What's Our End Game Strategy for COVID-19?

[SincereOnlineGuy]

3 hours ago, sothereiwas said:

It was illegal. That's what prohibited means. Driving over the speed limit is also prohibited. People do it more often than they obey the limit. It's prohibited, but not enforceable. 

but speeding is NOT a crime.

 

 

[carhill]

Covid-19 hypothetical.... distraught person steals doses of remdesivir; another steals zinc/hydroxychloroquine. In my native state both are crimes, theft, but one, the latter, results in a ticket since the value is under 950.00, basically like a traffic ticket/notice to appear, the former, being valued over that amount, is charged and arrested at the discretion of the officers, lately more likely to be arrested and released due to -19 impacts on jails. The theft itself is still a crime, differences in how it's processed result from the specifics of the theft. Use a gun to steal either and it becomes a robbery and a whole different level of crime.

My cynical side says one end game of this whole episode, the response, was to pit Americans against each other, more than the normal rancor they deal with every day; to further fracture faction unity in the country and make it easier to take over. Overall, mostly the old and discarded died and are no great loss in the big scheme of geo-politics. Their lives were mostly over anyway and were a drain on the machine. The results have found more citizens impoverished and dependent on the government, weakening social fabric and personal resolve, the classic destroy someone and then come in and 'save' them. Old as the hills stuff. Well some of we old farts are hard to kill and we have long memories 👍

[Wave Rider]

I keep reading phrases like "....until we find a vaccine...." or "...when we find a vaccine.....", but very few people seem to be willing to engage in a discussion about what might happen if no vaccine is ever developed.  I'm just wanting someone to engage in that discussion.  It seems that most people think that letting some people die so that others might resume their livelihoods is absolutely unacceptable.  I'm hoping that someone will engage in the discussion that if we can't find a vaccine, there are going to be deaths regardless of any safety measures we take.  

[Redhead14]

41 minutes ago, Wave Rider said:

I keep reading phrases like "....until we find a vaccine...." or "...when we find a vaccine.....", but very few people seem to be willing to engage in a discussion about what might happen if no vaccine is ever developed.  I'm just wanting someone to engage in that discussion.  It seems that most people think that letting some people die so that others might resume their livelihoods is absolutely unacceptable.  I'm hoping that someone will engage in the discussion that if we can't find a vaccine, there are going to be deaths regardless of any safety measures we take.  

Yeah, there are a lot of people who are perfectly OK with allowing the disposable people over 60 or people who have underlying conditions, whether through their own fault or not, to die.  I don't have a problem with opening things up necessarily, what I have a problem with is the attitude that they can't even be bothered to spend a couple of seconds to put on a mask and to allow a little extra space around them and others.  It's not that big of a deal to at least make some attempt to make it so that the rest of the population can do things too in a little bit safer environment instead of having to imprison themselves.  They are very callous and cold.  They don't give a sh*t about anyone but themselves Period.  They are OK with it even if its their own mother or father or other family members.  One commenter said "well, my mom and dad aren't stupid, they understand what the score is" (paraphrased).  I don't know what else can be said to follow that vein of discussion. I'd love to see what would have happened if things were the other way around -- people under 60 were most susceptible.  We may find that out anyway if the virus mutates. 

I am only 61 years old and have AFIB which is not a result of not taking care of myself.  I've worked hard all my my F-ing life and taken care of myself to get to a point where I can enjoy my life and retirement and grandchildren and all that has been snatched away from me and no one wants to give a tiny bit of effort to try to make it even a little bit safer or even have some compassion for that fact. 

Bottom line, the attitude is that the virus is just cleaning up the burdens on society and the healthcare system that we didn't need anyway.

Edited May 22, 2020 by Redhead14

[sothereiwas]

35 minutes ago, Wave Rider said:

very few people seem to be willing to engage in a discussion about what might happen if no vaccine is ever developed.

We/they are already developing treatments. Not as good as a vaccine but we will need those anyway for anti-vaxxers or for those the vaccine fails. 

[Ellener]

This looks promising https://www.bbc.com/news/health-52754280

'The clinical trial will evaluate if a drug called interleukin 7, known to boost T-cell numbers, can aid patients' recovery.'

 

[Philosopher]

10 hours ago, sothereiwas said:

We/they are already developing treatments. Not as good as a vaccine but we will need those anyway for anti-vaxxers or for those the vaccine fails. 

There is also the possibility the virus could mutate into a less serious infection over the next few years. This could be what happened at some point in the distant past to the four coronaviruses that cause common colds. 

Edited May 22, 2020 by Philosopher

[elaine567]

If we don't get a vaccine and  no specific treatment emerges and the virus persists, then masks, social distancing and varying degrees of lockdown become the norm for the next few years.
We will need some serious education programmes to educate the public about viruses, as to me, so many are clueless.
English man and wife in 50s-60s interviewed today having just come off a packed flight into the UK from India.
Both wearing masks but both had their noses exposed... SMH. .

[JustGettingBy]

Is anyone else thinking that even if we re-open everything, most businesses won't be 'saved' anyway? If people don't want to go out due to Covid-19, most businesses won't have enough customers to be profitable, right?

[carhill]

For buyers of naughty unmentionables and who enjoyed the view in commercials and stores alike, bye bye Victoria's Secret, all B&M stores closing. My bet is we'll see a rash of this in the physical retail and food service business. In restaurants, as long as occupancy limits remain 25-50% of historic, table churn will need to be obscene to make some decent numbers and many patrons won't be doing the chicken dance social distancing outside waiting to get in. Some will adapt, sure. It will all ripple throughout the employment and supply chains and influence consumer spending and saving.

 

[sothereiwas]

If it means I can get my groceries delivered by Amazon Fresh / Whole Foods, I'll call it an overall win. 

 

[Juha]

LOL    This place is entertaining