Humphrey Bogart said:
I won't disagree with you that Sweden's numbers are worse than it's neighbours but that was always going to be the case with their strategy. They also did better than the UK, France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, etc who all imposed hard lockdowns. That being said, we shall what the outcome is in wave number 2 as to whether their strategy is valid or not. Their number of hospitalizations is lower than ours now and I have a feeling that long term, they will be better off when looking at this from all factors and social determinants of health.
As for myself, yes some of my views are derived from individual experience but I also read a lot. I try and remain objective and if you must know, I own multiple masks and wear them at work (because we have to even though a lot of times it makes little sense to do so) and out of respect for others.
I have some friends that are deathly afraid of COVID, I wear a mask around them out of respect for them even though I think their fears are often greatly exaggerated.
As for people dying, it's a part of life. We are all going to die someday and someone somewhere is dying right now. Maybe it's COVID that kills them or maybe it's something else. BC is presently going through an opoid crisis that has been made exponentially worse by COVID restrictions. We have had 189 people die since COVID restrictions were implemented nearly four months ago.
We had record numbers of people die of drug overdoses in May and June, many times more than number of people who passed away from COVID. Sometimes, the cure is worse than the disease itself.
https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/most-overdose-deaths-ever-in-b-c-for-second-consecutive-month
That's why I think it's foolish to look at COVID death rate in isolation like so many are doing. Mass unemployment will lead to drastically shorter lifespans as well. There are many factors that aren't being considered with our present reactionary measures.
It's a simple case of politics now overtaking basic common sense. The same people telling us we have to wear masks were also loudly shouting to get out and protest even though anyone with basic math skills and the ability to read a simple graph can see that the protests most definitely triggered the massive spike in COVID cases in the US, especially considering incubation and the fact the virus spreads exponentially.
This is a harsh example, but I can’t help but think of the HIV/AIDS misconceptions, misinformation, etc etc that riddled us with fear and filled everyone with ludicrous ideas of how we could contract it, how it was spread, what to do, what not to do, how to protect ourselves, where it came from, who was going to suffer from it, how it was going to kill those infected and why...
For those of us old enough to recall, looking back now, the advice initially given and info shared was downright insulting, laughable, and incorrect. Much of it was meant to ostracize and divide and discriminate. I was young...under 10. But I still remember several commercials and newscasts of the time. Movies, messages, the ever-present God-fearing folk who said it was a punishment—It was just asinine. Thankfully, as time progressed, further research and study was conducted. Scientists learned more and more and medical advice deviated a lot along the way. We now know that you can’t contract it from kissing, or spread it through contact with a water fountain, and there’s no reason to fear hugging or touching an HIV infected individual. We better know the risks and when/how to protect ourselves, the accurate origins, and so forth.
There are very notable comparisons between the discovery of both viruses, how mankind has reacted to them, and also how the process of science/research and knowledge about them has evolved—has been communicated. Researchers will be studying this for some time and there’s little doubt that recommendations will continue to change.
As well, it needs to be understood that we live in a very different age now, as oppose to the early 80s. Practically everything is about who can get the info out the fastest and to how many. The Information Age has made it much easier to rush the spread of data, facts, opinions, etc, especially when under the scrutiny of panicked individuals. Then, of course, throw in the factors of availability of incomplete and/or incorrect information mixed with global entities who have a reputation of not exactly being forthright, and there was simply no way anything was going to unfold smoothly. Oh, and we also can’t forget the never-ending barrage of conspiracy theorists, extremists (political, religious, etc), those out for their own gain and/or just plain ignorant people. It’s even harder to maintain and monitor the expansion of legitimate data/findings.
One thing I’ve learned/observed (as have you and many others, I’m sure), is that common sense isn’t common—it’s barely regional anymore. We, the collective, can’t police ourselves. We can’t be assured to exact policy together for the greater good, we aren’t able to equally balance the needs of ourselves and others at the same time. We can’t be depended upon to exercise appropriate discretion in order to protect our societies. We’re a disaster. (Individuals or small groups can get buy, but those groups are small and usually don’t stay together for long before corruption or power struggles at some level arise.) So we need clear and concise policies/legislations/laws that are
supposed to aid with maintaining social organization and to keep thing running smoothly.
I agree that all of this has become far too politicized, especially south of us. I’m personally not affected by recommendations changing as we move forward. That’s normal when dealing with something for the first time—even more so when on a large scale. But because there are those who are convinced of some nefarious purpose behind conflicting or evolving information, it’s fuel for dissenting attitudes/opinions and further unrest.
