COVID-19 Impacts- No Conspiracy Theories

[whoagorgeous]

Socal here. In my county, we have over 3M people and my city alone has about 100k. So it's pretty crowded as you can imagine.

I work part time with IHSS (in-home supportive services). The person whom was in my care is now home with their immediate family. That's good since they'll be more closely monitored but bad for me since I'll be outta a job.

Luckily, I had picked up another side gig prior to this madness working for a pharmacy. I make deliveries all over socal. My interaction with people is limited but who know?

Many of the Assisted Homes that I have delivered to, have now restricted any visitors to only immediate family members.

My gym has temporary closed and many others are as well. Many restaurants are to-go only now. One of the local high end mall has been closed.

Forget trying to buy TP, hand sanitizer, pasta, rice, cup of noodles, over the counter medicine, etc.
Luckily my favorite Costco hasn't been overrun that you gotta wait in line to get in (3 other surrounding Costco does this along with some supermarkets).
Although you won't find TP as those will be gone within a matter of minutes.

I am young enough to be worried. Lol. I'm proactive but I have medical issues. I guess it's time to start that diet again.

Sent from my SM-N975U1 using Tapatalk

[Sporkboy]

Don’t judge me, but I have a cleaning person come to my house twice a month. She owns her own business and people socially isolating themselves at home is going to be hard on her since it is hard to clean around people. Anyway, I just sent her a check to not clean my house. I am fortunate enough that I am still able to get paid, so I figure it is only right to continue with my commitment to people that depend upon my business.

If you have the means and are in a similar situation, please consider doing the same. It could be the difference between someone trusted being available to you after this is over and not.

On the other hand, but they paying someone to not do something is an odd concept. Still, I think it is justified in this situation.

[Samginko]

Edit by MoT.

I wasn't kidding when I politely asked members to leave their biases out of this discussion.

Do not continue doing so.

[tjcdas]

USA 7% of people tested positive 93% negative.

[Stretch44]

This is what we DO NOT want in the U.S.

[Sporkboy]

I just saw the procedure for re-use of N95 masks and the storage between patients is done in a paper bag with the caregiver’s name written on the bag. Super low tech, but that would work if the virus can’t traverse through paper.

[rich_in_the_lou]

This may explain everything

[yinzburgher]

I'm not a medical professional, but I get confused when I see these numbers globally, and yet we go about business as usual under a normal flu season that kills thousands more, both young and old. But this creates shear panic.

I think "why are we so preoccupied with this coronavirus when flu kills so many people every single year?" is an incredibly interesting question. I know some others probably won't think so but it is extremely interesting to me. But first of all, I have to say that I'm not seeing a lot of panic. I'm seeing a lot of worry and anxiety from many people but also others that are just going about their daily lives as usual and not giving it much thought. I think the panic will come later. I think when areas of the US start to see the influx of COVID-19 patients that Milan is seeing, that's when the panic will probably set in.

I don't know the best answer to the question but I have a bunch of guesses as to the reasons. Of course there are the higher death rates like some others mentioned. I think that fact that this is new is a huge part. The flu comes around every year and more or less does the same thing. It's been around forever and we can expect it pretty much like clockwork. Nothing new there. But I do think we should take it way more seriously. I still know healthcare workers who don't get vaccinated. So they risk contracting it and passing it on to patients even before they know they have it. But at this point we're kind of resigned to the fact that we have imperfect vaccines for the flu and that it will kill a certain number of people every year. Mostly old people and those with comorbidities, much like this new illness. I don't see it killing a lot of young people unless they are chronically ill or immuno-compromised but I haven't looked up the stats. It's pretty terrible, but it's old news.

This novel coronavirus on the other hand is a lot more interesting to people, in part just because it's brand new. We don't know that much about it. We don't know how to treat it. We don't know exactly where it came from. We don't know if it's here to stay, or how it will mutate, or if it will become a seasonal illness. We don't know the future status of testing. We don't know if we will ever have a surefire vaccine for it. Or if it might go away forever. These and other unknowns make people interested and uneasy. And what we do know about it seems more interesting and maybe worrisome than the flu. The mortality rate. That it started in China, a place very different than the US and much of the West. That it likely came from bats. That it was associated with a live seafood/animal market. That people living together seem to get it at high rates. That severity varies so widely. That children and other young people are not very affected. That it seems similar to SARS (but thankfully less deadly). That unlike SARS, it could not be contained or confined.

I think the models that epidemiologists have come up with also make people way more concerned with this vs the flu. I have never seen a flu season get started and then a projection or model for the rest of the season comes out and people are suddenly alarmed. These models for COVID-19 are much more alarming. To be very brutally honest, when a doctor or nurse or someone mentions that it's a particularly bad flu season that year, it's usually a comment made in passing, the way you might mention what they're serving in the cafeteria that day. The only flu season that even stands out in my memory anymore was when H1N1 was brand new(). That was a particularly bad year and some different demographics like pregnant women were affected but it was nothing compared to what they saw earlier in Wuhan or now in Milan. That H1N1 year put some amount of stress on hospitals but there was never really a danger of not having enough doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, masks, ventilators, oxygen, respirators, hospital rooms, etc. Those are the big risks with this whole thing. If even half of us get this bug and 10% need a hospital visit, and 2-5% need an ICU, the system will be massively overwhelmed. If it happens all at once, way more people are gonna die. That's not to mention all the people that normally come in to the ICU with sepsis, DKA, heart attacks, MIs, DTs, ARDS, pneumonia, flu, CHF, COPD or whatever else. It's gonna be a bad time need an ICU bed for any reason. I listened to an interview with an Italian ICU/pulmonary doctor yesterday that said that in his hospital (1000 beds so a huge hospital) there are currently has 460 nurses that are currently not working. Most are apparently quarantined at home. No flu season has ever done that to a hospital in modern times. I find myself thinking about the moral hazard of working with COVID-19 (I'm currently just assuming that I don't have it bc I don't have symptoms but I really have no idea). And I really hope to not find myself in any situation where we are not treating someone we would normally treat due to limited resources. But that could potentially happen with this new coronavirus......never with the flu. I would love to see the numbers stay like this and it turns out all the worry is for nothing, I'm not betting on it though.

[yinzburgher]

I just saw the procedure for re-use of N95 masks and the storage between patients is done in a paper bag with the caregiver’s name written on the bag. Super low tech, but that would work if the virus can’t traverse through paper.

That sounds scary, I'll have to look for it. I'm more worried about the contaminated side of the mask being in the same bag as the clean side of the mask that I'm going to have to put against my face again.

[MoT]

I'm not a medical professional, but I get confused when I see these numbers globally, and yet we go about business as usual under a normal flu season that kills thousands more, both young and old. But this creates shear panic.

Brilliant, just brilliant post. And from someone on the front lines.

Thank you.

I think "why are we so preoccupied with this coronavirus when flu kills so many people every single year?" is an incredibly interesting question. I know some others probably won't think so but it is extremely interesting to me. But first of all, I have to say that I'm not seeing a lot of panic. I'm seeing a lot of worry and anxiety from many people but also others that are just going about their daily lives as usual and not giving it much thought. I think the panic will come later. I think when areas of the US start to see the influx of COVID-19 patients that Milan is seeing, that's when the panic will probably set in.

I don't know the best answer to the question but I have a bunch of guesses as to the reasons. Of course there are the higher death rates like some others mentioned. I think that fact that this is new is a huge part. The flu comes around every year and more or less does the same thing. It's been around forever and we can expect it pretty much like clockwork. Nothing new there. But I do think we should take it way more seriously. I still know healthcare workers who don't get vaccinated. So they risk contracting it and passing it on to patients even before they know they have it. But at this point we're kind of resigned to the fact that we have imperfect vaccines for the flu and that it will kill a certain number of people every year. Mostly old people and those with comorbidities, much like this new illness. I don't see it killing a lot of young people unless they are chronically ill or immuno-compromised but I haven't looked up the stats. It's pretty terrible, but it's old news.

This novel coronavirus on the other hand is a lot more interesting to people, in part just because it's brand new. We don't know that much about it. We don't know how to treat it. We don't know exactly where it came from. We don't know if it's here to stay, or how it will mutate, or if it will become a seasonal illness. We don't know the future status of testing. We don't know if we will ever have a surefire vaccine for it. Or if it might go away forever. These and other unknowns make people interested and uneasy. And what we do know about it seems more interesting and maybe worrisome than the flu. The mortality rate. That it started in China, a place very different than the US and much of the West. That it likely came from bats. That it was associated with a live seafood/animal market. That people living together seem to get it at high rates. That severity varies so widely. That children and other young people are not very affected. That it seems similar to SARS (but thankfully less deadly). That unlike SARS, it could not be contained or confined.

I think the models that epidemiologists have come up with also make people way more concerned with this vs the flu. I have never seen a flu season get started and then a projection or model for the rest of the season comes out and people are suddenly alarmed. These models for COVID-19 are much more alarming. To be very brutally honest, when a doctor or nurse or someone mentions that it's a particularly bad flu season that year, it's usually a comment made in passing, the way you might mention what they're serving in the cafeteria that day. The only flu season that even stands out in my memory anymore was when H1N1 was brand new(). That was a particularly bad year and some different demographics like pregnant women were affected but it was nothing compared to what they saw earlier in Wuhan or now in Milan. That H1N1 year put some amount of stress on hospitals but there was never really a danger of not having enough doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, masks, ventilators, oxygen, respirators, hospital rooms, etc. Those are the big risks with this whole thing. If even half of us get this bug and 10% need a hospital visit, and 2-5% need an ICU, the system will be massively overwhelmed. If it happens all at once, way more people are gonna die. That's not to mention all the people that normally come in to the ICU with sepsis, DKA, heart attacks, MIs, DTs, ARDS, pneumonia, flu, CHF, COPD or whatever else. It's gonna be a bad time need an ICU bed for any reason. I listened to an interview with an Italian ICU/pulmonary doctor yesterday that said that in his hospital (1000 beds so a huge hospital) there are currently has 460 nurses that are currently not working. Most are apparently quarantined at home. No flu season has ever done that to a hospital in modern times. I find myself thinking about the moral hazard of working with COVID-19 (I'm currently just assuming that I don't have it bc I don't have symptoms but I really have no idea). And I really hope to not find myself in any situation where we are not treating someone we would normally treat due to limited resources. But that could potentially happen with this new coronavirus......never with the flu. I would love to see the numbers stay like this and it turns out all the worry is for nothing, I'm not betting on it though.

[59yukon01]

I'm not a medical professional, but I get confused when I see these numbers globally, and yet we go about business as usual under a normal flu season that kills thousands more, both young and old. But this creates shear panic.

I think "why are we so preoccupied with this coronavirus when flu kills so many people every single year?" is an incredibly interesting question. I know some others probably won't think so but it is extremely interesting to me. But first of all, I have to say that I'm not seeing a lot of panic. I'm seeing a lot of worry and anxiety from many people but also others that are just going about their daily lives as usual and not giving it much thought. I think the panic will come later. I think when areas of the US start to see the influx of COVID-19 patients that Milan is seeing, that's when the panic will probably set in.

I don't know the best answer to the question but I have a bunch of guesses as to the reasons. Of course there are the higher death rates like some others mentioned. I think that fact that this is new is a huge part. The flu comes around every year and more or less does the same thing. It's been around forever and we can expect it pretty much like clockwork. Nothing new there. But I do think we should take it way more seriously. I still know healthcare workers who don't get vaccinated. So they risk contracting it and passing it on to patients even before they know they have it. But at this point we're kind of resigned to the fact that we have imperfect vaccines for the flu and that it will kill a certain number of people every year. Mostly old people and those with comorbidities, much like this new illness. I don't see it killing a lot of young people unless they are chronically ill or immuno-compromised but I haven't looked up the stats. It's pretty terrible, but it's old news.

This novel coronavirus on the other hand is a lot more interesting to people, in part just because it's brand new. We don't know that much about it. We don't know how to treat it. We don't know exactly where it came from. We don't know if it's here to stay, or how it will mutate, or if it will become a seasonal illness. We don't know the future status of testing. We don't know if we will ever have a surefire vaccine for it. Or if it might go away forever. These and other unknowns make people interested and uneasy. And what we do know about it seems more interesting and maybe worrisome than the flu. The mortality rate. That it started in China, a place very different than the US and much of the West. That it likely came from bats. That it was associated with a live seafood/animal market. That people living together seem to get it at high rates. That severity varies so widely. That children and other young people are not very affected. That it seems similar to SARS (but thankfully less deadly). That unlike SARS, it could not be contained or confined.

I think the models that epidemiologists have come up with also make people way more concerned with this vs the flu. I have never seen a flu season get started and then a projection or model for the rest of the season comes out and people are suddenly alarmed. These models for COVID-19 are much more alarming. To be very brutally honest, when a doctor or nurse or someone mentions that it's a particularly bad flu season that year, it's usually a comment made in passing, the way you might mention what they're serving in the cafeteria that day. The only flu season that even stands out in my memory anymore was when H1N1 was brand new([emoji118]). That was a particularly bad year and some different demographics like pregnant women were affected but it was nothing compared to what they saw earlier in Wuhan or now in Milan. That H1N1 year put some amount of stress on hospitals but there was never really a danger of not having enough doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, masks, ventilators, oxygen, respirators, hospital rooms, etc. Those are the big risks with this whole thing. If even half of us get this bug and 10% need a hospital visit, and 2-5% need an ICU, the system will be massively overwhelmed. If it happens all at once, way more people are gonna die. That's not to mention all the people that normally come in to the ICU with sepsis, DKA, heart attacks, MIs, DTs, ARDS, pneumonia, flu, CHF, COPD or whatever else. It's gonna be a bad time need an ICU bed for any reason. I listened to an interview with an Italian ICU/pulmonary doctor yesterday that said that in his hospital (1000 beds so a huge hospital) there are currently has 460 nurses that are currently not working. Most are apparently quarantined at home. No flu season has ever done that to a hospital in modern times. I find myself thinking about the moral hazard of working with COVID-19 (I'm currently just assuming that I don't have it bc I don't have symptoms but I really have no idea). And I really hope to not find myself in any situation where we are not treating someone we would normally treat due to limited resources. But that could potentially happen with this new coronavirus......never with the flu. I would love to see the numbers stay like this and it turns out all the worry is for nothing, I'm not betting on it though.

The panic I was referring to was the run on TP and Purell. [emoji6]

Great answer by the way. The other side of the question, is how damaging to the economy by shutting everything down, loss of jobs, income, routines of everyday life, etc.

In other words the mental health side. This could possibly have more long term damaging effects on people than the virus itself.

I just hope this hasn't opened a Pandora's Box, whereas every time something similar happens a massive shut down action like this doesn't take place. I will believe otherwise in a month if this really explodes, but I hope it doesn't.

If it doesn't though it's going to be hard to believe the wolf next time it cries. [emoji848]

[Stretch44]

I'm not a medical professional, but I get confused when I see these numbers globally, and yet we go about business as usual under a normal flu season that kills thousands more, both young and old. But this creates shear panic.

I think "why are we so preoccupied with this coronavirus when flu kills so many people every single year?" is an incredibly interesting question. I know some others probably won't think so but it is extremely interesting to me. But first of all, I have to say that I'm not seeing a lot of panic. I'm seeing a lot of worry and anxiety from many people but also others that are just going about their daily lives as usual and not giving it much thought. I think the panic will come later. I think when areas of the US start to see the influx of COVID-19 patients that Milan is seeing, that's when the panic will probably set in.

I don't know the best answer to the question but I have a bunch of guesses as to the reasons. Of course there are the higher death rates like some others mentioned. I think that fact that this is new is a huge part. The flu comes around every year and more or less does the same thing. It's been around forever and we can expect it pretty much like clockwork. Nothing new there. But I do think we should take it way more seriously. I still know healthcare workers who don't get vaccinated. So they risk contracting it and passing it on to patients even before they know they have it. But at this point we're kind of resigned to the fact that we have imperfect vaccines for the flu and that it will kill a certain number of people every year. Mostly old people and those with comorbidities, much like this new illness. I don't see it killing a lot of young people unless they are chronically ill or immuno-compromised but I haven't looked up the stats. It's pretty terrible, but it's old news.

This novel coronavirus on the other hand is a lot more interesting to people, in part just because it's brand new. We don't know that much about it. We don't know how to treat it. We don't know exactly where it came from. We don't know if it's here to stay, or how it will mutate, or if it will become a seasonal illness. We don't know the future status of testing. We don't know if we will ever have a surefire vaccine for it. Or if it might go away forever. These and other unknowns make people interested and uneasy. And what we do know about it seems more interesting and maybe worrisome than the flu. The mortality rate. That it started in China, a place very different than the US and much of the West. That it likely came from bats. That it was associated with a live seafood/animal market. That people living together seem to get it at high rates. That severity varies so widely. That children and other young people are not very affected. That it seems similar to SARS (but thankfully less deadly). That unlike SARS, it could not be contained or confined.

I think the models that epidemiologists have come up with also make people way more concerned with this vs the flu. I have never seen a flu season get started and then a projection or model for the rest of the season comes out and people are suddenly alarmed. These models for COVID-19 are much more alarming. To be very brutally honest, when a doctor or nurse or someone mentions that it's a particularly bad flu season that year, it's usually a comment made in passing, the way you might mention what they're serving in the cafeteria that day. The only flu season that even stands out in my memory anymore was when H1N1 was brand new(). That was a particularly bad year and some different demographics like pregnant women were affected but it was nothing compared to what they saw earlier in Wuhan or now in Milan. That H1N1 year put some amount of stress on hospitals but there was never really a danger of not having enough doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, masks, ventilators, oxygen, respirators, hospital rooms, etc. Those are the big risks with this whole thing. If even half of us get this bug and 10% need a hospital visit, and 2-5% need an ICU, the system will be massively overwhelmed. If it happens all at once, way more people are gonna die. That's not to mention all the people that normally come in to the ICU with sepsis, DKA, heart attacks, MIs, DTs, ARDS, pneumonia, flu, CHF, COPD or whatever else. It's gonna be a bad time need an ICU bed for any reason. I listened to an interview with an Italian ICU/pulmonary doctor yesterday that said that in his hospital (1000 beds so a huge hospital) there are currently has 460 nurses that are currently not working. Most are apparently quarantined at home. No flu season has ever done that to a hospital in modern times. I find myself thinking about the moral hazard of working with COVID-19 (I'm currently just assuming that I don't have it bc I don't have symptoms but I really have no idea). And I really hope to not find myself in any situation where we are not treating someone we would normally treat due to limited resources. But that could potentially happen with this new coronavirus......never with the flu. I would love to see the numbers stay like this and it turns out all the worry is for nothing, I'm not betting on it though.

Amen. I'm cutting and pasting this into a text and sending to my parents. They just don't get it. I love them dearly and just had a conversation trying to convince them to take this seriously. They even have medical backgrounds.

[MoT]

the wolf

The wolf is at the door, and it may be too late to close it.

[Split-Time]

I just saw the procedure for re-use of N95 masks and the storage between patients is done in a paper bag with the caregiver’s name written on the bag. Super low tech, but that would work if the virus can’t traverse through paper.

That sounds scary, I'll have to look for it. I'm more worried about the contaminated side of the mask being in the same bag as the clean side of the mask that I'm going to have to put against my face again.

I was a HAZWOPER instructor for years. All of my experience was chemical (very little biological other than maybe some discussion) but your thoughts mirror mine as well.

I am far from an expert on any of this, but my wife has been a little frustrated with me at times because when our local "freak out" started last Friday I reverted back to all of that training.

[yinzburgher]

I'm not a medical professional, but I get confused when I see these numbers globally, and yet we go about business as usual under a normal flu season that kills thousands more, both young and old. But this creates shear panic.

I think "why are we so preoccupied with this coronavirus when flu kills so many people every single year?" is an incredibly interesting question. I know some others probably won't think so but it is extremely interesting to me. But first of all, I have to say that I'm not seeing a lot of panic. I'm seeing a lot of worry and anxiety from many people but also others that are just going about their daily lives as usual and not giving it much thought. I think the panic will come later. I think when areas of the US start to see the influx of COVID-19 patients that Milan is seeing, that's when the panic will probably set in.

I don't know the best answer to the question but I have a bunch of guesses as to the reasons. Of course there are the higher death rates like some others mentioned. I think that fact that this is new is a huge part. The flu comes around every year and more or less does the same thing. It's been around forever and we can expect it pretty much like clockwork. Nothing new there. But I do think we should take it way more seriously. I still know healthcare workers who don't get vaccinated. So they risk contracting it and passing it on to patients even before they know they have it. But at this point we're kind of resigned to the fact that we have imperfect vaccines for the flu and that it will kill a certain number of people every year. Mostly old people and those with comorbidities, much like this new illness. I don't see it killing a lot of young people unless they are chronically ill or immuno-compromised but I haven't looked up the stats. It's pretty terrible, but it's old news.

This novel coronavirus on the other hand is a lot more interesting to people, in part just because it's brand new. We don't know that much about it. We don't know how to treat it. We don't know exactly where it came from. We don't know if it's here to stay, or how it will mutate, or if it will become a seasonal illness. We don't know the future status of testing. We don't know if we will ever have a surefire vaccine for it. Or if it might go away forever. These and other unknowns make people interested and uneasy. And what we do know about it seems more interesting and maybe worrisome than the flu. The mortality rate. That it started in China, a place very different than the US and much of the West. That it likely came from bats. That it was associated with a live seafood/animal market. That people living together seem to get it at high rates. That severity varies so widely. That children and other young people are not very affected. That it seems similar to SARS (but thankfully less deadly). That unlike SARS, it could not be contained or confined.

I think the models that epidemiologists have come up with also make people way more concerned with this vs the flu. I have never seen a flu season get started and then a projection or model for the rest of the season comes out and people are suddenly alarmed. These models for COVID-19 are much more alarming. To be very brutally honest, when a doctor or nurse or someone mentions that it's a particularly bad flu season that year, it's usually a comment made in passing, the way you might mention what they're serving in the cafeteria that day. The only flu season that even stands out in my memory anymore was when H1N1 was brand new([emoji118]). That was a particularly bad year and some different demographics like pregnant women were affected but it was nothing compared to what they saw earlier in Wuhan or now in Milan. That H1N1 year put some amount of stress on hospitals but there was never really a danger of not having enough doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, masks, ventilators, oxygen, respirators, hospital rooms, etc. Those are the big risks with this whole thing. If even half of us get this bug and 10% need a hospital visit, and 2-5% need an ICU, the system will be massively overwhelmed. If it happens all at once, way more people are gonna die. That's not to mention all the people that normally come in to the ICU with sepsis, DKA, heart attacks, MIs, DTs, ARDS, pneumonia, flu, CHF, COPD or whatever else. It's gonna be a bad time need an ICU bed for any reason. I listened to an interview with an Italian ICU/pulmonary doctor yesterday that said that in his hospital (1000 beds so a huge hospital) there are currently has 460 nurses that are currently not working. Most are apparently quarantined at home. No flu season has ever done that to a hospital in modern times. I find myself thinking about the moral hazard of working with COVID-19 (I'm currently just assuming that I don't have it bc I don't have symptoms but I really have no idea). And I really hope to not find myself in any situation where we are not treating someone we would normally treat due to limited resources. But that could potentially happen with this new coronavirus......never with the flu. I would love to see the numbers stay like this and it turns out all the worry is for nothing, I'm not betting on it though.

The panic I was referring to was the run on TP and Purell. [emoji6]

Great answer by the way. The other side of the question, is how damaging to the economy by shutting everything down, loss of jobs, income, routines of everyday life, etc.

In other words the mental health side. This could possibly have more long term damaging effects on people than the virus itself.

I just hope this hasn't opened a Pandora's Box, whereas every time something similar happens a massive shut down action like this doesn't take place. I will believe otherwise in a month if this really explodes, but I hope it doesn't.

If it doesn't though it's going to be hard to believe the wolf next time it cries. [emoji848]

I had to look up the TP thing but even after reading about it I still can't make sense of it. At least I can understand the hand sanitizer. I've mostly been working and then I don't feel like waking up early to line up at Walmart for the morning rush when I have a day off so I just have one tiny bottle of Purell that I'm trying to make last. I'm determined not to be one of those people that steals from work but I don't know where else to get it so I mostly just wash my hands and trying to think more about what I touch. People have been stealing all the bleach wipes so now each department has to save to empty wipes to show as proof that we need new ones.

Yea, the economy is going to absolutely tank which will have a whole slew of negative effects but if the whole health system is set up for failure and a crazy number of people die, I don't think I would ever forgive or forget. This whole thing is an absolute mess and I think the mental health thing will be a real problem.

And to be honest, I haven't really thought about the next time. But that's probably true. If we all strictly isolate now and kill the economy and the death toll is drawn out or even decreased, it will mean the thing was a "success". But ironically, then some people won't believe that it was a legit threat. Oooooff! I talked to my dad today and he mentioned some old mistakenly Chinese blessing/curse "May you live in interesting times." Unfortunately it seems appropriate for a few reasons. Hoping for uninteresting times for both of us and everybody really.

Edit: Also when I posted earlier I meant to say that I think that cable news and social media probably play a part. I bet if they were around when the flu started it might have felt more like this.