While I may be guilty here of being nitpicky, based upon the hype that COVID-19 has received from the start, it is possible I am not. First, here’s the reality — and I’ll use The Wall Street Journal’s own words: “The Delta wave of the Covid-19 pandemic is past its peak, with new cases, hospitalizations and deaths declining in most states. … all of [the] metrics are improving significantly at the national level.”
This is great news!
Here’s the WSJ’s headline on its report of the good news:
Delta Surge Of Covid-19 Recedes, The Leaving Winter Challenge Is Ahead
What does it mean? This? “Hey, great news on the Delta variant! Here’s why that’s bad news!”
The Delta wave in Covid-19 cases has slowed across the U.S., according to health officials. Boosting vaccination rates is crucial for maintaining that momentum. https://t.co/EnSLiN7oAu
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 31, 2021
Despite the wording of the WSJ headline, the news in the article and elsewhere was the best COVID news we’ve heard in recent months. That is, minus the warning.
Excerpts (emphasis, mine):
Case Mid-September, the Delta surge count was decliningJohns Hopkins data shows that the number of people who use Johns Hopkins Data show that they have surpassed 160,000 per day.
The The seven-day new cases average dropped by 16% from the previous week, compared to Tuesday of last weekRochelle Walensky, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director said that, citing CDC statistics.
Covid-19 Hospitalizations fell by 54% in August, when records were set for many states due to the Delta virus, a highly contagious variant that spread chiefly among unvaccinated people.
Although the Delta-fueled tsunami continues to cause serious damage, The seven-day average number of reported deaths dropped from 2,000 daily in September to 1,400 per day., Johns Hopkins data show.
“We may be at a turning point,” said Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. “We have a lot more tools now to fight it.”
Jason Salemi is also quoted in the WSJ as an associate professor of Epidemiology at University of South Florida
“It’s a lot tougher for Delta to hop from person to person because so many people were infected.”
But, as the WSJ warned, a dark cloud remains in front of that silver-lining news — beginning with the winter holiday season This was last year.
According to health officials, there are good reasons to be cautious. Shortly after the holidays in last year’s winter, where colder weather and larger family gatherings made it easier for more people to gather indoors, the U.S. reported its highest pandemic levels, with nearly 2.6 million cases per day.
OK, but the WSJ just quoted two experts, one of whom said we have a lot more tools to fight the virus, now, and the other one said it’s a lot harder to spread the Delta variant now, because so many people have already been infected with it. Yeah, I’m confused.
The WSJ also cited Americans who had been killed in the war. haven’t been vaccinatedIt will also make its dire predictions about the upcoming holiday season.
A little over a third of Americans have not received a vaccine. In a few states, including Idaho and West Virginia, roughly half the population hasn’t gotten a shot.
Although the Delta-driven surge seems to be slowing in Idaho, hospitals remain in crisis mode. Local health officials also stated that they had seen at most one case of influenza.
What’s that, you ask? First, the WSJ points out that half of the people of Idaho haven’t been vaccinated is a bad thing, then says the Delta-driven surge in the state is cooling. But — but — but… hospitals are still in Crisis modeOne Idahoan Getting the flu [rolling-eyes emoji]
The dark cloud is right in front of our silver lining. “There are reasons for caution,” according to the WSJ. Aren’t there AlwaysThere are many reasons to talk about COVID. To the end of humankind?
According to health officials, there are good reasons to be cautious. Just after last winter’s holidays, the United States posted the worst pandemic numbers, with a quarter million new cases per day. [last year]People were more likely to be indoors in colder temperatures and at family events, where virus can easily spread.
Where is the U.K.? The vaccination rate is much higherCompared to the U.S. cases remain high after the country bet on immunity from vaccines and prior infections while dropping other measures like indoor crowd limits and mandatory mask-wearing.
You must stop the taping. It is not only higher in the U.K. than elsewhere, but also more cases. This is where the WSJ doesn’t make its point. And speaking of crowd limits and mandatory mask-wearing, why aren’t NFL stadiums that are packed with maskless fans turning into so-called superspreader events, liberals? I’ll wait.
Nonetheless, Christine Hahn, a state epidemiologist at the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, worried at a press briefing, last week “[w]hether we’re going to see another spike this fall and winter, I think we’re worried that we can.”
What can we do to make sure that this dark cloud doesn’t grow worse? What can we do to make sure that the dark clouds don’t grow darker or become more dangerous than the silver lining shining, according the Wall Street Journal? Of course, it is important to vaccinate more children. I get it. Little kids can spread germs, so why not? Why not?
The U.S. could further bolster its defenses as younger children begin to get vaccinated in the weeks ahead. The Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized the Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE vaccine for some 28 million children Ages 5 through 11.This is. Following a review by CDC, children could have shots this week.
Speaking of vaccinating young kids, as we reported earlier this month, the People’s Republic of California [sarc, of course]The first nation in which all children aged 5 and over were required to receive vaccines. In what CA Democrats are calling a “loophole” they vow to eliminate, the executive order allows students and staff to opt out for religious or ideological reasons.
The headline of the WSJ is gone, but the article concludes with a positive quote by a Missouri epidemiologist.
“Even if future waves happen, they very likely are not going to be of the magnitude that we saw last November and December.”
Then again, liberals can — and will — cling to that dark cloud. With all their political expedient might.
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