a chuckle during the virus

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LloydMoreaux
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a chuckle during the virus

Post by LloydMoreaux »

I saw this quote on John Oliver's show last night, and I thought if any group would appreciate it, it would be us. I figure we could all use some levity these days. From a New York Times article:

“If it were possible to wave a magic wand and make all Americans freeze in place for 14 days while sitting six feet apart, epidemiologists say, the whole epidemic would sputter to a halt.”

I, for one, volunteer to do my part to stop the spread!

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/22/heal ... ns-us.html
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Arno Strine
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

Post by Arno Strine »

I saw the clip too this morning and thought about sharing it.
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zapped13
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

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Not to make light of a very serious situation, but this reminds me of a novel I read well over a decade ago. A group of terrorists overtake a chemical plant that was producing a bio-weapon for the military. The deal fell through, so there were container cars full of the chemical just sitting idle on the property. The terrorists steal the train with intentions of releasing the chemicals into the air, effectively freezing all of Los Angeles. The feds try to stop them before they reach the city, and one of the containers is shot at & punctured just as it’s about to pass through a small town. If I remember right, a big football game just let out, and there are a few cheerleaders and other townsfolk gathered in a diner next to a railroad crossing. There’s a memorable part where the MIB types are investigating the scene afterward, and one girl is frozen at the service counter. Someone pushes her shoulder and she nearly falls off the stool (somebody else catches her at the last second and steadies her back in place). There are a group of cheerleaders frozen while sitting in a booth. There’s another woman in an apartment overlooking the street (I think she just had sex, or was topless or something). She opens a window, lights up a cigarette and mentally notes that it’s odd that a train is coming through town at that hour. She ends up frozen in the window with a cigarette still burning in her hand. Unfortunately, the train is derailed into the Pacific Ocean and the chemical is completely ineffective under water. I’m sure I’m making it sound far better than it was, but it was one of those books that after I finished it, I thought, Man, what a great plot and they came so close... I think I can do something better with this. Sadly, I don’t recall the title, the author, or where the book may have disappeared to, (I’m thinking someone may have tossed it in the trash on me)… :cry:
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Dosman
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

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It's a great book and when I find my copy, I'll be sure to post the details here!
danniquin
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

Post by danniquin »

That book sounds very interesting. It's funny, because one of the stories I'm working on currently is going to involve a virus that freezes the entire planet. I'm still working out the specifics, but the idea was the initial version of the virus would be transmitted from person to person, with it being weaponized as an airborne plague. I was inspired by Gotham, but it's crazy how life has imitated art to a degree.
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Lord Hypno
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

Post by Lord Hypno »

i have also read this book but can't remember it's name. i remember the author being very technical about the locomotives, and working them. and i think one of the main protagonist get frozen when she is making a phone call at a payphone
zapped! wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2020 8:32 pm Not to make light of a very serious situation, but this reminds me of a novel I read well over a decade ago. A group of terrorists overtake a chemical plant that was producing a bio-weapon for the military. The deal fell through, so there were container cars full of the chemical just sitting idle on the property. The terrorists steal the train with intentions of releasing the chemicals into the air, effectively freezing all of Los Angeles. The feds try to stop them before they reach the city, and one of the containers is shot at & punctured just as it’s about to pass through a small town. If I remember right, a big football game just let out, and there are a few cheerleaders and other townsfolk gathered in a diner next to a railroad crossing. There’s a memorable part where the MIB types are investigating the scene afterward, and one girl is frozen at the service counter. Someone pushes her shoulder and she nearly falls off the stool (somebody else catches her at the last second and steadies her back in place). There are a group of cheerleaders frozen while sitting in a booth. There’s another woman in an apartment overlooking the street (I think she just had sex, or was topless or something). She opens a window, lights up a cigarette and mentally notes that it’s odd that a train is coming through town at that hour. She ends up frozen in the window with a cigarette still burning in her hand. Unfortunately, the train is derailed into the Pacific Ocean and the chemical is completely ineffective under water. I’m sure I’m making it sound far better than it was, but it was one of those books that after I finished it, I thought, Man, what a great plot and they came so close... I think I can do something better with this. Sadly, I don’t recall the title, the author, or where the book may have disappeared to, (I’m thinking someone may have tossed it in the trash on me)… :cry:
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zapped13
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

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So the title of this book is Mannequin by Robert Byrne (1988). "Mannequin" is the tongue-in-cheek code name given to the paralytic nerve gas due to the immobilizing effect it has on its target (namely people). I'm 100% certain that this book inspired the idea of using nerve gas in a limousine in one of my old stories on the LTBSA. :lol: Don't expect The Fermata or something along those lines, but if you're holed-up in the house for the next thirty days with nothing better to do...

Happy hunting.
Last edited by zapped13 on Wed Apr 01, 2020 1:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Kiro
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Re: a chuckle during the virus

Post by Kiro »

danniquin wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2020 11:00 pm That book sounds very interesting. It's funny, because one of the stories I'm working on currently is going to involve a virus that freezes the entire planet. I'm still working out the specifics, but the idea was the initial version of the virus would be transmitted from person to person, with it being weaponized as an airborne plague. I was inspired by Gotham, but it's crazy how life has imitated art to a degree.
You talking about this story, I remembered this comic, a pity that has only four chapters, but when you launch your story, let me know here on the forum, I like stories like that, because the possibilities are endless.

https://readcomiconline.to/Comic/The-Freeze

As in the case of this comic, I think that if I were one of the people that was defrosted, I would try to get away from the group, or maybe even to another region or country, and start to put together a collection with the frozen people. As for example in the fourth chapter, where you can see a scene in the gym, like several women training, I believe that even the holiest person would be trying to see all those asses raised upwards ... (it can be a little nosy on my part , but after I read this comic, I made a little story, a personal story about a global freezing event, if you want to talk about ideas or something with the subject, I am available, as I love to talk about this topic).
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