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21 Comments
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Aly Rustom
We are going to have to change how we do things and adapt to a new normal
commanteer
Most diseases don't have vaccines. Yet life goes on. I agree that this experience will have a lasting effect on the way we do things, though.
YeahRight
We all catch it, and though some will die, most will build antibodies. As commanteer wrote, "life goes on."
Toshihiro
we could probably descend into a modern version of the bubonic plague if that's the case, but with less death, but the same socio-economic effects. The COVID-19 may not be that much deadly, but i'm sure it will prevent a lot of modern civilization's daily operations from going back to normal
commanteer
I think that's unlikely. But it is interesting to note that the socio-economic effects of the plague (after it passed) were quite positive. Laborers got paid better, people had land... the effect was a couple of very good centuries.
But that's beside the point, as this is no bubonic plague. Not that something similar can be ruled out in the future though.
mph-1212
Wat happens? The sun will still rise and the planet will still rotate. Life goes on regardless of what we want or think.
rainyday
Its definitely a possibility that there will be no effective vaccine. We don't have one for the common cold.
What happens depends on the virus itself.
The best possibility (short of it simply disappearing) is that it become less lethal over time (something viruses are known to do) and simply becomes like seasonal colds that make people sick every year but aren't a public health disaster. This would impose the lowest costs on society to deal with and society could eventually return to something similar to pre-pandemic normal if that happens.
The worst would be for it to remain this deadly and constantly be spreading in waves around the world like it is now. If that is the case, a lot of the measures that we view as temporary now will likely become permanent. We can't afford to be shutting down economies like we have been, so likely this will mean way more mask wearing, and way more investment in public health systems that will allow for outbreaks to be quickly sniffed out without imposing harsh economic costs.
One thing is for sure is that this idiotic American mask phobia is going to have to disappear pretty dam quick.
mrtinjp
Well the current world wide recovery rate is around 92%, the virus is no longer as lethal it was 2-2.5 months back, if this trend continues, a vaccine may not be required at all.
Otacon512
So... "what happens if nothing happens"? Nothing.
smithinjapan
It'll likely become somewhat like the seasonal flu, since we have no idea how long any immunity will last. That, or eventually there will be some sort of herd immunity. But, the more likely scenario than us simply learning to live with the virus like it is is that IT will learn to deal with us, and evolve, and be less friendly.
borscht
The Tokyo Olympics will be cancelled. According to what all the powers-that-be have said.
Serrano
The virus, like all other viruses that have come and gone, will run its course.
I can tell you this - I won't be taking any mandatory vaccine.
Monty
The world should send China the "Bill"!
Jimizo
I’m sticking with Clorox.
JeffLee
Life didn't really go on in Europe in the 14th century. The bubonic plague had a devastating impact throughout society. Today, nature is calling the shots, not humans. We have no guarantee we will be spared from the worst consequences.
kyronstavic
This virus is having a devastating effect, but from the vast majority of people it's psychological, not medical. Bubonic plague was on another level altogether when it came to medical risk. You just can't compare them, especially now that figures indicate that while infections are spreading, the ratio of symptomatic people and seriously ill people is not rising. And the vast majority of people who do fall ill have co-morbidities.
Bubonic plague, on the other hand, was more an equal-opportunity killer - a political correct disease, if you will.
Despite what our resident Pharma rep might say, I'm skeptical whether there'll be a vaccine that's both safe and effective arriving soon. Maybe in a few years, but not this soon. In any case, if there is one it must not be compulsory and the makers must be fully liable for any negative side effects that occur. Otherwise the risks of churning out something that's not ready are far too high for society, higher than the risks of the virus itself for the vast majority.
If online comments here and elsewhere are anything to go by, there are plenty of people who won't take a covid-19 jab, and are quite prepared to go on with life as normal if one doesn't come to pass.
Wakarimasen
Nothing apart from a bunch of additional self inflicted paranoid stuff.
Peter Neil
The long lasting effects on people who have "recovered" from the virus include cardiomyopathy, abnormal blood clotting, deep vein thrombosis, renal failure, pulmonary embolisms, lung scaring, impaired balance and coordination and infertility and others.
Only 52% of people who recovered from symptoms requiring hospitalizations have been physically able to return to work.
It might not be a good idea to be cavalier about catching Covid-19, thinking that you'll be OK and just get over it.
William Bjornson
There are two kinds of people in this current Human World, those who have studied Virology and those who believe what the pop media tells them, however contradictory those accounts may be. Many choose to have 'faith' in their chosen obfuscators but something as simple as grammar school math should not be difficult. A 92% recovery rate means an 8% failure rate as the body successfully dissolves itself (sepsis) beyond functionality. So, 7,000,000,000 X 0.08 = 560,000,000. Five hundred and sixty MILLION dead Humans. And it's not just for the old people and already ill (comorbidity) folks anymore as more and more healthy young people (see: H1N1-1918-1919, source:Midwestern U.S. hog farms) are falling to the parasite. In America, many people are losing their lives for nothing but political maneuvering. We do need a vaccine, two in fact, one for the Viral parasite and one for the psychopathic parasite.
Peter Neil
Perfect.
ushosh123
Perma social distancing? Just a change in our habits, some will comply others will not or in a relaxed mentality... More funds attributed health care hopefully, but life goes on. And even if no vaccine, I'm sure the treatment itself will improve over time with so much funds poured in.