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Lesson not learned: Europe unprepared as 2nd virus wave hits

31 Comments
By NICOLE WINFIELD

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31 Comments
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No surprise here. "What goes around, comes around" has always been the viral mantra, a "Groundhog-Day" reality that can't be wished away or cured with band-aid therapeutics. Only time and best safe practice by society can eradicate a pandemic. The world can only hope that another year of sacrifice will suffice to end this plague of biblical dimensions that will cost blood and treasure and will likely be a game-changer for the world's future socioeconomic structures and practices. Once again it appears that the only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from it. As the old Jewish sages used to say: Man plans, and God laughs.

8 ( +8 / -0 )

No need to worry America. It’s all a fake liberal media news narrative optic in Europe too right? These doctors and nurses are all in on the scam too I guess, pushing their Marxist agenda no doubt. trump declared the virus nothing to worry about, and he’s never wrong!

1 ( +7 / -6 )

Incredulious to blame governments when its each persons own responsibilty to keep social distance, keep contacts low, not do unesseccary travel, wear mask , wash hands etc... but some people just couldnt care less and went to party, holiday and indulge themselves. Then they blame each other. Humans being humans.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

I noticed that the countries mentioned, Belgium, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain and France plus Italy and Czech Republic all have had their populaces in hard lockdowns with mandatory masking seemingly to no avail. No mention of the Nordic countries.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

Hey EU what happened? I remember the flack that Japan took from Europe about Japan's covid 19 policy. Now look at you. What an utter failure. As with the USA, Europe talks how great it is. But in reality, Europe and America are very weak. They don't have the self discipline to weak masks and obey the rules.

This why Japan is beating the virus. We can together as a nation. We sacrificed for the good our nation. The results are for everyone to see. Covid 19 is a test of a country's social cohesion. Japan past the test. The west utterly failed.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

Good article above. Really happy to see no politics in it.

Here are Sweden's projections for with and without masks. Universal masking and the curve stays flat, no masks and cases will continue to rise.

https://covid19.healthdata.org/sweden?view=total-deaths&tab=trend

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Well, one thing's for sure - can't blame China now.

Huh??

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

Nihonview

This why Japan is beating the virus. We can together as a nation. We sacrificed for the good our nation. The results are for everyone to see. Covid 19 is a test of a country's social cohesion. Japan past the test. The west utterly failed.

Japan had no hard lockdown, and the face masks are recommended, not prescribed. Police does not harrass me if I don´t wear them. So yes, if you want to make the point that hard lockdowns and police state like dress codes are not helpful, I agree.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

nandakandamanda

Good article above. Really happy to see no politics in it.

Here are Sweden's projections for with and without masks. Universal masking and the curve stays flat, no masks and cases will continue to rise.

https://covid19.healthdata.org/sweden?view=total-deaths&tab=trend

Your rising curve part is a projection, i.e. phantasy. The actual curve from end of July to now is completely flat. there is NO indication of any rise.

-7 ( +0 / -7 )

The key is that, while detected infections are rising, serious cases are not doing the same. Deaths are also basically unchanged. In the UK, about 40-50 people a day die with corona, a far cry from the nearly 1000 per day in April, and also the same rate since July. France? The same, no spike in deaths since spring.

It means the virus is more widespread but less lethal than previously thought. No need to keep people imprisoned in their own homes. or make outrageous hysterical claims like "this is a plague of biblical dimensions". Compared to real pandemics, this is a light case of the sniffles. Spanish flu killed the equivalent of 250 MILLION people based on today's global population.

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

No mention of the Nordic countries

Do you mean those straight laced weirdos that actually understand personal responsibility and follow the rules?

Latin countries that ain't.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

Atillathehungry

It means the virus is more widespread but less lethal than previously thought. No need to keep people imprisoned in their own homes. or make outrageous hysterical claims like "this is a plague of biblical dimensions". Compared to real pandemics, this is a light case of the sniffles. Spanish flu killed the equivalent of 250 MILLION people based on today's global population.

It also suggests that the virus has already changed and is less lethal now. Which is the natural course for a virus epidemic. Remember, the Spanish Flue, SARS, MERS, Swine Flue, H1N1 etc etc., they always peter out and disappear. Because while the virulent strains are better at killing people, the less virulent strains are better at spreading, so they are more successful.

Also, while the virus is changing, doctors now understand it better and have better treatment options. This is not the same situation as in January any more; only the press keeps trying to create panic by writing about "infections".

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

@zaphod

You claimed the other day that the rising number of infections was simply due to more widespread testing.

Why are deaths rising?

5 ( +5 / -0 )

@Nihonview

Hey EU what happened? I remember the flack that Japan took from Europe about Japan's covid 19 policy. Now look at you. What an utter failure. As with the USA, Europe talks how great it is. But in reality, Europe and America are very weak. They don't have the self discipline to weak masks and obey the rules.

This why Japan is beating the virus. We can together as a nation. We sacrificed for the good our nation. The results are for everyone to see. Covid 19 is a test of a country's social cohesion. Japan past the test. The west utterly failed.

Different cultures, different everything. Your "Japan good, the West not so good" pov is very amusing, though.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

You claimed the other day that the rising number of infections was simply due to more widespread testing.

Why are deaths rising?

The cases have gone up a lot recently. Although the deaths have increased slightly, they are much lower than in April.

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

You claimed the other day that the rising number of infections was simply due to more widespread testing.

Why are deaths rising?

The cases have gone up a lot recently. Although the deaths have increased slightly, they are much lower than in April.

Yes, I know.

I was asking why deaths are rising in response to the claim that the increasing number of infections was simply due to more widespread testing.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Jimizo

Why are deaths rising?

Where do you see that deaths are rising?

-6 ( +1 / -7 )

Why are deaths rising?

Where do you see that deaths are rising?

Spain, France, UK most clearly. Other European countries are edging up at a slower rate, and as you know, there will be a lag between the number of new cases and the number of deaths.

You said the number of new cases was a simply a reflection of increased testing.

So, where are these increasing numbers of deaths coming from?

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Jimizo

Spain, France, UK most clearly. Other European countries are edging up at a slower rate, and as you know, there will be a lag between the number of new cases and the number of deaths.

No, I do not accept that there is a link between "number of new cases" and "deaths".

Where are your numbers that show that deaths are increasing?

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Where are your numbers that show that deaths are increasing?

Johns Hopkins, NHS UK are the two I’m looking at right now.

Is this fake news? You can just say yes and we can end it there. There would be nowhere to go.

Are you saying there is no increase in the death figures?

3 ( +4 / -1 )

JimizoToday  06:59 pm JST

Johns Hopkins, NHS UK are the two I’m looking at right now.

Is this fake news? You can just say yes and we can end it there. There would be nowhere to go.

Are you saying there is no increase in the death figures?

Got a link for that? The statistics I am looking at show a flat curve for deaths. "Cases" are irrelevant, you can not draw a direct line from "cases" to deaths.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

A recent report in the UK showed that a full 3/4 of positive covid cases failed to self isolate correctly. Is the increase in cases a surprise? Hardly.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I agree that we should not focus on cases, it's quite meaningless. Instead, we should focus on deaths.

The deaths have gone up slightly in France, rather flat in Italy, Belgium,...

Deaths are so much lower than in April. In April, the cases were lower but the deaths were much higher.

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

P. Smith

Focusing on deaths is misguided. The focus needs to be on the hospitalizations because there are a finite number of beds.

I have not seen any statistics on hospitalizations, or any medical blogs and vlogs that mention that as a problem.

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

PSmith:

You quote some newspaper articles about individual hospitals, not statistics. Besides, most of the places mentioned in your articles (Marseille, Madrid, Bordeux) have lockdowns already, so how does a lockdown help?

And how do you want to improve the hospital bed situation if the economy is destroyed because of the lockdowns?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

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