses. I think the work getting done, and safely, is the main priority, not making sure that people don't occasionally wander off to deal with a child or pet during the work day.

(I think such concerns about Biden's stamina and/or health are overblown, but there you go.)

My concern is along the lines of "this is (traditionally) one of the hardest jobs in the world that (traditionally) ages the hell out of even relatively young people... and at 78 when things go south they can go hard and fast."

I think he's physically and mentally fit for the job... but he'd better have a good second who can hit the ground running. In Kamala he does.

One of the deceptive things, I think, is that the stutter he's always had makes him "seem old." I prescribe adorable children's book written by his wife.

I'm back in the office because we're moving in the middle of September and boxes can't be packed remotely. We're running a skeleton crew, all wearing masks when we're not alone in a room, and they're paying for cars to keep us off of public transportation.

3 days?!? What is that?

We get pretty chintzy sick time, but better than that. And since I'm salaried and can work from home when I'm not feeling well but not super sick, I've done pretty well piling it up over time, but when I was hourly, boy, they will nickel and dime you out of all the PTO if you aren't careful.

For some management, allowing WFH means they can't micromanage or feel like they can. Which, OK, if you're dealing with teenage employees at a Burger King drivethrough window might be slightly defensible, but these policies are being extended to workers who have demonstrated years of discipline (just getting through college and multi-year careers) that fundamentally disrespects them.

People have gone batshit crazy about the masks. The one other person who's scheduled to be in the office Tuesday-Wednesday was having fits yesterday because one of the instructors using our conference room was not wearing a mask. She interrupted me on a conference call to see if I could find a mask and get him to wear it (no). And the people who won't wear masks ... there are the (fake) exemption cards people make up and there's a (fake) "Freedom to Breathe Agency" with people going around saying that anyone trying to make them wear a mask - in a store, with signs posted - can be fined and spend a couple days in jail for doing so. They have (fake) badges and (fake) paperwork laying out the penalties. oy

HOWEVER, Illinois recently passed a law making it a felony specifically for anyone who assaults a worker for trying to make them wear a mask. yay?

The anti-mask sentiment is so ridiculous. I get it, they're uncomfortable, I hate wearing mine all day at work, but it's such an incredibly minor inconvenience to prevent spreading a virus that even if it doesn't kill you has a 1-in-3 chance of causing long-term health effects.

The fact that it's been politicized to this extreme degree is depressing.

I'm so angry about Trump and Fox News playing the pandemic as a partisan plot. You can't put that genie back even if you reverse course later. The virus isn't fucking playing politics.

The fact that it's been politicized to this extreme degree is depressing.

It would be just dandy if only the anti-mask idiots got sick, but it unjustly doesn't work that way. I am totally okay with all these idiots getting sick. Also, I hate this change in my previously peace love dove personality.

Fivethirtyeight has released its forecasting model:

[link]

(I'm not entirely sold on the design, it feels like dumbing it down.) It currently gives Trump a 28% chance, which sounds about right to me. If the election were held today, it'd give Biden a 93% chance, which also sounds about right.