Part One of Two
(8 August 2020)
Covid-19 has spiralled out of control in the USA.
More than 5 million Americans have tested positive for the virus since February 2020.
Of that number, 2 million Americans have tested positive in the past month.
Total deaths in the USA number over 164,000.
We can say the virus is highly contagious with no cure.
There is no vaccination to prevent HIV infection since first detected around 40 years ago despite every effort to develop a vaccine.
WHO (World Health Organisation) warns that a coronavirus vaccine is not a “silver bullet” – a simple solution to a complicated problem. “And might never be.”
Around 20 million people worldwide have contracted Covid-19.
Covid-19 robs the elderly and those with underlying health issues of the right to life. More and more healthy people of various ages endure the very painful impact of the virus.
Worldwide Comparison
USA has 4% of the world’s population but 22% of coronavirus deaths.
The total number of infections in the USA is five times as many as in all of Europe, Canada, Japan, South Korea and Australia combined.
Australia acted swiftly to address the epidemic. If USA had the same per capita death rate, then around 3,300 Americans would have died instead of 162,000 people.
Cases of Covid-19 in Spain in the past month amounted to 50,000 fresh cases. Florida has less than half the population of Spain but with 300,000 new cases in the same period.
USA Covid-19 statistics are comparable to or in a worse situation than poorer countries like Brazil, Iran, Peru, India and South Africa.
Nearly 3 million have contracted the virus in Brazil. 2 million in India.
The poor, Black and Latino communities in the USA, who contract the virus, are three times as high as white residents.
What are the Conditions in the USA for 5 million infections?
Primary ideology in the USA asserts aggressive individualism over community, social services and collective co-operation.
Health service in the USA benefits primarily the middle/upper classes at the expense of poor, low income and unemployed.
USA has the highest infant mortality, highest rate of diabetes and lower life expectancy of any of the richer nations.
The President of the United States has frequently
- dismissed scientific advice when he claimed regularly that Covid-19 would disappear
- promoted medical fake news for cures for Covid-19
- claims US government has the virus under control when Covid-19 is out of control
- dismissed facemasks until last month,
- refuses to support nationwide lockdown
- encouraged public gatherings, political and other
- called on people to go back to work despite high infection rate in the locality
- unwillingness of US billionaires, such as himself, and multi-millionaires to fund mental and physical health care for US citizens
- lack of clear policy on international travel, inter-state travel and practical steps to safeguard health of the nation.
After the USA, UK has the highest number of infections and deaths per population among the richer nations. The US President and the British Prime Minister share similar unresolved personality issues – avoidance as much as possible of reality, tendency towards gross exaggerations and self-interest as the first priority.
I drew some information from above from the New York Times and Worldometer, which provides country-by-country figures on the pandemic. (Pizza Hut has placed an advertisement today on the Worldometer website pages. The ad shows a slice of pizza thick with fatty substances that get into the bloodstream).
Part Two. Is there hysteria around the pandemic?
Very exhaustive description of the situation with eloquent indicators
Thanks Christopher