The Canadian Government has just announced an aid package of up to 82 billion dollars which is very much necessary at this stage. The US something like a trillion dollars, and others similar amounts.
However one cannot wonder what the world would look like today if 5 years ago countries had taken pandemic preparation seriously. Virtually all experts had said it was never a question of IF we would have a pandemic, it was always a question of WHEN. Had the Cdn government (and others) 5 years ago allocated say $1 billion to preparation, we could have had things such as the following: - An instant and cheap test - for example, a solution with a fluorescent molecule that would attach itself to the virus. A simple swish of the mouth and shine a UV light and bingo an instant result. - There is work going on now to develop a more universal vaccine. Perhaps we could have had one by now, or one that could be rapidly tweaked without having to go through clinical trials. It might even work with the common cold and regular flu. Think of the billions it would have saved in productivity, not to mention many lives saved (colds and regular flu kill too). I cannot help think that climate change is a similar but ultimately more deadly issue. Prepare now. Pay for our pollution now, whether by a carbon tax and/or other means. The world has to work together today and in the future to deal with many things - climate change, pandemics, cybercrime, etc. Hopefully, this is the wakeup call the world needed. Let's work together proactively rather than just reactively. Obviously, we have to react to this immediate pandemic, but we cannot go back to our old ways once it is under control.
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It amazes me what people seem to consider essential these days. Suddenly toilet paper has become "essential" - like air and water. Judging from some shopping carts it appears to be more essential than food.
Modern humans have been on earth for about 50,000 years. In that time it is estimated that 100 billion humans (yes that is billion with a B) have lived and died on earth. None of them felt that toilet paper was essential to life. In fact, modern toilet paper was only invented in 1857. To this day, there are probably more than a billion humans who consider toilet paper a luxury. Perhaps this is a time for us all to think about what is really "essential" in our lives. Food and water, the love of family and friends, a roof over our heads, a few useful clothes, nature, and a good book. Yes, there are many other things we could argue are essential, but the further you get from the basics, the less "essential" they really are. We could be more grateful for the many things we have that all our ancestors never had. Indeed, things many living with us, do not have. Somehow, toilet paper just does not seem that important anymore. I predict that the US will have more trouble containing Covid-19 than virtually all other developed countries.
I base this prediction primarily on the fact that millions of Americans do not have medical insurance and those people will be slow to access help if they have flu like symptoms since they will have to pay for that help. This will contribute to a greater community spreading of the disease. Of course President Trump could quickly implement universal medical coverage for all flu illnesses, but he is unlikely to do so given his and the Republican stance against anything close the universal healthcare. Containing outbreaks does seem to be possible if extraordinary steps are taken to shut down movement of people and gatherings of people which could involve closing some industries. Trump is likely to be slow to implement any measures which could further weaken the economy since he knows that his chances of reelection will be a function of how well the economy is doing. Seems he is banking on the assumption that Covid-19 will follow the seasonality of other flu illnesses. This fact is not yet demonstrated and is being questioned by some medical experts. President Trump, the lives of 10's and maybe 100's of thousands are in your hands. Although probably not in your mind since you have already passed the buck to VP Mike Pence. |
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