Coronavirus in the United States - news and thoughts

All I can say is no one has contacted the gym to tell us that they tested positive and we're recently inside working out. Last we I thought I may have been the first due to my GF having to be tested at her work because they had 2 positives.

 

My son started college Thursday. Not sure how it is going to work out, but everyone was wearing masks, even outside. He got first choice on rooms and his quad only has him and another guy. Weekly testing, you have to stay on your own dorm floor.
70% of his classes are online, the rest are in person but with limited students.

Seems like they are doing everything possible, hopefully it works out.

 

I wonder if we will ever find out why we did this. Did someone in the administration bored? Did some flunkie think it would get them brownie points with the boss?

United States government issues travel warning for New Zealand due to '23 active cases'

A link to the travel advisory that was issued yesterday:
New Zealand Travel Advisory

 

Barrow County, Georgia, schools will move to online learning after 90 staff had to quarantine due to Covid-19 - CNN

 

lost in this post was this amazing fact from your linked article...
While there are many features of the novel coronavirus that are still unclear, this we know with certainty: The risk of dying from COVID-19 rises sharply with advanced age. About 2 in 100,000 Americans under age 45 have died from the virus, according to data submitted to the CDC through July 29.

That staggers my mind. 2 out of every 100K of those under 45??? That is nothing.
And that includes those with other co-morbidities I'm sure.

So how does that compare to other rates of deaths from other factors? I would think motor vehicle deaths, other accidents, drugs, etc are far higher.

This needs to be shouted from the rooftops- yet its almost unknown.
I work with high schoolers and their parents and so many are deathly afraid of this disease. So many.
And many kids are scared out of their minds from this.
Yet they think nothing of giving a 16 year-old the keys to a car.

 

28 kids under 15 have died of COVID. 319 kids died of swine flu in 2009-2010. We had basically zero shut downs of schools then.

 

Again, it's more than just death that is a negative outcome from contracting COVID-19. Lingering health effects include neurological disorders, heart issues, kidney problems and more. The teachers and staff are the ones most afraid, and with the average age of a teacher in the US around 42 years old, there are plenty of teachers that by age alone, fall into the danger zone for dying from COVID.

We also had only 28 kids die from COVID while almost 100% of schools were closed. We may not know what the number might have been had we remained open the entire time? It's possible, the number of kids dying from COVID could have met or surpassed the swine-flu number of 319. One thing we do know, had we not shut down, the overall death number that now stands around 160,000 Americans would have been higher.

 

And a good plant based non-dairy frozen desert

 

Again, people act like kids have been kept in the attic for 5 months away from anyone. That’s just not the case. Out of 150k+ deaths, only 28 for kids under 15.

Also, there were lingering effects of swine flu. I was here but didn’t post in 2009-2010 and don’t remember people posting kid by kid deaths of the swine flu like they are for COVID.

Swine flu fallout: many suffer nagging symptoms long after H1N1 subsides | The Star

 

Wow, there is shocker. We have already learned this lesson in Georgia, Mississippi and Arizona. Why do people not understand that you will never be able to reopen schools in an environment where you are reporting 50,000 new cases per day nationally?

 

I had a bad flu about 7 years ago. I had lingering issues for a couple months. Eventually my body healed.

Also, countries that shutdown and thought the virus was gone are now experiencing a spike in cases. It’s not going away. We need herd immunity while doing our best to isolate those who we know it kills.

 

And how many deaths from H1N1? COVID-19 has already claimed 160,000 Americans and counting.

As for child activity, you really think summer activities equate to full time school? To compare, my district runs 26 full time elementary schools K-6. Over summer 8 are open for full time summer camp. This year, they cut it to three, and held them at high schools. There's just no comparison.

 

Day care never shut down in the US in most places here. The numbers speak for themselves. I mean kids under 15 are around 14% of the population but are at .00017 of the deaths. That is beyond small. Not sure how this is even a discussion at this point. Teachers and kids should wear masks and social distance, but lets get back to school unless there is a serious hot zone like SoFla or other specific area. The cast majority of the US should be in school.

 

And nearly 1000 cases in California linked to daycares being open.

50% of kids in this country live with someone with a comorbidity issue. Including plenty that live with at least one grandparent. That's where the biggest risk lies. Kids bringing the virus home and spreading it around the house.

Masks and social distancing can help slow the spread. But they are not 100% effective, especially when you're relying on kids wearing them 7+ hours a day, 5 days a week.

As for herd immunity, we already had 160,000 Americans dead. At most, 20% of the country has gotten sick. We need 70% for herd immunity, which would equate to over 550,000 dead. Is that the best plan?

We have a few vaccines already in the last phase of trial. Hopefully one will be effective and ready by early next year. And then we can be on the other side of this disaster. Until then, the best course of action is stay home as much as possible and keep the spread as low as possible.

 

We can’t home school until there is a vaccine. It could be 6 months it could be 2+ years. We don’t know. The damage done to kids and parents would be significant. You are focusing on one issue. You are choosing to ignore the social, abuse issues, substance abuse issue and suicides that would increase significantly if kids are forced to be home schooled. If kids live with people who have health issues than they can be home schooled. Otherwise the kids who’s parents or family they live have no issues can go to school.

 

There were about 600,000 deaths worldwide from H1N1, only 13,000 deaths in the US. Bush handed Obama a pandemic playbook, which his administration used effectively. That's why there was no need for a shut down. The Obama administration left Trump a playbook, which obviously, he didn't follow and here we are.

 

One issue that's already the 5th leading cause of death per annum, that's done it in half a year, when half the country has shut down, and quickly moving up the list to #3. Numbers 1 and 2 are cancer and heart disease, and unlike COVID-19, aren't communicable. The way to slow this virus down is prevent people from spending time with each other as much as possible.

Or come right out and say you're good with over 550,000 dead. That's the other option. If you admit to being ok with 550,000 dead, at least you'd be honest with your position.

There are also ways the community can come together to help. Gyms are closed in Arizona, but several have turned their open spaces inside as makeshift computer stations kids can use to go to school, online, while still keeping social distancing and wearing masks. Plenty of us parents can stay home while our kids distance learn. We can find alternatives for those that need help that doesn't trap 25+ kids and a teacher in a small room for 7+ hours a day, 5 days a week.

Distance learning. Smaller pods in bigger spaces. These are much better options.

 

What does that have to do with kids going back to school? I agree Trump has been terrible. As has the WHO and the CDC as well as quite a few Governors. But Trump gets the most blame deservedly and will surely lose in November.

 

Look dude, I wish no one died from this. But 2.7 million people die every year in the US. Will more die? Yes. Do I think it’s worth it to keep schools from opening in person? No. It’s why I’m happy my kids are returning in a week. You keep your kids home and let those who want to attend go and those who don’t can stay home.

And thanks for the condescending “rooting for 500k plus deaths “ remark. Uncalled for.

 

Right, I was too quick in response after re-reading your post. The biggest concern I can see from schools being open is bringing it home and increasing spread throughout the community, and particularly older, susceptible people. I don't know if there is a good answer for children's health, they need the social contact. My kids are grown, I really feel for parents and teachers right now.