[Mick]

it has nothing to do with the speed of our leaders to anticipate and/or react to the pandemic.  As a society, we went from basic preventable steps to shelter-in-place in very short order. 

Aren't those things related? It seems like countries that started testing, contact tracing, and isolating got way out ahead of it. Countries like the Italy, France, and the US largely dithered for a month while it spread unchecked? It seems like Taiwan, Korea, and Singapore are going to escape much more unscathed than Europe and North America, where testing, contact tracing and isolation have been haphazardly implemented at best.

This country has very few hospital beds, and about 70% are taken up at any one time.  Whether 70% of the population gets infected in six months or 18 months, the numbers needed to be hospitalized will be a strong multiple of our capabilities.  And the Elites are absolutely willing to destroy our economy to go down that path.

Where did you get those estimates? From what I've seen, 6 vs. 18 months makes an incredible difference in terms of hospitalization rates, as these charts nicely illustrate: https://projects.propublica.org/graphics...-hospitals

40% infected over 18 months leaves most hospitals at or near capacity, whereas 40% infected over 6 months leaves nearly the entire country's hospital system at or above 200% capacity.

I get my estimates from the same place you did.  40% infected over 18 months -- which is a tall order, I think -- still leaves the coasts and urban centers well over 100%, most in the 200% range.  And that's with just 1/5th of the adults infected being hospitalized, assuming the doctors, PAs, nurses and other medical professionals return and live through that period.

I have no doubt that Kevin Durant will receive treatment.  As for you and me...we'll see.

I also entered my two homes -- Washington DC and Silicon Valley -- and even at the nonsensical 20% infection rate over 18 months, we're over 100% capacity in both places.  At 40%, we're nearly at 400% capacity.  At 60%, we're well over 500% capacity over six months or over 200% capacity at 18 months.

[Mick]

it has nothing to do with the speed of our leaders to anticipate and/or react to the pandemic.  As a society, we went from basic preventable steps to shelter-in-place in very short order. 

Aren't those things related? It seems like countries that started testing, contact tracing, and isolating got way out ahead of it. Countries like the Italy, France, and the US largely dithered for a month while it spread unchecked? It seems like Taiwan, Korea, and Singapore are going to escape much more unscathed than Europe and North America, where testing, contact tracing and isolation have been haphazardly implemented at best.

This country has very few hospital beds, and about 70% are taken up at any one time.  Whether 70% of the population gets infected in six months or 18 months, the numbers needed to be hospitalized will be a strong multiple of our capabilities.  And the Elites are absolutely willing to destroy our economy to go down that path.

Where did you get those estimates? From what I've seen, 6 vs. 18 months makes an incredible difference in terms of hospitalization rates, as these charts nicely illustrate: https://projects.propublica.org/graphics...-hospitals

40% infected over 18 months leaves most hospitals at or near capacity, whereas 40% infected over 6 months leaves nearly the entire country's hospital system at or above 200% capacity.

I get my estimates from the same place you did.  40% infected over 18 months -- which is a tall order, I think -- still leaves the coasts and urban centers well over 100%, most in the 200% range.  And that's with just 1/5th of the adults infected being hospitalized, assuming the doctors, PAs, nurses and other medical professionals return and live through that period.

I have no doubt that Kevin Durant will receive treatment.  As for you and me...we'll see.

I also entered my two homes -- Washington DC and Silicon Valley -- and even at the nonsensical 20% infection rate over 18 months, we're over 100% capacity in both places.  At 40%, we're nearly at 400% capacity.  At 60%, we're well over 500% capacity over six months or over 200% capacity at 18 months.