[Mick]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/worl...659696002/

It's one thing to have East Asian countries or island countries such as New Zealand do better than the US in fighting COVID, but Senegal?

"You see Senegal moving out on all fronts: following science, acting quickly, working the communication side of the equation, and then thinking about innovation," said Judd Devermont, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan foreign policy think tank.

But at least the US is ahead of... Indonesia, Turkey, Mexico, and Iran.

Shannon Underwood, an immigration lawyer from Seattle who moved to Senegal with her family two years ago, said the government's response has been impressive, if not perfect. Underwood said it's been "bizarre" to watch the U.S. response from afar, adding that she would much rather be living in Dakar. 
"There hasn't been a moment where my family was thinking, 'Oh, we should have evacuated. We always felt being here was the better choice," Underwood said. 
Her Senegalese friends are flabbergasted that Americans are arguing over whether to wear masks and that some are questioning the severity of the virus.

How embarrassing for us, to be beaten by a "s**t-hole" country.

BC

Well one thing Senegal (and other "s**t-hole" countries) may have going for them is that they take personal responsibility and community seriously. Too bad they can't be all about the american exceptionalism of getting yours while letting others suffer.

I think you have a perfect storm in America.  All the things you mention...lack of personal responsibility, not taking community seriously, getting yours while letting others suffer; coupled with a few other conditions, including:

- A prevalence of comorbidities not seen in any other country; e.g., rich country problems like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, etc.
- A view of individual taking precedence over the group.  We're the only country that reveres cowboys; other countries use the term as a pejorative.
- Ironically, better late-life medical support than most other countries.  We have an old, sick, fat populace.  Not good during COVID-19.
- Open borders.  COVID-19 didn't start here.
- Bad, bad, awful president and other politicians who mucked it up from day one.  Which reflects the prior administration's poor performance during the previous pandemic which infected 60 million people, to which their own medical leader stated that they were just lucky that the mortality rates weren't as high.

Yes, we will get what we deserve.
-

[Mick]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/worl...659696002/

It's one thing to have East Asian countries or island countries such as New Zealand do better than the US in fighting COVID, but Senegal?

"You see Senegal moving out on all fronts: following science, acting quickly, working the communication side of the equation, and then thinking about innovation," said Judd Devermont, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan foreign policy think tank.

But at least the US is ahead of... Indonesia, Turkey, Mexico, and Iran.

Shannon Underwood, an immigration lawyer from Seattle who moved to Senegal with her family two years ago, said the government's response has been impressive, if not perfect. Underwood said it's been "bizarre" to watch the U.S. response from afar, adding that she would much rather be living in Dakar. 
"There hasn't been a moment where my family was thinking, 'Oh, we should have evacuated. We always felt being here was the better choice," Underwood said. 
Her Senegalese friends are flabbergasted that Americans are arguing over whether to wear masks and that some are questioning the severity of the virus.

How embarrassing for us, to be beaten by a "s**t-hole" country.

BC

Well one thing Senegal (and other "s**t-hole" countries) may have going for them is that they take personal responsibility and community seriously. Too bad they can't be all about the american exceptionalism of getting yours while letting others suffer.

I think you have a perfect storm in America.  All the things you mention...lack of personal responsibility, not taking community seriously, getting yours while letting others suffer; coupled with a few other conditions, including:

- A prevalence of comorbidities not seen in any other country; e.g., rich country problems like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, etc.
- A view of individual taking precedence over the group.  We're the only country that reveres cowboys; other countries use the term as a pejorative.
- Ironically, better late-life medical support than most other countries.  We have an old, sick, fat populace.  Not good during COVID-19.
- Open borders.  COVID-19 didn't start here.
- Bad, bad, awful president and other politicians who mucked it up from day one.  Which reflects the prior administration's poor performance during the previous pandemic which infected 60 million people, to which their own medical leader stated that they were just lucky that the mortality rates weren't as high.

Yes, we will get what we deserve.
-