Coronavirus - Overall
-
@Frank said in Coronavirus - Overall:
99.72% of Covid cases cases since Jan 1 have been mild or asymptomatic.
Is any supposed to take this variant seriously?Pretty much the situation for us here. I’m surprised the government hasn’t decided to just ignore it and focus on getting the coming back on track.
-
@gt12 I want it to rip through Taiwan so Taiwan ends the quarantine period still required upon entering. We have students staying home because they are possible contact points of the virus so I have to livestream lessons , which sucks because the parents will see how a real classroom operates ( i.e., me yelling )
-
@Frank said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@gt12 I want it to rip through Taiwan so Taiwan ends the quarantine period still required upon entering. We have students staying home because they are possible contact points of the virus so I have to livestream lessons , which sucks because the parents will see how a real classroom operates ( i.e., me yelling )
My cousin is in Taiwan, her parents still can't visit from NZ because the borders are closed to non-citizens or residents. It appears that some Asian countries such as China and Taiwan are still unable to loosen off the covid reins
-
@Frank said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@gt12 I want it to rip through Taiwan so Taiwan ends the quarantine period still required upon entering. We have students staying home because they are possible contact points of the virus so I have to livestream lessons , which sucks because the parents will see how a real classroom operates ( i.e., me yelling )
Ha ha, Ive been back on campus this year and have lost it a few times - I found online pretty easy as the opportunities for students to get of track were lessened (especially once I signed in with four devices so I could monitor breakout rooms).
-
@Frank said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@gt12 I want it to rip through Taiwan so Taiwan ends the quarantine period still required upon entering. We have students staying home because they are possible contact points of the virus so I have to livestream lessons , which sucks because the parents will see how a real classroom operates ( i.e., me yelling )
It's amazing that Taiwan has been able to keep Omicron out (or under control). Not that this is a good thing in this instance. No politician wants to invite it in, so it is best if it manages to get in anyway.
Looks like there is finally a chink in the Taiwan armour?
Although adding NZ and Aus to that graph shows that the scale for Taiwan is still small and therefore early enough to possibly be turned around if they are stubborn/stupid enough:
-
Notable. (Is it the lingonberries?}
-
@Kid-Chocolate said in Coronavirus - Overall:
Notable. (Is it the lingonberries?}
Doubtful it’s the lingonberries as Sweden has a higher death rate than Canada, Norway and Finland. In fact Sweden has the highest death rate in the Scandinavian countries by a long way.
More than twice that of Finland and over three times the death rate of Norway. Source: Worldometers.
Whilst comparisons between different countries are not always relatable due to geography, density of population, throughput of visitors and reporting, there are many similarities between the Nordic countries that allow a slightly more meaningful comparison than with say the UK, Germany or Greece.
The Swedish approach to dealing with the pandemic is not, so far, the screaming success it’s fans would have you believe.
Edit: Here’s the link to the information
You can prioritise each set of stats by clicking on the heading of any of the columns, so in this case you’d go to “deaths per 1 M of population” to prioritise the death rate. You can then click on it again to change from highest to lowest. Some interesting stats in there but with the caveat that not all reporting is necessarily as robust or truthful as one would hope. You’d have to take a view on some countries…
-
You should copy & paste and send to The Telegraph. Fight the Fake News.
-
@Kid-Chocolate said in Coronavirus - Overall:
You should copy & paste and send to The Telegraph. Fight the Fake News.
If they’re the fan boys I think they are, they’d probably just compare Sweden to the US or Peru to try and prove a point!
-
@Kid-Chocolate said in Coronavirus - Overall:
You should copy & paste and send to The Telegraph. Fight the Fake News.
The Telegraph has been against lock-downs and had a bias in its reporting since Day One (as, TBF, have the pre-lockdown papers).
The smoke is starting to clear and some countries thought to have been useless (e.g.the UK) turn out to be better than most while others like Germany haven't been as good as thought previously. But don't forget the WHO stats also show lockdown countries had negative excess death rates.
As Chris Whitty has consistently said, we won't know the true picture for 5 or so years.
-
@Victor-Meldrew said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@Kid-Chocolate said in Coronavirus - Overall:
You should copy & paste and send to The Telegraph. Fight the Fake News.
The Telegraph has been against lock-downs and had a bias in its reporting since Day One (as, TBF, have the pre-lockdown papers).
The smoke is starting to clear and some countries thought to have been useless (e.g.the UK) turn out to be better than most while others like Germany haven't been as good as thought previously. But don't forget the WHO stats also show lockdown countries had negative excess death rates.
As Chris Whitty has consistently said, we won't know the true picture for 5 or so years.
Looking back from where we've come, I think it is safe to say successful management of the pandemic is a highly complicated subject, and will differ greatly if people can't agree on universal metrics for success. IMHO, I can see the merit in the Swedish philosophy as a balance to our own strategy
-
Absolutely. There are so many variables in approach, reporting, healthcare systems etc that it is virtually impossible to say who has got it rightest or wrongest. As Vic alluded to, we’re unlikely to know one way or another for many years, if ever.
FWIW I think that the Swedish approach was a viable alternative for some countries but for others much less so. In the UK for instance, with a high population density and a creaking health service, maybe not such a good idea.
-
@Catogrande said in Coronavirus - Overall:
Absolutely. There are so many variables in approach, reporting, healthcare systems etc that it is virtually impossible to say who has got it rightest or wrongest. As Vic alluded to, we’re unlikely to know one way or another for many years, if ever.
FWIW I think that the Swedish approach was a viable alternative for some countries but for others much less so. In the UK for instance, with a high population density and a creaking health service, maybe not such a good idea.
It does highlight the fact that it is important to consider the negative consequences of lockdowns, not just measuring success by the number of covid cases and deaths
-
@canefan said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@Catogrande said in Coronavirus - Overall:
Absolutely. There are so many variables in approach, reporting, healthcare systems etc that it is virtually impossible to say who has got it rightest or wrongest. As Vic alluded to, we’re unlikely to know one way or another for many years, if ever.
FWIW I think that the Swedish approach was a viable alternative for some countries but for others much less so. In the UK for instance, with a high population density and a creaking health service, maybe not such a good idea.
It does highlight the fact that it is important to consider the negative consequences of lockdowns, not just measuring success by the number of covid cases and deaths
Agreed but sadly many of those issues are difficult to measure so will probably not make it into the rationalisation until decades later. GDP can be measured easily but not necessarily the longer term effect or the causality - ie we can see how GDP was affected during the pandemic - and the bounce back but we cannot measure what might have been had we not had the pandemic. Also in looking at the drop in GDP, how much was caused by local lockdowns, how much by reduced consumption due to fear, how much was due to external issues impacting? These are all very difficult to quantify. Then of course there is the mental health aspect, which I expect to be significant just based on talking to people and how how it has impacted upon me, my family and close friends.
What we can say though I feel is that the ramifications of this pandemic will be felt long after the virus itself has been negated.
-
@canefan said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@Victor-Meldrew said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@Kid-Chocolate said in Coronavirus - Overall:
You should copy & paste and send to The Telegraph. Fight the Fake News.
The Telegraph has been against lock-downs and had a bias in its reporting since Day One (as, TBF, have the pre-lockdown papers).
The smoke is starting to clear and some countries thought to have been useless (e.g.the UK) turn out to be better than most while others like Germany haven't been as good as thought previously. But don't forget the WHO stats also show lockdown countries had negative excess death rates.
As Chris Whitty has consistently said, we won't know the true picture for 5 or so years.
Looking back from where we've come, I think it is safe to say successful management of the pandemic is a highly complicated subject, and will differ greatly if people can't agree on universal metrics for success. IMHO, I can see the merit in the Swedish philosophy as a balance to our own strategy
It all comes down to each country making choices based on their own circumstances and data I guess. I read somewhere that unemployment is a really big cause of excess deaths in following decades and some countries have done better than most at that.
I think, in all fairness, you have to sympathise with politicians who have to make these choices.
-
@Victor-Meldrew said in Coronavirus - Overall:
As Chris Whitty has consistently said, we won't know the true picture for 5 or so years.
Watch the kids. In 15 or 20 years I suspect we’ll be able to plot on a graph exactly when a generational spike in depression, sub-mental IQs, suicides, and irreversible psychological damage will correlate to wearing masks, lockdowns, irrational fears, panic, institutional hysteria and paranoia. I hope I’m wrong.
-
I think you’ve probably got the time scale about right and sadly probably the outcome too.
-
@Kid-Chocolate said in Coronavirus - Overall:
@Victor-Meldrew said in Coronavirus - Overall:
As Chris Whitty has consistently said, we won't know the true picture for 5 or so years.
Watch the kids. In 15 or 20 years I suspect we’ll be able to plot on a graph exactly when a generational spike in depression, sub-mental IQs, suicides, and irreversible psychological damage will correlate to wearing masks, lockdowns, irrational fears, panic, institutional hysteria and paranoia. I hope I’m wrong.
We'll probably be able to plot lots of things - some good as well. WFH has made a huge positive difference to a lot of people and I'm pretty sure that's set to continue with reduced stress from commuting 5 day a week.
(Anecdotally. Mrs M's son has seen way less sickness overall from his team in the last 2 years as Covid has changed their work locations drastically)