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COVID-19 is getting less deadly, But don't expect the media to say so until the presidential election is truly over
American Thinker ^ | 11/19/2020 | Howard Richman

Posted on 11/19/2020 7:21:59 AM PST by SeekAndFind

The Swedish COVID-19 statistics, as published by Worldometer, suggest that COVID is simultaneously becoming more communicable and less deadly.  To see the latest, check out the Daily New Cases and the Daily Deaths on the Worldometer webpage for Sweden.  Daily New Cases are rising, suggesting that the disease is getting more communicable.  Meanwhile, Daily New Deaths are falling, suggesting that the disease is getting less deadly.

These results are not surprising to those who know about The Evolution of Virulence (PDF) in infectious diseases.  Viruses, not having DNA, do not reproduce themselves as precisely as do higher organisms.  As a result, there is much more genetic variation within their descendants, resulting in rapid evolution, which:

  1. Increases Communicability.  Natural selection favors those virus components that allow the virus to spread to more hosts.
  2. Reduces Deadliness.  Natural selection disfavors those virus components that cause the host to die, because a dead host cannot spread the disease.

These factors have been studied extensively in wild populations of the animal world.  The first causes the infectious period of a virus to lengthen.  The second causes the virus to become less deadly.  As a result, almost all viruses found in wild populations are intermediate in severity.  They are neither so strong that they debilitate the host nor so weak that the host can quickly overcome them.

We have excellent examples of intermediate-severity viruses in the human world — a bunch of different viruses known as the "common cold."  They are not so strong that they kill or debilitate, nor so weak that they can be overcome in less than a week.

The public health authorities have been selecting for decreasing viral symptoms and thus decreasing deadliness in COVID-19.  


(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: coronavirus; covid19; lethality; media
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1 posted on 11/19/2020 7:21:59 AM PST by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

All of which is what those of us in health care have been hoping/waiting for.

We also know better how to manage it once a patient is admitted.

The virus that caused the “great influenza” is still out there, but has mutated into a much less lethal virus.


2 posted on 11/19/2020 7:26:09 AM PST by Gamecock ("The prosperity gospel is exactly like marrying someone for their money." -Sean Demars)
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To: SeekAndFind
AMEN!

Covid-19 will magically disappear from news after Biden is anointed president.

3 posted on 11/19/2020 7:37:12 AM PST by entropy12 (No president of past kept as many promises as PDJT. )
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To: SeekAndFind; All

Show of hands?

Who is willing to keep President Trump even if it means that the Enemy Media keeps yapping about Covid-19?

*WAVES*


4 posted on 11/19/2020 7:39:32 AM PST by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: SeekAndFind

It never was that deadly.. the mortality rate is manufactured.


5 posted on 11/19/2020 7:45:06 AM PST by maddog55 ((the only thing systemic in America is the left's hatred of it!))
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To: SeekAndFind

Farci said this would all be over around March.


6 posted on 11/19/2020 7:45:12 AM PST by Hattie
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To: SeekAndFind

Based on even the most casual of data analysis (from Johns Hopkins CSSE data) the US daily Case Fatality Rate is hovering around 1% and has been for quite a while.


7 posted on 11/19/2020 7:47:25 AM PST by null and void (Rob a bank or steal an election, and get caught, do you get to keep the money or the votes?)
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To: SeekAndFind

I disagree. I think no matter who “wins,” the Hoax News media and lockdown tyrants are gonna keep claiming China Virus pandemic.

If it’s Trump, they’ll just use it to keep the economy shackled, and if Biteme, they’ll use it to keep people under their thumb.

I see no good way out of this until people begin rebelling, a few at a time until it becomes a wave they cannot control.


8 posted on 11/19/2020 7:49:27 AM PST by LS ("Castles made of sand, fall in the sea . . . eventually" (Hendrix) )
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To: LS
I think no matter who “wins,” the Hoax News media and lockdown tyrants are gonna keep claiming China Virus pandemic.

I tend to agree with you. . .with one caveat. ..this is just a dry run for the next "crisis:" Climate Change!

9 posted on 11/19/2020 7:57:46 AM PST by McBuff (To be, rather than to seem)
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To: SeekAndFind

The current coronavirus IS a cold virus, which is why it is contagious. It heads for the upper-middle respiratory system and can migrate further down into the respiratory system in people who have weak immune systems - or don’t receive early treatment. But for most people, it will be...well, just a cold.

I read at the very start that even over-the-counter flu and cold meds had been effective in preventing symptoms, such as excess mucus production, These symptoms - or their cause - were not suppressed and became more severe and particularly affected people whose breathing capacity wasn’t very good to begin with, resulting in pneumonia and infection. If this had just been treated like a normal bad cold or flu to begin with, using everything from over the counter symptomatic remedies to proven prescription antivirals, we wouldn’t have gone through these eight months of hell.

But as I read in a European source, this was politics playing medicine.


10 posted on 11/19/2020 7:58:18 AM PST by livius ( )
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To: SeekAndFind

Just found out an otherwise healthy friend died of Covid this morning. “Less deadly” isn’t “not deadly”. RIP Doug.


11 posted on 11/19/2020 7:58:22 AM PST by Personal Responsibility (If we disarmed democrats gun violence would decrease by 90%.)
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To: entropy12
AMEN!

Covid-19 will magically disappear from news after Biden is anointed president.

COVID news was nowhere to be found on Nov 4th.

Then the "victory" was called into question, and magically, COVID fear porn came back in spades on the 5th...

12 posted on 11/19/2020 8:00:21 AM PST by null and void (Rob a bank or steal an election, and get caught, do you get to keep the money or the votes?)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
🖐🏻
13 posted on 11/19/2020 8:02:52 AM PST by null and void (Rob a bank or steal an election, and get caught, do you get to keep the money or the votes?)
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To: Personal Responsibility

Very sorry for your loss.


14 posted on 11/19/2020 8:04:01 AM PST by FamiliarFace
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To: null and void

Spot on brother. It’s a joke. At least it would be if the situation wasn’t so severe.


15 posted on 11/19/2020 8:07:08 AM PST by Bulwyf
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To: LS

“I see no good way out of this until people begin rebelling, a few at a time until it becomes a wave they cannot control.”


16 posted on 11/19/2020 8:16:45 AM PST by Grampa Dave ( Governors certify the electoral votes! Congress declares the winners! Not the left wing mediots!)
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To: SeekAndFind

If one looks at the conditions in non-western countries, its not at all clear that Covid is getting more communicable. Actual detections are flat or down in many countries in spite of great increases in testing rates, plus, apparently, increased sensitivity of tests.

Look at Worldometer for India, Brazil, Indonesia, Philippines, etc.

What we seem to have is the effect of seasonality of Covid much like the influenza viruses. Covid seems to like cold weather.

As for Europe and the US, we also have to cancel out the effect of the vast increase in testing rates and sensitivity, etc. In the case of Covid detections we are looking at a data trend driven by several factors.

The other curiosity (there is a vast range of things we don’t understand about Covid, but some people seem very sure) is the apparent relative immunity or protected status of many regions that were previously hard hit, such as New York or Sweden or Madrid. They are detecting a lot of Covid, but very few, relatively, are dying of it. That is where much of the “Covid is getting less severe” is coming from.


17 posted on 11/19/2020 8:19:11 AM PST by buwaya
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To: livius

Some simple things seem to be effective now, that were not known then.

One is taking Vitamin D supplements, or perhaps just being out in the sunshine. Perhaps these are generally healthy things that would be good to do over the winter in any event, Covid or no. This sort of thing seems to work better than masks.


18 posted on 11/19/2020 8:24:23 AM PST by buwaya
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To: SeekAndFind

It isn’t about the science. It isn’t about safety. It is about subservience.

There will be no good ending. If Trump’s Hail Mary succeeds. Civil war WILL break out. The hate and endangerment of civil order and respect will absolutely pale to what a deranged and rabid fascist, totalitarian left will unleash joined by many republican quislings.

If Biden is inaugurated, you will become his handler’s bitch. They will boil you alive in a slowly but continually heated pot of water.


19 posted on 11/19/2020 8:25:36 AM PST by Badboo (It is not science, it is subservience.)
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To: buwaya
What we seem to have is the effect of seasonality of Covid much like the influenza viruses. Covid seems to like cold weather.

Dry weather. Correlated but not the same thing. Corona and flu viruses also like indoor spread which is correlated with cold weather and very hot weather.

20 posted on 11/19/2020 8:38:41 AM PST by palmer (Democracy Dies Six Ways from Sunday)
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