Archaeologists: “Here's exactly how pandemics have played out in the past, with 10 top examples.” Historians: “Here's how the 1919 pandemic played out, blow-by-blow, with masks surges death.” Sociologists: “Here's how people react to vaccines and masks, with 100 supporting papers.” Politicians: “THIS IS ALL NEW!!!1!!1!” [The people: :'( :'( :'( ] -- https://twitter.com/indyfromspace/status/1479472205692125189
"When uncertainty rages, human nature will lead many people to seek a more stable reality by wrapping themselves in an ever-tighter cloak of political, religious, or racial identities,"
-- https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/10/year-living-uncertainly/616648/
“Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next.”
-- Arundhati Roy
And here we are, Year 4 2023, thanks to: Masks are a hassle, vaccination "doesn't work", we need to go out and have a life!
And probably, the effects of Long Covid becoming harder to ignore any longer, for individuals and for society.
-- webwalker
Three years since the W.H.O. declared a pandemic, lessons learned. A corrosion of separation between politicians, the FDA, and big pharmaceutical and tobacco companies “The World Health Organization (W.H.O.) declared COVID a pandemic yesterday, three years ago. In the W.H.O.’s announcement, the director-general gave good advice that some countries implemented and communicated clearly and quickly, while many others failed. This advice is still important to reflect on as the pandemic continues.” “How much did corporate interests, led by multi-millionaires and billionaires, control the destiny of the outcomes in the countries that failed to protect their citizens?” -- TACT TactNowInfo.substack.com/p/three-years-since-the-who-declared pub 12 mar 2023
As of 11 July 2022, the pandemic had caused more than 555 million cases and 6.35 million confirmed deaths, making it one of the deadliest in history. Wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic
Understanding the economic consequences of the covid-19 pandemic “The covid-19 pandemic cannot be seen solely as a global health crisis; the impact on the health, livelihoods and functioning of individuals and global economies deems it a humanitarian and economic crisis. It is estimated that an additional half a billion people have fallen into poverty due to the pandemic. In addition to the significant loss of life -- the number of deaths has reached over 6.7m -- the destruction of industries and broadscale impacts on healthcare systems globally demonstrates the extensive impact of the pandemic at all levels of society.” -- Emi Michael Impact.Economist.com/perspectives/economic-development/understanding-economic-consequences-covid-19-pandemic pub 26 feb 2023
Pandemic boosts super-rich share of global wealth “The share of household wealth owned by billionaires has risen by a record amount during the pandemic, with millionaires also coming out of COVID-19 ahead, a study found on Tuesday. “The World Inequality Report produced by a network of social scientists estimated that billionaires this year collectively own 3.5% of global household wealth, up from slightly above 2% at the start of the pandemic in early 2020.” Reuters Reuters.com/business/pandemic-boosts-super-rich-share-global-wealth-2021-12-07 pub 7 dec 2022
Thoughts from webwalker 30 april 2022 Rising levels of CO2 in air. Air pollution. And other pollution. affecting our brains. Covid, also destructive group activities (such as trumpism, racism, more ...): We talk about "overgrazing" and " ... " and "culling the herd" when the deer population becomes too large to be sustainable in its environment. And how disease helps to do that, for plants and animals. So of course wouldn't it be the same for humans?
The biggest problem with remote work “Companies need a new kind of middle manager: the synchronizer.” “If scientists can make remote work work, companies can do it too. But they might just have to create an entirely new position -- a middle manager for the post-pandemic era.” -- Derek Thompson 11 jul 2022 TheAtlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2022/07/remote-work-wfh-debate-management/670482/
“People: aRe yoU goInG to mAsK fOreVeR “Me: well I still wear seatbelts & helmets, use sunscreen, get vaccinated, wash my hands, drink pasteurized milk, cook chicken before eating it, & don't drink water straight from the lake so 🤷♀️🤷♀️🤷♀️ ” Thread: discussion -- Amy G Dala MD @AmyGDalaMD 19 apr 2022 https://twitter.com/AmyGDalaMD/status/1516414810233135121
“The fact that a large portion of the population sees mask mandates as a restriction, rather than as a tool to keep people (including themselves) safe is just a reminder of how poorly the messaging on Covid has been from the jump. It has only worsened.” Thread: discussion -- Shay Stewart Bouley @blackgirlinmain 19 apr 2022 https://twitter.com/blackgirlinmain/status/1516219722764898312
The Biden administration killed America's collective pandemic approach "Protections meant to shield everyone can’t be a matter of personal preference." "In the new playbook, recommendations for individual people, not communities, sit front and center, and mitigation frequently falls under the purview of medicine rather than public health." -- Katherine J Wu 2 mar 2022 The Atlantic https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2022/03/covid-cdc-guidelines-masks/623337/
These are the days of miracle and wonder This is the long distance call The way the camera follows us in slo-mo The way we look to us all The way we look to a distant constellation That's dying in a corner of the sky These are the days of miracle and wonder And don't cry baby, don't cry Don't cry -- Paul Simon "Graceland", 1986 https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/paulsimon/theboyinthebubble.html
"What's a non-Covid reason you like wearing a mask?" Lots of replies. -- Julia Gulia @SwimmerJlo 21 feb 2022 https://mobile.twitter.com/SwimmerJlo/status/1495533206556319745
COVID-19 was a chance to change the way we work. We blew it. "Organisations often claim they desire a deep transformation, until they get a glimpse of the price tag: a redistribution of power." 19 jan 2022 The Register https://www.theregister.com/2022/01/19/covid_working_culture_column/
[Why MSN, other news, aren't doing more to show real info and statistics] "They’ve [MSN] taken the position that accurately reporting the facts is partisan because partisans have politicized the facts." -- Lambert Nolen @LambertNolen 15 jan 2022 https://mobile.twitter.com/LambertNolen/status/1482363022324600834
Finland's new lessons in combating "fake news" https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/28/fact-from-fiction-finlands-new-lessons-in-combating-fake-news
If India can build a new Capital complex during a pandemic, why couldn’t we plan better for Omicron? "Downplaying the variant as ‘mild’ has meant we have to grapple with rising cases, mental health concerns while the marginalised and vulnerable bear the brunt." "... the deliberate downplaying of the Omicron variant as mild and less dangerous was the start of this crisis. This was a lost opportunity to communicate effectively and guide public behavior." -- Chapal Mehra 15 jan 2022 https://scroll.in/article/1014923/
[Why MSN, other news, aren't doing more to show real info and statistics] "They’ve [MSN] taken the position that accurately reporting the facts is partisan because partisans have politicized the facts." -- Lambert Nolen @LambertNolen 15 jan 2022 https://mobile.twitter.com/LambertNolen/status/1482363022324600834
Thread: Lack of confidence in US' CDC. 14 jan 2022 -- Eric Feigl-Ding @DrEricDing https://mobile.twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1481853301176086534
If there were any sanity in this world every country would be transforming its military and budget into a climate disaster Corp and pandemic response and preparedness. N95s for Biden but not for us because it would trigger airborne dz prevention. There are so many solutions. -- NimbusCloudNugget @NimbusNugget 13 jan 2022 https://mobile.twitter.com/NimbusNugget/status/1481485283090571264
It's very hard to watch today as the US hospitalizations climbed above 150,000, ICUs more than 25,000, and nearly 2,700 deaths — the vast majority were preventable by vaccinations and/or boosters. And >900,000 new cases, some of whom will progress to severe disease or Long Covid Thread -- Eric Topol @EricTopol 13 jan 2022 https://mobile.twitter.com/EricTopol/status/1481453904772485123
When will COVID end? The pandemic might feel endless – but there are reasons to remain hopeful “As COVID-19 and Omicron continue to shape our lives in 2022, there is light at the end of the tunnel – but what it illuminates may be unsettling” “South Korea designed a COVID test within weeks of the virus’s appearance in the early spring of 2020; why is there still a global shortage of tests, two years later? Scientists around the world made medical history when they created working vaccines within six months of the virus’s arrival. Why, nearly two years later, are we still desperately short of boosters and shots? “This is shameful but also stupid: the longer the virus rampages in the less-vaccinated parts of the world, the greater the odds of a new variant roaring back to clamp the world shut again. Furthermore, the global vaccine imbalance was avoidable. In the spring of 2020, the estimated cost of vaccinating the entire world (via COVAX, the agency that accepts vaccine donations from rich countries for distribution to poorer ones) was US$25-billion. That’s nothing. Canada announced three times that amount of new spending in its last budget. 'Every member of the G20,' Prof. Tooze writes, 'could have justified the spending needed to end the pandemic and restart the world economy, on grounds of self-interest alone.' “Alas, no one did. Prof. Tooze put it down to a vacuum of leadership.” -- Ian Brown 11 jan 2022 The Globe and Mail https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/economy/article-when-will-covid-end-the-pandemic-might-feel-endless-but-there-are/
Glad we had the internet. Thread of images posted during the Spanish flu in early 1900s, the same info as we give now. -- JoHo @JHowardBrainMD 10 jan 2022 https://mobile.twitter.com/JHowardBrainMD/status/1480360598215053324
Our ancestors worked less and had better lives. What are we doing wrong? "In an age of both untold prosperity and existential crisis, it’s time to rethink work." "The COVID pandemic has forced us to rethink what valuable work really is. Many have noticed that it was precisely the occupational groups with the lowest wages and lowest status – cleaners, transport and care workers – who prevented society from collapsing when the pandemic ravaged the worst, while the rest of us had to be at home." -- Ståle Wig 5 jan 2022 openDemocracy https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/oureconomy/our-ancestors-worked-less-and-had-better-lives-what-are-we-doing-wrong/
Mexico removes all COVID-19 entry requirements including health form https://www.traveloffpath.com/mexico-removes-all-covid-19-entry-requirements-including-health-form/ 13 jan 2022 Travel Off Path
"My bile rises as I’m asked to move my dying cancer patient out of ICU to make room for an unvaccinated man with Covid." "I understand that for a chance at survival, the Covid patient needs a ventilator, but in a career filled with ethical dilemmas, this one really tugs at me." "The collective request from a concerned and tired workforce to the public is: get vaccinated, get your booster and keep up sensible precautions. No one wants to be in the invidious position of deciding whether to save you or the next patient." https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/13/my-bile-rises-as-im-asked-to-move-my-dying-cancer-patient-out-of-icu-to-make-room-for-an-unvaccinated-man-with-covid -- Ranjana Srivastava 12 jan 2022 The Guardian
“Someone once said ‘preexisting conditions is a capitalist way of saying medical history’ and I've never forgotten it.” https://twitter.com/fortesalatifi/status/1480004391486640128 -- Fortesa Latifi @fortesalatifi 9 jan 2022
Why the bastardization of the scientific method is so dangerous "When married to power, an exaltation of science can have disastrous effects." "It is not uncommon to see slogans and mottos such as 'the science is settled' and 'believe in science'. "Statements like this present two major problems: first, science is determined to be final and indisputable; second, it is accompanied by a value or moral judgment." Explanation of what science is, and why these are not science. https://fee.org/articles/why-the-bastardization-of-the-scientific-method-is-so-dangerous/ -- Mike Roberts 9 jan 2022 Foundation for Economic Education
Predictions and politicians “Archaeologists: Here's exactly how pandemics have played out in the past w 10 top examples Historians: Here's how the 1919 pandemic played out blow by blow w masks surges deaths Sociologists: Here's how people react to vaccines+ masks w 100 papers Politicians: THIS IS ALL NEW” Good thread. https://twitter.com/indyfromspace/status/1479472205692125189 -- Dr. Sarah Parcak @indyfromspace 7 jan 2022
As COVID changes our relationship with the outside, psychologists see rise of 'cave syndrome' World summary; India details. https://m.thewire.in/article/health/as-covid-changes-our-relationship-with-the-outside-psychologists-see-rise-of-cave-syndrome 7 jan 2022
Yes, we should have seen this coming https://tarahaelle.medium.com/yes-we-should-have-seen-this-coming-bc91925bf18c -- Tara Haelle 7 jan 2022 Medium
“I'm currently reading my 5th or 6th article today that includes in it some form of looking back on the pandemic and its lessons. *Every* *single* *one* includes a variation of one or more of the following from scientists, public health agency heads, journalists, etc.: 1/x” Good, long thread. https://twitter.com/tarahaelle/status/1478531929351860225 -- Tara Haelle, Science/health journalist @tarahaelle 5 jan 2022
“What do scientists know - Mt. St. Helens” ”No-one listens to scientists because when we do and no-one dies we assume they were just being melodramatic.” https://imgur.com/gallery/SQwh4qu
“welp... ” good graphic, and v good comments to quote. https://imgur.com/gallery/mWg17Yu
“It's OK if you have a little cry in lockdown. You're grieving ... “... disenfranchised grief [is] loss not 'openly acknowledged, socially validated, or publicly mourned'.” -- Neeraja Sanmuhanathan
10 lessons I’ve learned from the Covid-19 pandemic “The guiding principle of outbreak response is hope for the best but prepare for the worst. It has felt too often in this pandemic that people are forgetting about the second part of that maxim.” https://www.statnews.com/2021/12/28/10-lessons-ive-learned-from-the-covid-19-pandemic/ -- Helen Branswell 28 dec 2021 STAT
2020 reliably predicted A lot of good comments. https://imgur.com/gallery/SlLR0TR 2021
Year Ender 2021: How people’s perceptions changed as Covid-19 traversed from 2020 - 2021 and counting https://www.news18.com/news/buzz/year-ender-2021-how-peoples-perceptions-changed-as-covid-19-traversed-from-2020-2021-and-counting-4587764.html 24 dec 2021
The most interesting thing “It's so interesting the way I and others on here and elsewhere keep repeating basic scientific facts, which are repeatedly proven correct by events, and yet they gain no traction whatsoever. It's the most interesting thing. It's the key thing.” Thread. with more quotable tweets. https://twitter.com/YouAreLobbyLud/status/1473831415443718150 -- Dr David Berger @YouAreLobbyLud 23 dec 2021
The richest countries are vaccine hoarders. Try them in international court "Millions have died unnecessarily of Covid and millions more will in 2022 unless something changes. Justice must be done." "The UK, Canada, Germany and other EU states have supported a deliberate policy to withhold vaccines from the poorest countries in the world, and defended an immoral and unethical economic system which places big pharma patents ahead of millions of lives." https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/dec/14/richest-countries-vaccine-hoarders-international-court-millions-have-died -- Anthony Costello 14 dec 2021 The Guardian
“I live in a zero-covid world” “What it's like inside a China-sized bubble” https://www.economist.com/1843/2021/12/20/i-live-in-a-zero-covid-world -- David Rennie 20 dec 2021 The Economist
Plague Poems - @PlaguePoems https://mobile.twitter.com/plaguepoems | Plague Poems | LibrarianShipwreck https://librarianshipwreck.wordpress.com/plague-poems/
... being urged to cancel all my Christmas plans so I don’t get Covid so that I am still capable of looking after all of the people who got Covid because they didn’t cancel their Christmas plans [or get vaccinated]. https://mobile.twitter.com/DrKateJMiller/status/1471905172922241028 -- Dr Kate J Miller @DrKateJMiller 17 dec 2021
A *lot* of good quotes re testing, risk, vaccine vs therapeutics. https://mobile.twitter.com/zeynep/status/1471519029105934339 -- zeynep tufekci @zeynep 16 dec 2021
In this thread, I will be discussing the behavior of Donald Trump’s base throughout the viral pandemic -- everything from their disdain towards wearing masks to their reluctance to getting vaccinated -- but I will be doing it through a very specific lens: caste." "Trump’s base has approached the pandemic with a paranoid suspicion that the pandemic will be used as a pretext to upset a caste order that privileges them." https://mobile.twitter.com/_EthanGrey/status/1469799287953498117 Ethan Grey -- Ethan Grey @_EthanGrey 12 dec 2021
The thing peddlers of spiritual warfare will never tell you is that it’s far easier to fight demons in a universe of your own making than to work together to fix the world we all share. Thread - why anti-vacc, why failure to address school shootings https://mobile.twitter.com/plmanseau/status/1467150508049772552 -- Peter Manseau 4 dec 2021
Still pretty anxious, but COVID is far scarier than any panic attack. https://imgur.com/gallery/6RXVG08 A lot of good insightful comments.
That's right. It's time for another COVID dump. https://imgur.com/gallery/dp527G5
Something is deeply wrong with a society where even a prolonged crisis and daily mass death isn’t enough to make us change our relationship to work and capital. https://mobile.twitter.com/lostblackboy/status/1424557294378012674 -- Lil Uzi Hurt @lostblackboy
We should try caring for others as 'self-care' "What we need is to take care of others." "People reported being more fulfilled on days they helped others, but only when they felt connected to why they were doing what they were doing, and to the person they were helping." https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/10/other-care-self-care/620441/ -- Jamil Zaki The Atlantic 21 oct 2021
“If Covid had a uterus, Republicans would try to control it.” -- @middleageriot “It has a little spike instead, so we have to let it do whatever it wants.”" -- @bloodyyanks “The spike is so good at penetrating the human body without consent. It's one of them!” -- @apoliticalpanda https://imgur.com/gallery/BBlM5OP oct? 2021
Does anybody actually want to have a civil conversation about Covid-19? : r/ask Discussion thread https://www.reddit.com/r/ask/comments/p9ho1j/does_anybody_actually_want_to_have_a_civil/h9ybiuq/ sep? 2021 - before Omicron
It's OK if you have a little cry in lockdown. You're grieving "... disenfranchised grief [is] loss not 'openly acknowledged, socially validated, or publicly mourned'." "Although the risk of depression and anxiety symptoms for people with vulnerabilities has increased during the pandemic, it is not helpful to always pathologise valid human emotions that tell us we are not doing so well. These emotions act as a compass for us to slow down, reset expectations, and seek support when necessary." "... we are living through a one-in-one hundred year event. We are all doing the best we can. And that’s not only OK, it’s enough." https://theconversation.com/amp/its-ok-if-you-have-a-little-cry-in-lockdown-youre-grieving-165329 -- Neeraja Sanmuhanathan 13 aug 2021
Pandemic shoppers are a nightmare to service workers Customers were this awful long before the pandemic. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/08/pandemic-american-shoppers-nightmare/619650/ -- Amanda Mull The Atlantic 4 aug 2021
Life in a half-vaccinated country A public-health expert discusses breakthrough infections, mask and vaccine mandates, and what the Delta variant means for Americans. https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/life-in-a-half-vaccinated-country -- Isaac Chotiner The New Yorker 27 jul 2021
“Anti-vaxx people are the biggest face palm of our generation … maybe of the last 10 generations” https://imgur.com/gallery/QT56qA2
Why the next stage of capitalism is coming https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210525-why-the-next-stage-of-capitalism-is-coming -- Matthew Wilburn King BBC Future 27 may 2021
The Pandemic speaks “Viruses kill the winners. They spread rapidly among dense populations of prey whether they be ocean bacteria, feral rabbits or urban people. Evolution and competition of course play a role. All in all, my viruses diligently liberate resources so diversity can be restored. They invariably shame civilizations that have grown careless with their concentrated monocultures and endless migrations. ... that is my purpose. I prune populations that have grown heavy like overripe apples on unpicked trees.” https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2021/05/21/The-Pandemic-Speaks/ -- Andrew Nikiforuk The Tyee 21 may 2021
Immunity, interdependence, and the shared root of our safety and our sanity: Eula Biss on the science and social dynamics of health as communal trust https://www.themarginalian.org/2021/03/19/eula-biss-on-immunity/ The Marginalian 19 mar 2021
"The fuck is it about COVID that people exposed to it feel the need to travel?" http://imgur.com/gallery/fiybbAx/comment/1883829103 -- @GCRust feb? 2021 Some good comments: "I think it's people afraid that they have no control in their lives, so doing anything they're told to confirms that in their own mind." "Maybe it’s like one of those mind control parasites that alters behavior to help spread it. Oooo new conspiracy!" "Covid is actually cordyceps cosplaying as a virus."
And it begins. Chinese city of Wuman placed under 76-day lockdown beginning 23 January 2020. abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/timeline-chinas-covid-19-outbreak-lockdown-wuhan-75421357 “The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 and a pandemic on 11 March 2020.” Wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic
Mindfulness is useless in a pandemic Approaches buddhism for 2 paras, then veers away -- "we need samsara!" (Contrast with "In a pandemic, self-isolation is called quarantine. In Buddhism, it is called retreat.") https://www.economist.com/1843/2020/11/27/mindfulness-is-useless-in-a-pandemic -- Catherine Nixey The Economist 27 nov 2020
The Coronavirus Crisis -- A collection https://www.newyorker.com/tag/coronavirus The New Yorker
Companies give tons money to top execs before filing bankruptcy https://imgur.com/gallery/MDmzaEA Same old story oct 2020
Pandemic as Portal "Nothing could be worse than a return to normality. "Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. "We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us. Or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world. And ready to fight for it." https://www.ft.com/content/10d8f5e8-74eb-11ea-95fe-fcd274e920ca Mostly about India. Written early in the pandemic. For both, still v relevant. The broader takeaway is at the end. -- Arundhati Roy 3 apr 2020
“Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next.” https://www.ft.com/content/10d8f5e8-74eb-11ea-95fe-fcd274e920ca -- Arundhati Roy
Genghis Khan and population/climate change https://imgur.com/gallery/MDx3MWA Comment threads duscussion: Outcomes of a future plague. 2019 B.C. (before Covid)
How will Coronavirus change the world? "Could the huge shifts in our way of life being introduced as part of the fight against Covid-19 pave the way for a more humane economy?" https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200331-covid-19-how-will-the-coronavirus-change-the-world -- Simon Mair is a Research Fellow in Ecological Economics at the University of Surrey This article is adapted from a piece that originally appeared on The Conversation 31 mar 2020 BBC Future
Pandemics and the shape of human history "Outbreaks have sparked riots and propelled public-health innovations, prefigured revolutions and redrawn maps." https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/04/06/pandemics-and-the-shape-of-human-history -- Elizabeth Kolbert 30 mar 2020 The New Yorker
The novel virus was first identified from an outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. Wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic