COVID-19 Megathread 6: Return of the Omicron

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Anyway if BA.2 started in Denmark then it's worth noting that Denmark recently lifted all Covid restrictions. So....

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

And that's their prerogative. Just like they can tell you to wear gloves, a hair net, a long sleeve shirt, or anything else that some might hate wearing all day.

We've argued enough about this already. I've said repeatedly that the Spanish Flu did not bring about permanent mask mandates. Why should there be?

If the CDC doesn't drop the general indoor mask recommendation for vaxxed next week, or if most businesses don't follow suit if they do drop it, I might be more sympathetic to this viewpoint. Right now, I just don't see permanent masking becoming a thing.

I wish I could share your optimism. Even after the CDC modifies their recommendations, there will be some segments of society, and some quarters of the century, that will cling to these mandates. And the CDC Director herself implied that "mitigating practices would return" if there is another surge in cases or a new variant of concern arises.

If there is another surge in cases and hospitalizations or another variant, mask mandates would absolutely called for as a low cost, low effort, moderately effective mitigation. Your rhetoric sounds good now with the virus in retreat but not all of us are so short-sighted, especially with BA.2 right around the corner possibly to wreck your world in the near future.

It's clear to me that you are a member of that class of society that actively wants for this pandemic to continue, and who doesn't want to return to pre-pandemic life. You actively want for there to be more cases and deaths, and for the restrictions to be sustained indefinitely. Again, we should not be spending the next seventy years living in pandemic mode.

He's a CCP lackey, his entire existence on this forum is to try to scare and demoralize Americans. Nothing else.

I've certainly come to the viewpoint that he belongs to Camp#1, of the camps identified by ExtremeRepublican. He is very much in favor of restrictions, and is particularly fond of mask mandates. But for some strange reason, he opposes vaccine mandates.

That's untrue. I'm not in favor of restricting or shutting down businesses or putting people out of work because "money printer go brrrr" is not a legitimate economic strategy and I'm not interested in paying more taxes or suffering more inflation to support them. I support vaccine mandates but I'm not going to support them vigorously because I think the arguments against have merit, unlike with mask mandates where I think the arguments against have no merit.

There's no valid argument against the vaccine unless you honestly think Joe Rogan and Alex Jones are valid sources of medical information.

[BlueSwan]

Anyway if BA.2 started in Denmark then it's worth noting that Denmark recently lifted all Covid restrictions. So....

Things are good here in Denmark. Not much reason to be concerned about BA.2 as of yet.

So we still have super high infection rates (about 20% of the population have been infected just since christmas) but people just don't get very sick. There's only roughly 30 people in intensive care (and much fewer because of covid) despite 40k+ people getting infected per day. The death rates are highly misleading in that these are almost all people who are dying WITH covid rather than because of covid. Hospitalization rates are also misleading in that less than 50% are getting admitted because of covid, they just happen to also have covid.

Believe me, our government and health authorities have generally been VERY cautious and highly restrictive throughout this pandemic. We wouldn't have lifted all restrictions if we weren't very sure that it's the right approach now.

[Vaccinated Russian Bear]

Denmark was very good. They reopened schools for kids  as soon as April 15 2020, probably first in the [Western] world! And I believe, they kept schools mostly open since then?

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-denmark-reopening-idUSKBN2341N7
Reopening schools in Denmark did not worsen outbreak, data shows

Following a one-month lockdown, Denmark allowed children between two to 12 years back in day cares and schools on April 15. Based on five weeks’ worth of data, health authorities are now for the first time saying the move did not make the virus proliferate.

[T'Chenka]

Americans Are Still Living With a 2020 Attitude Toward COVID-19 Risk. It's Time for That to Change

The attitude will change when scientists start coming out and CONFIDENTLY saying that the pandemic is over and that it's endemic. For the 95th thousandth time, North American right wingers believe in something when it fits their narrative and then suddenly are against it when it doesn't suit them. People that don't actually advocate for concepts and ideas and only support their "team' don't deserve to be taken seriously in political discourse.

[compucomp]

And that's their prerogative. Just like they can tell you to wear gloves, a hair net, a long sleeve shirt, or anything else that some might hate wearing all day.

We've argued enough about this already. I've said repeatedly that the Spanish Flu did not bring about permanent mask mandates. Why should there be?

If the CDC doesn't drop the general indoor mask recommendation for vaxxed next week, or if most businesses don't follow suit if they do drop it, I might be more sympathetic to this viewpoint. Right now, I just don't see permanent masking becoming a thing.

I wish I could share your optimism. Even after the CDC modifies their recommendations, there will be some segments of society, and some quarters of the century, that will cling to these mandates. And the CDC Director herself implied that "mitigating practices would return" if there is another surge in cases or a new variant of concern arises.

If there is another surge in cases and hospitalizations or another variant, mask mandates would absolutely called for as a low cost, low effort, moderately effective mitigation. Your rhetoric sounds good now with the virus in retreat but not all of us are so short-sighted, especially with BA.2 right around the corner possibly to wreck your world in the near future.

It's clear to me that you are a member of that class of society that actively wants for this pandemic to continue, and who doesn't want to return to pre-pandemic life. You actively want for there to be more cases and deaths, and for the restrictions to be sustained indefinitely. Again, we should not be spending the next seventy years living in pandemic mode.

He's a CCP lackey, his entire existence on this forum is to try to scare and demoralize Americans. Nothing else.

I've certainly come to the viewpoint that he belongs to Camp#1, of the camps identified by ExtremeRepublican. He is very much in favor of restrictions, and is particularly fond of mask mandates. But for some strange reason, he opposes vaccine mandates.

That's untrue. I'm not in favor of restricting or shutting down businesses or putting people out of work because "money printer go brrrr" is not a legitimate economic strategy and I'm not interested in paying more taxes or suffering more inflation to support them. I support vaccine mandates but I'm not going to support them vigorously because I think the arguments against have merit, unlike with mask mandates where I think the arguments against have no merit.

There's no valid argument against the vaccine unless you honestly think Joe Rogan and Alex Jones are valid sources of medical information.

Arguments against vaccine mandates that I think have merit:

1. It requires people to get an injection that causes COVID for a day and possibly repeat this process every 6 months. This is a far greater imposition than to ask someone to put on a mask, an additional piece of clothing.

2. To enforce it requires the vaccine card, health code, Excelsior Pass, etc, which is a new form of government ID and would need to be checked everywhere. This is "papers please" that is generally disliked in Western society. In contrast, a mask mandate requires no such thing and is enforced by looking at people's faces.

3. To compensate for forcing 1 and 2 on everyone, we would hope to gain that the vaccine will stop transmission of the virus, which was once mostly true but was ruined by Delta and Omicron.

I would still argue that vaccine mandates are worth the costs but I have to concede there are real costs on society for a vaccine mandate, unlike for mask mandates where the costs are negligible in comparison.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I'm sure this will be no surprise to anyone here, but it's something to cite to those who ask "how do we REALLY know Ivermectin isn't effective against COVID?"

https://twitter.com/AnaCabrera/status/1494716791951613960

[It’s so Joever]

My school still has a mask mandate.   We got an email from the President earlier this week saying it -might- be repealed “in the next several weeks”.

If it makes you feel any better, my school mandates n95s or kn95s and requires you to leave the room during class if you want a drink of water. No sign of it being lifted or even loosened anytime soon.

Tbh I predicted the rule would prove to fail (not be enforced or followed) in a couple weeks, I’m honestly surprised it is still here.

[Calthrina950]

My school still has a mask mandate.   We got an email from the President earlier this week saying it -might- be repealed “in the next several weeks”.

If it makes you feel any better, my school mandates n95s or kn95s and requires you to leave the room during class if you want a drink of water. No sign of it being lifted or even loosened anytime soon.

Tbh I predicted the rule would prove to fail (not be enforced or followed) in a couple weeks, I’m honestly surprised it is still here.

As I've said, many of these businesses and schools are dragging their feet, or waiting upon the CDC to act. We'll have to wait for the CDC to modify their recommendations before we see many of these remaining mask mandates drop away.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

I'm sure this will be no surprise to anyone here, but it's something to cite to those who ask "how do we REALLY know Ivermectin isn't effective against COVID?"

https://twitter.com/AnaCabrera/status/1494716791951613960

One purely hypothetical suggestion I've seen is that Ivermectin is effective against parasites, and that parasites (via various synergistic effects) make COVID worse. In which case Ivermectin would generate better outcomes re: COVID infections... for people with parasites.

[Hammy]

1. It requires people to get an injection that causes COVID for a day and possibly repeat this process every 6 months. This is a far greater imposition than to ask someone to put on a mask, an additional piece of clothing.

The vaccine literally does not "cause COVID for a day" or any other length of time, as there is no part of the actual virus in the vaccine, but instead uses pieces of the spike protein that bridges to allow the actual viral infection.

[compucomp]

1. It requires people to get an injection that causes COVID for a day and possibly repeat this process every 6 months. This is a far greater imposition than to ask someone to put on a mask, an additional piece of clothing.

The vaccine literally does not "cause COVID for a day" or any other length of time, as there is no part of the actual virus in the vaccine, but instead uses pieces of the spike protein that bridges to allow the actual viral infection.

You know what I mean, the side effects of this vaccine are far beyond any other vaccine I've taken, I needed to take time off work for the fever and chills, and this is a common reaction. Now I willingly tolerated this three times but wearing a mask never made me feel so ill I had to go to bed.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

https://twitter.com/JoePajak/status/1494670238578884614

[jamestroll]

Isn't it funny that a lot of the statements Trump made in 2020.. make a lot of sense in the Omicron era

SLOW THE TESTING DOWN

ITS JUST LIKE THE FLU

ITS JUST THE SNIFFLES

IT WILL ONE DAY DISAPPEAR

haha

So, what's your explanation for all the dead bodies?

Based on my convos with him, he doesn't have rational counter-arguments. He just WILL NOT accept COVID measures any longer, period, under any context. Whatever the implications of that are, it's irrelevant to him. The ends justify the means.

So, he's just mentally incapable?  There is quite a bit of that here.

Ehh, I wouldn't go that far. He's just a libertarian, and he thinks freedom is more important than saving lives.

I am not a libertarian.

Libertarians oppose public roads..

Libertarians oppose taxes and the only tax they would support are flat dollar amount taxes.

Libertarians would oppose any oppose criminal statues and let people do anything they want.

Libertarians would oppose any business regulations.

Libertarians do not seem to acknowledge that actions of other people can affect others. It is too idealistic and unrealistic when used as an extreme. I obviously favor maximum freedom but it should be realized that irresponsible acts of others can hurt society as a whole.

We can't expect everyone to hire to their own private security and be responsible for their own fires.

[jamestroll]

https://twitter.com/JoePajak/status/1494670238578884614

I recovered from Covid in December. I have none of that.

Long Covid is just propaganda.

People will pull up anything they can to get Biden to send everyone 2,000 dollar checks until covid is eradicated off earth.

[Hammy]

https://twitter.com/JoePajak/status/1494670238578884614

I recovered from Covid in December. I have none of that.

Long Covid is just propaganda.

People will pull up anything they can to get Biden to send everyone 2,000 dollar checks until covid is eradicated off earth.

Half the stuff on that list I had beforehand. It's worth asking how many people might have ended up with anxiety as a result of the pandemic itself and got worse when they got covid (worrying about the outcome. Anxiety can make you hyperaware of things you may have paid little attention to otherwise.

[GM Team Member and Deputy PPT WB]

https://twitter.com/sailorrooscout/status/1493248016379265029?s=20&t=ku1Kv5F...

https://twitter.com/sailorrooscout/status/1494697600091631633?s=20&t=ku1Kv5F...

[GeorgiaModerate]

I recovered from Covid in December. I have none of that.

Long Covid is just propaganda.

"That didn't affect me, therefore it doesn't exist."

Rather self-centered view of the world you have there.

[jamestroll]

I recovered from Covid in December. I have none of that.

Long Covid is just propaganda.

"That didn't affect me, therefore it doesn't exist."

Rather self-centered view of the world you have there.

Read Hammy's reply to me and then you will ne enlightened.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I recovered from Covid in December. I have none of that.

Long Covid is just propaganda.

"That didn't affect me, therefore it doesn't exist."

Rather self-centered view of the world you have there.

Read Hammy's reply to me and then you will ne enlightened.

I did.  His reply in no way alters the fact that you are dismissing something as propaganda on the sole basis that you were not personally affected by it.

[T'Chenka]

I am not a libertarian.

Libertarians oppose public roads..

Libertarians oppose taxes and the only tax they would support are flat dollar amount taxes.

Libertarians would oppose any oppose criminal statues and let people do anything they want.

Libertarians would oppose any business regulations.

Libertarians do not seem to acknowledge that actions of other people can affect others. It is too idealistic and unrealistic when used as an extreme. I obviously favor maximum freedom but it should be realized that irresponsible acts of others can hurt society as a whole.

We can't expect everyone to hire to their own private security and be responsible for their own fires.

You're a COVID libertarian. Maybe not otherwise.

[DINGO Joe]

Whatever glitch TX had in reporting deaths to the CDC has been in glitched and January 2022 is officially the 3rd highest month for deaths for the entire pandemic

[BlueSwan]

Denmark was very good. They reopened schools for kids  as soon as April 15 2020, probably first in the [Western] world! And I believe, they kept schools mostly open since then?

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-denmark-reopening-idUSKBN2341N7
Reopening schools in Denmark did not worsen outbreak, data shows

Following a one-month lockdown, Denmark allowed children between two to 12 years back in day cares and schools on April 15. Based on five weeks’ worth of data, health authorities are now for the first time saying the move did not make the virus proliferate.

Not quite.

Schools closed down again december 2020 and didn’t reopen until spring 2021. Then they also closed down just a few days before christmas 2021 because of the huge omicron surge until we figured out that omicron was really a blessing in disguise and the key to ending the pandemic.

[jamestroll]

It has now been 6 weeks since we were promised mass deaths in chicago public schools if school was held in person.

[100% pro-life no matter what]

https://twitter.com/JoePajak/status/1494670238578884614

I recovered from Covid in December. I have none of that.

Long Covid is just propaganda.

People will pull up anything they can to get Biden to send everyone 2,000 dollar checks until covid is eradicated off earth.

Half the stuff on that list I had beforehand. It's worth asking how many people might have ended up with anxiety as a result of the pandemic itself and got worse when they got covid (worrying about the outcome. Anxiety can make you hyperaware of things you may have paid little attention to otherwise.

There was a study that found that the only statistically-significant correlation between covid infection and later symptoms was loss of smell.  And that's very uncommon with Omicron.  The rest of the "long covid" stuff is a faulty correlation of either people blaming covid for something (like fatigue) that maybe they mildly had anyway or even purely psychological due to an expectation of that symptom.