In March 2020, many thought it would be just a few days. There will be some inconvenience, sure, but the world will merely be paused to flatten the curve. A few days became a few weeks. And a few months has become where, two years later, we are today. https://t.co/qepZtHhpWF
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 12, 2022
… The American memory is a strange beast. The nation, which is younger than most societies on the planet, loves to trumpet its storyline of action but has long had trouble reckoning with or even acknowledging its history — whether it be racial or military, gender or economic. Pandemic history, even in the two years since those days in March 2020, is hardly an exception.
Do you remember those moments when people were talking about working together, when daily life was thrown off its axis enough that Americans were, for a time, a bit gentler with each other? When the word “COVID” was barely used yet, and everyone was just talking about the coronavirus? …
And now: More than 6 million souls lost across the world. In the United States, nearly a million dead — and the polarization that was already poking at the fabric of American society redeployed into pandemic anger, setting masked neighbor against unmasked one, creating a fertile petri dish to grow as-yet undiscovered brands of mistrust and misconception.
The thing about history is this: Sometimes we talk about “now” as if it were the culmination of all that came before — the actual destination of everything. What we often fail to consider is that “now” is just another junction along the track, another waystation en route to the next thing and the next and the next.
That goes for the “now” of March 2020, yes. But it also applies to the “now” of March 2022 as well. Looking back on the uniquely strange and bedeviling year of 2020 is useful — you try to learn from what came before — but it also affords the chance to think about something else: Two years later, how will we look at right now? How will we take the measure of what we are doing two years after it all began? It this thing anywhere near done? And what happens when it is?
“Who are we after this? Who are we after dealing with this situation that we’ve never dealt with before?” Hilary Fussell Sisco, a professor at Quinnipiac University who studies how people communicate in troubled moments, said precisely two years ago Saturday. “You find out who you are when a crisis hits.”
Have we?
U.S. coronavirus death toll hits 970,000
— BNO Newsroom (@BNODesk) March 13, 2022
The pandemic should galvanize action to establish federally-mandated paid sick leave—not just for Covid, but for all illnesses. https://t.co/zySkRu7PRA
— Dr. Tom Frieden (@DrTomFrieden) March 12, 2022
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Mainland China reported 1,807 new local symptomatic COVID-19 cases on Sunday, more than triple the caseload of the previous day, and the highest in about two years, as surging infections in a northeastern province squeeze health resources. https://t.co/B45Y7tqDED
— Reuters Health (@Reuters_Health) March 13, 2022
The number of new daily coronavirus cases in an outbreak in China's northeast has more than tripled. The government tightened control on access to Shanghai in the east, suspending bus service and required a virus test for anyone who wants to enter. https://t.co/vI4ls90Mpe
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 13, 2022
China is reporting more confirmed cases than at any other point in the last two years.
– Still a low level: 1 confirmed case per 3.6 million people per day.
– But a substantial growth rate: about 10x in the last month with no sign of slowing down.→ https://t.co/bB1fOytGaz pic.twitter.com/6T1wRjRq9L
— Max Roser (@MaxCRoser) March 12, 2022
In China they're disinfecting snow as Covid cases climb & new restrictions are instituted. The public is being urged not to leave Beijing while schools are being closed in Shanghai. In Hong Kong officials say the #omicron-driven outbreak has yet to peak https://t.co/prsNPaagau
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) March 12, 2022
In Beijing everyone is talking about it too, and already meetings and concerts are being cancelled or transferred to video. I've been told that two of my physical presentations next week must go online because attendees will not be allowed into the buildings. https://t.co/J3c34TLJaj
— Michael Pettis (@michaelxpettis) March 11, 2022
Shenzhen issues week-long work from home order, closes all dine in across the city and requires 24 hour test code to enter public places: https://t.co/cNVGNQQVrq
— Michael Standaert (@mstandaert) March 12, 2022
Hong Kong reported 32,430 Covid-19 infections on Sunday, of which 19,095 were from rapid tests.
Full, trusted coverage on HKFP: https://t.co/w8LTgNgHXy
Covid data explainer: https://t.co/5l83n2Y37W pic.twitter.com/RzllU1iftP— Hong Kong Free Press HKFP (@hkfp) March 13, 2022
Hong Kong funeral homes ‘fully booked until mid-April’ amid rising Covid death toll https://t.co/1tjXlunBPP
— Michael Standaert (@mstandaert) March 13, 2022
Hong Kong's overwhelmed hospitals are keeping the dead in hospital wards with sick Covid patients. It’s an image that shocked many but people are dying of Covid faster than overflowing mortuaries can process the bodies https://t.co/74pNjhVRzf
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) March 12, 2022
Third China-built isolation facility ready to commence services https://t.co/qCSUcHW6W0
— Michael Standaert (@mstandaert) March 13, 2022
This does not bode well for China, relying fully on vaccines with low efficacy vs Omicron. Hong Kong's use of Sinovac is 40%. Both have low booster rates. pic.twitter.com/1tMOafuTXM
— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) March 12, 2022
Tokyo reported 9 death (-5), 63 severe cases (+1) and 8,131 / 14,490 (Average number of PCR tests in 3 days) new #COVID19 cases on Sunday, according to Bureau of Social Welfare and Public Health Tokyo #Japan #coronavirus Details?https://t.co/dquWp6eM24 pic.twitter.com/pLDAI1qtdu
— かわたる (@kawataru_j) March 13, 2022
The next wave in Europe has begun pic.twitter.com/2qm4JzOqit
— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) March 12, 2022
======
Hundreds of Covid drug trials could provide a deluge of new medications. Two years into the pandemic, the drug pipeline is primed to pump out novel treatments — and fresh uses for familiar therapies https://t.co/YSmov6hiFb
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) March 13, 2022
In regards to “Deltacron.” Let me save you all the trouble of having to scroll through the entire article. https://t.co/S1C76qaNJM pic.twitter.com/a0B6vJTijr
— Chise ???????? (@sailorrooscout) March 11, 2022
Human gene variants are linked to severe Covid. A wide-ranging genetic study reveals common risk factors associated w/ immune-system signaling, mucus production & other functions that increase the risk of critical Covid https://t.co/RqW0Qwz1Yx
— delthia ricks ? (@DelthiaRicks) March 12, 2022
======
Analysis: At the end of the second year of the pandemic, the effects are more obviously partisan than ever https://t.co/qDrVHD9fKT
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) March 12, 2022
L.A. County offering free anti-COVID pills to newly infected people at CVS stores https://t.co/Y8QHhyU0nd
— Craig L. Ph.D. (@CL2Empower) March 13, 2022
Did the pandemic change the way you practice your religion?
In this heartfelt article Genevieve Grabman @grabmang tells us why her church’s response to Covid restrictions means she will find another place for her family to worship.https://t.co/agSvvPNHp1
— Mindy Schwartz, DemCast USA (@mindyanns) March 10, 2022
Not for the first time, the American Catholic church has doubled down on prioritizing the needs of its hierarchy over those of its best-informed, probably highest-income parishioners. The archbishops’ loss will be the Episcopalian / Lutheran ministers’ gain:
I used to go to church, a Catholic one. I found the most social-justice-oriented, least dying-fetus-focused, multicultural church around, with an award-winning choir to boot, and I dragged in my complaining children weekly. But the pandemic hit, our pastor died of COVID-induced double pneumonia, and I have not darkened those doors since March 2020.
With dwindling COVID rates, I now need to tend to my children’s religious upbringing and return to a spiritual home. That home will not be a Catholic one, however. The suit the Washington, DC, archdiocese brought against DC Mayor Muriel Bowser in 2020, over mandatory attendance caps during the coronavirus, ensured that my family would serve the Lord at whatever Episcopalian or Lutheran church will have us. By forcing the local government to open places of worship 15 months before it was safe to do so, the Catholic Church sought to be a superspreader of a deadly disease. I will play no part in its immorality.
My concern about COVID-19 infection at religious services was not merely hypothetical. Our child care provider’s church reopened for Thanksgiving 2020, and she attended services wearing a mask and attempting to maintain six feet of distance from the crowd of other worshipers. On Nov. 30, she had a fever and did not report for work. On Dec. 1, she tested positive for COVID, as did her two children and her husband, who was hospitalized. She unknowingly passed her infection onto me, my husband, and my children, and we infected others…
Threatened by the archdiocese’s lawsuit, our local government caved and allowed the churches to reopen for Christmas 2020. Catholics poured into the pews, aware of our doctrinal obligation to attend Mass. As the coronavirus mutated from alpha to delta to omicron, more people sickened and died from COVID. Those who sought to avoid infection, only to be subverted in their efforts, were the collateral damage of permitting in-person worship long before it was safe…
In June 2021, Jay Bhattacharya and Martin Kulldorff wrote a piece for the Wall Street Journal that claimed the pandemic was "on its way out," after which another 350,000 Americans died of Covid – the vast majority of them in states that had declared the pandemic over. https://t.co/tNgVQs23f7
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) March 12, 2022
Critics of the response to Covid love to talk about all the inaccurate predictions public-health officials made – of which there were many. But they're silent when it comes to all the wrong predictions Covid skeptics, anti-lockdown advocates, and conservative politicians made.
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) March 12, 2022
War for Ukraine Update 18: The Ukrainians Are Holding, But the Russians Pounded Away at a Number of Ukrainian Cities All Day
NeenerNeener
Monroe County, NY:
38 new cases on 3/12.
Baud
The purpose of their predictions isn’t to be accurate. It’s to spread propaganda to get people to hate decent folk.
Amir Khalid
Malaysia’s Ministry of Health reported 26,250 new Covid-19 cases yesterday in its media statement, for a cumulative reported total of 3,801,036 cases. It also reported 77 deaths for an adjusted cumulative total of 33,720 deaths – 0.89% of the cumulative reported total, 0.97% of resolved cases.
Malaysia’s nationwide Rt stands at 0.99.
169 confirmed cases are in ICU, 100 of them on ventilators. Meanwhile, 25,089 more patients have recovered, for a cumulative total of 3,443,532 patients recovered – 90.6% of the cumulative reported total.
Two new clusters were reported yesterday, for a cumulative total of 6,875 clusters. 395 clusters are currently active; 6,480 clusters are now inactive.
25,705 new cases reported yesterday were local infections. 545 new cases were imported.
The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) administered 46,688 doses of vaccine on 12th March: 25,471 first doses, 1,047 second doses, and 20,170 booster doses. The cumulative total is 68,113,082 doses administered: 27,291,721 first doses, 25,770,666 second doses, and 15,259,493 booster doses. 83.6% of the population have received their first dose, 78.9% their second dose, and 46.7% their booster dose.
Jay
Mandates have been lifted here in BC, last Friday.
The last time they did that, new cases were roughly 30 a day.
In less than a month, mandates were back, with of course, fewer people following them.
Currently, new cases are in the low 200’s to mid 300’s a day, with test and report now a joke. We are supposed to rely on “hospitalization” numbers instead.
Corp policy is that employees have to continue masking, for at least another 4 weeks. By then of course, mandates will be back, with again fewer people following them.
Getting tired of the morons, all round.
Rusty
The effect on religious attendance is interesting. Our old Lutheran church appears to have permanently lost 10-20% of the congregation permanently. Some may have been parishioners switching to churches that were having in person services (ours were virtual), but most appear to be that the loss of the habit of going to church is permanent. We moved out of state last year for my job, and are starting to look at churches in our new area. For reasons not related to the denomination, we are probably going to end up at another mainline protestant church. Church attendance was steadily declining pre-pandemic. I suspect it will have taken a substantial step down and take back up the previous steady decline from here. Evangelical churches are also declining, just slower, and Catholic declines have been masked by immigration from central and south America, recent immigrants attend but the next generation takes up the same declines as other Americans.
frosty
Only four comments after two hours?!!
I guess there’s not much to say on a two-year anniversary. We’re currently in Florida, a month or so into our 3rd Annual COVID/National Park Road Trip Challenge. Yesterday in Home Depot I was one of two people with a mask; back home the staff were required to wear them, apparently not here.
I guess Florida doesn’t have COVID according to what I see. How fortunate for them!
Barbara
My biggest disappointment is with people like John Ioannidis, who used their scientific stature to “question” public health measures, but especially the lockdown, and who still defends his clearly erroneous assumptions and “conclusions” when he is challenged. His position, I guess, was that we should have conducted a natural experiment to see how bad the virus actually was and then decide what the appropriate level of public health intervention should be. Widely interviewed and cited on Fox news and its fellow travelers, he personifies the concept of a useful idiot.
mrmoshpotato
Lockdowns, eh? This slapdick is talking about the US?
smith
The article on covid and the partisan divide lays it on the line convincingly, until, at the last moment, Philip Bump flubs it: “Many have asked why America’s response to the pandemic has been so lacking. In part, it seems, it’s because America’s partisanship is so robust.”
No, not “partisanship” — how has the Democrats’ support of effective mitigation measures had anything to do with the country’s woeful response? It’s not partisanship, it’s Republicans. To lay it on both sides is another manifestation of Murc’s Law. Somehow Dems’ good behavior is responsible for Reps’ bad behavior.
Makeitso
At this point, the reality is that those who care about this will protect themselves and those who don’t, won’t. We are way past trying to persuade anyone. Teh reality is we are likely to see a couple hundred thousand dead a year from COVID for the foreseeable future.
Mostly Trump Cultists and as they say down here in TN: bless their hearts.
TheflipPsyd
Anne Laurie, I just want to thank you again for your dedication in doing this every day. I read these posts faithfully every day. They have helped me and my family in so many ways. Two years ago today, my children were told by their teachers that school would be closed for two weeks. I remember turning to my husband and saying, they won’t be going back for the rest of the school year, at least. I knew that because of you and your daily posts I was able to prepare. And that Monday, of course, everyone at work got sent home as well.
A very sincere thank you. You will never know the true depth of my appreciation.
lowtechcyclist
JFTR, there were what I would consider lockdowns in the early going. In the initial response to the pandemic, all states closed the public schools, all but a few shut down day care centers as well, all but two shut down restaurants and bars, all but a handful shut down all nonessential retail. All but a half-dozen states banned gatherings of more than ten persons.
Call it what you will, but I’d call it close enough.
However, anyone complaining about lockdowns in the past eight or ten months, I’d want a cite from. My recollection is that once the winter wave of 2020-2021 receded and vaccines became generally available, anything that wasn’t already open, opened up pretty quickly.
Barbara
@Makeitso: Yes, except that more than a few who would like to protect themselves are unable to. This was brought home to me this week when I visited my sister to help her through cancer surgery. She was working through a course of chemotherapy and her job as a health assistant requires her to accompany some of her charges to church. She had to argue strenuously to get out of this because of her health. Imagine if you don’t have that kind of “excuse” — you have to risk potential exposure.
Makeitso
@Barbara: Oh, I agree. I have MS. I get it. But I gave up trying to change the minds of the 30-40 percent who dgaf.
Another Scott
Speaking of going to church, the newsreader before SNL last night said something about the time change “before you head off to Church tomorrow”. It made my ears perk up. They really, really like the idea of Covid being over.
Our workplace ended mandatory masking a week or so ago. I’m continuing to wear mine for another week at least, and the uptick in R (while still below 1) indicates to me that it might be much longer. (It took me around 2-3 weeks to get back to normal after catching the flu in Japan in the late spring of 2019, so I don’t want even a “mild” case of Covid…)
Stay safe, everyone.
Cheers,
Scott.
VOR
I still remember when TFG wanted to declare COVID over in time for Easter 2020. Still convinced the impetus was pressure from mega churches to whom Easter was a big revenue day.
YY_Sima Qian
On 3/12 Mainland China reported 1,807 new domestic confirmed (114 previously asymptomatic), 1,315 new domestic asymptomatic cases.
Guangdong Province reported 62 new domestic confirmed & 194 new domestic asymptomatic cases.
Guangxi “Autonomous” Region reported 9 new domestic asymptomatic cases (3 at Liuzhou, 2 at Fangchenggang & 4 at Chongzuo), 6 are traced close contacts already under quarantine, 2 via regular screening of residents in border villages, & 1 via screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions. 1 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 65 active domestic confirmed (48 at Fangchenggang, 15 at Baise, & 1 each at Chongzuo & Nanning) & 60 active domestic asymptomatic cases (38 at Fangchenggang, 12 at Baise, 7 at Chongzuo & 3 at Liuzhou) in the province. 2 zones at Fangchenggang are currently at Medium Risk.
Hunan Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed case (mild), at Xiangtan, a person arriving from Shenzhen in Guangdong on 3/9, had tested negative on 3/10, positive on 3/12. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed cases in the province (1 each at Xiangtan & Huaihua).
Inner Mongolia “Autonomous” Region reported 1 new domestic confirmed case. 19 domestic confirmed cases recovered. There currently are 84 active domestic confirmed & 1 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
Tianjin Municipality reported 17 new domestic confirmed (16 mild & 1 moderate) & 9 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 18 are traced close contacts already under quarantine, 1 from voluntary screening & 7 from screening of residents in areas under lock down. 3 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently are 110 active domestic confirmed & 16 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. A bath house & a construction site are currently at High Risk. 4 residential buildings are currently at Medium Risk.
Shandong Province reported 175 new domestic confirmed (111 previously asymptomatic, 64 mild & 2 moderate) & 172 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 756 active domestic confirmed cases & 1,170 active asymptomatic cases in the province.
Shanxi Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 27 active domestic confirmed cases in the province (15 at Jinzhong, 5 each at Yuncheng & Taiyuan, 1 each at Jincheng & Xizhou).
Hebei Province reported 33 new domestic confirmed & 40 domestic asymptomatic cases. 1 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently are 131 active domestic confirmed & 85 active asymptomatic case in the province.
Liaoning Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed & 2 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 1 at Shenyang & 2 at Dandong. The case at Shenyang is a traced close contact of domestic positive cases elsewhere (passed through 14 days of centralized quarantine & had tested negative multiple times, was released from quarantine on 3/9 but tested positive during follow up testing on 3/11), & the cases at Dandong are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine since 3/5. There currently are 110 active domestic confirmed (111 at Huludao & 12 at Shenyang) & 11 active domestic (5 each at Shenyang & Dandong, & 1 at Fuxin) cases in the province. 1 village at Suizhong County is currently at High Risk.
Heilongjiang Province reported 3 new domestic confirmed cases (2 mild & 1 moderate). 2 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 27 active domestic confirmed & 62 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
Jilin Province reported 1,412 new domestic confirmed (1,398 mild & 14 moderate) & 744 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 2,052 active domestic confirmed (2,025 mild & 27 moderate) & 1,527 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
Beijing Municipality reported 6 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic, 6 mild & 1 moderate) & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 6 traced close contacts already under home or centralized quarantine, & a custodian working at the designated COVID-19 hospital.
Shanghai Municipality reported 1 new domestic confirmed & 64 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 61 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine & 4 from screening of persons at risk of exposure. There currently are 40 active domestic confirmed & 512 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city. 8 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
Shaanxi Province reported 39 new domestic confirmed (29 mild & 10 moderate) & 4 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 9 at Xi’an, 32 at Baoji, & 2 at Hanzhong, 41 are traced close contacts already under centralized quarantine, & 2 via screening of residents in areas under movement restrictions. There currently are 132 active domestic confirmed cases in the province (57 at Xi’an, 64 at Baoji, 10 at Hanzhong, & 1 at Yangling) & 4 active domestic asymptomatic (3 at Xi’an & 1 at Baoji) cases. A restaurant at Baoji is currently at High Risk. 10 sites at Xi’an, 2 at Baoji & 1 at Hanzhong are currently at Medium Risk.
Hubei Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 39 active domestic confirmed (30 mild & 9 moderate, all at Wuhan) & 11 active domestic asymptomatic (9 at Wuhan & 1 each at Huanggang & Xianning) cases in the province..
Jiangsu Province reported 23 new domestic (20 mild & 3 moderate) & 19 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 5 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 2 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 141 active domestic confirmed & 67 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
At Anhui Province there currently are 3 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province (2 at Suzhou & 1 at Anqing).
Hainan Province did not report any new domestic positive cases.
Zhejiang Province reported 15 new domestic confirmed (1 previously asymptomatic, all mild), 12 at Hangzhou (all logistics workers already under quarantine) & 1 each at Huzhou, Jiaxing & Quzhou (1 previously asymptomatic, 2 are a traced close contact already under centralized quarantine). There currently are 67 active domestic confirmed (50 at Hangzhou, 9 at Quzhou, 3 each at Wenzhou & Huzhou & 2 at Jiaxing) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (1 at Wenzhou) cases in the province.
Gansu Province reported 5 new domestic confirmed (2 mild & 3 moderate) & 36 new domestic asymptomatic cases. There currently are 123 active domestic confirmed & 90 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
Fujian Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed (at Xiamen) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (at Zhangzhou) cases in the province.
Xining in Qinghai Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed cases (both mild) in the city.
Henan Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed case (previously asymptomatic), at Puyang. There currently are 6 active domestic confirmed (5 at Puyang & 1 at Zhengzhou) & 1 active domestic asymptomatic (at Puyang) cases in the province. 7 sites at Puyang are currently Medium Risk.
Chongqing Municipality reported 8 new domestic confirmed (7 mild & 1 asymptomatic) & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases, the index case was found at fever clinic & the rest are traced close contacts, all students at a college. There currently is 8 active domestic confirmed & 2 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
Yunnan Province reported 2 new domestic confirmed & 20 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 5 domestic confirmed cases recovered & 10 domestic asymptomatic cases were released from isolation. There currently are 68 active domestic confirmed & 266 active domestic asymptomatic cases remaining in the province.
Imported Cases
On 3/12, Mainland China reported 131 new imported confirmed cases (45 previously asymptomatic, none in Guangdong), 140 imported asymptomatic cases, 0 imported suspect cases:
Overall in Mainland China, 169 confirmed cases recovered (110 imported), 85 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation (61 imported) & 159 were reclassified as confirmed cases (45 imported), & 8,084 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 7,230 active confirmed cases in the country (2,587 imported), 6 in serious condition (2 imported), 6,287 active asymptomatic cases (1,486 imported), 4 suspect cases (all imported). 142,351 traced contacts are currently under centralized quarantine.
As of 3/12, 3,189.426M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 4.187M doses in the past 24 hrs.
On 3/13, Hong Kong reported 32,430 new positive cases, 3 imported & 32,427 domestic (13,332 via RT-PCR & 19,095 from rapid antigen tests), 190 deaths + 74 backlogged deaths.
On 3/13, Taiwan reported 63 new positive cases, 58 imported & 5 domestic.
J R in WV
We have had a tough month so far, starting in early Feb when I took Wife to the ER. Another Dr appointment tomorrow, after a 9 inch snow the other night. Mostly melted away today — I was going to plow the farm road up to the house, but decided that when I could see gravel out there it wasn’t necessary. ETA: Sometimes procrastination actually works out for the better!
Wife is getting around with a walker for balance. Pretty miserable, waiting for the appointment with the neurosurgeon is pretty scary for her. Me too, of course.
This whole “The Pandemic of over, let’s open up everything!” when public health measures work, only to see repeated outbreaks and further deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans at the hands of Republicans who hate public health, Democrats, Doctors, anyone more educated than Republicans, which is everyone but RWNJs. It is a vicious and EVIL cycle, repeating the wear masks which slows the plague, stop wearing masks which speeds up the plague, over and over. The stupid and evil burns.
Thanks so much Anne Laurie, for all the real information over the past couple of years. Has helped to keep us old and frail, but alive to bitch about the RWNJs killing people for laughs.
Bill Arnold
@Barbara:
We did do those natural experiments, world wide, and he turned out to be massively wrong. Mass-murderously wrong, given his influence.
I found that WSJ piece[1], where Jay Bhattacharya (links on the OP) seriously argued that the COVID-19 IFR was 0.01 percent. 1 million+ deaths (excess deaths are like 1.3 million) later, we can be quite sure that the lower bound on the IFR is 1M/330M = 0.3 percent (and not everyone has been infected, so higher). This was after a deadly wave in parts of Italy, so it did not pass the sniff test at the time. I expect he’s spinning about “unexpected” multiple variants now, or something similarly farcical, but he was and continues to be full of shit, and a mass murderer thanks to his influence. His continued influence is a disgrace.
[1] https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/is-the-coronavirus-as-deadly-as-they-say-11585088464
eachother
I am hearing the same thing from various people I consider to be intelligent and in possession of common sense, living in different parts of the country, that there are few mask wearing shoppers where they have gone to stores.
Charts in this article suggest wearing a mask and taking 2020-2021 pandemic precautions is currently wise. I remind myself a flight from anyplace Covid is still rising could be here overnight.