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So I see this information from the CDC and news outlets, but the head of the World Health Organization seems to be saying something quite different: “For the m

So I see this information from the CDC and news outlets, but the head of the World Health Organization seems to be saying something quite different: “For the moment, we are not witnessing the uncontained global spread of this virus, and we are not witnessing large-scale severe disease or death.” https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/02/who-tries-to-calm-talk-of-pandemic-says-the-word-does-not-fit-the-facts/ https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/02/who-tries-to-calm-ta...

allovernow 7y ago
The WHO is still using Chinese figures without any sort of disclaimer. The director of the WHO has been accused by the new York times of covering up multiple epidemics in how home country[1]. Hopefully this virus will upend the blind Faith that people recently have come to put into international establishments. 1. https://cloverchronicle.com/2020/01/30/world-health-organization-director-general-was-accused-of-covering-up-epidemics-in-2017/ https://cloverchronicle.com/2020/01/30/world-health-organiza...
- hodgesrm 7y ago
  Just checking but what concrete alternatives would you recommend to international organizations, imperfect though they may be?
  - sky_rw 7y ago
    I would personally prefer to see a NATO based combination of the USA and EU CDC (does something like this exist?). The problem with these global organizations like the WHO and the UN is that they receive large funding from competing ideologies and interests. They end up rewarding beurocracies and politically motivated leaders. The CDC seems to be much less politically influenced and focused on their mission.
  - allovernow 7y ago
    Personal reliance. Empowering people to take protective steps at their own discretion. If you encouraged your population to, say, keep a small stockpile of rice and beans on hand (not expensive) store overruns wouldn't be such a problem during times of panic. But this would require a radical cultural shift outside of urban areas. And unfortunately individualism I think has become a bit of a slur in many circles, a manifestation of the two party split among collectivism (leftist) and individualism (rightist).
sky_rw 7y ago
If this pandemic has exposed anything, it's that the WHO is a political entity woefully unequipped to handle any real scenario. The leadership has been seemingly downplaying this from day 1 and repeating talking points from the CCP. They are obviously trying to avoid causing panic in the financial markets, and putting that above actually informing world leaders and the public of the danger. See their recent release stating that they can't call this a pandemic because they conveniently don't have the criteria setup for that classification any more.
- soared 7y ago
  Or maybe... they are more equipped than anyone else and are taking the proper, measured actions?
  - sky_rw 7y ago
    The answer to your question is no.
gizmo686 7y ago
I don't see the contradiction. The WHO is talking about the current state. The CDC is talking about preparing for the future state. The other issue is that the WHO is being very conservative in their reports. They won't claim uncontained global spread until there is hard evidence. Before that point, however, there will be week evidence. If I recall correctly, several days ago, the WHO excplicitly warned that "the window for containment is closing". Even before then, I never recall them saying that containment was assured. Particuarly if the spread is occuring in areas with week health infastructure, or that are trying to supress the numbers.

allovernow 7y ago

The WHO is still using Chinese figures without any sort of disclaimer. The director of the WHO has been accused by the new York times of covering up multiple epidemics in how home country[1]. Hopefully this virus will upend the blind Faith that people recently have come to put into international establishments. 1. https://cloverchronicle.com/2020/01/30/world-health-organization-director-general-was-accused-of-covering-up-epidemics-in-2017/ https://cloverchronicle.com/2020/01/30/world-health-organiza...

hodgesrm 7y ago
Just checking but what concrete alternatives would you recommend to international organizations, imperfect though they may be?
- sky_rw 7y ago
  I would personally prefer to see a NATO based combination of the USA and EU CDC (does something like this exist?). The problem with these global organizations like the WHO and the UN is that they receive large funding from competing ideologies and interests. They end up rewarding beurocracies and politically motivated leaders. The CDC seems to be much less politically influenced and focused on their mission.
- allovernow 7y ago
  Personal reliance. Empowering people to take protective steps at their own discretion. If you encouraged your population to, say, keep a small stockpile of rice and beans on hand (not expensive) store overruns wouldn't be such a problem during times of panic. But this would require a radical cultural shift outside of urban areas. And unfortunately individualism I think has become a bit of a slur in many circles, a manifestation of the two party split among collectivism (leftist) and individualism (rightist).

sky_rw 7y ago

If this pandemic has exposed anything, it's that the WHO is a political entity woefully unequipped to handle any real scenario. The leadership has been seemingly downplaying this from day 1 and repeating talking points from the CCP. They are obviously trying to avoid causing panic in the financial markets, and putting that above actually informing world leaders and the public of the danger. See their recent release stating that they can't call this a pandemic because they conveniently don't have the criteria setup for that classification any more.

soared 7y ago
Or maybe... they are more equipped than anyone else and are taking the proper, measured actions?
- sky_rw 7y ago
  The answer to your question is no.

gizmo686 7y ago

I don't see the contradiction. The WHO is talking about the current state. The CDC is talking about preparing for the future state. The other issue is that the WHO is being very conservative in their reports. They won't claim uncontained global spread until there is hard evidence. Before that point, however, there will be week evidence. If I recall correctly, several days ago, the WHO excplicitly warned that "the window for containment is closing". Even before then, I never recall them saying that containment was assured. Particuarly if the spread is occuring in areas with week health infastructure, or that are trying to supress the numbers.