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© Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.As global case counts fall, WHO chief warns COVID isn't finished
By JAMEY KEATEN GENEVA©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
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sakurasuki
Is never finished for Japan, even going longer.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/01/11/national/japan-border-controls-extended-february/
Aly Rustom
global case counts fall while Japan is still rising.
And the comedy here is, Japan is the one that's locking the borders. Maybe the world should reciprocate.
Desert Tortoise
I find this chart depicting Covid-19 deaths per day for the US to be very interesting.
https://ycharts.com/indicators/us_coronavirus_deaths_per_day
Aly Rustom
Here's what I find interesting
List of epidemics - Wikipedia
When it comes to deadliest
In 5th place COVID-19 pandemic has anywhere from 5.8–23 million deaths
4th place HIV/AIDS global epidemic 36.3 million (as of 2020)
3rd place Plague of Justinian 15–100 million
2nd place Spanish flu 17–100 million
1st place Black Death 75–200 million
Lets assume for the sake of argument that the 3rd place Plague of Justinian had only 15 million dead and the
2nd place Spanish flu had only 17 million dead (which was generally considered the case until recently when somehow it was decided that both of these plagues could have reached up to 100 million dead).
Lets also assume that Covid has up to 23 million dead which is very possible since during the Delta wave the health ministers of India and Brazil both claimed that the number of dead could be 10x higher since most of the deaths were occurring in poor rural areas where proper counting was not being done due to lack of resources.
That would put Covid as the 3rd worst plague in history after AIDS and the Black Death.
I know its cherry picking but it is food for thought. Just thought I'd throw that out
PTownsend
I don't know whether it's the “biggest" moral failure, at the top of my list of moral failures would be wars for oil and other resources), but many who’ve downplayed the severity of the virus have said it’s not so bad in part because it mainly affected ‘others’, I.e not themselves and their families, instead the virus most severely hurt people they did not know nor care about, which included the obese (the new orange in far right vernacular) , and those with underlying health conditions (including cancer survivors, and those with congenital circulatory system disorders among others)
The greatest care those who downplayed the virus and fought against government suggestions was for themselves and their mates, apparently all gym/dojo warriors and their financial investments.
Yet the pandemic downplayers continue supporting truck blockades which are hurting businesses and fouling the air with exhaust emissions in several countries, which means people and countries are paying the price for their protests.
And though I support the right for people to peacefully demonstrate against their government (could those claiming their freedoms are being taken away do that in Iran, Saudi Arabia, China or Russia without risk of getting their heads chopped off) , I cannot support what these truckers and the extreme right wingnuts supportilg them are doing while their trucks block traffic, pollute the air and hurt small businesses, and annoy so many others.
Tora
It's only finished when They say it's finished.[Pharmaceutucal company executives, Gates, etc. rubbing hands with glee].
ian
Current wave has more deaths daily than in the past wave in many countries:
Ex:
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/canada/#graph-deaths-daily
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/australia/#graph-deaths-daily
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/uk/#graph-deaths-daily
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/india/#graph-deaths-daily
Oxycodin
If Japan still having trouble with covid and all other countries are under control saying the pandemic is pretty much over then likelihood of the jgovt still using and extending this crisis to their advantage and hidden agendas sounds like by perhaps faking the omicron positives
Blacklabel
Of course it’s not finished, the WHO still wants funding.
PTownsend
And it sounds like once again extremists are using the media, which they so often curse, to push their anti-democracy agenda.
I wonder where the evidence of 'faking positives' comes from, beyond the extremist's imagination and fears. And still the extremists continue to claim governments and media are fear mongering. So many of the extremists say they are healthy, maybe they should get a bit more exercise to help them relax. Or take some Zinc and get more Vitamin D.
virusrex
That only apply if you replaced vaccination with other measures that eliminate the higher risk you represent for others, like for example isolation and frequent testing (and made sure your dose was deliverd to third world countries) else it is just an excuse without merit.
That is a false dichotomy and not supported by the scientific consensus, protection to vulnerable population do not only depend on them being vaccinated, but also on the disease spreading being controlled in the general population as well, this requires measures that also include vaccination. So no, vaccinating people under 50 is still part of the necessary measures to protect the people with special vulnerabilities (and prevent the appearance of variants).
No, overly generalizing from the recommendations over the current situation as if they represented what is to be followed no matter what happens in the future is one of the favorite ways anti-scientific groups promote disinformation. The current local situation on the US is shifting the balance towards less measures being necessary to lower the risk, and hopefully the trend will continue, but this is no automatic consequence and there is always the possibility of new variants or the resurgence of previous ones that could shift the balance again towards more measures, that is very different from something being "over".
That is irrelevant, most of the funding the WHO requires is for programs that do not deal with COVID, the pandemic could be finished magically today and the rest of the public health needs of the world would still remain.
How? by delaying a recovery of the economy that would benefit the goverment (and the personal interests of influential people) much more?
Blacklabel
Even Fauci popped up again saying it is “almost” (kind of sort of maybe) over.
which for him is as clear as he will ever say anything.
Blacklabel
Uh huh true. but that sweet, sweet plentiful and abundant COVID money would be poof! gone.
virusrex
Just compare what is being required for Polio, malaria, malnutrition and your "plentiful and abundant" money can be put in proper context, the needs of public health in the world have never been completely covered, so the pandemic could be stopped right now and the other WHO programs would still require (and get) much more money.
Again, this applies to the current situation that is likely to change, this is a pert the anti-scientific propaganda loves to hide, so when the situation changes they can insist in that "science contradict itself" even if this is an important part of the predictions from the beginning.
venze
As global case counts fall, WHO chief warns COVID isn't finished:
Who said that? Where comes the fall of global infected cases, when the daily official cases are still many times of that in late 2021?
What is WHO's intention in giving a practically meaningless warning again..?
Blacklabel
no, they would require and NOT get the funding.
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/donors-and-partners/funding
virusrex
That is only your baseless opinion, the funding it gets for all other diseases is in no way depending on COVID, and in many cases it is held hostage precisely because of the pandemic, your reference in no way proves that all the other priorities that have been left aside would somehow stop getting funded once the pandemic is over.
kurisupisu
The WHO was late in calling the start of the pandemic and it’ll be late to call its close too.
FizzBit
Maybe not, at least they didn’t say pandemic. It seems the western governments are actually enjoying and taking advantage of their new powers of control.
starpunk
It will and it will mutate into an inactive virus forever. Now we have vaccinations to make it possible, and it will happen but we need to use our heads about it. Why is there so much misinfo, conspiracy and lies about something that will heal us? So many lunkheads, superstitious pinheads and medieval crackpots talking their superstitions and lies, making things difficult for everyone. Being sociopathic nuisances with no sense.
Real religious leaders are saying it, it's moral obligation to others and yourself. Take the medicine, get vaxxed.
Zaphod
virus
...which assumes that the current mRNA shots prevent infection and transmission. Which has long been shown NOT to be the case. As someone who continually posts about this topic ought to know.
Amazing how these long-debunked talking points keep on hanging around.
virusrex
that is false, the vaccines reduce importantly the rates of infection and even of transmission, so there is no assumption to make, just follow what the available data demonstrate.
You just saying that the science is false is the mistaken thing, do you have a comparison in secondary cases from vaccinated and unvaccinated people that demonstrate no difference? because if you don't that still means you are contradicted by science.
Raw Beer
No, that is false. The evidence shows vaccines do not significantly prevent infection, they mainly reduce symptoms (for a few months). Even the paper you keep bringing up does not show what you claim it does, as many of us already pointed out.
virusrex
Making up imaginary evidence is not enough to prove something do not work, the available evidence actually proves vaccines reduce the rates of infection and transmission
https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2021.26.44.2100977
It clearly shows a very significative reduction of transmission, you just failed to understand it. Saying the opposite of what the authors explicitly say in the conclusions means you are the one in the wrong, not them.
On top of that the vaccines not only reduce also symptoms (thus reducing the viral titers) but also complications, hospitalizations and deaths.