Japan sees near-record 1,547 coronavirus cases in possible 3rd wave

Third wave, or the second wave rebound ?

Not in a situation to declare an emergency...or do anything at all to combat the spread for that matter. Let's just sit on our thumbs while we wait and see. Good thinking J-gov.

Ripple not wave

I wonder when Japan’s second lockdown will be enforced.

Japan has also lifted its entry ban on foreign travelers from such countries as Australia, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand and Vietnam plus Taiwan for non-tourist arrivals.

No, no, no, keep away for your own sakes.

There ins't a wave, it's a lake, just not testing enough

Japan sees near-record 1,547 coronavirus cases in possible 3rd wave

But government want to keep and extend Go To Travel until May next year.

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/10/27/national/politics-diplomacy/komeito-go-to-travel-extension/

@theperson

I wonder when Japan’s second lockdown will be enforced.

Japan has never had a lockdown; only one State of Emergency where we could still ride our bikes or hike or visit a park. Not sure about others but the ability to engage in those activities was a big help to the state of mind.

There appears to be a positive correlation between corona virus cases and the recent surge in stock prices. Maybe just a coincidence.

@theperson:

Japan has never been in 'lockdown'. May I ask what you are referring to?

Was there a “lockdown”?

I must’ve missed it.

1.500 cases or 1.000.000 cases...this has no impact and no change for my personal life.

I am just now again in a full packed train on my way to a full packed office.

I am wearing mask, use sanitizer, keep washing hands regular and try to keep social distance as much as possible. (Now in the train, impossible).

And I am doing that since the beginning of the pandemic 11 months ago and I am still fine.

It was not a lockdown, it was a “Stay Home”

did japan even have a first wave? Must’ve missed that

@Didou Correct but it was a request to stay home.

We adhered to it with the exception of activities which did not require close contact with others. When going out we put the masks on and carried our hand sanitizers.

This is one area where Japan did well. The hard lockdowns where relatives cannot visit each other or people are fined for just being outdoors are cruel and do more damage than good.

Unfortunately looking at the data without emotion it appears that we are headed that way in Japan again. The news last night (words chosen by the government) indicate a possible change in direction as well.

BUT, still MEXT is pushing for face to face classes at the university level. “MAN UP TEACHERS, to the TRENCHES!” Stupid government!

Not to worry. Japan's got a good handle on this. Just crank down the testing a little bit more and then the cases will drop. Need to maintain that safe image.

The curve will flatten and life goes on, not really significant numbers of death, just infections so no worries.

I don’t know if Japan is hiding the real number of cases, not testing enough, let the Japanese people are very disciplined.

My country has 5 million people and there are around 1000 cases each day.

How does a nation with over 100 million people can have so few cases?

As they say,

Okay, that’s cases. How many deaths?

7

7 out of a pop. of.what?...125,000,000?

What about all those athletes....pro tennis, football etc...They’re getting it all the time. Makes it look like a kinda inconvenience. Oh, and politicians. Trump etc. All of this is reinforcing the flu image. Like with the flu, you have people (many) who beat it easily, and you have people ( relatively few ) who get very ill or even die.

Just let it go...

But government want to keep and extend Go To Travel until May next year.

GoTo is not the problem. It is short term business visas, events like the mini games last week and the murderous Olympics.

Containment is the most effective measure for an island like japan. No foreigners please.

Yes, ultimately, we will just let it go. We will say we didn’t let it go, but ultimately that’s what we will have done. The only difference in humans now is their pride and egotism which makes them think they can conquer nature.

But they still can’t make it rain, can they?

Live carefully, but freely.

However Go To Travel will remain active and in full strength.

On top of that, I have doubts restaurants will be asked to limit capacity - at the moment it is back to the usual - and dangerous - “shoulder-to-shoulder”.

So from a Japanese time frame, when exactly was the second wave? Cause this is the first time I've heard about Japan having a 3rd wave. We were all warned of a second wave more serious than the first. Its not like this should be a surprise.

Not in a situation to declare an emergency...or do anything at all to combat the spread for that matter. Let's just sit on our thumbs while we wait and see. Good thinking J-gov.

Nailed it!

There ins't a wave, it's a lake, just not testing enough

beautifully put gogogo

Not to worry. Japan's got a good handle on this. Just crank down the testing a little bit more and then the cases will drop. Need to maintain that safe image.

exactly!

Go to The Hospital anyone? Haven't seen Nishimura on TV for a long time...

@Goodluck

No foreigners please.

Does this include foreign Permanent Residents of Japan and those living here and paying taxes, married to Japanese spouses etc.?

And where’s the surprise about this?

I’m pretty sure that the official numbers are even not close to the reality.

I was reading an article yesterday about Japan in a western European online newspaper.

And they pointed out the paradox of a country that “fights” the Covid with an illogical Go To Travel advertisement when the rest of the world is trying to do the opposite.

The Olympics,saving the face and the corporations are far more important for Japan Inc rather than the health and safety of it’s own people.

Dear esteemed readers of Japan Today,

As your Prime Minister, on behalf of the Government of Japan except Taro Aso, I would first like to take a brief moment to remind you that we love each and every one of you.

Now that you're feeling better already, I urge you to trust us as we implement a hodgepodge of poorly conceived measures to totally eradicate the SARS-CoV-2 virus from Japan while sensibly keeping you in the dark.

By giving you a daily serving of contradictory information and numbers that make little sense, we are earnestly addressing your mental wellbeing, promoting economic recovery, operating a baffling testing program and calmly assuring you that this virus is the greatest threat to human existence since the bubonic plague.

But have faith! Thanks to Mr. Joe Biden's presumptive election, a vaccine is just around the corner. We promise to roll out a vaccination program across the nation with all the efficiency and transparency you've come to expect when governments and big corporations get together for a project.

Of course, you remain free to tour the world's most beautiful country, and in the decades ahead may even be able to leave these graceful shores to visit family and friends in your foreign country. But please be patience and in the meantime enjoy next year's Olympic and Paralympic Games, which are absolutely, definitely, probably going ahead.

I look forward to keeping you updated as we see fit.

Yours incredulously,

Yoshihide Suga

Prime Minister of Japan

@goodluck

No foreigners please

If screened properly it will not add any extra risk to a country where the spread has been happening without any rigid measures to stop it.

Lastly, too late foreign business travellers are already flying in, and some do not require PCR anymore - only quarantine, as is the example of chinese business travellers, from the beginning of this month, contradicting recent media articles.

Contact Immigration Services for yourself and they will confirm this information to you.

3rd wave haha...admiting that there was the 2nd...nice

well, for those with "no deaths or how many deaths" argument if numbers of people who tested positive are too low for this big nation. Do you still believe that they are reporting deaths properly doing autopsy on every dead person? Really?

and people spend more time indoors without enough ventilation.

And every article connected to Covid keeps banging on about this.

And so it should. Ventilation is of vital importance to dilute and disperse aerosols.

GoTo is not the problem.

Nonsense. GoTo Travel and GoTo Eat most certainly are part of the problem. As one Japanese commenter on Yahoo JP called it yesterday, 謎の政策 (nazo no seisaku, an unfathomable/baffling/inexplicable policy).

Yes, please keep the borders closed through winter so there isn't an influx of seasonal Australians and New Zealanders to ski resorts.

kyronstavic

brilliant!! Nice post!

This is what you get when the economy trumps the pandemic: the wages of the ostrich strategy. Many of us may be wondering what is really happening here in Japan, but we may have to wait until the other side of winter when the truth will out (like August 15th, 1945?).

Am I invisible? Am I dreaming?

I said 7 deaths out of 125,000,000 ( Everyone talking cases, never deaths)

And that doesn’t get a comment, pro or con?

If you don't do your homework, then you have to pay for it. No alternatives.

Cases went down after bars and restaurants were asked to close early.

So if cases continue to increase we are likely to see another request to close early in major cities.

Hopefully the government will support these businesses if that happens.

Most likely, many people are going to stop going out to eat the next few weeks and cases will then start to fall. Arguably this is worse for restaurants as they lose customers without receiving support.

I said 7 deaths out of 125,000,000 ( Everyone talking cases, never deaths)

They ignore number of deaths because they can't reconcile that with the imagined number of cases.

The brain probably does that automatically or it might go insane.

GoToVirus campaign is working!

Japan has also lifted its entry ban on foreign travelers from such countries as Australia, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand and Vietnam plus Taiwan for non-tourist arrivals.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but none of those countries above are doing as bad as Japan. Nobody from those countries in their right mind would think about coming to Japan at his moment.

thepersoniamnow:

I wonder when Japan’s second lockdown will be enforced.

When was the first one? I must have missed it.

”I said 7 deaths”

At least 12 death yesterday and 15 death the day before yesterday.

Memoryfix is exactly right. The number of cases is irrelevant. The number of people hospitalized or dying is the only thing that really matters. It sounds cold, but only 5-10 fatalities a day is nothing in a country the size of Japan. If you look at the statistics, nearly 4,000 people die every day anyway.

There is no need to panic or be paranoid. The virus will burn through the population, as viruses tend to do. If you are personally feeling vulnerable or afraid, feel free to quarantine yourself. Just let the rest of us get on with our lives with minimal interference.

Nishimura, however, said the government will step up measures to prevent a wider spread of the virus as "the trend of increase is becoming conspicuous."

Poor choice of words as it implies that the government is only concerned with the appearance of an increase and how noticeable it is, rather than actually dealing with the problem. Also, becoming conspicuous? The upward trend has been apparent for around 2 weeks and mirrors previous 'waves'. Again, it is just being reported now so the government is concerned with the public opinion.

Most likely, many people are going to stop going out to eat the next few weeks and cases will then start to fall. Arguably this is worse for restaurants as they lose customers without receiving support.

Exactly, and this seems to be a conscious, strategic decision by the government. The early, more interventionist measures received a lot of backlash, and in August the wave was brought down almost entirely on the back of individual action. In Japan there is a cultural sensibility toward uniform action, so perhaps the government can get away with it. Really, whether it is a successful strategy, both in terms of public health and the economy, will only be obvious after the pandemic ends and we can compare the overall effects. Regardless, we lowly commenters are bound to live with whatever they decide and do our best

 It sounds cold, but only 5-10 fatalities a day is nothing in a country the size of Japan. If you look at the statistics, nearly 4,000 people die every day anyway.

What proportion of total deaths must a single cause be before we deem it worthy of taking action to prevent?

 The virus will burn through the population, as viruses tend to do. 

I assume this is an argument for natural herd immunity. Which virus has this been achieved with?

there was no lockdown in Japan. police werent fining people 5km outside their homes, or at the beach with friends like they were in OZ. no powers to do so. thats well documented.

Wayward, well I would say at least greater than the current rate of 0.1% of all deaths. Is that reasonable?

Cancer kills about a thousand people per day, by way of reference. Heart disease about 500.

Playing down the numbers and underestimating the dangers doesn’t really help, too. It is all still on a dramatic rise, at exponential rates, globally as well as also here. You want something nice and optimistic or hope? Enjoy what still is possible to enjoy while you still can. So far my advice considering the current parameters.

When was the 2nd wave?

When did the first and second wave end?

Still see morons at the eki just kicking it, in a circle, no masks, and no intention to anything constructive in said circle.

Wayward, well I would say at least greater than the current rate of 0.1% of all deaths. Is that reasonable?

So that would exclude homicide, suicide, road deaths, and all other transmissible diseases (HIV, TB, Influenza, measles, etc.). It would also exclude infant mortality entirely.

As we have been doing for covid for the previous 10 months, we take measures to minimise all the above to achieve low mortality rates. It is specious and circular to argue that because those measures are successful, they are unwarranted

The death rate has been more or less consistent for months now. An "exponential rise" would be from 2 to 4 to 16 to 256 on a day by day basis. The reality is different. It has taken nearly a year for the virus to infect 50 million people worldwide. That is less than 1% of the population. And of that 50 million, about 2% are fatalities.

So tell me why I should be scared again.

It has taken nearly a year for the virus to infect 50 million people worldwide. That is less than 1% of the population. And of that 50 million, about 2% are fatalities.

I can't advise you as to your emotional state, but factually speaking those statistics make Covid-19 the number one single infectious cause of death globally, far outstripping the previous number one cause in 2019 (TB). Again, that is with the unparalleled global response.

Agree. Ruined and continue to ruin countless lives and economies, which will translate to loss of more lives later.

So tell me why I should be scared again.

Because Mistress Fortune might turn against you at any time and even if she doesn't kill you she might leave you with long-term debilitating after-effects.

The 5 ring that represent the Olympic flag, had the Japanese government adopted these 5 rings for the 5 stages for getting a C19 test? each one getting more difficult to obtain/jump through to qualify.

So, from the Japanese time period, when was the second wave exactly? It's the first time I've heard of Japan making a third wave. We were all warned of a more extreme second wave than the first. It's not that this is a treat.

The virus has never been eradicated.

To speak of a ‘wave’ has little meaning.