5 ms·

It's been 2 years. With the amount of people getting the virus, there is little talk of long-covid these days... Athletes, politicians have all gotten it and no

by 650 5y ago

It's been 2 years. With the amount of people getting the virus, there is little talk of long-covid these days... Athletes, politicians have all gotten it and none seem to be worried about `muh long covid`. Constant hygiene theatre eroding faith in institutions.

sudosysgen 5y ago
It's not about hygiene theater. It's about the government mismanaging the health system and degrading capacity, while leaving the educational system without any actual hygiene measures (no masks, no distancing, no ventilation, etc...) The entire testing and contact tracing infrastructure has crumbled. You have to wait 3+ hours to get a test, and you have a good chance of being sent back home. Meanwhile, there is an 81% chance that one of the two people next to you in line are positive, and there is not enough space for you to distance themselve from them. Now even the most optimistic projections are that within two weeks there will be a shortage of ICU beds, so a lockdown is required.
- Valgrim 5y ago
  They have to wait in line in freezing temperatures too. That might skew the numbers down a lot.
- nradov 5y ago
  Lockdowns are never required. Those are a political choice.
  - sudosysgen 5y ago
    The choice is to have a lockdown or no working healthcare system. That is technically a political choice
- sjg007 5y ago
  In the US the Feds and most local govt have left it up to the local communities which has been a disaster. Nobody wants to do the right thing.
- trinovantes 5y ago
  > 3+ hours to get a test Did you mean days or is it faster in Quebec? Where I am in Ontario, it takes 3 days to book a PCR test appointment. God forbid anyone who might be positive interact with other people in those 3 days.
  - Valgrim 5y ago
    3+ hours in line, in freezing temperatures, on the sidewalk. There is no booking system.
  - sudosysgen 5y ago
    It's three days to get the results or more sometimes. Three hours is just how long you wait in line
sjg007 5y ago
1 in 3 people get cancer and yet nobody thinks it will happen to them.
deburo 5y ago
Abd why can’t we test at home? Looking forward to pill treaments and cheap home tests. Vaccines weren’t enough it seems, odd that’s all we talked about in the media
- chillacy 5y ago
  You can test at home with rapid antigen tests, for something like $15 per test where I live in the US. You can also swab at home for PCR tests but by the time you mail it in, a few days will pass and it sort of defeats the purpose of doing a PCR test in the first place (early detection).
  - deburo 5y ago
    Oh, you made me google if there were in Quebec and finally they are being rolled out, starting from Dec. 20th. Took them long enough, but nice!
    - Valgrim 5y ago
      The rollout is a bit chaotic, but at least they're giving them away free of charge.
jollybean 5y ago
What kind of perspective does one have to take whereupon they blame 'institutions' for 'reality'? Have a look at the Quebec graph: [1] In just 7 days, Quebec has gone from 'mid-low' levels and hopeful for a normal Xmas with Delta 'mostly going away' ... ... to a massive spike, the most daily cases ever seen during this pandemic, absolutely no definitive evidence that Omicron is somehow less lethal, and of course knowing that thousands have died from this already, and aware of the likely consequences? Imagine having just a meagre bit of insight, knowing how those numbers relate to Hospital beds (they track that very closely), and that within just 1 more week, you're going to be totally overwhelmed? Imagine being person with actual responsibility like a Politician, Health Advisor, or even Dean, major CEO, Provincial/City Official knowing that your failure to act will probably cause death? It is what it is, we have to deal with it. Closing gyms and cinemas for a few weeks while Omicron crashes through (and FYI Xmas season where people tend to gather) is a relatively small price to pay. [1] https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/coronavirustracker/ https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/coronavirustracker/
- busymom0 5y ago
  > absolutely no definitive evidence that Omicron is somehow less lethal Pretty much all evidence coming out of South Africa is showing that omicron is very mild and hospitalizations are extremely rare.
  - jollybean 5y ago
    It is not definitive, it's anecdotal, among a totally different population (high rates of natural seropositivity, younger population, bad data). Oxford Study of early Omicron in UK shows it's no different than Delta, but they cautioned that data is limited. [1] The point is: while we might get lucky with Omicron, we don't have definitive data on it, ergo, we have to rely on our past experience with Alpha/Beta/Delta to inform policy. And FYI what is 'definitive' is that we are 100% sure that it is 'much more transmissible' by about 3x. If Omicron is 'as bad as Delta' - and - we knew it was 3x more transmissible - and we were not sure of it's legality - and the government didn't take decisive action, the resulting death would imply dereliction of duty on a criminal scale. There are 10x more people who are 'pro vaccine' than 'anti' and the 'protests' over needless death would be much worse. I am hopeful that Omicron will be less lethal but esp. with Xmas and 3x tranmissability, we have not choice but to take action. [1] https://www.research.ox.ac.uk/article/2021-12-14-omicron-and-vaccines-faq https://www.research.ox.ac.uk/article/2021-12-14-omicron-and...

by 650 5y ago

sudosysgen 5y ago

It's not about hygiene theater. It's about the government mismanaging the health system and degrading capacity, while leaving the educational system without any actual hygiene measures (no masks, no distancing, no ventilation, etc...) The entire testing and contact tracing infrastructure has crumbled. You have to wait 3+ hours to get a test, and you have a good chance of being sent back home. Meanwhile, there is an 81% chance that one of the two people next to you in line are positive, and there is not enough space for you to distance themselve from them. Now even the most optimistic projections are that within two weeks there will be a shortage of ICU beds, so a lockdown is required.

Valgrim 5y ago
They have to wait in line in freezing temperatures too. That might skew the numbers down a lot.
nradov 5y ago
Lockdowns are never required. Those are a political choice.
- sudosysgen 5y ago
  The choice is to have a lockdown or no working healthcare system. That is technically a political choice
sjg007 5y ago
In the US the Feds and most local govt have left it up to the local communities which has been a disaster. Nobody wants to do the right thing.
trinovantes 5y ago
> 3+ hours to get a test Did you mean days or is it faster in Quebec? Where I am in Ontario, it takes 3 days to book a PCR test appointment. God forbid anyone who might be positive interact with other people in those 3 days.
- Valgrim 5y ago
  3+ hours in line, in freezing temperatures, on the sidewalk. There is no booking system.
- sudosysgen 5y ago
  It's three days to get the results or more sometimes. Three hours is just how long you wait in line

sjg007 5y ago

1 in 3 people get cancer and yet nobody thinks it will happen to them.

deburo 5y ago

Abd why can’t we test at home? Looking forward to pill treaments and cheap home tests. Vaccines weren’t enough it seems, odd that’s all we talked about in the media

chillacy 5y ago
You can test at home with rapid antigen tests, for something like $15 per test where I live in the US. You can also swab at home for PCR tests but by the time you mail it in, a few days will pass and it sort of defeats the purpose of doing a PCR test in the first place (early detection).
- deburo 5y ago
  Oh, you made me google if there were in Quebec and finally they are being rolled out, starting from Dec. 20th. Took them long enough, but nice!
  - Valgrim 5y ago
    The rollout is a bit chaotic, but at least they're giving them away free of charge.

jollybean 5y ago

What kind of perspective does one have to take whereupon they blame 'institutions' for 'reality'? Have a look at the Quebec graph: [1] In just 7 days, Quebec has gone from 'mid-low' levels and hopeful for a normal Xmas with Delta 'mostly going away' ... ... to a massive spike, the most daily cases ever seen during this pandemic, absolutely no definitive evidence that Omicron is somehow less lethal, and of course knowing that thousands have died from this already, and aware of the likely consequences? Imagine having just a meagre bit of insight, knowing how those numbers relate to Hospital beds (they track that very closely), and that within just 1 more week, you're going to be totally overwhelmed? Imagine being person with actual responsibility like a Politician, Health Advisor, or even Dean, major CEO, Provincial/City Official knowing that your failure to act will probably cause death? It is what it is, we have to deal with it. Closing gyms and cinemas for a few weeks while Omicron crashes through (and FYI Xmas season where people tend to gather) is a relatively small price to pay. [1] https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/coronavirustracker/ https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/coronavirustracker/

busymom0 5y ago
> absolutely no definitive evidence that Omicron is somehow less lethal Pretty much all evidence coming out of South Africa is showing that omicron is very mild and hospitalizations are extremely rare.
- jollybean 5y ago
  It is not definitive, it's anecdotal, among a totally different population (high rates of natural seropositivity, younger population, bad data). Oxford Study of early Omicron in UK shows it's no different than Delta, but they cautioned that data is limited. [1] The point is: while we might get lucky with Omicron, we don't have definitive data on it, ergo, we have to rely on our past experience with Alpha/Beta/Delta to inform policy. And FYI what is 'definitive' is that we are 100% sure that it is 'much more transmissible' by about 3x. If Omicron is 'as bad as Delta' - and - we knew it was 3x more transmissible - and we were not sure of it's legality - and the government didn't take decisive action, the resulting death would imply dereliction of duty on a criminal scale. There are 10x more people who are 'pro vaccine' than 'anti' and the 'protests' over needless death would be much worse. I am hopeful that Omicron will be less lethal but esp. with Xmas and 3x tranmissability, we have not choice but to take action. [1] https://www.research.ox.ac.uk/article/2021-12-14-omicron-and-vaccines-faq https://www.research.ox.ac.uk/article/2021-12-14-omicron-and...