2 COVID Vaccines Approved, End to Pandemic in Sight??

[StoicJ]

Most of the people I know from all walks think that this is a sham because the approach is to shut everything down, which is causing mental health crises in young people, while telling people who criticize this that they want innocent people to die and suffer. I know this because when I said, "Why not push for masks and distancing but keep the economy open to avoid a depression and stave off major mental health issues," I was blocked by two family members and three long-term friends who claimed that's what I wanted.

Ignorance doesn't have political boundaries. Shutdowns are one approach, but it shouldn't have been the first or only approach. A shutdown is the last option available when people aren't capable of doing the right thing on their own. (Well, the last option before martial law.) Had everyone put aside the politics and just worked together as Americans to mask up when around other people, respect physical boundaries, and upgrade HVAC systems or stagger in-office days somehow, we could have avoided shutting down at all. Nobody wanted to spend the money for the HVAC upgrades, but I bet if they knew how much they'd lose by not doing it, they would have jumped at the chance. That is also where a much smaller amount of government stimulus money could have gone instead of sending checks to everyone and providing all those business loans.

Even if 75% of the people do their part, the 25% who won't are the ones who forced the shutdowns. It applies everywhere, not just the US, but a few countries have managed to reduce their incidence rates and keep them down by following a plan. The problem is, we never had a plan or a bipartisan appeal to people to make it understandable to everyone. I'd like to believe that people in the US would have responded more favorably to masking and distancing had they been given a comprehensive plan in March along with realistic guidelines as to what to expect and how to keep each other safe while keeping company doors open. Particularly if they realized that the alternative was a long-term economic shutdown that would cripple so many people financially and cause all manner of psychological issues.

I remember the early propaganda. Probably it was good-faith concern. The covid-19 death rate was in the 15-20% range. 1 in 5-6 people who contracted the virus were going to DIE. It was highly contagious. Projections were that regardless of what was done, 80+% of the U.S. population was going to get it. Then the mortality rate figures started dropping week by week. Some good news. But still, the rate was high enough that if we didn't "flatten the curve" hospitals would be overwhelmed. We didn't have enough beds, ventilators, or staff to handle the big surge. Deaths would spike. Essential services could not be met, and even more people would die. Face diaper and anti-social distancing hysteria. Then the reported mortality rate dropped. And dropped. And dropped.

There could have been no good comprehensive plan in place in March. I think work-from-home was a rational step. Voluntary anti-social distancing, nothing wrong with it. Upgrade HVAC? I've worked in HVAC and we upgraded systems. It was fairly inexpensive, but we installed primarily to reduce allergens, not stop viruses.

Coronavirus is dangerous. Many viruses are. The shutdowns are not necessary. The people who won't stay home and wear a mask did not force the shutdown. If YOU are extremely fearful, YOU can take precautions to the extent you are comfortable with, personally. You can have products delivered to your home. You can buy high-quality PPE. Good stuff worn properly, that is actually effective. Not what you see 95% of the population wearing, and wearing improperly. This really is largely theater. If the numbers were what was being hyped at the beginning of this, yeah, you would see almost complete acceptance. Why do you not see serious widespread adoption? Because although there is a huge and vocal portion of the population that buys into the narrative, most people sense this is a sham. They won't say it because they don't feel safe expressing themselves. They'd rather derp along and not cause a fuss.

You said earlier hospital staff was overwhelmed. Where is this? I am in Texas. My wife worked in hospitals for 15+ years, until very recently. She stills talks with ex-co-workers daily. She's hearing about how slow they are. Lots of her nurse friends agree that this is massively overhyped.

Anyway, I am certainly not convinced. What would convince me? Anecdotes certainly won't. Numbers might. How many people in the U.S. died in each month of this year? How does that compare to previous years? What if you break the numbers down by month for the last several years, by primary cause of death- auto, medical error, cancer, heart disease, flu, etc? Suicide, drug overdose, murder?

Anyone have a link to a chart that breaks down deaths by cause, for each month of the year, for the last few years?