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But isn't that the point? They accepted more deaths up front, but over the long-run those countries should average out about the same per capita, while Sweden a

But isn't that the point? They accepted more deaths up front, but over the long-run those countries should average out about the same per capita, while Sweden avoided immediate negative social/economic impacts.

twic 6y ago
Perhaps. Hopefully! It's too early to know the final counts, though, which is why there is still scope for controversy.
tigershark 6y ago
South Korea avoided negative social/economic impact and has 5 deaths/M, so we know for certain that it’s not impossible.
- klmadfejno 6y ago
  South Korea was extraordinarily well prepared, and it is yet to see if they'll be able to keep this up with international travel resumed. I am extremely pessimistic about any country's ability to usefully maintain low infection rates while opening up international travel again. Sweden isn't close to being able to do this in terms of tech infrastructure or cultural mindset. (That being said, if anyone is going to do it successfully long term, it's going to be south korea)
  - qqssccfftt 6y ago
    > South Korea was extraordinarily well prepared As the western world could've been, too, but we just... weren't.
    - saalweachter 6y ago
      "It's not my fault I failed the exam, I didn't study!"
- rhino369 6y ago
  We actually don't know that. Korea has avoided it, for now. People were saying the same thing about Japan and Singapore. But both had outbreaks that flared up. They'll have to keep doing what is working until a vaccine occurs or the disease dies. But even if its possible to prevent an massive outbreak that doesn't mean its possible to undo a massive outbreak. Korea has prevented large scale community spread by testing and tracing. That has been a successful and preventing an outbreak. But nobody has ever successfully used it to remove a virus from a population after it was already widely in the population.
SomeoneFromCA 6y ago
That is blatantly not true. In the long term we'll have either a vaccine or antiviral drugs, and won't have that huge amount of unnecessary deaths.
- senderista 6y ago
  We won’t get either before lockdowns become infeasible to continue.
  - SomeoneFromCA 6y ago
    Lockdowns are not binary, you can have partial lockdowns.

twic 6y ago

Perhaps. Hopefully! It's too early to know the final counts, though, which is why there is still scope for controversy.

tigershark 6y ago

South Korea avoided negative social/economic impact and has 5 deaths/M, so we know for certain that it’s not impossible.

klmadfejno 6y ago
South Korea was extraordinarily well prepared, and it is yet to see if they'll be able to keep this up with international travel resumed. I am extremely pessimistic about any country's ability to usefully maintain low infection rates while opening up international travel again. Sweden isn't close to being able to do this in terms of tech infrastructure or cultural mindset. (That being said, if anyone is going to do it successfully long term, it's going to be south korea)
- qqssccfftt 6y ago
  > South Korea was extraordinarily well prepared As the western world could've been, too, but we just... weren't.
  - saalweachter 6y ago
    "It's not my fault I failed the exam, I didn't study!"
rhino369 6y ago
We actually don't know that. Korea has avoided it, for now. People were saying the same thing about Japan and Singapore. But both had outbreaks that flared up. They'll have to keep doing what is working until a vaccine occurs or the disease dies. But even if its possible to prevent an massive outbreak that doesn't mean its possible to undo a massive outbreak. Korea has prevented large scale community spread by testing and tracing. That has been a successful and preventing an outbreak. But nobody has ever successfully used it to remove a virus from a population after it was already widely in the population.

SomeoneFromCA 6y ago

That is blatantly not true. In the long term we'll have either a vaccine or antiviral drugs, and won't have that huge amount of unnecessary deaths.

senderista 6y ago
We won’t get either before lockdowns become infeasible to continue.
- SomeoneFromCA 6y ago
  Lockdowns are not binary, you can have partial lockdowns.