Global report: don’t count on vaccine, US scientist warns, as cases pass 5m
A top US scientist has said that people should not count on a Covid-19 vaccine being developed any time soon, as global infections passed 5 million after surges in Latin America, including Brazil, which has recorded nearly 20,000 new cases.
William Haseltine, the groundbreaking cancer, HIV/AIDS and human genome projects researcher, has said the best approach to the pandemic is to manage the disease through careful tracing of infections and strict isolation measures whenever it starts spreading.
He said that while a vaccine could be developed, “I wouldn’t count on it”, and urged people to wear masks, wash hands, clean surfaces and keep a distance.
“Do not listen to the politicians who say we’re going to have one by the time my re election comes around,” he said. “Maybe we will (but) I’m just saying it’s not a slam-dunk case by any means … because every time people have tried to make a vaccine – for Sars or Mers – it hasn’t actually protected.”
Vaccines developed previously for other types of coronavirus had failed to protect mucous membranes in the nose where the virus typically enters the body, he said.
The United States and other countries has not done enough to “forcibly isolate” people exposed to the virus, Haseltine said, but praised China, South Korea and Taiwan’s efforts to curb infections.
Haseltine said the US, Russia and Brazil – which rank first, second and third for infections – have done the worst.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/21/global-report-coronavirus-vaccine-us-scientist-cases-5-million (emphasis added)
There is one ingredient essential to reopening the economy, and still no federal plan to get it
Diagnostic testing is important, absent a vaccine or therapy, as part of a concerted effort to identify the sick, isolate and treat them, and allow everyone else to get back to business. Right now, testing is the foundation of state decisions about reopening, yet the testing landscape is disorderly and inadequate. After a miserable start, the pace of testing is slowly ramping up, now exceeding 400,000 daily. But that is still far, far below what experts say would be required to sustain a new normal. The effort has been left to 50 states and a hodgepodge of academic laboratories, hospitals and private companies. Some laboratories are overwhelmed, and others underutilized.
GOP governor offers emotional plea to the anti-mask crowd: Stop this senseless culture war
Burgum suggested the debate over masks was being needlessly politicized and that those who are bucking federal health officials’ guidance should rethink their posture.
“I would really love to see in North Dakota that we could just skip this thing that other parts of the nation are going through where they’re trading a divide – either it’s ideological or political or something – around masks versus no mask,” Burgum said. “This is a, I would say, senseless dividing line, and I would ask people to try to dial up your empathy and your understanding.”
The subtext of the remarks was pretty clear: This is a needless culture war.
Burgum then want on, getting emotional.
“If someone is wearing a mask, they’re not doing it to represent what political party they’re in or what candidates they support,” Burgum said, before his voice began breaking. “They might be doing it because they’ve got a 5-year-old child who’s been going through cancer treatments. They might have vulnerable adults in their life who currently have covid, and they’re fighting.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/05/23/doug-burgum-masks/ (emphasis added)
Sweden’s Covid-19 strategy has caused an ‘amplification of the epidemic’
Sweden is famously one of the few countries to have opted against a lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus. But given that the country has a much higher death toll per million than its Nordic neighbours, many observers have suggested that the Swedish approach has failed.
While countries across the world have eased Covid-19 lockdowns over recent weeks, Sweden stands out: it never imposed confinement measures to begin with. As billions hunkered down throughout the globe in late March, Swedish bars, restaurants, hairdressers, gyms and even primary and middle schools stayed open.There have been some exceptions. Secondary schools and museums have been closed, sport fixtures cancelled and gatherings of more than 50 people banned. Swedes have been asked to stay at home if they are over 70 or are feeling unwell. Social distancing has been requested in public places. And on Thursday, the government urged Swedes to avoid unnecessary international travel and to limit car journeys within the country to two hours.
But even these measures – minimal by the standards of numerous other countries – have been laxly enforced. Police are unable to impose fines to enforce social distancing; they can only tell people to comply.
The Swedish approach has won praise from figures on the American right such as Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who have suggested that it provides a model for the US to follow.
‘People who think they can’t die’In making the case for its unorthodox policy, Stockholm has pointed to high levels of trust in Swedish society, arguing that people could be expected to take precautions without being told to.
“There are people who are really diligent and are doing exactly what they should do, but there are too many who don’t,” said Elisabeth Asbrink, a Swedish author, freelance journalist and prominent critic of the government’s approach. In parts of Stockholm, “people are doing all the things they usually do, as if there’s no need to keep a distance”, she continued. “I’ve also visited Malmo (Sweden’s third-biggest city) and there’s a lot of people there who think they can’t die, somehow; they think they’re unapproachable by this disease.”
Figures compiled by data analysis website Statista show that the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Sweden has been increasing steadily since the beginning of April – and now stands at more than 29,000.
Statistics suggest that Sweden has performed poorly compared to its Scandinavian neighbours, which imposed strict lockdowns. Experts say the other Nordic countries are the most apt points of comparison, given their similar healthcare systems, socio-political cultures and levels of connectedness.
Reported coronavirus deaths per million in Sweden stand at 358, according to Statista – even higher than the hard-hit US, at 267. The Swedish figure is dramatically worse than those of Denmark (93), Finland (53) and Norway (44). In Sweden, “we’re seeing an amplification of the epidemic, because there’s simply more social contact”, said Lynn Goldman, dean of the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University in the US.
My dearest Shosh and Jailai:
America is a country of contrarians. Before the pandemic, many Americans preferred to couch surf in front of their TVs and video games, contributing to the obesity epidemic had been burdening America for years. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3228640/; and, https://www.webmd.com/diet/obesity/features/obesity-epidemic-astronomical#1 (“So what’s causing the epidemic? Not surprisingly, everyone agrees that it stems from two things: eating too much and exercising too little.”). Health practitioners had long sounded the alarm for people, especially kids, to go outside and get exercise. But the latter refused in growing numbers. Then, the pandemic hits and social isolation was imposed. Now, many of the people who once preferred to stay inside and couch surf clamor to be allowed outside.
Look, no one wants to be cooped up inside, and no one wants to wear pesky masks. I get it. We all hate it.
But the question is: why are we doing it? We know, for example, masks are not 100% prophylactic, yet public health guidelines strongly recommend we use them. Why? Because masks help to protect others in the community in case we are asymptomatic carriers of the virus. In other words, wearing mask is a charitable and necessary act for the benefit of our fellow citizens. Studies prove this over and over again. See, e.g., https://arxiv.org/pdf/2004.13553.pdf; and, https://rs-delve.github.io/reports/2020/05/04/face-masks-for-the-general-public.html. Fools ignore the data, such as those coming out of Sweden, showing how the lack of social distancing and lax enforcement has resulted in the country having greater deaths per millions than even the U.S.!!! The U.S., which has roughly 4% of the world’s population, has nearly a third of the world’s infected and COVID-19 deaths. These are not badges of honor but of selfishness, ignorance, and arrogance.
We forget — or maybe too many of us are no longer taught — that personal freedom comes with personal responsibilities. You have a right to act as you wish, but you do NOT have a right to endanger others in the community.
This moral and legal tenet plays out numerous times every single day. You have the freedom to drink alcohol and get drunk, but you do NOT have the right to drive drunk and endanger the community. You are free to say what you wish, but you are NOT free to shout “FIRE!” in a crowded movie theater as a prank. You have a right to discharge your firearm, but you are NOT allowed to randomly discharge your firearm in the middle of a crowded city even if you are not aiming at any particular person.
It is no different with those infected with the corona virus who venture into crowded areas unprotected. We know many of the more than 1.6 million infected in the U.S. are asymptomatic. They are unsuspecting carriers of the deadly virus for which we have neither treatment nor vaccine. By not practicing social distancing or not wearing masks, they harm and potentially kill many others. That is not OK. It is irresponsible of them to treat the health and well-being of others so lightly.
There actions are not dissimilar to AIDS infected individuals who knowingly have unprotected sex with unsuspecting victims. In many states in the U.S., that is a crime. https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/policies/law/states/exposure.html. Here, the only difference is that the infected are often asymptomatic and may be unaware of their conditions. However, given the virulence of the virus and the fact that more than 1.6 millions Americans have been confirmed to be infected — a number that represent a significant undercounting given the challenges we’ve had with testing — it behooves each of us to act responsibly and assume the worst in order to protect others (until we have been tested and know we are in the clear as of the day of the test).
Recall in the movie World War Z, how Brad Pitt, the hero, separated himself from others when he thought he had been exposed to the zombie virus. Standing on the ledge of a high rise while counting down to see if he had been infected, he was prepared to take drastic measures to prevent himself from harming others if he were infected. (N.B.: I’m not suggesting that we commit suicide to prevent infecting others!) That’s what heroes do. They think of others and act to save others at great inconvenience to themselves.
Because we have no treatment or vaccine against COVID-19, the ONLY viable strategy we have at our disposal at this point is social isolation and social hygiene. Thus, stay in, adhere to social distancing unless absolutely necessary, and wear masks when you must go out.
Be kind. Be responsible. Be disciplined. Be principled. Be critical thinkers.
Public policies that ask the least of each citizen while shifting or imposing great costs onto others — especially the elderly, the sick, and the vulnerable — are immoral. However, as free men and women who are moral beings and critical thinkers, we each can choose to act responsibly regardless of what our “leaders” suggest. They are animated by political motives and not by our individual or collective well-being. Further, they have the luxury of getting tested daily while most Americans still lack access to such tests. Pay them no heed. Let your moral compass and your humanity guide you.
So, don’t be a contrarian just to be contrary. Don’t be selfish, obstinate and childish. Think first. And, unless you live by yourself in a cave in the middle of nowhere, think of others who may be adversely affected by your actions during The Time of the Corona Virus.
Act responsibly. THE LIVES OF OTHERS DEPEND ON IT.
God is watching. Karma won’t be kind if you act selfishly. But I shouldn’t have to go there. Be of good moral character and do what you know in your heart is right.
All my love, always and forever,
Dad
shoshandjaialai 