Teresa Hanafin writes the daily “Fast Forward” for the Boston Globe. Here is a part of today’s commentary:
The number of reported Covid-19 infections — that’s the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus — has zoomed past 1,000 in the US, doubling just since Sunday. At least 1,050 people in 38 states and D.C. have tested positive; at least 29 people have died.
That’s a very high death rate, but it’s probably not accurate. Why? Because the Trump administration simply does not have a good picture of how widespread the virus is. There could be hundreds of thousands more cases out there, which would lower the rate, but who knows?
The problem is the shockingly low amount of testing in the US: As of yesterday, the CDC and local public health agencies had tested only somewhere between 6,000 and 8,500 people. South Korea, which announced its first coronavirus case on the same day as the US — Jan. 21 — had tested more than 189,000 people as of Sunday. Since they are testing about 10,000 people a day, that number is probably above 200,000 now.
This isn’t just a disgraceful embarrassment; it’s a huge risk to US residents.
VP Mike Pence, the public face of the government’s response, keeps saying that “millions” of tests are being sent out by private companies to hospitals and private labs, and that everyone whose doctor wants them to be tested because they have symptoms can get a test. But that simply isn’t true. Every news organization has interviewed hospital officials, doctors, and others who are frustrated at their inability to get their hands on tests.
And of course, in the 51 days since the first case was confirmed, the administration still has not figured out how to find out from those private entities how many people they have tested and what the results are.
Don’t you feel reassured?
Critics say Trump simply wasn’t nimble and decisive enough to handle a major public health crisis, obsessed instead with downplaying the threat because he thought the virus would make him look bad.
So sure, keep bragging that you restricted some people from China after three major US airlines stopped flights to and from there on their own. And keep bragging that you’re an expert on the virus because one of your uncles taught at MIT. (I know it seems like I’m making up some of this stuff, but yes, he really made that association. It’s the Time of Trump and just about everything is rather unbelievable.)
Next I expect him to take over the development of a vaccine so that he can make the greatest vaccine the world has ever known and people can’t believe it and they all say to him you are the greatest we’ve never seen anything like this it’s never been done before and Obama stunk.
For your amusement/despair, here are some of his recent greatest hits:
“By April, you know, in theory, when it gets a little warmer, it miraculously goes away.” (Um, no, it won’t. Experts hope it will ease like other viruses, but they really don’t know.)
“The Obama Administration made a decision on testing that turned out to be detrimental to what we’re doing.” (Not true.)
“We’re going very substantially down, not up.” (Not true.) “We have it so well under control. I mean, we really have done a very good job.” (Keep telling yourself that, bucko.)
“If, you know, we have thousands or hundreds of thousands of people that get better just by sitting around, and even going to work — some of them go to work, but they get better.” (Infecting your co-workers might not be a good career move.)
“As of right now and yesterday, anybody that needs a test [can have one], (still not true) that’s the thing, and the tests are all perfect, like the letter was perfect — the transcription was perfect.” (Good grief. That again?)
“I took quick action on closing our borders.” (He didn’t close any borders. After American, Delta, and United airlines suspended flights between the US and China, he barred most foreign nationals who had recently visited China from entering the US.)
“Everybody said [about the travel restrictions], ‘It’s too early, it’s too soon,’ and good people, brilliant people, in many ways, doctors and lawyers and, frankly, a lot of people that work on this stuff almost exclusively. And they said, ‘Don’t do it.’ ” (No, they didn’t.)
“They would like to have the people come off [the Grand Princess cruise ship, off the coast of California]. I would like to have the people stay [on board]. Because I like the numbers being where they are.” (Yes, it has been shown that artificially suppressing the number of infected people so you don’t look bad is the single most effective action against the virus.)
***
Unfortunately, it’s not just Trump. Theatrical congressman Matt Gaetz of Florida wore a gas mask on the floor of the House during a debate about virus funding to mock the whole crisis. He thought it was hilarious — until one of his constituents died from the illness.
A woman in North Carolina told an NBC reporter last week that she does not believe that coronavirus exists or that anybody has died from it because it’s just Democrats making the whole thing up. What’s scary is that people like her vote…
Finally, it’s National Worship of Tools Day and I won’t bother telling you that I thought it was about somebody in particular but then I saw the photo of hammers and screwdrivers. What a bizarre day anyway.
Trump does not read and in any case thinks profit-seeking will take care of the needed paths to address the pandemic, a term now being used by the World Health Organization.
There is no public health “system” evident in any federal activity to date, other than daily briefings with more questions unanswered in combination with lies if Trump and his toadies are present.
https://www.inthepublicinterest.org/to-slow-down-coronavirus-we-need-a-public-health-approach-thats-truly-public/
I live in MD 20-25 mins outside of DC. The traffic here is usually horrible all day long, but the past 3 days I have noticed a lot less traffic on the highways. People here are taking this seriously even though our lying Leader isn’t. The schools (public and private) are talking about closing and sporting events are being cancelled due to bus travel across county lines. Stores are empty during the day. Restaurant activity is slower than usual. Friday was a mad house at the grocery store as I believe people were stocking up for self quarantine or telecommuting for work.
Lil Donnie Trumplestiltskin is Americas version of Nicolae Ceausescu, the Romanian despot.
you know what happened to him and his wife. I was in Romania a few months after the events, in 1990.
Trump and his band of unmentionables are all security threats to America … at all levels.
Of course, they are all incompetent.
Trump thinks he’s on TV and on camera for “The Apprentice.”
All the emotional excursions by this administration take us down the rabbit hole even further.
I’m glad someone is collecting Trump’s craziness for the record. Future generations will have a huge task understanding how an advanced culture could end up being led by such a fool.
I’m noticing some Trump supporters exhibiting what could be charitably called cognitive dissonance. Their guy is letting them down in this crisis so they are grasping for straws or straw men.
And then there are the really bizarro attempts to rationalize the profound lack of leadership at the White House. One macho Trumper I saw on social media today starting ranting about COVID-19 “hysteria” then blamed “the media” for all the concern and ended up in a weirdo, racist diatribe about how “white males” keep getting attacked -or something. It was hard to follow.
Their brains are going kerflooey.
Speaking of scary, wacky people…..
Which Donald will be on TV tonight addressing the nation? Hmmmm…?
Didn’t watch it, but just read the Cliff Notes. Amazing how stupid this individual is and how subservient all those around him are, especially those who truly know better. The idea of banning flights from Europe but excluding the UK is beyond imbecilic.
As for collecting this individual’s craziness, I fear that’s all we can do these days and I really fear and expect this sickness to be reelected. Look up the concept of “inner exile.” Bearing witness might be all we have for the next few years or longer.
Greg,
I usually agree with you, but I think Trump’s time is running out and he knows it. I predict he will not be re-elected. Four more years of chaos, disruption, hatred, divisiveness, greed, lying, boasting, etc. has exhausted most people. I find it hard to watch or listen to him because I know whatever he says will not be accurate, will be self-aggrandizing, and will have no purpose other than to please his base. His base is fervent and rabid but it is not a majority.
This is what happens when you elect an uneducated idiot and conman to the Presidency. Merkel said yesterday that the infection rate in Germany might hit 70 percent. Unlike our President, she’s an educated person. PhD in chemistry, with a specialization in quantum chemistry.
„60 bis 70 Prozent der Menschen in Deutschland werden sich mit dem Coronavirus infizieren“, sagte Kanzlerin Merkel (65, CDU) kurz nach Beginn der Fraktionssitzung. Da herrschte Stille in der Fraktion, berichten Teilnehmer.
“60 to 70 percent of people in Germany will become infected with the corona virus,” said Chancellor Merkel (65, CDU) shortly after the start of the parliamentary group meeting. There was silence in the parliamentary group, participants report.
https://www.bild.de/politik/inland/politik-inland/coronavirus-kanzlerin-merkel-60-bis-70-prozent-in-deutschland-werden-sich-infizi-69317208.bild.html
Merkel said 60 to 70 percent. WHO has estimated the morbidity rate among infected persons at 3.4 percent.
So.
0.60 (infection rate) x 0.034 (morbidity rate) x 329.45 million (U.S. population in August of 2019 according to Census Bureau) = 6,720,780 dead.
Let’s hope the infection rate isn’t even close to that 60 percent!
correction
0.60 (infection rate/mobidity rate) x 0.034 (death rate/morality rate) x 329.45 million (U.S. population in August of 2019 according to Census Bureau) = 6,720,780 dead.
Yikes. I’ll try that once again, without the typos
0.60 (infection rate/morbidity rate) x 0.034 (death rate/mortality rate) x 329.45 million (U.S. population in August of 2019 according to Census Bureau) = 6,720,780 dead.
We might be early enough in this actually to contain it, if we were taking very, very aggressive steps now: closing all schools, forbidding public events, rapidly ramping up the creation of test kits and testing facilities and hazmat suits for health workers and health facilities (e.g., field hospitals), training paraprofessional responders, etc.The time to do this is NOT after the spread. It’s now.
We are doing none of this.
None of it.
And we have Dense Mikey non-Pensee and Jared Kookner and Don the Con in charge.