Covid-19

[orin stepanek]

Wow! worst global scare since the early '40's! I still remember mom being diligent with the ration stamps! Seems like the whole world is in panic mode! Hope some relief comes soon!

[Chris Peterson]

Wow! worst global scare since the early '40's! I still remember mom being diligent with the ration stamps! Seems like the whole world is in panic mode! Hope some relief comes soon! 😪

The school I teach at is closed for the time being. Trying to keep teaching using online resources. We'll see how that goes. This is the second time that the school has been closed due to a pandemic. The last time was for four months in 1918!

[orin stepanek]

I never seen such panic in all my life! The markets are crippling a lot of IRA's! Hope they get relief soon! So many lockdowns in place!

[Fred the Cat]

Some light reading about the virus while cooped up .
https://www.nejm.org/coronavirus
Might want to steer clear of camels.

[neufer]

Some light reading about the virus while cooped up .
https://www.nejm.org/coronavirus

Might want to steer clear of camels.

Darn

And I had just added heehaw's hitch-hiking across the Sahara to my bucket list.

(It's still OK to go down the Nile on a barge I assume.)

[Chris Peterson]

Some light reading about the virus while cooped up . :(
https://www.nejm.org/coronavirus

Might want to steer clear of camels. :wink:

Darn :!:

And I had just added heehaw's hitch-hiking across the Sahara to my bucket list.

(It's still OK to go down the Nile on a barge I assume.)

Just make it the last item on your bucket list.

[saturno2]

When I was 12 years old. a Chinese flu virus came to my zone.
A very strong virus. The stick person could not stand up, only at rest.
My family was 6 people. 5 got sick and I was the only "nurse" who
attended them.
Other people asked me why I did not have the flu
I was in puberty and I ate bread and "panela" ( primary product
in sugar production from sugar cane).
I think that the "panela" reinforced my immune system.
Now I eat 1 tablespoon of grated "panela" for day.
I do not know if it would work with Covid-19).

[orin stepanek]

People around here are actually hoarding toilet paper! I'll soon have to get an old Sears catalog!

[neufer]

People around here are actually hoarding toilet paper!

I'll soon have to get an old Sears catalog!

CVS sales slips are easier to obtain.

[orin stepanek]

People around here are actually hoarding toilet paper!

I'll soon have to get an old Sears catalog!

CVS sales slips are easier to obtain.

They're probably not as scratchy either!

[Eseyria]

Horrible situation

[orin stepanek]

Horrible situation

Hi; Eseyria; welcome to Starship Asterisk! Hope you post often!

[neufer]

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

[Sien]

At least we can train in case of an emergency. I take it that way. However, I never bothered the need to work from home.

[starbrush]

Yes, it's all very concerning. I'm glad we can still stare up at the stars and see the liberating imagery on APOD. In so many ways we're luckier than our 1918 pandemic forbears. One of the loneliest places just now must be the ISS.
I wouldn't recommend old magazines for, er, um, posterior hygiene purposes, unless you've made jolly sure to remove any staples! Here we had some panic buying, but now all the panics have sold out, and there's a shortage of shortages, thus to some extent cancelling things out and things settling down into a new sort of apprehensive normality.
Like the idea of a barge journey... So long as panic buying has not bought up the entire stock of barge-poles!
Take care, one and all.

[neufer]

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[neufer]

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[Eseyria]

I hope everything will be alright soon

[neufer]

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Sweden’s coronavirus exceptionalism will not be remembered favourably by Europe
last updated: 27/04/2020 - By Dr Tae Hoon Kim

<<Sweden’s COVID-19 strategy has become the subject of much attention in recent weeks. While much of the world is under lockdown or testing, Sweden has opted to do neither. Despite some restrictions, such as banning public gatherings of more than 50 people and stipulating that tables in restaurants should be set apart, the streets remain bustling, bars are still trading, and primary schools are open. Instead of imposing widespread restrictions, the Swedish government has advised its citizens to act responsibly by practising social distancing and staying at home when sick.

In a country of around 10 million people, the numbers of infected and deaths in Sweden as of 27 April 2020 are 18,926 and 2,274 respectively. These figures are smaller than those of Italy, Spain or the UK. But they are higher than Greece or Portugal’s, whose population sizes are similar to Sweden’s and much higher than Sweden’s Nordic neighbours. This might not be seen as a disaster but neither can it be viewed as reassuring.

Whether Sweden’s European partners will respect this sense of exceptionalism, however, is questionable. What Swedish policymakers overlook are the international implications of this approach, none more so than in Europe. An outbreak of the virus in Copenhagen caused by a Swedish citizen or originating from Sweden will be a complicated issue for both to deal with. Copenhagen, is only 50 minutes away from Sweden’s third largest city, Malmö. Citizens of both countries commute back and forth. An outbreak of the virus in Copenhagen caused by a Swedish citizen or originating from Sweden will be a complicated issue for both to deal with. For Italy, Spain, and France, such a scenario would be potentially catastrophic.

Sweden will be put it in an awkward position where it would have to justify its approach to those who have been the most scarred by COVID-19. Its message that Sweden is different from other countries, that it respects individual liberties, and that it did not require lockdowns could be seen as arrogant. EU states that are forcing lockdowns have not done it because they are less liberal than Sweden but because they had no other choice. The prime example of this Swedish myopia is the statement made by its state epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, in which he said it was ridiculous to close down national borders when COVID-19 was already spreading in Europe. For Italians who saw more than 20,000 of their fellow citizens dying because of the virus, this would be considered callous to say the least.>>

[Fred the Cat]

Historically this virus has an interesting past. The future offers a less certain course.

I feel it is so distracting to other causes of morbidity and mortality that I had to have my say locally. Recently it became the leading cause of death in the US. Those afflicted by previous concerns must be feeling its toll, if by nothing else, by continuous news coverage of one cause of human suffering.

[Chris Peterson]

Historically this virus has an interesting past. The future offers a less certain course.

I feel it is so distracting to other causes of morbidity and mortality that I had to have my say locally. Recently it became the leading cause of death in the US. Those afflicted by previous concerns must be feeling its toll, if by nothing else, by continuous news coverage of one cause of human suffering. :(

It is worth keeping in mind, however, that it is only the leading cause of death when categorized and viewed on a daily basis. On any given day, you're still more likely to die of something other than COVID-19. And this is a short term situation (unlike most of the other common causes of death). In any case, COVID-19 has an extremely low death rate, and you're unlikely to die of it even if you're in a risk group. This will pass, and few will die.

[neufer]

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

[Ann]

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

Sweden’s coronavirus exceptionalism will not be remembered favourably by Europe
last updated: 27/04/2020 - By Dr Tae Hoon Kim

<<Sweden’s COVID-19 strategy has become the subject of much attention in recent weeks. While much of the world is under lockdown or testing, Sweden has opted to do neither. Despite some restrictions, such as banning public gatherings of more than 50 people and stipulating that tables in restaurants should be set apart, the streets remain bustling, bars are still trading, and primary schools are open. Instead of imposing widespread restrictions, the Swedish government has advised its citizens to act responsibly by practising social distancing and staying at home when sick.

In a country of around 10 million people, the numbers of infected and deaths in Sweden as of 27 April 2020 are 18,926 and 2,274 respectively. These figures are smaller than those of Italy, Spain or the UK. But they are higher than Greece or Portugal’s, whose population sizes are similar to Sweden’s and much higher than Sweden’s Nordic neighbours. This might not be seen as a disaster but neither can it be viewed as reassuring.

Whether Sweden’s European partners will respect this sense of exceptionalism, however, is questionable. What Swedish policymakers overlook are the international implications of this approach, none more so than in Europe. An outbreak of the virus in Copenhagen caused by a Swedish citizen or originating from Sweden will be a complicated issue for both to deal with. Copenhagen, is only 50 minutes away from Sweden’s third largest city, Malmö. Citizens of both countries commute back and forth. An outbreak of the virus in Copenhagen caused by a Swedish citizen or originating from Sweden will be a complicated issue for both to deal with. For Italy, Spain, and France, such a scenario would be potentially catastrophic.

Sweden will be put it in an awkward position where it would have to justify its approach to those who have been the most scarred by COVID-19. Its message that Sweden is different from other countries, that it respects individual liberties, and that it did not require lockdowns could be seen as arrogant. EU states that are forcing lockdowns have not done it because they are less liberal than Sweden but because they had no other choice. The prime example of this Swedish myopia is the statement made by its state epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, in which he said it was ridiculous to close down national borders when COVID-19 was already spreading in Europe. For Italians who saw more than 20,000 of their fellow citizens dying because of the virus, this would be considered callous to say the least.>>

I should comment on this. First, I live in a part of Sweden which is not very hard hit by the virus. The mortality rate per 100,000 is about ten times lower where I live than in Stockholm.

Second, I very, very much appreciate the freedom I have been given to freely stroll around in the parks of Malmö, now that spring makes them so beautiful. I'm also glad that I can go to restaurants and cafés, even though I'm always careful to keep my distance from other people. And I'm very glad that I can meet my friends, although one of my best friends has quarantined himself, and since I have not, he does not want to meet me.

Third, I'm critical of the Swedish government and the Swedish authorities. I think it's obvious that they have made mistakes and misjudgements, particularly in Stockholm. For example, at the time when my hometown of Malmö had closed down its opera house and its big concert hall and forbidden all visits to homes for old people, Stockholm held a huge musical contest in front of a live audience of 30,000, and put no restrictions on visits to homes for old people. And while Finland put its entire capital, Helsinki, in lockdown and forbade anyone to leave or enter it, Stockholm as a city has had no restrictions at all. The most important reason why Sweden has been hit so hard is that the virus has been allowed to spread outward from Stockholm.

Ann

[neufer]

Sweden nears 'horrifying' 3,000 deaths from coronavirus
May 6, 2020: CC0 Public Domain

<<Swedish officials on Wednesday said the country, which has taken a softer approach to curbing the spread of the new coronavirus, was nearing 3,000 deaths from COVID-19. The country's Public Health Agency reported that a total of 23,918 cases had been confirmed and 2,941 deaths had been recorded, an increase of 87 deaths from the day before. "We are starting to near 3,000 deceased, a horrifyingly large number," state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell told a press conference.

Sweden has not imposed the kind of extraordinary lockdowns seen elsewhere in Europe, instead opting for an approach based on the "principle of responsibility". The Scandinavian country has allowed schools for under-16s, cafes, bars, restaurants and businesses to stay open while urging people and businesses to respect social distancing guidelines. The Swedish approach has received criticism both domestically and internationally as its death toll has leapt much higher than its Nordic neighbours, which have all instituted more restrictive containment measures.

Sweden's virus death rate of 291 per million inhabitants is far higher than Norway's death rate of 40 per million, Denmark's rate of 87, or Finland's rate of 45. In the United States, which has suffered the most coronavirus deaths, the toll per million inhabitants is lower than Sweden's at 219.

Swedish officials have nonetheless insisted their plan is sustainable in the long-term, rejecting drastic short-term measures as too ineffective to justify their impact on society. On Tuesday, the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency published a survey showing that most Swedes had changed their behaviour and were sticking to those changes, "and in some areas people are even reporting an increase in changed behaviour". "Almost nine in ten respondents (87 percent) state that they are keeping a greater distance from other people in shops, restaurants and on public transport this week, compared with 72 percent last week," the agency said in a statement.>>

[neufer]

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