The US crossed the 50,000 COVID-19 death threshold today. Again, some perspective on that would help. Since 2010, the annual number of deaths from influenza ranges from 12,000-60,000. During the 90s, the US averaged about 36,000 influenza deaths per year.
Those 50,000 deaths were mostly over the course of FOUR weeks instead of an entire year. I had previously addressed why COVID-19 isn’t comparable to influenza.
A number of states are moving to open up their economies again. Many of these measures puzzle me, especially given that many states haven’t even hit their peaks yet.
There are a number of things that concern me. I’ve seen a lot of people who still deny that this is a problem. I would imagine that they are the ones who are also indicating that they will not wear masks in public to protect others. That’s simply selfish. I would ask them if they would go to a surgeon who refuses to wear a mask while they are operating on them. The principle is the same.
One of the other arguments is that it infringes on their rights. That notion of American individualism could easily be our downfall during a pandemic, and alluded to that earlier. I argue that people have a right to swing their arms around wildly if they like. However, that right comes to an end as soon as they come in contact with me.
The use of masks is the same concept but on a much more mortal scale. I would be much more at ease about lifting a few restrictions if I thought Americans would act out of concern for each other, but it’s pretty apparent that it’s become a very selfish society. That leaves me in fear for the worst.
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