NYT: How the Virus Won

[teach1st]

How the Virus Won
New York Times, 6/25/20

A media-rich exploration using cell phone and genetic data.

Invisible outbreaks sprang up everywhere. The United States ignored the warning signs. We analyzed travel patterns, hidden infections and genetic data to show how the epidemic spun out of control.

(Late February) The country was unaware of its own epidemic. Many tests released by the C.D.C. didn’t work, leaving only enough to test people who had visited China or had contact with a handful of known cases.Over the next two weeks, the invisible outbreaks doubled in size, then doubled three more times.

Top federal health experts concluded by late February that the virus was likely to spread widely within the United States and that government officials would soon need to urge the public to embrace social distancing measures, such as avoiding crowds and staying home.But Mr. Trump wanted to avoid disrupting the economy. So some of his health advisers, at Mr. Trump’s urging, told Americans at the end of February to continue to travel domestically and go on with their normal lives.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-spread.html

[dalton99a]

1. "... told Americans to continue to travel domestically and go on with their normal lives"

[uponit7771]

4. +1

[Igel]

9. Did the NYT quote itself?

Pointing out that the travel bans from China (and later from Europe) would be completely pointless and, in the case of China, racist?

No?

While the NYT argued against them, they should have been both much more stringent and earlier.

The NYT did make the point that with the loopholes, they'd leak like a sieve. However, the appropriate argument would have been, therefore, to close the loopholes. Instead, the loopholes were assumed to be appropriate if not required, which would undo even the weakest effect of the ban.

Pointing out somebody else's bad doesn't work so well when you argued for a worse and just hopes everybody forgets. Just makes you look like a self-righteous hypocrite. That confidently assumes others' stupidity.

[DanieRains]

2. This Madness Is 100% Trump's Fault

The rest of the world not ran by psychos is doing a lot better.

Us, Brazil, Russia? Not so much.

Leadership matters.

[Skittles]

3. nah

he could not have pulled off this level of calamity without the help of the Senate and Trump-humping governors

[Celerity]

5. Plus 100 or more million MAGAt goons and their spawn and hangers on.

[Solly Mack]

6. Oh, yeah. So.much.winning. (says Trump)

A rational country with intelligent leadership would have long ago established the necessary health care and economic safety nets for the just in case of life. For life, period.

Would have improved on it all as new scientific facts came in letting us know what we could expect in the future. A sane country would have adapted and prepared for it.

America has no chance against a pandemic with selfish and ignorant people in charge or their selfish and ignorant supporters. Fools all.

We needed actual leadership, especially with the already existing deficiencies - lack of health care for all, the ravages of poverty, racism, the anti-science idiots, the selfish and the greedy. A lack of common cause caused by years and years of attacks on science and intelligence. Of labeling all things that require change as elitism. The cultural wars waged by conservatives against any change whatsoever.

Even with the best leadership the worst can happen, but with incompetent leadership the worst will happen.

It is happening now.

The last widespread lockdown showed who actually created the wealth - the workers. Don't want to pay a living wage, job, safety, or health care but you can't open the economy without them.


Which is why Trump and others were all about opening up far too soon and were against shutting down at all. Trump was looking bad. They weren't worried about the workers, it was all about the economy.

This country needs its workers. It needs labor. It needs the people.

But if you're killing people through greed, bad policy, a lack of health care, and poverty, there won't be many workers left. Add a pandemic into the mix and it goes from tragic to catastrophe.

Try propping up the economy then.

Dead people can neither work nor spend.

A country that doesn't take care of its people is a shithole country.

[canetoad]

7. Well said

Can't add anything to that.

[Laelth]

8. +1 n/t

-Laelth

[LisaL]

10. He was right. We are sick of winning.

[demmiblue]

11. K&R