Coronavirus Outbreak

[Josh]

Well, it looks like the mask mandates are being lifted one by one, even in Democratic run states. What is the lifting of these mandates based on?

From what I hear, certain Democrats are very worried about losing elections in the midterms.
Mandates are not currently polling well. Masks at schools / lockdowns at schools in particular are polling very poorly.

[Josh]

Well, it looks like the mask mandates are being lifted one by one, even in Democratic run states. What is the lifting of these mandates based on?

From what I hear, certain Democrats are very worried about losing elections in the midterms.
Mandates are not currently polling well. Masks at schools / lockdowns at schools in particular are polling very poorly.

Not sure if the NYT is a reliable source (they are known for very biased reporting) but here is an article from the on it:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/08/us/p ... ndate.html

While the movement to loosen pandemic restrictions began in swing states like Colorado, Pennsylvania and Michigan, its spread to some of the bluest states reflects a country entering a new political phase in the nearly two-year-long pandemic. After years of urging their voters to follow the science, Democrats in the states are moving more quickly to lift restrictions than the Biden administration, which remains scarred after all but declaring victory against the virus last summer only to greet the Delta variant.

Driving these decisions are the growing numbers of voters signaling that they are prepared to live with the virus as it is now, and political calculations about looming midterm elections that already have Democrats on the defensive.

[Robert]

From what I hear, certain Democrats are very worried about losing elections in the midterms.
Mandates are not currently polling well. Masks at schools / lockdowns at schools in particular are polling very poorly.

So follow the science unless that makes us loose power. Then say whatever we need to to get reelected.

Being a student of history and humanity, my memory is too long to forget what they said and did. This is not a red or blue thing. This is a lying politician thing.

[Josh]

I suspect those saying "follow the science" actually are asking us to follow political ends. There is no standard, single definition of what the "science" is. There are just political sides to choose.

The truth is, nobody really knows how to best deal with a respiratory pandemic. There is no one size fits all approach. We can't scientifically study it in a lab. (There aren't labs with thousands of human volunteers ready to be experimented on.)

The best things to rely on your immune system, your family and social relationships, and remembering not to give in to fear and anxiety. And to be very careful about listening to anything politicians say. There is a high chance they are lying.

[HondurasKeiser]

Yascha Mounk at The Atlantic says enough is enough: "Let’s drop the remaining restrictions on our everyday lives. Let’s shake off the pandemic malaise. Open everything."

In March 2020, the goal of social distancing was to eradicate COVID. At the time, public-health officials hoped that a test-trace-and-isolate regime might stop all cases of community transmission. As cases skyrocketed and hospitals came under strain, the justification for social distancing shifted. It was now meant to ensure that those who were the most sick could continue to receive high-quality medical care. The new goal was to “flatten the curve.”

Neither of these goals applies today. No one in a position of authority believes that we’re about to “defeat” the virus. COVID zero is not attainable. Nor are hospitals in imminent danger of collapse. Even at the height of the Omicron wave, some hospitals were strained but emergency rooms generally continued to provide quality care.

Some future COVID variant may prove much more dangerous than Omicron to the functioning of society. If a return to social-distancing measures should once again prove necessary, I’ll be among the first to say so. But at this point, the restrictions still shaping everyday life in America have become unnecessary. It is time to draw the logical inference—and end our pandemic purgatory.

[mike]

Yascha Mounk at The Atlantic says enough is enough: "Let’s drop the remaining restrictions on our everyday lives. Let’s shake off the pandemic malaise. Open everything."

In March 2020, the goal of social distancing was to eradicate COVID. At the time, public-health officials hoped that a test-trace-and-isolate regime might stop all cases of community transmission. As cases skyrocketed and hospitals came under strain, the justification for social distancing shifted. It was now meant to ensure that those who were the most sick could continue to receive high-quality medical care. The new goal was to “flatten the curve.”

Neither of these goals applies today. No one in a position of authority believes that we’re about to “defeat” the virus. COVID zero is not attainable. Nor are hospitals in imminent danger of collapse. Even at the height of the Omicron wave, some hospitals were strained but emergency rooms generally continued to provide quality care.

Some future COVID variant may prove much more dangerous than Omicron to the functioning of society. If a return to social-distancing measures should once again prove necessary, I’ll be among the first to say so. But at this point, the restrictions still shaping everyday life in America have become unnecessary. It is time to draw the logical inference—and end our pandemic purgatory.

The science isn't changing; the CDC isn't changing its guidance. The relaxing of Covid restrictions is due to political considerations.

[HondurasKeiser]

Yascha Mounk at The Atlantic says enough is enough: "Let’s drop the remaining restrictions on our everyday lives. Let’s shake off the pandemic malaise. Open everything."

In March 2020, the goal of social distancing was to eradicate COVID. At the time, public-health officials hoped that a test-trace-and-isolate regime might stop all cases of community transmission. As cases skyrocketed and hospitals came under strain, the justification for social distancing shifted. It was now meant to ensure that those who were the most sick could continue to receive high-quality medical care. The new goal was to “flatten the curve.”

Neither of these goals applies today. No one in a position of authority believes that we’re about to “defeat” the virus. COVID zero is not attainable. Nor are hospitals in imminent danger of collapse. Even at the height of the Omicron wave, some hospitals were strained but emergency rooms generally continued to provide quality care.

Some future COVID variant may prove much more dangerous than Omicron to the functioning of society. If a return to social-distancing measures should once again prove necessary, I’ll be among the first to say so. But at this point, the restrictions still shaping everyday life in America have become unnecessary. It is time to draw the logical inference—and end our pandemic purgatory.

The science isn't changing; the CDC isn't changing its guidance. The relaxing of Covid restrictions is due to political considerations.

Mike, what are your thoughts on the CDC guidance and/or "The Science"?

[HondurasKeiser]

Yascha Mounk at The Atlantic says enough is enough: "Let’s drop the remaining restrictions on our everyday lives. Let’s shake off the pandemic malaise. Open everything."

In March 2020, the goal of social distancing was to eradicate COVID. At the time, public-health officials hoped that a test-trace-and-isolate regime might stop all cases of community transmission. As cases skyrocketed and hospitals came under strain, the justification for social distancing shifted. It was now meant to ensure that those who were the most sick could continue to receive high-quality medical care. The new goal was to “flatten the curve.”

Neither of these goals applies today. No one in a position of authority believes that we’re about to “defeat” the virus. COVID zero is not attainable. Nor are hospitals in imminent danger of collapse. Even at the height of the Omicron wave, some hospitals were strained but emergency rooms generally continued to provide quality care.

Some future COVID variant may prove much more dangerous than Omicron to the functioning of society. If a return to social-distancing measures should once again prove necessary, I’ll be among the first to say so. But at this point, the restrictions still shaping everyday life in America have become unnecessary. It is time to draw the logical inference—and end our pandemic purgatory.

The science isn't changing; the CDC isn't changing its guidance. The relaxing of Covid restrictions is due to political considerations.

I agree Mike that Blue-State Governors are dropping some mandates due to political considerations. I don't think those are Mounk's considerations.

Neither of these goals applies today. No one in a position of authority believes that we’re about to “defeat” the virus. COVID zero is not attainable. Nor are hospitals in imminent danger of collapse. Even at the height of the Omicron wave, some hospitals were strained but emergency rooms generally continued to provide quality care.

[mike]

Mike, what are your thoughts on the CDC guidance and/or "The Science"?

I didn't capitalize the science. By that I mean simply the information. We still don't know fully the efficacy of all the Covid restrictions, what they really accomplished. I give a lot more benefit of doubt to the CDC's gathering of information, which is very imperfect while probably being some of the best in the world, than I do to rules based on CDC guidance. I feel that CDC guidance should be just that, and that people, businesses, local and state governments, and institutions should have been free, from the beginning of this pandemic, to live and operate as they felt was appropriate. I feel that vulnerable populations should be protected but that everyone else should be free to choose whether or not to wear masks, socially distance, limit exposure to crowds, and so forth.

[HondurasKeiser]

Mike, what are your thoughts on the CDC guidance and/or "The Science"?

I didn't capitalize the science. By that I mean simply the information. We still don't know fully the efficacy of all the Covid restrictions, what they really accomplished. I give a lot more benefit of doubt to the CDC's gathering of information, which is very imperfect while probably being some of the best in the world, than I do to rules based on CDC guidance. I feel that CDC guidance should be just that, and that people, businesses, local and state governments, and institutions should have been free, from the beginning of this pandemic, to live and operate as they felt was appropriate. I feel that vulnerable populations should be protected but that everyone else should be free to choose whether or not to wear masks, socially distance, limit exposure to crowds, and so forth.

That sums up my thoughts too.