> rumors of the end of the pandemic are greatly exaggerated.
Only if people are stupid enough to repeat the last two years of nonsense. Take away all the fear mongering and testing and you probably wouldn't even notice covid was a thing. You'd get sick like you always do and just shrug it off as "that thing that was going around" like we all did in 2019...
This is the problem of mostly successfully preventing fires or preparing for floods. "It wasn't that bad" because it was handled, but since that was handled by somebody else it's invisible to you
“If we did it right you’ll never even notice we did a thing” also happens to be an excellent way for any sleazy politician or “expert” to deflect any questioning.
It could be but does that happen often? I almost never see sleazy politicians claiming that, it's almost always taking credit for a great economy (that was on a trajectory before they took office) or promising some amazing future thing (that they don't actually do). I can't think of hearing a single "we prepared for this so it wasn't a problem", true or not
Yes how dare the plebs stay home to avoid dying when they should be toiling in the fields and factories so we can continue in the lavish lifestyles to which we've become accustomed.
It is the (#2/#3/#4 depending on study) leading cause of death. We're currently at around ~150K dead/year - about 5 times the average rate of flu, about 3 times a really bad flu year.
It has significantly affected workforce participation, with a large disability burden.
Not that I like it but, I happen to think it's just a new normal as well and if everyone starts behaving as if it's normal then the impact on global economics when compared to a similar period should be rather normal. Continuing lockdowns and other things that impact supply chains/production are examples of behaving like it's not normal. They will likely continue to some degree despite my opinions.
Neither deaths nor disability can be wished away by "just behaving as if it's normal".
As for "continuing lockdowns" - most of the western world hasn't had a single actual lockdown. So let's not pretend that's the issue, or a desired approach to the problem.
What is needed is
- data transparency, instead of reduced data collection.
- targeted measures, instead of blanket measures. Utilizing the above data, and focusing on leading indicators, not trailing ones.
- a medical system that actually makes the tools we have available, as opposed to undermining them and pricing them out of range.
- a focus on ventilation.
- a normalization of mask wearing in public indoor settings.
None of those are close to "lockdowns". That's a strawman nobody is asking for.
Sorry I thought this was an economic conversation, I’m not really debating how best to manage the disease at this stage, but if X deaths a year becomes part of the run rate economics should normalize.
> normalization of mask wearing in public indoor settings.
However, I am curious how this is not normalized now? It’s personal choice where I live and nobody blinks twice if you want to wear it. And my state is full of antimaskers. The issue becomes when you expect other people to wear it and they don’t want to.
You are right. Forcing “non essential” small businesses to close, stopping all events, closing churches, parks, playgrounds, schools, making it illegal to walk on “the dry part of the sand”, disallowing dying people to have visitors, forcing hospitals to stop taking elective surgery, arresting people sitting on benches,etc… these all just ordinary things… right? Definitely not a “lockdown”, right?
What is a lockdown if that isn’t? And how come those “real lockdown” places still have Covid? Or did they not “lockdown” hard enough either? I’m very confused here.
And as I explained to you above, nobody except you is in any form talking about lockdowns. Put the strawman down already, it's starting to get worn on the edges.
Only if people are stupid enough to repeat the last two years of nonsense. Take away all the fear mongering and testing and you probably wouldn't even notice covid was a thing. You'd get sick like you always do and just shrug it off as "that thing that was going around" like we all did in 2019...