So the "new normal" Will include acute illness, death, and permanent incapacities

[PCIntern]

like when I was a little kid and the remnants of polio were all around me.

OK, I’m old relatively speaking, but it’s going to be like the lightning bolt from the blue in families, and the tragedies will be so plentiful that they’ll be meaningless after a while: it’s very predictable. “Society” won’t care anymore. We are 40% of the way there already.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

1. Wait for your uncle, Billy Bob.

He can't breathe good after he got the 'rona years ago.

[Igel]

2. Perhaps.

Then again, we've enjoyed the same normal for a variety of other problems.

It's just that we had the idea that we were above nature and its owners/keepers and basically had it licked. This is the way it's always been except for a period of maybe 70 years--and even then, that's only in a few industrialized, rich countries. (Even if you're poor, you're still pretty rich.) Except we decided that was something like "minimum" or "baseline."

I was born post-polio vaccine but still remember being very distressed at being in a long line in a large room and given a little cup with a sugar cube in it. Had something that produced spots all over and light sensitivity. Brother had mumps. Now my kid has a melt down if we run out of antihistamine and actually has to tolerate sniffles for part of day.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

3. I remember the Iron Lings.....

I still have my Smallpox scar. The Polio vaccine was delivered in a sugar cube I ate.

2020, the Year of the Mask.

[bronxiteforever]

4. Kick & recommend.

[Duppers]

5. Grim. I cannot believe it will be that dire in...

"educated" communities. We will have vaccine(s) by the end of 2021 and we Dems will never stop caring about about this country, most of it anyway.

[Amishman]

8. Maybe, I'm still very cautious on the vaccine front

I don't expect a polio or smallpox style one and done vaccine to be possible. The mutation rate is too high (RNA virus)

I think best case will be a flu shot style program that gives increased resistance to certain strains for a.short period of time. We are at 14 identified Covid-19 strains already

[Ms. Toad]

6. The remnants of coronavirus is what scares me for the same reason.

Unlike most other infectious diseases - this one seems to leave permanent incapacities in many of those who survive, much like polio. I was a bit after it, but have slightly older friends who survived with lifelong crippling injuries.

[PCIntern]

7. I've been saying this since the beginning

Exactly right you are

[hunter]

9. This virus will be the leading cause of death for the next year or two.

After that there's only more shit to come from global warming, overpopulation, and disregard of science.

Step aside cancer and heart disease. If Republicans can convince people to ignore coronavirus-19 deaths, they can convince them to ignore deaths caused by unsafe working conditions, pollution, etc..

The Republican Plan is to let "unproductive" human capital stock die quickly cheaply.