It's nice side with Dan Ray. I'm wbsy Constance me video.
Thank you very much, Dan Watkins, and welcome back. Before we get into the topic at hand, and let me let me just say, I'd like to talk about what's going on with COVID in this world, because I see some things and I hear some things which are making me think that COVID might be on the rebound. I'll get to all of that in a moment, but I first want to commend the selection of David Meyer as the special investigator. He will lead the inquiry into the
death of Massachusettstate Police recruit Enrique Delgado Garcia. He was appointed today to that post by the Attorney General and Andrea Campbell. And it's a good choice. I had suggested
week someone like an Ed Davis. I said Ed Davis, or Bill Bratton, or John Blodgett, the former District Attorney of Essex County, and I mentioned a couple of other names as well, but Kathy O'Toole, who had been a head of the MBTA police here and eventually the head of the entire police force what they call the guard in Ireland. But David Meyer, he was a special counsel to Governor Deval Patrick. But I knew him before that.
He was the former chief of Homicide in the Suffolk County Office of District Attorney and worked closely with Dan Conley,
who's a good guy as well. But when we were pursuing the claims of innocence for Joe Solvadi and others, David Meyer all of a sudden was put in charge of the case by the Suffolk County DA at the time, and he looked at the case and he was the one who basically said nomas, meaning you know, you guys have made the case here and all the charges will be dropped, which of course set up the civil lawsuit for the Salvadi, Lamoni and the others, the other two
men who had died in prison. I think that the appointment of David Meyer is a brilliant choice and I know that David Meyer will get to the bottom of whatever happened to this poor recruit who died in what they call a boxing training exercise. And Rinki de Godo Garcia, who will be waked and buried later this week at young twenty five year old man who aspired to be a state police officer and in my opinion, was robbed
of that dream by I'll be interesting. I don't think this was like a one punch lucky thing where somehow he suffered these incredible injuries. But I say, David Meyer, those of you who do not know David, they will be a complete, thorough and honest and he will. He's the sort of guy that the ships will fall where they may. David Meyer and Mark Lee were the two assistant district attorneys who finally finally saw to it that justice should be given to Joselvadi and Peter Lamoni and
the other two men who had died in prison. So that's how I know David Meyer. I have utmost respect for him, and he will he will do a great job on this and if they will be if there were mistakes made, we will know about it. So putting that aside for the moment, we may talk about that later on. During the week, I've noticed a couple of things that I want to share with you which have caused me a little concern for many, many weeks up until,
as a matter of fact, the end of June. I followed and kept track of what was going on with COVID in Massachusetts and COVID, you know, really sort of petered out dramatically in February mid February of this year, twenty twenty four. The last week in which there were more than two thousand new cases was February fifteenth, and the last week in which there were more than fifteen
deaths was that same week. And you just saw the debts dropped off from the week of February fifteenth, from new deaths from twenty nine the week of February fifteenth, twelve, twelve, ten, fifteen, eleven, ten, three eight.
Five six three five three four four four four five five, And at that point the state stopped releasing information on a weekly basis.
But I noticed that a week ago there was a real uptick, and on the week of September nineteenth, the number of new cases in Massachusetts again crept on any given week crept up back over the two thousand figure. Now that pales in comparison to again, you know what it was in terms of new cases last winter, in January and February. But once it dropped below the two thousand figure in mid or late February, it never came back. And it was a fraction all through April and May.
And June four hundred, five hundred, six hundred cases. It just never really bounced back, but it started to creep back in let me see if I get I just want to make sure I'm giving you the right information. It did start to creep back in June. Late June, it was nine hundred and eleven and then slowly but
surely it began to creep back. So here's the other thing that I noticed, and you should be aware of this, that at the end of this month, the federal government is going to make four free COVID nineteen tests available to every household that wants them. All you'll have to do is to go to your computer. And they're not available now, so you don't waste your time doing it now, but you'll be able to get and we'll get you
that information too. By the way, that the at home COVID test, every household gets free COVID tests and has nothing to do with whether you're eligible for other federal programs. It's available for whether you're a millionaire or you're a popper, as long as you have an andretch you get these free COVID test people, I would advise everyone to get them.
So looking at that also seeing more and more people in the last couple of weeks, just my observations on the street going into supermarkets, seeing more and more people being masked and wearing masks. All of a sudden, I'm thinking to myself, I'm looking at those as when I use the term vectors. So I don't know. I know I'll be getting a COVID shot in a week or so.
The first shot I got was my flu shot, my high dose flu shot, which I would advise all of you who are on the wrong side of sixty to get, but a lot to know what your experience has been. Do you think that I'm panicking? Here? My sense?
And just as I read different articles, I guess there are there's some new streams of COVID there are, and uh broad the countryside. There's also a change uh simultaneously that has been noted here in peace that that I saw in Axio's Boston than in a lot of cities around the country. Matter of fact, in most every major US city.
UH. A new analysis found that driving rates are now above pre pandemic levels. So if you take all three of those, the fact that more people are wearing masks, that there's been uptick here. We haven't had the flu season really hasn't started. I mean today's the first day of fall. But we had beautiful weather until about a week ago, and and then the rains came in parts of Massachusetts. Uh. You see people wearing masks, people are driving more, which to me says that you're you're more
in in contact with other people. That are our pattern Our patterns are back to the to the pre COVID time. And if you read some of the medical materials, there's one that I have here which is from the Association of American Medical Colleges. COVID is surging again. This is from August, late August. COVID is surging again. Here are the latest on new variants, updated vaccines, and masking. So my question is to all of you, simple one, and
that is do you have that sense. I don't think that that I can give you the statistics from last week. I'll be interested to see what the statistics if the statistics are released this week. They were released that last week by Massachusetts I think as sort of a warning sign. So I'm going to open up lines here. We haven't talked about COVID in a while. Are you letting your guard down. This stuff keeps mutating, and sometimes it mutates, as I understand that into into a stronger form of
the virus. The editor's editor here, writes, the staff right at bridget Baltz writes, if there's one thing that's predictable of the virus that causes COVID nineteen is that it will continue to evolve and find new ways to infect
and reinfect the world's population. The latest mutation of SARS COVID two, specifically KP one, KP two, and KP three, and their sub lineages accounted for most infections in the US as of the first week of August, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the CDC Conveillance. So I just want to open it up six seven two, five four ten thirty six seven nine three one ten thirty. Do you think COVID's coming back last winter? I think we kind of didn't see much of it. Didn't seem
certainly as much of it as the winter before. I have friends of mine, family members not here in Massachusetts, but who tell me that they have contracted COVID or been diagnosed for COVID. Thank goodness, they were not anybody who was in that category of being either older or susceptible. So let's let's just get to it. Six one, seven, two, five, four, ten thirty six one seven, nine, three thirty COVID. Are
you concerned? Have you gone and found your masks your old mask lately or are you just kind of cruising along figuring that this is in the rearview mirror and it's nothing really to worry about. I don't hold that view. I am a little concerned. I'd love to know, on a scale of zero to ten, where is your concern level. I'm like it about a three or four right now, okay, but it could go up real quickly for me. Coming back on nights, I joined the conversation.
Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World night Side Studios WBZ News Radio.
We are in the Window World Nightside Studios and I'm proud to have them as the sponsor of our night Side Studios. Now, just get to the phones now again. I try to pick subjects that are sometimes different, and I don't know when the last time you talked about COVID, but I'd love to know what your observations are, because this is North America's back porch where all of us can chime in and you can say to me, Dan, you're wrong. This COVID thing is we got to beat.
No problem. I'm not seeing anybody wear masks. That's not been my experience. Let's go to Bob and Pet. Hey, Bob, I appreciate you calling in. How are you tonight?
Hey?
Good Dan?
How are you?
I'm doing great? Thanks for calling in on this subject. Love to know what you think. Do you think I'm off based on.
This, Dan, I think you really are into something. To be honest with you, I.
Wish I was wrong. I wish I was wrong.
To be honest, You're not wrong, Dan.
I'm going to tell you a little story. Last week I had COVID myself, okay, and eight other people I know had COVID, including my parents that are in their eighties. Okay, they're doing better now, you know. They've been staying in the house and everything and isolating and everything. And to be honest with you, this COVID. I had COVID twice before, and this third time I had it last week, the symptoms seemed worse for me. Okay, I was in more pain.
It lasted a lot longer than the first two times I had it, I was sick for about ten days. Aches and pains, headaches, chest pains.
Question. I want to ask you a question. Did you did your doctor or did anyone recommend that as soon as you were diagnosed with COVID to get a prescription for what's called packslovid.
Yes, they they had mentioned that to me, but they said you have to be within so many days to get that. If you have this simple like three or four days this that that wouldn't work because it's already in your system.
Gotcha, Okay, fair enough? That is accurate. By the way, it's I'll tell you the first time, the first moment you think you have it. That's why these tests will be very important. Get some tests, all these tests. It was funny they they don't have a long life expectancy. We had some tests at the house and you look at them and it's like, wait a second, these are
already expired. And I don't know if that's because the companies that are making the tests are intentionally producing tests which you have to continue to Rebut that's a story for maybe another phone call later on during the day, later on during this evening. But this hits you like a ton of bricks, is what you're telling me.
A ton of bricks, Dan, and Dan, I mean to go. The story gets even a little bit more interesting. Two weeks, two weeks prior to this, I had gotten the flu shot, okay, the regular regular a flu shot, not the COVID shot. The flu shot, so me I was thinking, Oh, this must be side effects from the flu shot. Yeah, okay. So I waited a day two and the symptoms started getting worse. So I called my doctor, and my doctor said, why don't you take a COVID test. It sounds like
you get the beginning stages of COVID. So I took the COVID test, and sure enough I had COVID. Oh and that was two weeks after I got the flu shot.
Well, the flu shot is not going to help you with COVID.
Right, No?
No, I mean unfortunately, it disguised the COVID. It allowed COVID to get to work in your system, and you were thinking, ah, this is this is the little remnants of the flu. So it worked right right. Do you have any idea where you got it? Or you said that there was some other family members? Was there a family activity or event?
Uh?
No, No, there was no event, nothing like that. You know, just we're but people by the you know. My doctor also stated that if you get if you have COVID, he don't recommend you get in a COVID shot until at least three or four weeks after you're cured because the covidink.
I got to be honest with you. I've heard many doctors say much longer than that. So double check that with your doctor.
Yeah, because they said it's still in your system and it takes a while for that to get out of your system.
Right, but I also think that it can almost reactivate it. Double check with your doctor. I had heard that you weren't supposed to get you know, if you unfortunately like you, if you get COVID. And again I'm not a doctor, I'm not playing it on radio. Heard maybe there's some doctor right right, is that? I think the general advice that I heard was not gett a COVID shot but then three or four weeks. But it was much longer than that, So I don't want to miss Yeah, I
want to double check with your doc. And hopefully there's some folks out there right now who might be able to tell me I'm right or wrong on that. But my understanding is once you have COVID, you have the antibodies in your system, which is what a COVID shot does. So therefore the COVID shot, as I understand that from back in the day, it was superfluous and not that it was going to harm you, but it was it was unnecessary, right.
I mean then, to be honest with you, I let my guy down. I thinking it was all gone. I thought it was all passed because the news media wasn't like you. They weren't even reporting it on the news that much. So I was thinking the numbers went down because the news made the news media is not reporting it. So I'm thinking the numbers are coming down. You know, your gout is down and everything, well.
The numbers. I kept track of the numbers, and beginning in the middle of February last winter, there was a pretty significant drop off and they stayed down, but in the last couple of weeks that popped up, and last week there were and I have the numbers right here which I can share with you. Last week, if you were up, they were you were You and your family were amongst the two thousand, three hundred and one new COVID cases, and last week there were sixteen new COVID deaths.
Okay, guy, because when I called my doctor last week, he told me that the numbers were really spiking up and last week was the big the highest numbers he's seen in a while of COVID yep.
So that's why we're talking about it tonight. And I appreciate that you called in as somebody who had dealt with it and let it be a warning to others to take to continue to take it seriously. Bob, thank you much for your call. I really thanks, thanks so much. Okay, here comes the news at the bottom of the hour. I'd like to hear what you think on this now again. I introduced these topics in the hopes that people will step up on North America's back porch and express an opinion.
If you think I'm way off base, and if you're a medical professional, I would particularly love to hear from me. You don't have to identify yourself by name, but I don't want to be giving out income information. The information I'm giving out is basically public information. I think there's an uptick, and I've seen other things. The fact that all of a sudden, the CDC is once again offering free COVID tests. I don't know how long that had been planned. Maybe someone will call and tell me it's
been planned for a year. But the coincidence of that, the uptick and just more people just seeing more people with masks in the last I don't know, three weeks. Uh. Is it a coincidence? I don't know. Maybe I think it's something we should be concerned about. That's why I'm bringing it up tonight, and I hope that you're concerned enough and if you have any information that you can help us with here in North America's back porch. The numbers are six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty
or six one seven, nine three one, ten thirty. We'll be right back on nights Side after this.
It's Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
All right, now, again, I'm surprised that more of you you were not willing to just tell me what you think. There. This is I'm telling you what I think. I think that COVID is making a comeback. I hope I'm wrong. But when I look at some of the some of the medical journals, including one here from the Association of American Medical Colleges. And I see the numbers here in Massachusetts, and I see the behavior of people. Let's go to Larry and Dennisport. Larry, appreciate your calling in.
How are you, sir, Dan Hi? Thanks for taking my call.
So what do you think about my theory here? I'm thinking that that it's time to get a little serious. This thing might be bouncing back a little more, a little more strongly than maybe we would have expected.
I'm going to have to agree with you now.
You can always disagree with me. You know that, Larry, don't worry about it. We'll still be friends. Go ahead, I know, I know.
I'm still getting over that seven inches of rain we had in thirty six hours.
Unbelievable, unbelievable. I've never heard rain like that, with that intensity to that long two and a half days.
Yeah, it was unbelievable. It was even more unbelievable on Cape Caught. People don't realize so the rain stopped. I forget when sometimes Saturday I was out in the woods on Saturday on Sunday mountain biking on the trails.
That it was going.
No, it's like it never rained. Really, it's because the sand just absorbs all the water. It was amazing. It's crazy. But anyway, getting back to COVID. As you well know, I'm vaccine injured since twenty twenty one long term side effects, and then I got COVID in twenty twenty three and
developed into long COVID. So I'm very cautious with COVID because the doctors told me, especially people with long COVID, you do not want to get reinfected because every time you get reinfected, it makes your side effects even worse. And I've been working for three years now and I'm finally starting to see some improvement with some of the protocols that i'm doing. So but here's what I'm finding. And like what you mentioned in February and then into
the next few months, COVID kind of disappeared. You never heard about it on the news or anything. People were getting cold and thinking it was either allergies or regulars, not even testing for COVID. They weren't even doing testing. In the last months, I know at least six or eight people that have COVID. My own wife had it last month. I can't believe I didn't get it from her, but they did not suggest for my wife to take paxvid. Every doctor is different on that one.
Really. Well, what I've larry is that if if you catch it early.
Yes, I had in it.
Was November or twenty twenty two, very mild case. But my daughter said, get packs all of it. I got it quickly, and you know, it painted necks like two pills twice a day, and it kind of left a feeling of a kind of a steel feeling like you would chew metallic italic metallic better word. But that was it. I mean, it was no more than the sniffles. But look, when when you're on the wrong side of fifty, you don't mess with this.
Well, I look at it the right side because it's better than the dirt nap so. But but anyway, I'd have some friends that took the pack SUV and had some side effects from it. With me, my doctors told me, don't get any more shots. Don't put anything in your body because your immune system is inflamed and then overdrive. And I don't know anybody else that's even getting those shots. You can't give them away right now. But getting back to that last caller, well, Rob.
Had his COVID shot this weekend. So there are people who and I'm I'm going to get a COVID shot. I had a flu shot, a flu shot a week and a half ago. I'm I'm gonna I gotta. They suggest two days separation.
At least the Yeah, but if you test positive, if you test positive for COVID, they tell you at least three months.
Yeah.
That's why when when Bob said three or four weeks, I always heard longer, because you have it. Well, you know, maybe his doctor told him something else.
I don't know.
I'm not a doctor, but but I'm glad to hear you say that, because the idea is that when you have COVID and you recover from it, one of the lasting impacts is you have some immunity. Uh, And there's no reason to get a shot any sooner than whatever the medical viewpoint is.
But yeah, yeah, exactly, I'm sorry to hear that you that you had it.
Maybe you're you're now totally immune.
Well, well, I don't know about that, but it's just these long term side effects, these long COVID. You should do another segment on.
Long Oh I've done I've done a couple of segments on long COVID, my buddy Cliff Ritchie who was a great tennis player. Uh in the Jimmy Connors, Arthur Ash, John mcenroll.
Yeah, right up, And you did it right, and you did a great interview with Julie from the COVID coverage censer. But you you brought up another subject. I thought you were going to tie this in that there's more traffic out there. And when I go out in the rows, I say, in the middle of the day. You know, I'm retired. I say, doesn't anybody even if you're working from home, doesn't anybody work nine to five anymore?
Uh?
Well, I don't know. I don't know that you where you are on Cape cod might be a small sample size the idea.
No I drive up to Boston a lot.
Okay, all right, okay, Well apparently it's all over the country. It's all over the the biggest twenty five again. It's like people getting back and get out, and we apparently are at traffic levels which were similar to what they were pre COVID. Now, look, we probably picked up ten or fifteen million more people of drivers age, you know, I mean the population continues to experience. All right, Larry, I got to run here, I gotta get to break. Thanks buddy, talk to you soon. All right, good night,
all right, we're gonna come back. We're gonna Ruth, You're gonna be next, followed by John and Maureen, and I want to hear you guys experience. Thank you much for calling, and we'll get to all three of you before the break, before the newscast. I promise back on night Side after this.
Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World nights Side Studios on WBZ News Radio.
We get lines filled up. Now, maybe we'll get to go into the next hour. Let me go to Ruth at Uxbridge. Ruth, do you think I'm crazy or do you think COVID's making a comeback?
I think people are crazy if they don't take one on this. I'm older, I've got a birthday coming up next month, and on mid eighties. But I'm very selling.
You're about you're selling. You're about forty five. By the way, You've got a great, great voice.
Thanks well, I can mow my own Launes and Rake and all that jazz still and but August twenty third, I started coming down with a headache. On August twenty fourth, headache still heard. I did a COVID test, said negative. I got through Tuesday, and I felt horrible. I couldn't get people better realized if they started getting headaches, they've got this stuff. And anyhow, I tested absolutely positive that Tuesday and the doctor put me on pack full OFVID.
But the problem is that, yeah, I went through that series of the medicine then, but uh, what I have Apparently I've got complications now. I am immune immun I'm compromised. Okay, So anyhow because of a particular medication, I'm on growth rider and so anyhow, my thing that this has happened is I got all the fun. I lost my taste and finally got it back on. That's so weird. But anyhow, as I got well, thought I got well. I've been coughing ever since then and can't get rid of the cough.
And they've just put me on a Marxist selling So this stuff is not a joke. I've had all my shots and stuff like that, and I don't know where I got this from. So I don't know. So people better pay attention to it. Because thank you.
For taking the time to call in an issue the warning, because I think that your call is as important as Bob's Larry's call was. Yours is important because not only did you get it, but obviously you have some lingering symptoms.
And I've got lingering symptoms now. So yeah, people, please be careful. Please take these warnings seriously. And I've had to go out a couple of times to get medications stuff, and believe me, I'm wearing my mask. But other than that, just to get medicine and come back in the house. That's it. I don't want to be around people.
Well, you're always gonna be around Nightside, okay, And I really appreciate it.
I always see them. I love your program.
Well, thank you, I love you for saying that. And again, please get better quickly and give me a call in a couple of weeks. Just let me know how you're doing.
Okay, sheld and thank you.
Good night.
Good night. Well she sounds great, but obviously she's been fighting it. John and Marshall, Hey John, next on Nightside, Welcome, Hi, how you doing. I'm doing fun? John? Am I crazy about this?
Or no, no, you're not, And actually it's it's I'm not. I'm not seeing a lot on the media about the about the uptaking COVID, but I mean, it's definitely out there.
I like you.
I'm seeing people wearing masks more often now than I did before. A friend of mine is in a combination nursing home rehab and she's been in there for a few weeks, and on my last visit up, they suggested at the front desk where you sign in, they suggested that you you grab a mask and wear the mask whilere you're in the in the building visiting advice.
And it's been a while, probably since she had remember that used to be back in twenty twenty. That was the normal course I did. They gave you a mask, and.
This was you know, this wasn't it wasn't mandatory. It was so it was optional, but they gave you the option. So I went in to see her and she says, well, I have COVID, and I'm thinking to myself immediately I ran through myself. You know, she's in this nursing home rehab thing. They told her she has COVID. She's confined to her room and I'm thinking, I'm in you know, compromise due to a respiratory condition. So I said, well, Okayan, are you seeing you? I took.
You before you went up to see her, you know.
Yeah, but I had to stop in the other day and drop something off. And now there's a sign at the front desk and that they don't use the word COVID, but they say that all visitors are it suggested that all visitors wear a mask when entering the facility.
All right, well that's another good sign, and John, thank you very much for and making us aware of this. I was hoping. I'm delighted that so many folks now have decided to pick up the phone so we can kind of alert people to what's going on. And uh, a little extra precaution is not going to hurt anyone. A lack of precaution could hurt a lot of people now.
And I'm thinking, you know, as far as precautions go, this is a real plus for vote by mail.
Yeah, I guess, well that's just one example. I mean, you still got to potentially go to the grocery store. You know, you got to live your life a little bit too. And so I don't want to get back to the point where we were wiping down kens outside our back door when we came from the grocery store.
Yeah, I don't want to get that up point. I actually where I shot up. I actually I do an order online. They pick it for me.
Yep.
No I have to do is drive up and go.
A lot of people do that as well. That may become even more in vogue. Thanks John, I got to get one. We're in here before you break. Okay, let me go to Marie and brought them more. We want to get you in under the wire head the folks who are on the line. We'll stick with it until the next hour. Go ahead, Maureen.
Dan.
Yeah, I turned on late, but I just wanted to. You know, he had just your previous call. I just mentioned about that facility he visited his friend. I'm thinking that maybe about a month month and a half ago, if it wasn't a little bit more, I thought I heard that like mass General Hospital was requiring I don't know if they were acquiring you know, visitors, but it was it was about to wear the masks. My personal and you're not crazy. I agree with you, my personal.
I went to the grocery store yesterday. Yes there were myself and there were a few other people that did have a mask on. But that's my preference. But like everyone else says you have to take care of yourself, your your other previous caller, you know, take your precautions, you know. So so yeah, just just be smart.
Well again, look, what did they say? An outser prevention is worth a pound of cure. And that's exactly what I think we're talking about here. We gotta be smart about this, you know, because if it is going to come back, all of us will be in jeopardy. So I just felt I wanted to talk about it tonight. I'm delighted so many people have called on it, Marie, and I appreciate that you've called and reinforced it. And
I have other callers. We're going to get to them on the other side of the break, on the other side of the newscast, as simple as that. But did you get it? Did you get it when it was first, when it first arrived back in twenty twenty, twenty twenty one, or have you avoided it so far?
I want to say I got it pertunately about the same time as you know, late November. It was after Thanksgiving twenty twenty two, and it was it happened to be my oldest sister and myself, my husband and then you know my sister broblem law. But it was, yeah, it was. But again, we were lucky enough that we got on the pack slowed my husband and myself, so I mean, but everything else you take precautions. But thank you, Jan.
I know you've got a break. It's great to talk to you, and you have a great rest of your night.
Maurie. Thanks so much for being such a loyal listener. And I really mean that I know exactly who this is because I see you on pregame and postgame off and checking in. So thanks. I feel like I know you as a friend.
Okay, I feel the same.
Thanks, have a great night. Appreciate you time.
Thanks Maury. Okay, I'm not going to sure. Thanks, Mary, not going to shut change anyone. Bill, Lisa and Alex stay right there through the newscast. I'll get you right on the other side and we can continue to talk about this for a little while. I do also want to get to the federal arraignment today of the latest nut job potential assassin. We as a country seem to produce more political assass essence than than we deserve to. Uh,
it's just unbelievable what's going on. We'll get to that as well, So if you like to join and talk about COVID, it's COVID making a comeback, that's the question I think it is. And I've explained to you why everyone seems to agree with me and this one. If you disagree, that's fine, give us a call. Six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty six one seven, nine three one ten thirty. Back on night Side, more conversation talking about COVID. I think it's back amongst us at a level that maybe
some of us don't appreciate. Back on night Side, after the ten o'clock news,