Posted on 05/19/2021 10:27:36 AM PDT by BeauBo
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention decided to, out of the blue, generously bestow upon Americans their official blessing to stop wearing masks in most settings, if, that is, said Americans have been fully vaccinated.
So, what changed? Well, absolutely nothing, really. Other than maybe devastating gas prices and shortages across the country — I’m sure that’s totally just a coincidence though.
The change was rather inconvenient for President Joe Biden, however, considering just a few months ago he declared it to be “Neanderthal thinking” for states like Texas and Mississippi to end their mask mandates.
When asked in March about those respective states’ governors and their choice to lift their mandates, Biden replied, “Look, I hope everybody’s realized by now, these masks make a difference. We are on the cusp of being able to fundamentally change the nature of this disease because of the way with which we’re able to get vaccines in people’s arms. We’ve been able to move that all the way up to the end of May to have enough for every American, to get every adult American to get a shot.”
“The last thing, the last thing we need is Neanderthal thinking that in the meantime, everything is fine, take off your masks, forget it. It still matters,” he added...
While Biden was bashing Abbott for re-opening the Lone Star State, Abbott’s policies were working all along. The Democrats can’t quit COVID, clearly, but strong and sensible leadership can.
And Texas is showing us how it’s done.
(Excerpt) Read more at westernjournal.com ...
* 0 Covid related deaths–the only time that’s happened since data was tracked in March, 2020.
* the fewest Covid cases in over 13 months
* the lowest 7-day Covid positivity rate ever
* the lowest Covid hospitalizations in 11 months.
Thanks, Texans!
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) May 17, 2021
There is a reason people in prison die of diseases they caught in prison, locking up everyone indoors together is unhealthy.
Don’t worry, he doesn’t remember any of that.
0 SARS-related deaths? And with less than 40% of Texans fully vax’d? How is that possible??? And are the vaxholes privately hoping for an outbreak?
“How is that possible?”
One possibility is seasonality, where Southern States might see an earlier/greater effect.
Another possibility might be high rates of of immunity acquired through exposure.
“with less than 40% of Texans fully vax’d?”
49.66% (call it half) of Texans have had at least a first dose. The first dose doses the lion’s share of the job in conferring immunity - 8-10 days after the first dose.
If half of Texans have been vaccinated, and nearly none of them were children, that brings it close to the National average of about 60% of Texas adults, with at least a first shot. That is enough to drive down replication rates below 1, against the original strain.
The sharp SARS decline early January occurred well before the largess of vax administration.
This can’t possibly be true:
Texas has a lot of people (mostly conservatives) who haven’t gotten the vaccine or have stopped wearing masks. Everyone who doesn’t get the vaccine must die of COVID-19, somehow, and this does not help legitimize the CDC’s panic.
“The sharp SARS decline early January occurred well before the largess of vax administration.”
OK, but vaccines have their effect anyway - we are seeing it now.
Along the way, you could also watch the vaccine effect occur again and again - cases, hospitalizations and deaths declining within age groups, as they moved through the line receiving vaccination - in the USA, UK, Israel, Chile and elsewhere.
The Math is inexorable.
The masks just don’t do much.
Proper masks, properly used can be useful, but the great bulk of what we have been doing in public with them, is mostly just theater.
Vaccines on the other hand, are pretty potent against the disease - individually, and within society, when enough people get them.
It is obvious both President Biden and the CDC are wrong.
Seasonality is working against Texas right now. Southern states have a spring flu season and northern states have a winter flu season.
Yeah, he just got it from the news.
>> The Math is inexorable.
While math is definitively exact, the SARS & vax stats are not quite as clear.
And in contrast to the countries you cited, there’s Sweden with her tepid approach to the vaccinations.
>> vaccines have their effect anyway - we are seeing it now.
I would hope so, but quantifying the effectiveness would require more than reviewing the big fat numbers. Something to consider: as the vax rollout grew, the SARS decline diminished — one could argue the vax impeded the decline — whether or not the case, the big data shows that trend.
“as the vax rollout grew, the SARS decline diminished - data shows that trend.”
Actually, as the vaccine rolled out (in the USA), the COVID decline accelerated, diminished and then accelerated again.
Multiple factors contribute to overall case numbers.
As sub-groups were vaccinated however, we could watch their outcomes improve, relative to the rest of society, in a fairly predictable, even lockstep fashion, according to their vaccination rates - just as in other Countries, and just as those in the controlled trials. First Nursing home residents, then those over 75, then those over 65.
By March it was no longer the elderly who were jamming COVID wards. Now the great majority of hospitalized cases are younger, and unvaccinated.
There is only one reason why the vulnerable elderly in America are now suddenly being spared - vaccination. 84.7% of those over 65 have at least a first shot, and the percentages are higher for those over 75, and Nursing Home residents.
The data are not ambiguous in the least. There is no debate among professionals as to whether vaccination SLOWS the decline of the disease. That is an absurd proposition. You could absolutely NOT make that argument in a forum where facts and logic are enforced, like a peer reviewed scientific journal.
Sweden, with 42 shots per 100 people may be a bit behind Germany with 49, but they are ahead of Switzerland, Norway and Ireland. Sweden has suffered a relatively high rate of disease, and are still a high incidence country (about double the rate of Germany). Israel, at 121 shots/100, or the USA at 84/100 have substantially lower case rates (Israel 1.9/100,00, the USA 65.3/100,000, Sweden 175.4/100,000)
If you are going to get to herd immunity the hard way (through letting the disease burn through the population, rather than vaccinating), the cost is more people sickened, disabled and killed.
>> Actually, as the vaccine rolled out (in the USA), the COVID decline accelerated
The steep linear SARS decline early January preceded the cautious, but exponential vax administration.
Here’s a typical post that shows the offset
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3958381/posts
Please keep in mind that I’m not disputing nor confirming the vax effectiveness. I’m simply pointing out a projection of the vaccinations doesn’t influence the initial SARS decline. This can be shown by multiplying the vax administration against a constant SARS value in the domain of Jan 1 to May 1.
“The steep linear SARS decline early January (thru mid-Feb) preceded the cautious, but exponential vax administration.”
Vaccine Administration started in December of 2020, Cases peaked in January of 2021.
“This can be shown by multiplying the vax administration against a constant SARS value in the domain of Jan 1 to May 1.”
I am sorry, but I don’t understand that point.
By mid-April, the vaccines were crushing COVID overall, pretty much Nationwide. They no doubt saved many lives along the way, as the vulnerable were prioritized, and their hospitalization and death rates plummeted predictably after vaccination. But now the critical mass of herd immunity effects is achieving Public Health level disease control.
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