More and more it is becoming evident the Lockdown, Stay at Home, Shelter in Place orders need to be lifted and America wants to get back to business. There are demonstrations and protests on a regular basis, op ed articles, and even scientists and doctors coming out saying it is time. In a recent Fox News Opinion piece Dr. Scott Atlas of the Hoover Institute gave reasons for why there is no need for fear or panic. He had previously criticized the latest models that have continued to instill fear and have administrations cancelling school even into the fall. There are also studies indicating all of these models were based on erroneous assumptions.
The Swiss Policy Research Group recently published a study investigating geopolitical propaganda in the media. They found, 1) the lethality of COVID-19 is on average about 0.2%, similar to a sever flu season. 2) Even in global hotspots the risk of death is similar to a daily car ride to work. 3) Up to 80% of those testing positive remain symptom free. 4) up to 1/3 of people may have some immunity to COVID-19 due to previous exposure to other coronaviruses (i.e. the common cold.) 5)the average age of those who have died is over 80 years and only about 1% had no other immune system compromises. 6) In most western countries 50-70% of deaths occurred in nursing homes, which do not benefit from lockdowns. 7) Up to 50% of all other deaths may have been caused as a result of the Lockdowns, Panic and Fear, when people put off necessary medical attention. 8) Even in the so-called COVID-19 deaths it is unclear they died from or with coronavirus (having underlying comorbidity issues.) 9) Many reports of deaths among the young have been exaggerated or just wrong. Take one case reported as a 9 year old child that turned out to be an elderly person 109 years of age. 10) the normal mortality rate per day in the USA is about 8000 people. Cancer, cardiovascular, and medical error deaths this year alone each exceed total deaths from COVID-19. Deaths of unborn children as a result of abortion are 3 times higher than COVID-19 deaths.
When history looks back ono the events surrounding the current crisis they will surely criticize how scientists, politicians, the media, and we responded to the crisis. We allowed ourselves to descend into the grip of fear. As a result we were unable to think rationally and logically. We clung to the false hope government would know what to do but in most cases, their fear was more profound than ours, they saw an opportunity to usurp power and therefore did not question the data they were fed. Hopefully we can all learn from this experience. Their are those out there predicting this is just the first of many similar crisis. We should remember fear makes us vulnerable. Vulnerable to suggestion, to surrendering our freedom, to putting faith in others who are no different than we are, and does nothing to prepare us from the future.