Pandemic: Life on the ground

[Res Ipsa]

in my opinion, Ed Yong has been one of the best journalists covering COVID-19. He just published his first piece on the Omicron variant.https://www.theatlantic.com/health/arch ... er/621027/ Based on what I'd read so far, I'm back in hunker down mode. It looks like I'll be that way for the next couple of months.

Chap, I'm seeing some scary looking graphs from your neck of the woods. How are things looking to you?

I have been following both the U.S. and the U.K. re:Omicron. I haven't read the above article yet, but I'm reading elsewhere that Omicron doesn't produce as severe symptoms as Delta. I'm sick of even thinking about all of this as I am sure everyone here is as well.

That said, I'm happy to report that where our family here had a couple of vaccine hesitant members, ALL adults are now vaxxed.

Thanks for the new article, RI. I'll read it later tonight.

You’re welcome. Yeah, I’m sick of thinking about it too. Congrats on having a fully vaxxed family.

[Doctor CamNC4Me]

I’m starting to wonder if traveling to the east coast is a bad idea because of the exponential spread of the omicron variant. We bought tix for ourselves, my kid and her bf, and our niece and her daughter to travel to VA on the 23rd - and my niece’s kid is healthy, but I’m told she’s immunocompromised - I don’t totally know what that means for her specifically. I don’t believe the little one is vaxxed (she’s under 3 y.o.). Anyway, I just read this article:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/we ... ar-AARURN8

and I can’t figure out from googling if we’re being irresponsible bringing her along. Anyone have an opinion on omicron that isn’t antivaxxer-levels of retarded?

- Doc

[Gunnar]

It's sad that there are still so many people who reject the strongly supported evidence-based advice of medical science that shows the effectiveness of vaccination and masking in reducing the chances of getting covid, especially serious enough cases that result in hospitalization and death. I'm glad that I and my family, including my scattered children and their immediate families are all fully vaccinated and boosted, with the exception of my oldest daughter's husband who, along with his mother, have had a lifelong history of severe reactions to vaccinations in general. I wish there was an effective and reliable way to convince all anti-vaxxers of the foolishness of regarding this as a conservative vs. progressive issue or a Democrat vs. Republican issue instead of the sound science and public health issue it really is.

[Gunnar]

Here's today's article by Ed Young explaining why he canceled his 40th birthday party. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/arch ... on/621041/

Hyperindividualism is morally bankrupt. I hope that's a lesson we learn from the pandemic.

Great article, and I agree that hyperindiidualism is morally bankrupt, and inherently selfish.

[Jersey Girl]

I’m starting to wonder if traveling to the east coast is a bad idea because of the exponential spread of the omicron variant. We bought tix for ourselves, my kid and her bf, and our niece and her daughter to travel to VA on the 23rd - and my niece’s kid is healthy, but I’m told she’s immunocompromised - I don’t totally know what that means for her specifically. I don’t believe the little one is vaxxed (she’s under 3 y.o.). Anyway, I just read this article:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/we ... ar-AARURN8

and I can’t figure out from googling if we’re being irresponsible bringing her along. Anyone have an opinion on omicron that isn’t antivaxxer-levels of retarded?

- Doc

Cam...ask your niece what she prefers for herself and her child. Let her make the decision. You will be showing utmost respect to her as a parent.

[ajax18]

I’m starting to wonder if traveling to the east coast is a bad idea because of the exponential spread of the omicron variant.

As Governor McAullife and Governor Cuomo promised early on, if we just lock down, mask up, and get everyone vaccinated you'll be able to keep your travel plans in 2022 thanks to harsh lockdown measures early on in the pandemic. Thanks to strong Democrat leadership and vaccine mandates, Virginia and New York are not suffering from the COVID plague as Florida, the Carolinas, and those stupid redneck inbreds from West Virginia.

We bought tix for ourselves, my kid and her bf, and our niece and her daughter to travel to Virginia on the 23rd - and my niece’s kid is healthy, but I’m told she’s immunocompromised - I don’t totally know what that means for her specifically. I don’t believe the little one is vaxxed (she’s under 3 y.o.). Anyway, I just read this article:

You better get that 3 yoa vaxxed stat. She won't be allowed into a McDonald's without proof of vaccination. And while her chances of dying from COVID are less than getting struck by lightning, she could still get common cold like symptoms. And that's something that is certainly worth cancelling your trip over, not just now but for every variant that comes over the next 50 years over your natural life. Better to practice socialist distancing guidelines evermore, and demonstrate real submission, contrition, and obseisance to your elected officials that know better than you do, else you too could be the reason that some vaccinated person got COVID and got the sniffles as a result.

ETA: With all the political capital invested into the lockdown narrative and the no cost is too great to keep grandma alive another couple years mantra, your dreams of universal healthcare depend on your obedience to socialist distancing guidelines and above all your continued support of the media narrative. Omicron is real and one death is too many, not to mention the large number of people who have been left permanently disabled due to COVID as the media warned us early on in their impeccably accurate and unbiased scientific models.

[Res Ipsa]

I’m starting to wonder if traveling to the east coast is a bad idea because of the exponential spread of the omicron variant. We bought tix for ourselves, my kid and her bf, and our niece and her daughter to travel to Virginia on the 23rd - and my niece’s kid is healthy, but I’m told she’s immunocompromised - I don’t totally know what that means for her specifically. I don’t believe the little one is vaxxed (she’s under 3 y.o.). Anyway, I just read this article:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/we ... ar-AARURN8

and I can’t figure out from googling if we’re being irresponsible bringing her along. Anyone have an opinion on omicron that isn’t antivaxxer-levels of retarded?

- Doc

Cam...ask your niece what she prefers for herself and her child. Let her make the decision. You will be showing utmost respect to her as a parent.

For your niece’s daughter, I agree with Jersey.

[Jersey Girl]

Cam...ask your niece what she prefers for herself and her child. Let her make the decision. You will be showing utmost respect to her as a parent.

For your niece’s daughter, I agree with Jersey.

I got skilz.

[Res Ipsa]

For your niece’s daughter, I agree with Jersey.

I got skilz.

Werd.

[Gadianton]

I've been following this bloke from Chap's side of the pond for a while now, and he's become my go-to source for daily updates on Omicron.

Any position includes a good deal of speculation at this point, for Omicron, but add "kid" plus "immunocompromised", and ???

The hottest point of contention over Omicron is whether Omicron is milder or not. It spreads fast, R0 is 3-5. We are probably a few weeks away from it being dominant in US, but if you're out and doing things even vaccinated and with a mask, be prepared to get it.

The mild symptoms could be because its milder, or it could be because so many people in SA have already had Covid that they have some natural immunity. The emerging UK data indicates that it's milder for vaccinated people also.

That hot contention point is hot in part because the debate over severity is partially driven by presuppositions about how viruses evolve, and not just what the data is. Some experts say that they expect the virus to spread faster and get less severe until it goes endemic as a seasonal cold. Some say that's just not true, and several other possibilities are on the table. I think the first group is fundamentally right, and that the doomers are really pointing out the virus doesn't have to follow a nice clean path to that end result. It could get better, then suddenly get worse again and stay bad for a long time. One of the worst possibilities is if two variants of concern get inside the same person and switch up fragments.

In general, if the virus is killing people or making people extremely ill, then it's not getting out there and spreading. And the odds are worse for the more deadly variant even inside the same person, because triggering an immune response isn't a good survival strategy -- the less virulent strain will tend to win.