By Townhall. I’ll begin with a word on last night’s address by the president. In some respects, it was strong; it emphasized the seriousness of the crisis, repeated crucially important recommendations for best hygiene practices, and reassured anxious Americans that the federal government will act to mitigate the (negative, likely temporary) economic impact. But it also failed in several key respects. . .
The president conveyed three pieces of wrong information, either through shoddy drafting or misspeaking, that needed to be “clarified” by administration officials almost immediately. The actual policies were better and more accurate than the speech designed to relay those policies to the public. This cannot happen. Period. This makes the administration look incompetent, it looks the president look clueless and weak, and it makes it seem as though the high-stakes address was thrown together without proper vetting, which may erode public confidence in future pronouncements made by this president on highly sensitive matters. Noting these things is not an “attack” on Trump. If you’re a supporter of his, you should be angry at those who did not serve him well — a buck that ultimately stops with him.
The Wuhan Coronavirus must transcend politics because so many lives are on the line (again, see below). But even for those who cannot shake their obsession with politics, a blown response to the disease will harm the president’s re-election chances for three reasons: (1) The otherwise excellent economy will needlessly suffer for longer, (2) questions about his capacity to do the job in times of crisis will bite, and (3) the voters who sit most squarely within the health ‘danger zone,’ senior citizens, tend to be Trump supporters. Every incentive, whether humanitarian or calculatingly political, is to get this right. Spreading three strands of incorrect information in an Oval Office address is leadership malpractice and political malpractice.
Now, why did the White House’s top medical expert on the Coronavirus epidemic warn yesterday that the situation will deteriorate in the coming days and weeks? Because based on the data from other countries who are ‘ahead’ of us in the disease cycle, there are many thousands of currently-undiagnosed cases here in the United States. This is leading to the virus being transmitted by people who don’t yet feel sick, so the “official” case numbers (hampered by still wholly insufficient but finally improving testing capacities and efficiencies) are a hugely lagging indicator. The numbers are going to grow much larger. Stop reading this post, and click through to read this full analysis — especially if you consider yourself a Coronavirus “skeptic:”
. . .The entire piece is filled with detailed and sobering charts that build the case. Some experts are projecting that one-third to half of the country could eventually get infected within the current status quo — so even with “only” a one percent fatality rate (ten times worse than an average flu), that could lead to a death toll in the neighborhood of one million-plus Americans. Containment is gone. Mitigation is the key, particularly to prevent the US healthcare system from becoming overwhelmed, which is a major risk:
(Read more from “How Coronavirus Is About to Get Much Worse in the U.S., and Why You Still Shouldn’t Panic” HERE)
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Supply Chain Expert Tells Tucker What Coming Shortages Americans Should Know About, and It’s Not Toilet Paper
By Daily Caller. A supply chain management expert appeared on Thursday night’s edition of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” to explain why toilet paper shortages aren’t exactly what Americans should be looking for long-term in the wake of the coronavirus epidemic.
Daniel Stanton, the author of “Supply Chain Management for Dummies,” broke down the basics about supply chains and how they can be disrupted by events like coronavirus before explaining that “demand shocks” are what many Americans are currently experiencing with shortages of items like toilet paper, masks and hand sanitizer.
“People buying a lot more of some things than what they would normally consume and buying less of some other things, and what that does is creates what we call a bullwhip effect that gets amplified upstream in the supply chain and causes all kinds of chaos,” Stanton explained.
Stanton described these shortages as a “temporary problem” caused by “panic buying,” a situation that will be more than rectified when supplies are replenished. Other items, however, will need to be manufactured on a greater scale.
“There are other things that we are actually using more of. I think disinfecting wipes, hand sanitizers, the hospital masks. We need more of those than what we would normally consume,” he said. “For those things, we need to be increasing capacity, maybe creating some new supply chains, and in a lot of cases, we are dependent on foreign manufacturing and long-distance transportation to get those supplies.” (Read more from “Supply Chain Expert Tells Tucker What Coming Shortages Americans Should Know About, and It’s Not Toilet Paper” HERE)
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Up to 150 Million Americans Could Get Coronavirus: U.S. Projection
By Yahoo. Between 70 to 150 million people in the United States could eventually be infected with the novel coronavirus, according to a projection shared with Congress, a lawmaker said Thursday.
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib made the remarks during a hearing of the House of Representatives with members of the president’s coronavirus task force, confirming earlier reports by US media outlets including Axios and NBC News.
“Congress’s attending physician told the Senate that he expects between 70 to 150 million people to eventually contract the coronavirus in the United States,” Tlaib said.
Axios had reported that doctor Brian Monahan conveyed the projection to Senate senior staff on Tuesday, telling them they should prepare for the worst and offering advice on how to remain healthy. (Read more from “Up to 150 Million Americans Could Get Coronavirus: U.S. Projection” HERE)
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‘Don’t Panic’ Says U.S. Woman Who Recovered From Coronavirus
By Yahoo. An American woman who has recovered from the novel coronavirus has a simple message for people who are worried: Don’t panic — but do think about high-risk individuals and stay home if you feel ill. . .
Schneider first began experiencing flu-like symptoms on February 25, three days after going to a party that was later identified as the place where at least five other people also got infected. . .
Knowing that she would also likely be turned down for the test, she decided to enroll in a research program called the Seattle Flu Study, hoping it might provide an answer. The team behind the study sent her a nasal swab kit, which she mailed back and waited several more days. . .
By this time, her symptoms had already subsided, and she was told by local health authorities to remain at home for at least seven days after the onset of symptoms or 72 hours after they subsided. . .
“The message is don’t panic,” said Schneider. “If you think that you have it, you probably do; you should probably get tested.” (Read more from “‘Don’t Panic’ Says U.S. Woman Who Recovered From Coronavirus” HERE)
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