"Days on Market" is sometimes not the accurate statistic you might think it is

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New to Market!

New to Market!

32 Vineyard Lane’s listing expired on 9/17/19 when it was priced at $8.950 million, and left the market with an accumulated days on market number of 839. Today it’s back, exactly six days and one month later, wit a new price: $8.6 million, and a new days on market count of one. That’s because, under GAR rules, days on market can only be restarted after a six-month absence from the market, a rule that was first imposed some years ago after I embarrassed the GAR by pointing out the gaming going on with this statistic: agents would pull a listing on one day relist it the next and restart the clock.

There’s nothing particularly underhanded about this maneuver, and a buyer’s agent can supply the true age of a listing, but buyers should be aware of the possibility that “days on market” can be a flexible number, subject to a bit of massaging now and then.

The house is gorgeous, by the way, and was beautifully restored and renovated by the previous owners, who sold it to these sellers for $13.750 in 2006. That was pre-Corona pricing, of course.

Wuhan Flu and its advocates

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(South China Morning Post graphic)

(South China Morning Post graphic)

Chinese government ran a video encouraging Italians to hug strangers — share the wealth!

PJ Media’s jim Treacher:

As the entire globe judders to a halt in an attempt to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus, a lot of people are wondering how it swept the planet so fast. The following video, produced by the China Global Television Network -- an arm of the Chinese Communist Party -- might provide a clue.

Titled "Italian residents hug Chinese people to encourage them in coronavirus fight," the brief video shows a handsome, casually dressed young Chinese man standing in a busy pedestrian area in Florence. He's blindfolded and wearing a surgical mask, next to a handwritten sign reading the following in Italian and Chinese: "I am not a virus. I am a human being. Free me from prejudice." Then, as stirring electronic music swells, passersby hug him and touch his face to remove his blindfold and mask.

This was released on February 4, 2020. Six weeks later, Italy now has more active coronavirus cases than anywhere else in the world, and the entire country has completely shut down.

Again, this video was released by the Chinese government. Someone who's far more paranoid and conspiratorially minded than I am might wonder why the ChiComs stifled information about a viral outbreak within their own borders, silencing doctors and others who tried to warn the outside world, while at the same time releasing treacly, upbeat propaganda videos encouraging Europeans to come into direct physical contact with random Chinese people or else they're racists.

Why, I'm a racist just for pondering the possibility that this is not a coincidence. What sort of evil, oppressive regime would release a deadly plague on the world and then exploit Western sensibilities in order to spread it more quickly? I'm sure the ChiComs were just worried about their citizens going abroad and getting dirty looks from the locals.

Hugs are good. The Chinese are our friends. Calling this the "Wuhan virus" is racist and xenophobic and nationalistic, even though we all know it's a virus that originated in Wuhan, China. (And even though the press called it "Wuhan virus"right up until the minute somebody told them to stop.) This whole thing is the result of an unfortunate accident, but that's all it is. An accident.

Right?

Are we at war yet? And what could we do if we were?

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cyberwar-digital-battlefield-001.jpg

Cyber attack on HHS network

In what was apparently a Distributed Denial of Service attack (DDoS), Health and Human Services Department computers were hit by unknown cyber-assailants on Sunday night in an attempt to impede the department's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Business Insider reports:

An HHS spokesperson confirmed in a statement to Business Insider that it is investigating a "significant increase in activity" on its cyber infrastructure Sunday night, adding that its systems have remained fully operational.

"HHS has an IT infrastructure with risk-based security controls continuously monitored in order to detect and address cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities," HHS spokesperson Caitlin Oakley told Business Insider. "Early on while preparing and responding to COVID-19, HHS put extra protections in place. We are coordinating with federal law enforcement and remain vigilant and focused on ensuring the integrity of our IT infrastructure."

According to Bloomberg, although the attack was unsuccessful, it is being treated as a national security matter:

“We are aware of a cyber incident related to the Health and Human Services computer networks, and the federal government is investigating this incident thoroughly,” John Ullyot, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said in a statement. “HHS and federal government cybersecurity professionals are continuously monitoring and taking appropriate actions to secure our federal networks.”

He said “HHS and federal networks are functioning normally at this time.”

Not yet known, or at least not yet made public, is the identity of the attacker. Bloomberg also reports that "while a foreign state is suspected in the attack, the administration hasn’t yet confirmed who it was." If it was a state actor like China or Russia (just to name two out of many possibilities), an attack like last night's might be rightly considered an act of war.

In the work I mentioned in a previous post, “The Second After”, an unknown state actor sets off an EMP that destroys the country. Or the US thinks it’s a state actor; it could also have been triggered by any one of a handful of terrorist groups. In the end, it doesn’t make sense to strike back, because there’s no way of telling who to retaliate against (putting aside the futility of “striking back” when it’s too late to prevent the destruction anyway).

Hmmm.

Coming to a town near you?

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north-haven-mma.jpg

Maine. North Haven Island bans all outsiders.

NORTH HAVEN — In an extraordinary step, the North Haven Select Board voted Sunday to ban visitors and seasonal residents immediately to prevent the spread of the coronavirus to the Penobscot Bay island.

The order approved by the board states that “people who do not reside on the island full time may not travel to the island due to the significant increase in risk associated with the transmission of COVID-19.”

Contractors who work on the island but do not live there may not travel to North Haven.

All travel to the island shall be limited to travel for “essential purposes,” the order said.

The island has an estimated year-round population of 355, but that swells significantly during the summer. The town held its annual town meeting on Saturday and concerns were voiced by some residents about the impact of seasonal residents arriving, possibly carrying the new coronavirus.

“Essential purposes” as defined by the emergency order means to receive or provide medical care, to provide direct care to people who reside on the island; to resupply bulk food items, fuel, and other products required for human consumption, habitation, and well-being; to conduct law enforcement activities, to fulfill Knox County, state, or federal obligations and to perform duties related to those obligations; and travel for other similar purposes associated with lifesaving, firefighting, and other activities related to the emergency care of persons or property.

24-hours ago I’d have said this was an unconstitutional unenforceable (though try telling that to an armed Islander) action. Today, I’m not so sure it won’t be imitated by towns all across the country. It’s a scenario predicted by almost every dystopian end-of-world novel written; if you’re bored while social-distancing the next ten months, I recoomend The First Second After, by William Forstchen. It was a funner read, back when.

Good Lord

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He’s got a secret?

He’s got a secret?

CT joins NY and NJ in closing all businesses, effective tonight.

I find it hard to imagine that the flu could possibly cause more damage than shutting down the entire economy and throwing millions of workers into poverty will accomplish. This is either the craziest, most panic-stricken move ever foisted on the public by elected officials, or they know far more about this then they’re telling us. Either way, we’re screwed.