The 'Pandemic' is OVER!

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   I, hereby, declare that the great Coronavirus of 2020 has been eradicated!  At least, that is what I am assuming based on the sudden relaxation of the nation’s precautionary measures to curtail, what has been made out to be one of the most dangerous epidemics in history.

   In the first eight days after the murder of African American citizen George Floyd at the hands of Caucasian police officer Derek Chauvin, hundreds of thousands of protestors, looters, and rioters have swarmed city streets around the United States to express their anger regarding the disparity of equal rights.  Is the cause unjustified?  Not necessarily.  But enough people have participated to validate the deployment of 62,000 National Guard troops to 24 states, including the District of Columbia, to assist local police departments in controlling demonstrations that turn violent.

   I mean, if the virus still raged, it seems that protesting would pose an enormous health risk, right?  Why else would multiple government officials immediately endorse a movement that encouraged mass gatherings of protest mobs flooding urban centers, huddling close together, hand in hand, arm in arm, many without face masks, during, what many consider, the “deadliest pandemic in generations.”  It seems odd that just weeks ago, in May, PEACEFUL demonstrations erupted across the country by activists demanding that government officials reopen the economy and end the lockdown.  If all is well, why, then, were these people summarily DEMONIZED by the mainstream media for their “selfish behavior” that claimed to jeopardize public health and endanger a vulnerable population?

   Naturally, it would be a double standard that demonstrators pack city streets without consequence in front of countless businesses still forced to keep their doors locked in accordance with quarantine mandates, right?  Would it not be a contradiction that at least 20 states continue to enforce lockdown restrictions on church services, including acceptable capacity percentages for facilities or how many people can simply gather at one time, because of the excessive risks that such a gathering could pose to public health, while protestors have free reign in urban areas?  It’s not as if the Wuhan virus was such a threat that husbands were restricted from assisting their wives during child birth, millions of high school seniors could not attend their graduation ceremonies, and family members of deceased victims of COVID-19 could not properly honor their loved ones because of attendance caps on funeral services.  Oh wait…

   Well, it appears that we are, now, completely safe.  Otherwise, I would think there would be more concern...

   But, wait.  Yesterday, the CDC entered additional COVID-19 deaths into their database.  So, if the virus is still here, why would we subject ourselves by allowing massive, unrestricted riots?   One journalist penned an article after the first week of public dissent that offered justification for the dismissal of preventative protocols, in which it was stated that “a narrow focus on whether the number of COVID-19 cases may spike after protests is a distraction from the real health dangers of police brutality and racism.”  Julia Marcus, an infectious disease epidemiologist at Harvard Medical School, has confidently asserted, “there is a lot more to health than just preventing this disease,” like combating police violence and racism, which pose great risks to the health of the African American community.  I get it now; there are more important factors.

   Well, luckily, on this, we agree.  Federal agencies have warned that significant increases in depression, substance abuse, and stress disorders, during the Wuhan virus lockdowns could result in unprecedented suicide rates.  Some medical centers have already experienced more suicides than Coronavirus deaths in their facilities.  Federal emergency hotlines have reported a 1,000% increase in emotional distress calls from the prior year.  Over 40 million American workers have filed for unemployment since COVID-19 began, while a myriad of small businesses (livelihoods) are crumbling, further contributing to mental health issues and threatening to collapse the world’s most influential economy.  These, apparently, do NOT “hold a candle” to Black Lives Matter.

   Forgive my sarcasm if you can.  Here is what I know…

   Antibody testing in recent weeks has positively identified that the Coronavirus death rate does, in fact, nearly MIRROR that of the seasonal flu, as skeptics originally suggested.  As reports of 5% fatality rates at the peak of the lockdowns struck fear in the hearts of millions of Americans, it now appears that the number of people with antibodies (those that caught the virus and recovered without knowledge) is vast, putting the death rate for the Wuhan virus at less than 1% (.7% at the end of May and declining).  To add perspective, people under the age of 50 have a greater chance of being struck by lightning in their lifetime (1 in 3,000) than dying of the Coronavirus, yet the mainstream media covered every death as though the person reading the story was next.  According to the available statistics at the Center for Disease Control’s website, of the COVID-19 deaths officially recorded as of June 3, 92% are people age 55 and older, while more than one third of all U.S. Wuhan virus deaths were nursing home residents or workers.  Not only are immune systems susceptible from advanced age but underlying medical conditions have played a more than modest role.  For example, by the end of April, Massachusetts health services reported that 98.1% of COVID-19 casualties suffered from pre-existing disorders such as hypertension, diabetes, heart conditions, and asthma.  Does this trivialize Coronavirus deaths?  No.  It verifies that this flu bug did what flu bugs do.

   However, can we even trust these numbers?  Medicare payments to hospitals that accepted Coronavirus patients tripled based on the severity of cases and the administration of advanced treatments, while Coronavirus relief legislation provided “add-on” Medicare funding for COVID-19 deaths up to 20%.  Is it surprising, then, that deceased patients were stamped with the “Coronavirus seal” simply because the disease was present in their system; not necessarily because it caused their death?  Is it a wonder that the numbers are constantly under scrutiny?  

   The top two preventable causes of death in the US every year are tobacco and obesity.  Americans spend more money on cigarettes in retail stores than on soda and beer combined while societal excitement is beyond containment with every new fried chicken sandwich introduced by our favorite fast food chains.  Combined, these two ailments are responsible for nearly 800,000 deaths in the United States every year, which accounts for .0024% of the nation’s population. 

   As of the writing of this article, the Wuhan virus has been responsible for .00026%.

   This was never about a pandemic.  This was about the price at which we would relinquish our liberties.

   I guess when I started by declaring the pandemic to be over, I did not consider whether it had ever truly begun.

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