SARS-COV-2/COV-19 – UPDATE
Friday March 20, 2020
The Coronavirus is now affecting 185 countries and territories.
(9 countries shy of the entire planet) – let that sink in.
Infected Cases: 274,078
Deaths: 11,352
(We should all by now know the more realistic numbers, as there have been numerous scientific models done. So you can add X20 to get a more realistic number so it’s more like 5 million infected cases worldwide).
People’s lives are going to change for a longtime. It has already for many people around the world in the blink of an eye especially in Europe as it’s now the epicenter. I myself who has known about the impending PANDEMIC 10 weeks ago started preparing myself both mentally and physically and tried to let my close friends know, that I knew would listen to me. But I’m also having to kick start my own brain each day as the situation becomes more dire. Each day for us is a new reality and the outlook seems very dark and very sobering. Remember the virus will go away when it’s ready to, but until that time every country in fact the entire world must unite as one to eradicate this very virulent foe in COVID-19.
Yesterday for example Charlotte and I drove my Father to the Costco Wholesaler here in Florida. I didn’t really want to go after seeing the ridiculous news footage of the insane lines and people fighting over items. We felt another alternative would be better. Anyway with N95 masks and nitrile gloves on we decided to drive by and see if the lines were doable. This was around 3pm and the line wasn’t bad, there was one Police 4X4 outside the front of the store with his lights flashing. My Dad showed his Costco ID and as we got to the front of the line we were given a paper towel because the staff were spraying each shopping cart handles with disinfectant. There also was a good amount of store security outside as well making announcements letting us know that they were out of bleach and all cleaning supplies. Thankfully inside the traffic of people was minimal as they were only allowing small amounts of people at a time. As people left the store they would then allow a few more into the store. Some people were wearing masks and gloves but a lot weren’t and simply there’s no supply here in Florida but then that’s all over the country. My Aunt is a Doctor here and she also said even the medical offices are on very low supply as well as the hospitals which some don’t have any! – Let that sink in for a long while - not even the hospitals have the right equipment like basic masks!
Afterwards we went to a Super Walmart to see if they had bleach and cleaning supplies also nothing and many empty shelves and once again same exact process with the shopping carts. Though I asked the women greeter who was shuffling the carts to people why she wasn’t wearing a mask? She replied, “I was a nurse for 30 years we don’t need to wear masks as it’s just a viral flu”. I kid you not. I just walked away dumbfounded. Remember people this is Not The Flu and it’s not SARS 2002-2003. We only recently arrived here in Florida but have been cleaning and disinfecting the home for my Father and trying to organize the place for him. He’s handling it well as long as he has his food especially croissants, he’s happy.J
So where are we right now?
This is the very early stage of the PANDEMIC and we are all struggling together. For many it hasn’t hit but it will; it’s inevitable. Italy now has more infected cases and deaths than China. WHO urges urgent aggressive action as cases start to soar in S.E Asia. Cases in China today though 39 though back flow of people returning to China who were infected. (Many people don’t believe their cases just went away but be it as it may we have to hope that this is the truth)? Taiwan 135 new cases, they have been extremely proactive in locking down the entire country. Government has been very vigilant utilizing stringent quarantining measures. Thailand sadly numbers are increasing. So when not to long ago media and certain leaders were saying it will go away in the summer months as the temperature increases it will “magically just go away”. Sorry to disappoint. I’ve known for a while because Wuhan, China had its first case December 8th, 2019 and its very cold but in Southern China where the climate is warm that time of year also had cases. Very hot and humid climates like Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and now Africa, cases are spreading very quickly. Africa has always been a very big worry because of poor nutrition and many health challenges and lets not forget the large cases of HIV (roughly 24 million in all of Africa).
South Korea has seen a big decline in new cases with only 87 today, but they have been the most proactive country with hundreds of thousands being tested, contact tracing, complete lockdowns, quarantining and mobile data to track at risk individuals, as has both Israel and Taiwan and this has been working. Though some new clusters have formed around the capital city of Seoul.
USA – Every state is now affected. Closure of land border with Canada. Two military hospital ships are going to be deployed. President Trump has now declared he’s a “wartime President”. As we all know the U.S is a very large country by land mass so depending where you are some areas are about 1-2 weeks behind Italy and then 2-3 weeks and so on. Here in Florida people are still congregating and partying at the beach. Trump made an announcement telling them off. Bloody Laughable. They should be all removed from the beach forcefully with Police or even Military Force. But hey that’s just me. (In Italy 8,000 people and 5,000 in France were fined for not obeying the lock down rule). Many gun stores here in U.S cannot stock ammunition supplies fast enough. Just for curiosity I called a number of Gun stores here in Florida to inquire and a lot of different types of ammo including 9mm are sold out!
THIS IS VERY ALARMING AND CERTAINLY A CAUSE FOR CONCERN!!!
Now if this is making you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, the best is yet to come. The Imperial College of London, England (public research University and one of the most prestigious in the world). Dr. Neil Ferguson OBE is a British epidemiologist and a Professor of mathematical biology who specializes in infectious diseases spread in both humans and animals. He stated today that “flattening the curve” is not enough and without drastic interventions (complete lockdowns of the entire nation, mass transit, all air travel both international and domestic), his model predicted that there will be 2.2 million deaths here in the U.S. Now let that sink in if you possibly can?
Life is now changed. Forever. What was is not coming back. We have a new future in front of us and the sooner we can wrap our hearts and minds around it the sooner the better we will be able to adjust. It didn't really need to be this way.Not at all We could've been smart, thoughtful, logical, compassionate a long time ago but that's not the direction my country has taken.
At some point things will improve – but our lives are going to drastically change I believe for at least a year or more. To be continued…
As always stay safe and healthy. Stay strong, serene and smart. Always Be A Hard Target. My prayers go out to the world. We all must be united.