Posted on 03/27/2020 6:47:39 AM PDT by Kaslin
The arrogant attitude that we or they own the answer and that anyone suggesting alternative responses to the coronavirus must be acting from stupidity, malice, or greed must stop.
Two weeks into the coronavirus pandemic, much remains unknown. There are two certainties, though: Americans need more humility and we need more awe.
Americans need humility to recognize the limits in our predictive capabilities; the uncertainty of scientific models; and that the countervailing interests of safeguarding lives and livelihoods render it impossible for any political leader to achieve a perfect outcome.
The reflexive rejection of contrary views as either an ignorant exaggeration (or downplaying) of the danger of the coronavirus must soften. And the arrogant attitude that we or they own the answer and that anyone suggesting alternative responses to the coronavirus must be acting from stupidity, malice, or greed must stop.
We need the humility to recognize that we just don’t know—a lot. What we know now, we didn’t know three months ago. COVID-19 is a new disease. Initially, experts believed most people infected with the coronavirus had contracted the disease by exposure to animals. In mid-January, there was only “some indication” that “a limited person-to-person spreading of the disease” was happening.
By January 21, 2020, the first known cases in the United States involved travelers from Wuhan, China. At that time, experts at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) still believed “the current risk from this virus to the general public is low” and “for a family sitting around the dinner table tonight this is not something that they generally need to worry about.”
Yet at the time the CDC stressed that it was preparing “as if the coronavirus was the next pandemic.” The CDC initiated airport screening and by January 21, 2020, CDC scientists had also developed a diagnostic test for use at CDC headquarters, while they continued to prepare a diagnostic test that could be used by state public health agencies through the flu-tracking system.
By the end of January, within two weeks of receiving the genetic sequencing of the coronavirus from China, the CDC had created the test for the public health system and obtained the necessary Food and Drug Administration approval. By then, President Trump had also banned travel from China, even though at the time the scientific models recommended against that step.
By February 3, 2020, the worldwide threat of the coronavirus became clear. President Trump instituted more travel bans—Italy and then select European countries, and later the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Canada. Those measures saved lives and slowed the spread within our borders, even though the prudence of those decisions only became known retrospectively.
Conversely, retrospect revealed that the flu-tracking system was ineffective for screening for the coronavirus. Experts had wrongly concluded that the virus remained outside our borders and believed that quarantines—which had not been used for some 50 years—and “very aggressive” tracking of close contacts would isolate and limit the spread in the United States.
But the virus had already been present in the United States for too long, leading to a quick spread of the disease and worries that the pandemic would kills millions in our country. The government responded by closing down businesses, schools, government services, and churches—in effect, closing down America.
The blame-throwing began. The government did too little, too late, and people will suffer and die as a result. No, the government did too much—it overreacted, it destroyed American businesses and livelihoods over a disease that is less severe than the flu.
Just as the experts did not know the reach of the coronavirus in January, they did not know the risk of the respiratory disease in March. How deadly is it? How easily is it spread? How is it spread? How many lives are at risk? Who is at risk?
Americans accustomed to instant gratification have lost their sense of awe. Science is not infallible. And testing, treatments, and cures are not immediate.
The world is facing a new disease that was never before known to exist in human beings. Yet, in the span of three months, our country went from a gene sequence, to limited diagnostic testing through the CDC system, to high through-put testing and the creation of an entirely new testing system, to instant tests and self-swabbing kits. Simple pin-prick blood tests that will detect coronavirus antibodies will be ready soon.
Our country has also unleashed the power of capitalism to identify several promising therapeutic options, and human studies are already underway. A vaccine has also already been developed with human studies already initiated—months earlier than expected and faster than any prior vaccine trial. Hospital patients are also already receiving plasma from survivors of the coronavirus, with doctors hopeful that the antibodies from those who have recovered from the disease will successfully treat those in critical condition.
Over the last month, health experts have also been able to accumulate untold amounts of data. That data will provide more certainty about the disease and analyses will allow for our leaders to make more educated decisions concerning the reopening of America.
It may well be that that data will suggest early decisions were an overreaction and that businesses and livelihoods were unnecessarily destroyed. But models constructed from newly acquired data might be wrong, just as the models recommending travel from China continue unabated proved wrong.
As we wait for more details on the coronavirus, we would be well served to abandon our hubris and accept that our country has never faced a similar crisis and that we will never know for sure whether, without the aggressive response taken by our federal and state governments, every locale would now be facing the same dire situation New York City finds itself confronting.
Likewise, those Americans who believe our country averted the worst disaster our republic ever faced need some humility: We need to recognize that reasonable people can also justifiably believe the government’s blunt response unnecessarily crippled our economy, destroying lives and livelihoods in the process.
We need more compassion for those people—real, living human beings with families, homes, hopes, and dreams. Moms and dads who labored for years, decades, generations to build something by sweat and toil, only for it to be destroyed within a month. Small businesses with no choice but to lay off employees, hoping to stave off a permanent shuttering of operations. As those lights extinguished, employees were left without jobs and paychecks, and with an unknown future.
That suffering is real, too. Any ignorant politicians who pretend the reopening of America is about Wall Street should be ashamed of their partisan grandstanding. They should be forced to repeat that nonsense while looking into the red, weep-weary eyes of the average Americans who built this great country.
In general I enjoyed the piece and I believe that some good points were made. But that statement and a few others illustrate that its author has no historical perspective. It would seem that Margot Cleveland despite being a “senior contributor”, a lawyer, and a CPA was failed by the school system. It has become a generational issue these days; our youth believe that every challenge we face is unprecedented.
(stolen from FReeper knarf)
This is a national disgrace, in my humble opinion.
The disgrace is there are things in this bill that shouldn’t be there. The American tax payer in this bill has a ceiling if your under you get if its over you get nothing.
The illegals with ss numbers we all know are getting a nice check with children included. This is how we are getting the shi##end of the stick
On top of this they are under the 350 million help for immigrant families adjusting.
sickening just sickening
There is no cure for any viruses.
None. There are vaccines for prevention, but that is it.
I love it when a fake conservative tries to make a point and then ends with calling someone stupid.
Just like a ahole would do. But then again, they wouldnt say it face to face since they are cowards.
Split words any way you want.
You know little about infectious diseases.
It would be worse had the doomers not hollered
You know that right
Just ask them
Since people want to cling to the panic, I will do the math for you
Currently in the USA there are 85,000 cases of which 2122 are critical requiring hospital care. The daily rate of new cases is about 5000 which means critical cases expand, NATION WIDE by 250 a day.
250 x 100 days = 25,000 critical cases. That a total number, not counting the cases that recover and are released.
Time to stop the lying and panic mongering and deal in facts
Tell us if there is a CURE for viruses.
Let us know what the CURE is.
When is the last time you talked to an infectious diseases doctor?
No, if we were standing face to face I would just have told you that you were full of sh#t. I had almost this exact conversation with a friend of mine a couple of days ago. He is a great guy, but believes every conspiracy tale ever told.
I bet you did..
Hepatitis C. Many “cures”. So far. There may be relapses from “cured”.
Here’s more fuel for a conspiracy. Even if the Wuhan virus escaped its confines by accident, it is being put to good use buy the don’t let a crises go to waste’ crowd.
The dire predictions of death came from one source, Ferguson of the Imperial college, who based his work on inadequate data and a flawed model. When challenged by Oxford epidemiologist Sunetra Gupta and sundry rogue statisticians/epidemipologists he reversed course.
Epidemiologist Behind Highly-Cited Coronavirus Model Drastically Revises Model
https://www.dailywire.com/news/epidemiologist-behind-highly-cited-coronavirus-model-admits-he-was-wrong-drastically-revises-model?utm_source=63red.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=63red
The Imperial college is heavily into fighting climate change.
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/grantham/about-us/
The Imperial college is also heavily involved with China.
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/186287/beijing-leader-hails-growing-imperial-china-collaborations/
Horowitz: WHEN did coronavirus begin in the US? And why it matters
https://www.conservativereview.com/news/horowitz-coronavirus-begin-us-matters/
God Bless Thomas Massie!
more
The Wuhan virus has some unusual characteristics and really slams those who get a bad case. I does not seem to harm young people or children but wrecks its damage on the elderly and those with comorbidities.
It could have been handled in a more rational manner if every one did not rely on Ferguson’s stats.
Some suggestions
Combined with treatment using hydroychloroquine, zpak, Vitamin C, and zinc for the symtomatic.
It would serve every one of you fuckers well if every doctor in this country quit today.
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