Maybe we will have to come to accept that a ( big ) bunch of very old people will die a few years earlier than expected so that the rest of us can avoid a greater depression ?
That being said, once we refrain from locking down everything and everyone, we can start expending all of our resources to minimizing the deaths in the at risk groups.
In the end, I believe this approach can result in less deaths than trying to impose ' sanitary measures ' that most people disregard at least to some extent because they make little sense and are downright immoral.
I get from the article that this strain might be more infectious and herd immunity might not be as efficient as it would have been previously, but _all things considered_, it would still be our best option in the scenario where an efficient vaccine is not readily available for that strain / variant.
The deaths due _directly_ to the virus are by no means the only parameter we should pay attention to.
See ;
Great Barrington Declaration ( signed by 12,943 medical and public health scientists )
No, we should not accept it. Unless you want to overflow hospitals and you'll have a massive death rate across whole popualtion groups, or you want to keep that thing spreading and mutating. I think this is the younger should accept that a closed latte shop is not a good reason for depression.
" [...] an approach we call Focused Protection [...]
As immunity builds in the population, the risk of infection to all – including the vulnerable – falls. We know that all populations will eventually reach herd immunity – i.e. the point at which the rate of new infections is stable – and that this can be assisted by (but is not dependent upon) a vaccine. Our goal should therefore be to minimize mortality and social harm until we reach herd immunity.
The most compassionate approach that balances the risks and benefits of reaching herd immunity, is to allow those who are at minimal risk of death to live their lives normally to build up immunity to the virus through natural infection, while better protecting those who are at highest risk. We call this Focused Protection.
Adopting measures to protect the vulnerable should be the central aim of public health responses to COVID-19. By way of example, nursing homes should use staff with acquired immunity and perform frequent testing of other staff and all visitors. Staff rotation should be minimized. Retired people living at home should have groceries and other essentials delivered to their home. When possible, they should meet family members outside rather than inside. A comprehensive and detailed list of measures, including approaches to multi-generational households, can be implemented, and is well within the scope and capability of public health professionals.
Those who are not vulnerable should immediately be allowed to resume life as normal. Simple hygiene measures, such as hand washing and staying home when sick should be practiced by everyone to reduce the herd immunity threshold. Schools and universities should be open for in-person teaching. Extracurricular activities, such as sports, should be resumed. Young low-risk adults should work normally, rather than from home. Restaurants and other businesses should open. Arts, music, sport and other cultural activities should resume. People who are more at risk may participate if they wish, while society as a whole enjoys the protection conferred upon the vulnerable by those who have built up herd immunity." [0]
> I think this is the younger should accept that a closed latte shop is not a good reason for depression
Easy for you to say - I'm sure you're comfortable from home working some tech job while you dispatch immigrants on Grubhub to feed you, and they cannot afford to stop working.
You're simplifying this into some imaginary trivialized "closed latte shop" when it's in reality condemning an entire country to miserable poverty and human depression.
I live in a goddamn third-world country, off of my savings; I go every 3 days to the grocery store to bring food to me and my parents. And those who cannot afford to stop working; yeah the also cannot afford to get sick, because it is so damn expensive.
What media? I saw plenty of alarm bells being rung in the sites I frequent.