Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

Except it’s the “flu” with a death rate on par with the Spanish flu. Which wiped out 18 million people
At a time when the population was under 2 billion. People don’t go apeshit over our current seasonal flu because the death rate is .1%, not 1%. But people DO get vaccinated, wash hands, and skip travel when they have flu. Also, we do not know ultimately how this virus will behave.

Anonymous wrote:Flu rate mortality is typically less than 0.01% The mortality rate of covid-19 is much greater and it seems to be way more contagious. I can’t believe there are still people going around saying this is just like the flu. Can they not read?

I blame our educational system. [jk]

Our information economy allows people to pick and choose the information that supports what they want to believe. We don't actually know what the mortality rate is - because we don't know the denominator. So, some people say 3.5% - some say 1% - and some say maybe even less - maybe just like the flu - and ALL of those estimates are from "experts" using different data sets. So someone who wants to say that others are Chicken Little - look at the low numbers - others who want to say that the Sky is falling look at the high numbers. In reality, it is impossible to know yet because it's a brand new virus. What IS knowable is that it IS killing many compromised (either because they are over 50 or because they have underlying conditions) people, it DOES seem to be spreading easily, and social distancing DOES work to slow the spread. So why not do what we've been planning to do for years - full telework for those who can and distance learning until we have a handle on the progression and can slow it enough that we don't overwhelm our health system? We should be grateful for the internet and first world infrastucture that can allow those who can to do their part.

Flu rate mortality is typically less than 0.01% The mortality rate of covid-19 is much greater and it seems to be way more contagious. I can’t believe there are still people going around saying this is just like the flu. Can they not read?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

The coronavirus is deadlier than the flu and more infectious. At least 10% of those infected need to be hospitalized. If we can't stop the spread, we must slow it down so everyone doesn't get sick at once and overwhelm the hospitals. Study this and learn.

This. It's not "just like the flu" it's brand new and could overwhelm the health system with very I'll people, especially 50+ and those with underlying conditions, like diabetes, for example.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

Is there a vaccine for this Coronavirus like there is for the flu?
Can you get tested for the Coronavirus as easily as you can for the flu?

It's a new virus. No vaccine.
It will take at least 18 months to develop and test a vaccine.

No, you can not readily get tested for coronavirus because the tests are available, but in very limited numbers so they are being rationed for people who typically are hospitalized or traveled internationally or have been knowingly exposed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

1/2 the U.S. is vaccinated against the flu - and yet many thousands of people in the U.S. die of the flu each year. People do go ape over the flu - THAT'S WHY WE VACCINATE.

Excellent point!

Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

1/2 the U.S. is vaccinated against the flu - and yet many thousands of people in the U.S. die of the flu each year. People do go ape over the flu - THAT'S WHY WE VACCINATE.

Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

The coronavirus is deadlier than the flu and more infectious. At least 10% of those infected need to be hospitalized. If we can't stop the spread, we must slow it down so everyone doesn't get sick at once and overwhelm the hospitals. Study this and learn.

Anonymous wrote:this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

Is there a vaccine for this Coronavirus like there is for the flu?
Can you get tested for the Coronavirus as easily as you can for the flu?

Anonymous wrote:Most of the “Recent Topics“ on DCUM are about coronavirus.

People are adding to the collective freak out by dwelling on this.

Please, get on with your lives people!

No and here is why,

We do not have enough respirators, hospital beds or test kits. If we have more cases it will not go well. Our medical professionals are not saying these things because they want people to panic they are trying to educate all of us.

We could have prepared Trump chose not to.

Better we try and keep cases lower by changing some things and yes that becomes an issue for the economy. While that is not ideal for by any means it’s still the best thing to do.

this disease is just another version of the flu

you don't see people going ape s%^ over the flu

the mass hysteria is entirely the fault of the media hyping this thing

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that people are accusing those who want big containment measures taken of living panic and drama, but if we took those big containment measures we would avoid so much of what people are fearful of, like hospital overload and many deaths. So really what those who love panic want is for life to resemble normalcy.

Yep

The faux War Against Panic is going to make things so much worse. Be honest with Americans now that this is dire and we must make sacrifices or expect mass panic to hit in a blitz.

Calling it dire doesn’t help convince people you aren’t histrionic

Anonymous wrote:Very real question: Seattle is theoretically ~7 weeks into community spread. Coastal cities should be into their outbreaks. Shouldn't we already be seeing major increases in hospital admissions, ER visits, ICU overruns? It isn't happening at this point. The situation at the LTC facility has been an absolute nightmare - total hell. But outside of that, are we seeing the doomsday scenario? Should we take some comfort in the fact that this has not become a widespread disaster at this point? Perhaps it simply isn't spreading here the way it has in Italy, or the strain has not been as lethal?

Also agree. I've been telling myself over and over again in the past two weeks, keep an eye on Seattle and the numbers coming out of Seattle (and now New York). Outside the unfortunate nursing home, there seems to be minimal spread of the virus. Yes, numbers have gone up for positive cases, but there doesn't seem to be a rush to the hospitals for critical care. The virus exploded within that one nursing home, but outside that Seattle is not showing the Wuhan style mass explosion of infection and deaths. If anything, it's closer to South Korea, which had a lot of infected people (and high testing levels finding the infected people) but very few deaths, around 54 out of 8000 infected.

Likewise, in NYC, the virus has been spreading but the numbers of deaths is still zero and very few people have been hospitalized. I can't believe the unfortunate man was just the first man to catch the virus and there must have been others.

Very real question: Seattle is theoretically ~7 weeks into community spread. Coastal cities should be into their outbreaks. Shouldn't we already be seeing major increases in hospital admissions, ER visits, ICU overruns? It isn't happening at this point. The situation at the LTC facility has been an absolute nightmare - total hell. But outside of that, are we seeing the doomsday scenario? Should we take some comfort in the fact that this has not become a widespread disaster at this point? Perhaps it simply isn't spreading here the way it has in Italy, or the strain has not been as lethal?

Another possibility is that community spread has been going on for a long time under the radar in Italy as well. Perhaps even longer than it has in Seattle. Then they finally reached a critical mass, and we are not quite there yet.

I like your scenario a lot better, though. We can hope.

From all the analyses I have seen, this is the reason identified. I have also seen mention that Italy is one of the world's "oldest" populations, potentially raising the fatality rate above that of a more "average" country.

My utterly unscientific theory is to wonder whether the U.S.'s car culture--while usually abysmal for health--may actually be somewhat helpful for containment. China & Europe are so reliant on public transit (which I typically love), but there was some graphic from China about how a single positive corona case was traced back to infecting 10+ people on his bus. We'll all die of heart disease and obesity over here because we drive everywhere, but perhaps it might slow down community transmission!

Anonymous wrote:Most of the “Recent Topics“ on DCUM are about coronavirus.

People are adding to the collective freak out by dwelling on this.

Please, get on with your lives people!

Ok Kevin.