The President Speaks
Here’s an afternoon COVID-19 update for everyone. Remember, if you are not a paid subscriber, you won’t get everything. If you want all the depth and data, you’ve got to hit the subscribe button.
The President
The President has spoken. He is not mandating a nationwide lockdown or quarantine, but is advising for the next 15 days the following:
No gatherings of 10 or more people
No in-person schooling
No discretionary travel
Avoid restaurants, bars, and other gathering places
Avoid gyms and public recreation areas in places of community spread
Protect senior citizens and keep them isolated from the general community
He did note that there may be localized quarantines and lockdowns in places where the virus has broken out. In some places there will be curfews.
He specifically noted that the virus may have us in its grip through August and the White House will be assessing the situation every 15 days. You can read the White House’s guidelines here.
The Press
Part of what has to happen to get people to take this seriously is for the press to move on to. The President, by his tone, is clearly taking this seriously. The press now needs to stop playing the blame game — particularly after getting so much wrong for so long. Remember when they attacked the President for shutting down travel with China? The experts now say it was the right call.
There’s this in the Washington Post too. It turns out the press circulated reports that the President shut down Barack Obama’s pandemic response team is fake news. Who wrote this piece? Tim Morrison. Remember him? The press previously treated him as a hero for daring to testify about the Ukraine matter. Wonder if they will now excoriate him.
If the press cannot move beyond the blame Trump narrative into reporting what’s happening today, as opposed to last week or last month, they will continue to alienate a sizable population of people who need to take this seriously now.
On the Seriousness of It
Let me put this in perspective for you. The flu killed 35,000 Americans last year. If we cannot stop the spread of COVID-19 and it winds up spreading like the flu, it will kill a minimum of 350,000 Americans. But there is a vaccine for the flu and there is nothing for COVID-19. So the CDC puts the actual death toll at 1 million people if it spreads like the flu spreads.
Keep that in mind if people tell you this is no big deal.
In Albany, GA, a person showed up for a funeral last week who was contagious. Now 8 people have it and an additional 40 are suspected of having it. The hospital in Albany, GA has now used six months worth of masks and protective gear in five days as they struggle to keep up.
Rumors and Nonsense
We do not know yet if the warm weather will contain the virus. There are indications it may very well help. But we do not know for certain.
No, there is no patent for COVID-19 and there is no cure. I got that in an email today and it is total B.S.
There are all sorts of rumors about martial law, etc. That is all rumor. People have too much time on their hands. Be careful what you read on the internet.
Some Helpful Links
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The potential to kill 350K Americans is there, but as Dr. Fauci has stated that is not an inevitable fate, but rather what could happen if the US does not take steps to stop the spread of Corona Virus. Regardless of what you think of Trump, his recommendations are the ones being supplied him by health experts, like Dr. Fauci, who has argued that social-distancing in combination with travel bans in combination with good hygiene practices is the best way to blunt the peak of the Americans who will die from the Corona Virus.