Coronavirus in the United States - news and thoughts

There are some factors that might cause delta to linger longer in the US, especially in different pockets. One, geographic size, meaning the US has a lot more centers of population than the UK. The US is something like 4000% larger in land mass than the UK, but this includes Alaska, which certainly skews the comparison. But the point is, it takes a lot less time for a virus to reach shore to shore in the UK versus the US.

Two, we have a much larger population, and about 10% lower overall vaccination rate, meaning delta has a lot more warm, unvaxxed people to infect on this side of the pond versus the UK.

Pockets in the US might see delta wane in August, but it wouldn't be shocking to me, at least, if other areas are still having issues well into September, and maybe others even longer. Time will tell.

 

Educating them and fighting misinformation.

 

Do more outreach and less bullshit like Fauci merchandise (which is pretty much straight up pandering to anti-vaxxers).

No, he can’t literally hold people down and force them to get vaccinated. Know what he does have the power to do? Have state employees get vaccinated. Require hospitals to be 100% vaccinated. Stop doing bullshit like suing cruise-lines.

 

I largely agree with this, and I don't really have an issue with what DeSantis is doing (besides trying to dictate to private entities e.g. cruise lines on how to run their business). As far as I can tell he's not spreading any misinformation regarding vaccines or COVID in general. He's encouraging people to do what we have the best evidence for (i.e. get vaccinated).

If he doesn't believe in mandates, fine. It's an ideological difference that's perhaps different from yours or mine, but not an unreasonable one when it doesn't really affect the vast majority of people. He's saying that vaccines work, you should go get it, but it's your choice. The only thing as I mentioned before is that I'd like to see him be a bit more consistent and not try to stop businesses from enacting COVID-related restrictions if they want to.

As for what I'm personally seeing now, my hospital is getting a pretty big COVID uptick. I've had 2 new patients myself the last couple of days. Both are surrounded by vaccinated people, some of whom also tested positive, but both are unvaccinated and they're the ones in the hospital.

That's the same story we hear everywhere. The protective effect of the vaccine to the vaccinated is clear, I don't really see an imperative it to push it onto others. If you want to take the risk, go ahead. I'll educate to the best of my abilities, but you're free to do as you please with your own body.

The Delta variant will probably run roughshod over the US over the next couple of weeks then decrease sharply. Many will get sick and die, but almost everyone who does will have no one to blame but him/herself. I don't think anything we do can stop this trajectory at this point.

 

I actually agree with some of this, though masks, and especially shutdowns, do help. But the vaccines have been available for months now, and I do not support shutting everything down again to try to protect people who won't protect themselves.

DeSantis though has bungled this by making it such a political issue, playing to the base with anti Fauci rhetoric, mandating that cruise lines can't require vaccinations, etc. Instead of doing his job to help prevent people from getting sick, he's demagoging and exploiting for his political career. He should be out there every day leading vaccination drives in Florida rather than going to Texas and Utah for his political career.

 

Agree on the cruise ship issue. That should be up to the cruise companies as to what their policy is. Nothing we can do to stop the delta run right now. As fast as it came in it will dissipate just as quick if it behaves like it did in the UK and other European countries. Of course the cdc will say it’s because of the mask mandates LOL. Desantis could maybe go to some poor neighborhoods who aren’t vaccinated and try some outreach. I’d also have all the college coaches in the state do a PSA. Anything to help get those over 18 vaccinated.

 

There's always a better way of doing things. I personally don't have a problem with the way he's doing it but I also agree with it doesn't need to be a battle and just release the data I think most realistic people understand that even with the vaccine you can still catch covid, just like the flu vaccines won't protect you 100% either

 

And Alachua county is the most vaccinated county in Florida or it was a week or two ago.

 

I'm a huge fan of Desantis and I have absolutely no problem with him recommending the vaccine, I don't believe the base is attacking him like the article claims, I'm sure there's a few that feel that way but not many

 

that's great. Vaccine lowers the number of serious delta variant cases by a factor of about 4 based upon what I’ve read compared to the height of the pandemic last year. But also everything I’ve read still indicates it’s primarily unvaccinated who are getting it. Did you have a point?

 

Thanks for your response. Interesting perspective on the pro-abortion argument with body freedom. What is your opinion about his statement that masks don't work? Do you believe masks are effective is slowing the spread of Covid?

 

Supposedly Hannity got some pretty hard blowback for his pro-vaccine on-air speech, which was entirely positive (causing him to basically retract it the next day).

The Alabama Governor had some on the far right wanting her to resign, though her message was more “mean” than Hannity rather than a simple pro-vaccine outreach. She basically called the anti-vaxxers a bunch of yahoos and questioned their “lifestyle”.

 

Covid-19 linked to cognitive decline, acceleration of Alzheimer's-like symptoms, research finds - CNN

Researchers with an international consortium looking to understand the long-term consequences of Covid-19 on the central nervous system are finding memory issues and biological markers similar to those seen in Alzheimer's disease patients. Both diseases have been marked by inflammation of the brain
,.......
Among 310 Covid-19 patients admitted to New York University Langone Health, the team found that those with neurological symptoms had higher levels of biomarkers linked to Alzheimer's. Those biomarkers include a protein called tau that's been linked with Alzheimer's and other compounds known as neurofilament light -- an indicator of damage to nerve cells -- and others.
"These findings suggest that patients who had COVID-19 may have an acceleration of Alzheimer's-related symptoms and pathology," Wisniewski said in a statement.

 

Booster shot will be required in a month or 2. So not only will you need to get both shots, but 4 months later you will be required to get the booster too. Pfizer said so. It is 96% effective in the 1st 2 months after getting the 2nd shot but by the 4th month it drops to 83% (with some saying with Delta it's more like 35%) so they recommend a booster shot every 4 to 6 months forever.

 

No, that is not what they just said.

Pfizer and BioNTech released the pre-print of their 6 month safety and efficacy data.

The data and analysis published in the paper is consistent with what many virology/vaccine experts are saying. The vaccine remains very robust and effective against severe disease. Normal reduction in antibody production, normal evolution of virus variants and continued ignorant behaviors amont large portions of the population have all helped to ensure that this virus will become one of the endemic viruses that continue to circulate and cause illness, and very occassionally severe disease just like the other 4 corona viruses commonly found in humans.

Pfizer is hawking an additional shot, but even they do not know what it would be or when it might be required (see below).

Six Month Safety and Efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine

 

Does the word "Tick" come to mind?

I heard a women from Arkansas making unbelievable comments about NOT taking the vaccine on NPR today.

Even that disgrace to the female race, aka, Sarah H S is telling people to get vaccinated. (Her motivation is probably concern about having enough LIVING Republicans to see her through to the Governorship).

I would LOVE to see a statistic on Republicans with even a semblance of a secondary school education as compared to those that struggle in academic endeavors as to whom is taking the vaccine.

As has ALREADY been reported:
HEY REPUBLICAN ANTI-VAXERS - The MORONS telling YOU not to get the VACCINE are............GUESS WHAT.................freaking VACCINATED!!!!!
Ya'll are getting PLAYED into the GRAVE!!!! That's the kind of people YOU, support!!! Enjoy the ER and the FUNERAL HOME.

 

Isreal is starting to do boosters for seniors 60+. They may be the first?

Our CDC says not yet required. 83% is still pretty strong, so it seems Israel are just being far more pro-active.

 

Israel has pretty much been on the forefront of this, but honestly, they would better serve their own people if they would go in and vaccinate all of the Palestinians living around them who have pretty much been cut off from the global medical community.

The Israeli medical and health care system can tolerate some additional illnesses, but the faster that we can vaccinate the majority of the globe the better off we all are.

And yes, I understand Israel cannot do that alone, but the Red Crescent could easily become the "boots on the ground" if Israel would supply the vaccine doses.

 

Um no

 

CDC mask decision followed stunning findings from Cape Cod beach outbreak