Coronavirus Sars-CoV-2/Covid-19 Megathread

[Sheilbh]

Who knew?!

Thanks

[The Brain]

Baffling anti-vaxx protest this morning in London. They gathered around central-ish London to press the button at pelican crossings just constantly for an hour. I assume the theory was that this would bring traffic to a halt - or something. I really don't understand what they were trying to do.

Jesus Christ.

[alfred russel]

Maybe the protest is super deep somehow, like there is some meta point that they are the control group for the covid vaccines, and have social value just like the placebo traffic control buttons?

[DGuller]

Is it possible that they're just dumbasses, and that what they're doing isn't going to make a ton of sense?  Just exploring all the possibilities here...

[Jacob]

Baffling anti-vaxx protest this morning in London. They gathered around central-ish London to press the button at pelican crossings just constantly for an hour. I assume the theory was that this would bring traffic to a halt - or something. I really don't understand what they were trying to do.

Unfortunately those buttons (unlike the vaccines) are infamous placebos. They don't do anything. The traffic lights are set to fixed timed settings for each light. The button just gives something for pedestrians to do and feel like they're a little bit in control. So the effect of the protest was absolutely nothing

Edit: The saddest thing is, I suspect these are their best people coming up with these ideas

[The Brain]

We laugh, but these people are truly free. Untroubled by doubt or intelligence, impervious to reason, and unable to feel shame. We see liberated minds and call them complete idiots.

[The Minsky Moment]

Re the Bangladesh mask study:

The study was NOT measuring the reduction in COVID incidence in individuals who wear masks.  Which makes sense b/c the presumed benefit from mask wearing is not really the benefit to the wearer, but the community benefit from decreasing spread.

The study randomly assigned villages to control and treatment groups.  The treatment groups received a series of intervention, consisting of: provision of free masks, presentations about their value and effectiveness, and role modeling their usage from community leaders.

Although the treatment villages experienced (3x) higher mask usage, overall usage in public areas was still less than 50%.  Despite that far less than perfect adoption, there was a very clear benefit to the at risk population in terms of case reduction.

In context, the results indicate masks can be very effective in reducing COVID incidence among the highest risk population. 

I would also note in response to AR that masks are not an alternative to vaccination, although in places like Bangladesh with limited access to effective vaccines, they may alternatives by default.  Vaccination plus wearing of masks in indoor public areas is complementary and increases the overall effectiveness in controlling spread and reducing the reproduction rate below 1.  The inability of large numbers of public officials to grasp (or admit their grasp of) this basic fact explains why the United States is suffering increasing numbers of virus cases and death when it could very easily have virtually eliminated the virus from the country at this point. 

[alfred russel]

I would also note in response to AR that masks are not an alternative to vaccination, although in places like Bangladesh with limited access to effective vaccines, they may alternatives by default.  Vaccination plus wearing of masks in indoor public areas is complementary and increases the overall effectiveness in controlling spread and reducing the reproduction rate below 1.  The inability of large numbers of public officials to grasp (or admit their grasp of) this basic fact explains why the United States is suffering increasing numbers of virus cases and death when it could very easily have virtually eliminated the virus from the country at this point.

Covid is here to stay--do you want permanent mask mandates which will be ignored in any case? Almost all the serious cases of covid are among vaccine eligible portions of the population that haven't been vaccinated. That is the problem, not the absence of people wearing masks.

[The Minsky Moment]

Covid is here to stay

Yes.  But only because 40% of the population deems it an affront to their way of life to follow simple and costless measures to protect themselves and others.

[alfred russel]

Covid is here to stay

Yes.  But only because 40% of the population deems it an affront to their way of life to follow simple and costless measures to protect themselves and others.

There are 7 billion people in the world. Even if every American was to get vaccinated, the disease wouldn't going away in the rest of the world and will continue to evolve into new variants. Those won't be kept out of the country. Americans will continue to need to get booster shots and the most likely outcome is that as variants multiply some will beat vaccines and this is going to end up similar to the situation we have with the flu. Hopefully it will evolve into something less serious (as diseases typically do), but there are no guarantees.

[Grey Fox]

AR, do you lack patience in all aspect of your life?

[The Minsky Moment]

If the population behaved rationally, the reproduction rate of the virus could be driven down sufficiently low that it would become effectively a non-issue for the US. 

There would still be a risk of the vaccine resistant variant cropping up.  There is also the risk of completely different disease.  There are lots of risks in the world, but when you have one that has materialized and exists NOW and has killed more Americans than every war it has fought since the Civil War combined, that is the risk to focus on.

You are right that in a hypothetical world where 100% of the eligible population was vaccinated, masks would be superfluous.  But we don't live in that world - we live in the world where 40% of the population has decided to exercise their right to sabotage the health of the country.  In that world, masks are a critical adjunct to an effective public health strategy and - if the Bangladesh study results are accurate - play a crucial role in slowing the spread of the disease.

If you don't like masks, convince the 40% to get their heads out of their asses.  Until then, its a choice between masks and a bunch more dead Americans.

[alfred russel]

AR, do you lack patience in all aspect of your life?

I haven't been to work in a year and a half. At what point would a patient person start to complain?

[Eddie Teach]

AR, do you lack patience in all aspect of your life?

I haven't been to work in a year and a half. At what point would a patient person start to complain?

About not having to go to the office, never.

[alfred russel]

If the population behaved rationally, the reproduction rate of the virus could be driven down sufficiently low that it would become effectively a non-issue for the US. 

There would still be a risk of the vaccine resistant variant cropping up.  There is also the risk of completely different disease.  There are lots of risks in the world, but when you have one that has materialized and exists NOW and has killed more Americans than every war it has fought since the Civil War combined, that is the risk to focus on.

You are right that in a hypothetical world where 100% of the eligible population was vaccinated, masks would be superfluous.  But we don't live in that world - we live in the world where 40% of the population has decided to exercise their right to sabotage the health of the country.  In that world, masks are a critical adjunct to an effective public health strategy and - if the Bangladesh study results are accurate - play a crucial role in slowing the spread of the disease.

If you don't like masks, convince the 40% to get their heads out of their asses.  Until then, its a choice between masks and a bunch more dead Americans.

I 100% don't care about a bunch more dead americans that are dumb enough not to get vaccinated. I think it is ludicrous to expect rational society to inconvenience itself in any way because people refuse to get a painless and minor shot.