World Health Organization Declares COVID-19 Outbreak a Pandemic
The following are today’s remarks from the Director General of the World Health Organization. According to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering website at Johns Hopkins University, the latest numbers for the United States are that 1,135 people are confirmed as having the virus and 32 have died.
Transcript of Opening Remarks from Media Briefing for March 11, 2020 from Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organization:
Good afternoon.
In the past two weeks, the number of cases of COVID-19 outside China has increased 13-fold, and the number of affected countries has tripled.
There are now more than 118,000 cases in 114 countries, and 4,291 people have lost their lives.
Thousands more are fighting for their lives in hospitals.
In the days and weeks ahead, we expect to see the number of cases, the number of deaths, and the number of affected countries climb even higher.
WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction.
We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic.
Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly. It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death.
Describing the situation as a pandemic does not change WHO’s assessment of the threat posed by this virus. It doesn’t change what WHO is doing, and it doesn’t change what countries should do.
We have never before seen a pandemic sparked by a coronavirus. This is the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus.
And we have never before seen a pandemic that can be controlled, at the same time.
WHO has been in full response mode since we were notified of the first cases.
And we have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action.
We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear.
===
As I said on Monday, just looking at the number of cases and the number of countries affected does not tell the full story.
Of the 118,000 cases reported globally in 114 countries, more than 90 percent of cases are in just four countries, and two of those – China and the Republic of Korea – have significantly declining epidemics.
81 countries have not reported any cases, and 57 countries have reported 10 cases or less.
We cannot say this loudly enough, or clearly enough, or often enough: all countries can still change the course of this pandemic.
If countries detect, test, treat, isolate, trace, and mobilize their people in the response, those with a handful of cases can prevent those cases becoming clusters, and those clusters becoming community transmission.
Even those countries with community transmission or large clusters can turn the tide on this virus.
Several countries have demonstrated that this virus can be suppressed and controlled.
The challenge for many countries who are now dealing with large clusters or community transmission is not whether they can do the same – it’s whether they will.
Some countries are struggling with a lack of capacity.
Some countries are struggling with a lack of resources.
Some countries are struggling with a lack of resolve.
We are grateful for the measures being taken in Iran, Italy and the Republic of Korea to slow the virus and control their epidemics.
We know that these measures are taking a heavy toll on societies and economies, just as they did in China.
All countries must strike a fine balance between protecting health, minimizing economic and social disruption, and respecting human rights.
WHO’s mandate is public health. But we’re working with many partners across all sectors to mitigate the social and economic consequences of this pandemic.
This is not just a public health crisis, it is a crisis that will touch every sector – so every sector and every individual must be involved in the fight.
I have said from the beginning that countries must take a whole-of-government, whole-of-society approach, built around a comprehensive strategy to prevent infections, save lives and minimize impact.
Let me summarize it in four key areas.
First, prepare and be ready.
Second, detect, protect and treat.
Third, reduce transmission.
Fourth, innovate and learn.
I remind all countries that we are calling on you to activate and scale up your emergency response mechanisms;
Communicate with your people about the risks and how they can protect themselves – this is everybody’s business;
Find, isolate, test and treat every case and trace every contact;
Ready your hospitals;
Protect and train your health workers.
And let’s all look out for each other, because we need each other.
===
There’s been so much attention on one word.
Let me give you some other words that matter much more, and that are much more actionable.
Prevention.
Preparedness.
Public health.
Political leadership.
And most of all, people.
We’re in this together, to do the right things with calm and protect the citizens of the world. It’s doable.
I thank you.
Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules
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R.I.P Costco aisles.
Been prepped for over a decade now. Water. Food. Fuel. Communications. Defense. Medical.
Keep buying your TP though! Lmao. That’ll save you.
You make-a-me laugh!
FanOfGuest,
Please give me your address so I can come by after I run out of supplies. Thanks !
Fan just admitted his whole family is sick, while denying what they might be sick with.
He also admitted he works in the field of healthcare ( which I find dubious because of his comment volume and times).
He won’t get tested and is not self-isolating.
Fan is part of the problem right now.
On this post at least, Fan has not admitted any such thing. Are you referring to some other post?
https://kymkemp.com/2020/03/11/world-health-organization-declares-covid-19-outbreak-a-pandemic-today/#comment-997408
Deaths
COVID-19: Approximately 4,373 deaths reported worldwide; 29 deaths in the U.S., as of Mar. 11, 2020.
Flu: 291,000 to 646,000 deaths worldwide; 12,000 to 61,000 deaths in the U.S. per year.
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/coronavirus/coronavirus-disease-2019-vs-the-flu
When I look at all the stats, I have to ask. Why all the hub-bub? Why isn’t seasonal flu a pandemic?
its no big deal you should totally go get it and then hang out with all your old relatives it will be fine psshh……also let me fill you in on something so you dont look so ignorant……the season flu IS a pandemic.
Imposed fear guest. They are testing humans. Remember the Hawaii missle false scare? They like to watch and study what humans do when faced with fear. It’s all NWO tactics on control. Get used to it. We are all only a giant experiment. Meanwhile I’m sucking on pennies to keep my immunity up! ?
NWO illuminatosos have no power, all they do is talk about themselves eventually getting power, for 35 years now.
Woops, your exposed!
Math is hard.
Counting 12 months or 3 is especially difficult. If you cant do that, then don’t click the link below, it’ll be way over your head.
https://kymkemp.com/2020/03/10/urgent-public-notice-dont-come-to-court-if-youre-sick-says-humboldt-county-superior-court/#comment-995892
For 1 flu death there are 34 Covid deaths.
20,000 (flu deaths) x 34 (covid per flu deaths) = 680,000 people
Your statement is only true if the same number of people are infected with each. That is far from a given Professor.
Oh please, and I was there for the 1957 Asian flu outbreak. Sixty thousand dead in 3 months in the U.S. Remind me, how many have died so far from this one in the U.S. So far 29 dead in the U.S. and 24 of them in one State, and the majority of the 24 in one building. OOOO scary. By the way, not hearing much from the open borders folks, now are we. Remind me, how many thug killings in Chicago in the last 3 months.
Oh please?
It’s only been around 1.5 months in the US, with a big headsup about the dangers from the first countrys who had it.
It hasn’t even touched 50% of our communities. It has not even begun to start to stretch for a warm up.
With complete lockdown in cities across the world it is still killing plenty of people.
The numbers are numbers and don’t attribute for absolute lockdown, while attributing a full year once world wide.
How about this one:
300,000 global (flu deaths) x 34 (covid per flu deaths) = 10,200,000
Again a false equivalency that would only be true if the same number of people were infected with each.
It looks like you are either ignorant of the real math or you are deliberately omitting an important factor.
Lies, damned lies, and statistics.
that would only be true if the same number of people were infected with each.
Yes. This is hypothetical if the same amount of people were infected by each.
Obviously we haven’t lost 10 million to Covid yet.
Good detective work!
* let’s stop the bad numbers here. I thought the global total of flu deaths was overstated by Guest. It was.
The CDC estimates that 56,000 people die from flu each year.
56,000 x 34 = 1,904,000 people .
I never stated anything about the number of flu deaths. I simply said that in order to make a claim about death rates, you have to know both the number of people who died from a disease AND the number of people who contracted it. The number of people who died is a fairly reliable (although I’m sure there has been missed cases and/or improperly assigned one) but the number of people who have contracted the disease is certainly vastly undercounted. Thus you can not say what the death rate is but you can be certain it is not as high as you allege.
And in trying to frighten people by exaggeration, much damage is caused.
Flu: 291,000 to 646,000 deaths worldwide; 12,000 to 61,000 deaths in the U.S. per year.
Your words are right above, and if it wasn’t you that’s your own predicament as “guest” and you shouldn’t address my statement.
Not every flu case is counted.
It’s all relative.
We need less humans. In nature, the strong survive.
Guess your going first then…
Here’s the real math on flu va. COVID-19
FLU: 34,000,000 humans get the flu. Of that, 20,000 perish. That means 1 out of 1,700 die.
COVID-19: (rounding numbers)80,000 humans are infected. Of that, 3,000 have perished. That means 1 out of 27 die.
If the coronavirus spreads like influenza, 1.25 MILLION people will die
Current modeling is projecting 15 to 69 million deaths and 2 to $9 trillion sapped from the world economy. But the system is dynamic and hard to predict at this point. Vigilance is the only recourse.
https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-death-toll-global-gdp-loss-australian-national-university-study-2020-3
For those trying to scrape up mortality rates, using this study with a 70% infection rate worldwide that is 4.9 billion infected. With 69 million deaths that is a 1.4% mortality rate.
Time to clean house
Yes. Before you can talk stats, you have to know what you are counting.
guest, you don’t understand exponential progression. We are on the edge of an explosion of new cases and deaths. Things are about to get really bad very quickly.
Never participated in a pandemic. Should be fun.
You better you better you bet. – The WHO
Well no one wants to participate in one but the last one before this was AIDS/HIV in the 2000s. So I suspect you probably did live through at least one. Then there were flu epidemics in 1968 and 1950s if you’re old enough.
So let’s see, head of CDC says most everyone in US will come into contact with this virus and those that are older, underlying conditions are at risk of not only getting sick but dying. Another fact: since the government can’t/hasn’t been able to ramp up testing of those suspected of having virus; we thus have no idea who has caught virus or not. Fact: Many Workers gave no sick leave and must work to pay rent so many will work while feeling sick. Fact: even if you do feel you may have virus, you are responsible for cost of testing ($1600 a pop without insurance). Fact: virus has shown to be about 3x more contagious than seasonal flu. Good luck.
https://youtu.be/cZFhjMQrVts
This shows the virus is only getting started and clears up some misinformation.
Were is the last ship when we need it .
In Italy right now they are doing triage. If you are old and/or with existing health conditions they could decide not to treat you because of limited resources.
The second we knew that a new highly infectious virus with a high rate of mortality was being spread beyond its ignition point we should have gone into preparedness mode. Test kits mass produced. Awareness of the potential harm made public. Instead Congress, the CDC and others initially went into a ‘wait and see’ mode and Trump went into ‘I am god and have looked in my crystal ball and there’s nothing to worry about’ mode. (You gotta love that clown. If the human race survives he will be the fount of late night jokes for hundreds and hundreds of years to come)
That’s all gonna come back and haunt us. Especially for people like me, old, sick and in the way. We now need to assume that it is present everywhere, and act accordingly.
And to people who keep trying to equate covid with seasonal flu, you can’t. One is common to humans and with a low kill rate, while covid has a very high death rate and is new with no immunity built up in humans. When the flu hits, some get it, some don’t, some are immunized, some aren’t, but in every case there is an immune response now built in. This isn’t true for covid. When it hits it will spread easily and lethally because no one has had it before. We are essentially defenseless.
And to people who downplay the kill rate by saying many have mild symptoms and aren’t counted because that’s true for the flu as well. Most people I know don’t go to the doctor when they get the flu. They stay home and mend without being counted. In the end we will probably have a more accurate number of covid cases than we will with the flu.
The bottom line is that pandora’s box is open and we have to figure out how to reclose it.
Researcher,
Thank you!!!
Best of luck ahead my friend.
At least your aware. Your two steps ahead of a bunch of clowns here.
Brian. I’ve been four steps ahead in the last 15 years….. I’m prepped n ready. Been prepped n ready. One thing a learned a along time ago. Preparedness makes you powerful.
Watching Alex Jones for 15 years doesn’t put you ahead.
You’ve been on edge.
Screaming emergency year after year isn’t anything more than being on a overseas plane trip and yelling “we’re going to land” sometime while over the ocean.
Yes, eventually you’ll be right. We will land.
Being on edge is what keeps you alive. Situational awareness is a lost art. Personal defense is a lost art. Survival in any situation is a lost art. I’ll keep running hot and staying on edge. Watch your rope knots Brian, you’re on a edge too, you just don’t know it! PS wtf is Alex Jones?
If you don’t know who Alex Jones is then don’t brag about how aware you are…
Right.
Pre-planning prevents piss poor performance!
A little perspective is hard to come by. And worry soon turns into hysteria. And that hysteria is then turned to anger. Someone is to blame! Certainly though not ourselves. Sheesh!
At one point, no one had an immune response to flu either. It has been developed, just as there will be people who will develop an immune response to this. Some will be casualties. Luckily for all of us, this particular bug seems to mostly spare children. It would be much more heart rending if it didn’t. It also seems less aggressive to younger people. The ones who provide the services we all need. In terms of the miseries that hit humanity, this could be a whole lot worse.
The stress though brings out the worst in people. They whiz around, arms waiving over their heads and getting angry at those not equally, and equally uselessly, make noise. They make everything worse.
What we can do that is helpful to everyone is the same as has always been true. First stay calm, then get informed, then take care of yourself so that those who actually need help can get it. The least that should be everyone’s goal.
Researcher,
You are NOT “in the way”. Your wisdom and eloquence are of great value to this community.
Please take the very best care of yourself. We need you.
Wow, that’s the nicest thing someone has said to me in a long time. Thank you and bless you.
Blaming trump again…… that doesn’t take research.
Except for the part where COVID-19 is a strain of the flu, derp. The majority of people who get it don’t produce any symptoms, which is why it is spreading like it is. 24 of the 29 fatalities were in one retirement home in washington, so the data is skewed. Show me where one, 1, number 1, healthy individual has died. Brian? Looking at you. The flu has killed more people to date and is more deadly as of right now, that is fact. Please put your numbers and projections aside because it hasn’t happened yet. Most of all, this shows how weak we are worldwide. Its sad indeed.
This is no different than SARS or the bird flu. The difference is media exposure panic mode before an election. Smoke n mirrors. Dog n pony. I see through the BS. Millions do. Can we keep up the hysteria for another 6 months? Blaming Trump? The war continues, and it’s not a “i care about people” war. It’s a war of politics and power. Keep pointing fingers. You know who is to blame for this? All of us. We are the diocese! Earths parasites. Want to save this planet? Get rid of 2/3 of the human population. It’s really the only answer. Saving everyone will be the ultimate downfall. There is a reason I don’t have Facebook, people don’t want to hear reality! Only puppy dog videos of a distorted world.
If nothing else, covid-19 is something that, while not having the mortality rate of SAR or MERS, no one has experienced enough to have built up resistance. It spreads easily and fast. The sheer numbers of infections will lead to a larger than normal number of people tipping over into critical illness and needing urgent care to survive.
That will strain medical services. Most hospitals operate at close to 100 percent capacity already as a matter of economics and haven’t the ability to expand rapidly to cope with the sudden increase. Keeping balance in perspective between hysteria, which will cause people to demand care for their mild infections, and being oblivious would be good. Then people will take care of themselves as appropriate rather than adding to the strain on medical systems with useless demands or blithely spread it around.
1911 – You asked for one, 1, number 1, healthy individual [who] died. Here is one, and then some, more than one, 1+.
Peng Yinhua, a 29-year-old Chinese doctor, planned to marry his fiancée on February 1. But as the coronavirus outbreak grew, Peng postponed his wedding to help treat patients in Wuhan. He died of the disease on February 21.
https://www.businessinsider.com/why-coronavirus-killed-young-chinese-doctors-2020-2
The deaths of doctors in their 20s and 30s naturally sparks concern about the coronavirus’ risk to younger people, but according to China’s National Health Commission, about 80% of people who have died from COVID-19 were over the age of 60.
we have to stop being reactive and be proactive in instead. Why wait for positive virus cases in Humbold County Schools to shut them down. Do it now !
“We are essentially defenseless.” Baloney, fearmongering, dumb.
80% of healthy Americans will survive the cor 19 with little to NO symptoms. A huge amount of the 80 year olds will contract cor 19 and die. Youngins are somewhat naturally predisposed to immunity.
Just who is defenseless? The weaklings.
These facts are same each year. But every year isn’t a Presidential election. A heavy dose of skepticism about this Wuhan Virus is called for.
Jesus Christ, Gass, the weaklings? That’s a derogatory name for the elders among us which includes my mother, my step-dad, my father-in-law, my mother-in-law, my immune compromised young cousin, and any number of us who may be in a health crisis for a number of other reasons. AND if the medical community is overwhelmed, then that will ripple out to affect others including accident victims who don’t get the treatment they need etc.
But it’s the reality
as reported by health professional on the frontlines. BECAUSE nationwide there is a always a chronic shortage of vents (to intubate and support pneumonia patients with a ventilator.) That hasn’t changed. SO In hospitals/care homes in major cities ALREADY the elderly and those with any pre-existing disease or disability (weaklings) when found to be suffering active covid-19 , are not even being treated! Instead a triage is in place so they are moving those patients directly to comfort/hospice care. Apparently, according to one nurse I spoke with, if you are staring down your 7th decade or higher it’s absolutely time to have your end of life / Health Care Directives and Life Estate /Will details all up to date, just in case .
Tom Hanks just stated he and his wife have covid. Here were their symptoms. “We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too.”
All pretty mild, but they got tested anyway and were positive.
Testing needs to be done everywhere and for free. If we don’t get test kits made available to the general public asap we will never slow this thing down. Too many will not get tested who have mild symptoms unless awareness and availability happen.
Also important to note is CDC now has found Covid 19 can live on plastic and stainless-steel surfaces for up to 3 days.
My whole family accept me have a cold right now. Are we getting tested. No. They have a cold. Kids are all staying home. Wife goes to work. FYI. I work on the front lines of emergency healthcare. I take my everyday precautions. I am not afraid or panicking, neither are any of my co-workers. Fear is the ultimate control. One will throw them selves off a bridge if you install enough fear. God is watching.
For 20%, it starts slow and then gets bad, then goes away a bit…come back stronger, goes away a bit, comes back stronger and stronger. Suddenly you can’t breath. Tom Hanks is not out of the woods yet. He is diabetic and 63.
This is correct. They are reporting a nice little last gasp where it seems like you’re getting better and 12 hours later kidneys/liver shut down and you’re dead.
Tom Hanks and basketball player get test and not feeling too bad. Sound like the people are getting different treatment and the few will be alright but we will not
It’s the titanic all over again. Only the rich or ones able to morally switch into survival at all costs mode, will be the survivors.
Yes, don’t be afraid to eat your neighbor!
In my 1911 trust,
You should eat the young ones first, they’ll taste better
shuck and jive, so it kills all of us old timers, it is jus another way to manipulate a doofus dumbass population
, flu is killing a lot more. as are the rich bastirds who run this country so good fking
luck
this will kill much more than the flu after it’s all over
And then what?
Sorry, that was a commenting test.
I tried to delete it but could not.
That was funny.
What South Korea has done that is different is not just mass testing (which BTW is not free for the asymptomatic) but has created “special care zones.” Whenever a spike in confirmed covid-19cases occured, the government has ordered self-quarantining, closed museums, libraries and tourist sites, cancelled public assemblies either political or social, etc. The military has been mobilized to spray disinfectants, monitor and set up hospital. “Some of South Korea’s measures have been controversial. For example, people who are confirmed to have coronavirus are tracked by GPS, and a live map of their locations (without their names) is available for anyone wishing to avoid them. ” https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/11/south-korea-shows-that-democracies-can-succeed-against-coronavirus/
Ullr,
The dow Jones is now under 22,000.
I said this 13 days ago:
In the next 2 weeks our known cases will likely surge to over 500 in California alone.
The DOW will fall below the 2016 support level of 22,000.
Any stock gains after 2016 will be gone.
https://kymkemp.com/2020/02/28/of-cannabis-and-covid-19/#comment-982554
Little did I know our system would be sooooo far behind that we still don’t know how many cases we have here, but I guarantee it’s over 500. Likely close to 3000.
I don’t make a lot of predictions because it’s a fool’s game.
But I want my accuracy to be noted.
I acknowledge you said that. To me it’s not a surprise; the market has been in a bubble for awhile as shown by the Feds growing balance sheet. It was bound to burst it just needed to find the pin. Once the big players (or their algorithms) think it’s close to bottom they’ll swoop and and buy everything at fire sale prices turning virtual assets into real assets.
I suspect the cases in the US are in the 10’s of thousands.
It’s true, we were in a bubble.
But the 22,000 support leg (of 2018 , not 2016) was likely going to hold strong without the Covid pandemic.
Bubble pops can’t stop international travel, sporting events and gatherings in general like Covid is.
The 2016 Dow high was about 18,500 and it’s our next big support leg, then 16,000.
I bought in the dip 3 days ago.
Medical equipment manufacturers, mostly.
I’ll buy again in months when this settles.
I agree we are in the 10s of thousands.
I know of one cluster in Redding that has been undiagnosed for 2 weeks.
Be safe.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed bickering with you more than any other. Thanks.
You’ve pushed me to learn a ton of stuff.
It’s been fun. Don’t sound so fatalistic.
Just being honest.
Just being honest.
*Not completely honest.
I’m in self isolation.
I don’t see too many people in general on my hill.
On Feb 24 a neighbor who mostly resides in Redding dropped by.
2 days ago I started to show symptoms.
I asked him about his history. He was in and out of SFO all of February.
Currently a light fever, a sore neck, very light sore throat and heavy eyes are my symptoms.
He and his friends are sick and in denial.
They are younger than I, and I’m not on the high risk group.
The stigma is stronger than my symptoms.
I’ll be fine I’m sure.
The Trinity Journal says to call the CDC.
The CDC says to call your doctor.
I don’t have a doctor.
Recover fast. Stay warm inside for the duration of your quarantining. But if it reaches a point of being short of breath, call the closest urgent care or emergency room and tell them you are coming. Believe me, the screening and information will flow.
The criticism is not only unreal to witness, it’s maddening in the scale of its hypocrisy.
On January 30th while Nancy Pelosi, Adam Schiff, Jerry Nadler and Chuck Schumer were literally trying to impeach President Trump; on that very day President Trump was assembling a task force in advance of his authorization for HHS Secretary Alex Azar to declare a proactive national health emergency.
On the exact same day the Senate was debating whether to call more witnesses for the Senate impeachment trial, the newly assembled Coronavirus Task Force was holding a press conference to outline: in accordance with the national health emergency declaration, at 5:00 p.m. EST; Sunday, February 2nd, the U.S government would implement temporary measures to increase detection & containment of the coronavirus proactively:
Simultaneous to this joint HHS, CDC and NIH announcement, on the other side of Capitol Hill, the U.S. Senate voted on whether to add additional impeachment witnesses; and what the impeachment process would be moving forward.
Guess which event the media covered?
However, it sure is blood-boiling to watch the media now. To see the media cheer-leading for a national health crisis -literally with smiling faces as they hope for an economic collapse- for the exact same gleeful reason they cheered the impeachment effort. The level of vitriol against President Trump is sickening.
http://didtrumptweetit.com/2020/01/30/
Trump on Jan 30 (and every other day) was tweeting about the upcoming better than better biggest most biggest, baddest, most big, bigger than that, economy to come.
Well, here you go.
#Covfefe, Rakes, “Zero cases” of covid by last week…Why are you trying to fix a broken TOOL?
This will collapse the stupid bloated ponzi scheme known as Calpers. The California pensions system is already on the ragged edge.
In what other state can a CHP retire at 41 years old and make $100,000 per year tax free for life plus fully paid medical for her/his spouse. plus spouse get pension after he/she dies.
Many retired CHPs use their government connections (while working as a CHP) to get more government jobs after their first gig, and get a 2nd or even third pension.
Today’s California pensioners that have been in for 10 years or more are a privileged class that cannibalizes the young in order to enrich themselves. Not only do they get more secure retirements, they also make about 4x more that a security guard.
So much money is being plunged into these pension programs that the various government agencies that use Calpers have to divert money that would otherwise go to public projects.
I look forward to watching California’s unjust pension system implode. It’s gross. The jerks that manage Calpers are corrupt, venal dirt bags.
As long as there is an ability to tax, neither CALPers nor STRS will collapse. Taxes will go up. As usual .
Mike it’s worse that that….
“Governor Newsom, if it were up to me, I would fire Mr. Meng immediately,” Banks wrote in the letter.
“At the least, I think a thorough investigation of Mr. Meng’s relationship to the Chinese Communist Party and a comparison of CalPERS investments in Chinese companies before and after Mr. Meng’s 2008 hiring are both warranted,” he added.
A U.S. citizen born in China, Meng has twice worked for CalPERS, the first time starting in 2008 and the second time beginning in January 2019 when he became CIO managing $400 billion in investments, according to the CalPERS website.
In between the CalPERS stints, Meng worked for three years as deputy CIO with China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), which oversees China’s U.S. Treasury security holdings, the website says.
Citing an online article in China’s People’s Daily, Banks asserted that China’s Thousand Talents Program recruited Meng for the job at SAFE. According to the FBI, TTP is a part of “China’s non-traditional espionage against the United States.”
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-china-calpers/u-s-lawmaker-calls-for-ouster-of-calpers-cio-over-china-ties-letter-idUSKBN206310
Isn’t that nice ! California looking out for your interests. Kind of reminds me of the CPUC over site of PG&E.
Makes me wonder about that Driver / Spy of DI FI’s that just disappeared after being caught. She sure has been quiet lately.
Today your president limited/banned travel from Europe to the USA. Liberals called it unfair and “condemned” him for it. Trump doesn’t limit/ban travel from Europe. Liberals call him incompetent and a threat to national health. Hot coffee is right, progressive democrats are cheering and chomping at the bit for a health pandemic and economic crisis, all to blame and make our president look bad. Child like games at the cost of a country. Sad.
Riiiigghhhttttt.
Hey, have you seen the latest videos of Don Jr. hopped up on cocaine or something? Pretty entertaining. Like father like son…
Hey. Have you seen the video of Bill Clinton smoking a vagina laced cigar while Ms Lewenski is on her knees? Pretty entertaining…like husband, like wife.
And that folks is a long fly ball hit over the center field wall.
Nice swat FOG
Bring it on!
Mike, as a teachers aide, my wife, almost 60, has been paying into CalPERS for 15yrs. I’ve encouraged her to put in a little extra each month so it’ll get matched. We recently looked over the numbers for when she retires, and, well, we sure as hell are not going to be anywhere near rich. In fact, retirement? We do not realistically see it happening by 75. Will the CalPERS help? Yes. But, not until she retires. Fortunately, I’m a little younger and will have a paycheck for a bit longer, providing nothing happens to me.
Yes. Some are getting rich off of CalPERS. Probably the same ones that will also collect their social security even though they don’t need it. But not most. We need it. For us, CalPERS will be the difference between a care home and the home we currently rent, if we don’t get kicked out by the aging landlord’s kids first.
I’m not complaining. It is what it is. But don’t screw the hard workers just to spite the richies. The fat cats are already taking from our pocket, we don’t need you to sew it shut.
Thanks FanOGuest sometimes I think I’m talking to the wind.
I don’t believe any sane person is hoping for an economic collapse or a national health pandemic. But I do see there are some people feeling a certain satisfaction that the incompetence of a president they loathe during a crisis is finally scraping a hole in a few people’s blindfolds. And sane people would rather plaster that hole up if it would somehow keep people from suffering.
But, if someone believes that someone is not a good leader and hopes for a good leader, it isn’t unreasonable to point out the ways the leader is falling short.
Here is what the ultra right National Review quoted Trump as saying about the Europe Travel ban, ““We made a life-saving move with early action on China, now we must take the same action with Europe. If we are diligent . . . the virus will not have a chance against us,” Trump said. In January, the administration announced a temporary ban on foreign nationals attempting to enter the country from China.” Obviously the ban on China failed and the National Review is very discreetly pointing out that closing the barn door now after the horses have escaped is not going to work either.
The National Review points out Trump’s failings gently but they still point them out. For instance, “Trump downplayed the threat of a recession, saying “this is not a financial crisis.” On Wednesday, the stock market entered a bear market after the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed nearly 6 percent lower than Tuesday, and 20 percent lower than the record high set last month.” https://www.nationalreview.com/news/coronavirus-president-trump-announces-30-day-ban-travel-from-europe-over-coronavirus-threat/
Who said democrats are sane?
Who said Trump was sane?
Kym,
Not everyone seems to be sane when it comes to politics.
I also can’t imagine anyone who wouldn’t fall short in some way the position that Trump is in.
What would you expect him to say, everybody panic, or try to calm the fears both on the virus and the stock market? How would it help those that loathe him to promote panic? Then they would say he’s causing panic. Obama ran on hope & change , shouldn’t Trump try to give people hope that the virus could burn out with warmer weather in the summer or the stock market will eventually recover?
I’m not saying he’s perfect far from it, but he doesn’t deserve what he’s getting either.
Can you understand the people that have no confidence in Joe gaffing his way through a crisis like this? Yelling and swearing at voters that disagree with him?
Or Bernie’s open border solutions? With Bernie we could still have 22,000 Chinese persons coming to the USA every day as they were and should have been before the virus. But not now at this point in time.
Even those that loathe Trump should show some comparison as to how their candidate would do better and so far I haven’t seen them do that.
Even though we disagree I appreciate you allowing me to post my opinions.
You can’t compare 1 event that is happening to 1 event that hasn’t happened.
Noth Bush and Trump handled things better than Trump.
9/11 and SARS for Bush.
2008 collapse and ebola for Obama.
Go on, do some research.
This is Trumps only time being tested as a leader.
Epic fail.
Noth Bush and Trump handled things better than Trump. Huh? try to make sense.
The CDC and other health officials are making the calls and Trump is endorsing them while trying to calm the waters. Like you said 1 event is not the same as another event. Ebola is not covid -19 with an oil war and a supply crisis world wide.
Brainfart.
Both Bush and Obama handled their crisis’ better than Trump, with much less time to prepare.
If you researched , you’ll find that SARS and MERS were significantly less infectious but more deadly than covid-19. And ebola even less so. “Currently, MERS doesn’t appear to be able to spread like Ebola can. Though it’s in the same family of viruses as SARS and the common cold—both highly contagious—MERS appears to be less transmittable. While Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, MERS doesn’t spread easily from person to person, and though it spreads through the respiratory tract, very close contact is needed, which is why the risk is higher for health care workers.” https://time.com/3910571/mers-ebola/
Mention one epic fail Brian? I tested my wife with this same question. All she could say was that he is a rich, pompous, womanizing, loud mouth capitalist that shouldn’t be president. You know what I said to her? I agree.
1)Saying this was a hoax.
2) accusing Democrats of politicizing this pandemic
3)not acknowledging the pandemic
4) having hunches about anything and not listening to science
5) when we were at 12 cases, saying the cases will go down to 5, 2 maybe 0.
7) wheres our tests?
That’s just the past 10 days.
do you need more?
I think he will go down in history as failing to protect adequately against the coronavirus, climate change, and failing to cushion the economic fallout from the coronavirus which has sent the stock market spinning. But there are a few others–our image abroad is collapsing as is our ability to lead other countries as he insults allies and courts dictators, he ignored the murder of a journalist working for a US paper by the Saudis thus giving support to brutal measures by brutal regimes everywhere, his administration separated children from their parents and lost them which is unforgivable, don’t forget the disastrous confusion in the Middle East after he withdrew the US from the Iran Nuclear deal, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg of Trump’s presidency’s failure. Let’s hope he doesn’t manage to sink the US with his failures.
Guilty of climate change, a Chinese virus and an ever changing stock market? Hmmm sounds more like a scapegoat to me.None of what you accused him of are controlled by one person. You know what will go down in political epic fails? The botched impeachment of President Trump!
He’s not solely responsible for any of those things but he has placed a large roadblock in the paths of dealing with any of them. As Harry Truman would say…the buck stops with him.
The impeachment of Trump didn’t fail because he wasn’t guilty. It failed because a Republican controlled Senate is incapable of trying to stop him because they fear they will be turned on by the mass of voters who are blinded by their love of watching a big bull breaking dishes in a china shop. Until the voters realize that the dishes being broken are not just the lives of brown people but the whole US citizenry who have been put at risk by Trump’s shortsighted policies, Trump’s in charge.
Just point Fanof back to my post that isn’t being debated and Trump had 1000% control of.
Sorry Brian , but none of those points you made were “epic fails”. If so, ALL of the presidents before would be guilty of “epic fails”. Hunches, acknowledgements, hearsay and accusations are not “epic fails”.Nice try though.at least Ms Kemp points out valid facts.but i do must say kym…. what would happen if we had a democrat controlled house and senate? Doesn’t sound like much of a “checks n balances “ system anymore.that would be called a monarchy in these times to say the least.
oh my gosh, that isn’t accurate. California, for example, has elected a majority of democrats to both houses of the state legislature and to the governors office. we still have checks and balances in the State.
In my opinion, a lack of checks and balances exists when the leader of the senate forgoes his oath to be objective by saying there is “no daylight” between his branch of government and the executive branch, while magnifying that by not allowing witnesses in a trial of the executive, after having already promoted the appointment of a proven perjurer to the judicial branch.
Fan, you aren’t worthy of a debate with me.
Peace to you
Fan,
Checks and balances rely on truth and facts. Senators afraid of losing re election and ignoring facts are providing the kind of checks that chihuahua’s provide on a wolf–none.
The definition of betraying one’s country is to withhold money from an ally that was to protect it from a hostile country in order to get political advantage at home.
The impeachment of the President was a roaring success, Nancy said so. So why even bother the Senate?
We have a Constitution.
The House investigates, the Senate makes the trial. The House failed, the President prevailed. Guilt/innocence? That’s just some people talking. The Senate did the correct thing. The President is still the President.
The haters of Trump are disrupting civil actions and spreading libel. All semblance of self-awareness has been lost to petty name calling. Thx KK.
Your bias against the President has harmed you.
My dislike of the President may be making me unable to see the things he does well. Does your bias in favor of him make you miss the things he doesn’t do well?
No, I don’t see the problems the way you imagine them. The President has a lot of fixing to get done. America needs to learn to conserve.
Throwing personal insults at me the way trb is doing is in front of your sensibilities, right? Why do you allow, encourage and compliment it? Is it funny?
No. I think you dislike him because he is an ass.
We have no evidence of anything done well.
Rod,
It’s funny how stuff you get when hoping for “weaklings” to die from the virus.
But you can’t even handle a comment section squable.
Who’s weak?
Quit your crying and gather your facts.
Deportations lower under Trump administration than Obama: report …
https://thehill.com/latino/470900-deportations-lower-under-trump-than-obama-report
Nov 18, 2019 … The Trump administration has deported fewer overall people than … Obama despite the ongoing crackdown on immigrants without legal status,
I agree with you Kym that losing children is unforgivable..however I doubt that was Trumps desire. There were massive caravans of people, many more than the border patrol was designed to deal with. And lets not forget the human trafficking that goes on at the border, or the drug importations.
I was in SF and on Mission st. when Chavez marched there and I agreed with him and the farmworkers then & still do. But sending La Raza and attorneys to the borders to subvert our laws and make things as difficult as possible is a bit much. They inflamed the situation and did little to help reunite the families.
The deal with Iran was never permanent. Trump decided to get out of the deal, none of us really know if they were keeping their agreement or not. The left take Iran’s side even though Iran is against gays, women, Christians, music, freedom etc. just to spite Trump, Why?
What do you think Trump can do about an American journalist who knowingly took a chance going to Saudi. This Journalist knew he would be in danger and made his decision., He was not unfamiliar with the situation he was going into. There is a question as to him being a double agent. Trump did not condone what happened neither could he have stopped it.
Climate change many people believe climate change is not caused by humans but by nature.
Was the Ice age due to a lack of using fossil fuels?
You often get the scientific results you paid for.
That goes for both sides of the issue
just saying.
Europe doesn’t seem to be doing any better than Trump when it comes to containing the virus. Calling him a xenophobe for trying to stop it coming in from China didn’t help either.
HotCoffee, Obama was wrong. I hated it then and I still hate it.
We can figure out which farm tainted lettuce came from. To not have a plan to reunite children with parents is beyond overwhelmed and into we don’t think you people are human. I feel physically ill thinking about it.
I am not a fan of Iran. I am a fan of no nukes in their hands.
You have the whole story of Khashoggi incorrect. He never went to Saudi Arabia. Khashogi wanted to get married so he needed documentation stating he had divorced his ex-wife. The Saudi’s lured him to their consulate in Turkey (the country of the woman he wanted to marry) with the promise of giving him the documentation there. Remember Turkey is applying to be a member of the European union and it is reasonable that Khashoggi would expect to be safe there.
No one said Trump could have stopped the killing. BUT the way he reacted was appalling. For almost three weeks after Khashoggi disappeared, the Saudi’s denied they had killed him in their embassy. Trump supported the Saudi’s even though the evidence was very strong. Within a month after his killing, the CIA knew that that the Saudi crown prince ordered Khashoggi’s assassination. Trump waved away their findings and stood with Saudi Arabia–you know with a foreign power against our own intelligence agency. And some Republicans including Lindsey Graham joined with Democrats and petitioned Trump to investigate the Saudis involvement. Several countries including Germany stopped arms sales to the Saudis over the incident. Trump on the other hand gave sensitive nuclear power info to them right afterwards…He eventually vetoed several bipartisan attempts to halt arm sales to the country.
So, yeah, that also is unforgivable.
And, almost no credible scientist believes that climate change is not affected by humans. NASA says, “The planet’s average surface temperature has risen about 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit (0.9 degrees Celsius) since the late 19th century, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere. Most of the warming occurred in the past 35 years, with the five warmest years on record taking place since 2010.” I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this because the evidence is overwhelming and if you choose to ignore it there’s no use beating my head uselessly on a refusal to see what is so overwhelmingly accepted that oil companies are acknowledging it.
And really? Europe isn’t doing better than the US on the Coronavirus? Germany has over 2000 people who tested positive with the Coronavirus. The US has 1600 so far. You know how many deaths Germany has had? Three. You know how many the US has? 40. We obviously have more people that have the coronavirus but we have not tested for them which rests largely on President Trump’s decisions. Only about 5000 people had been tested as of yesterday in the US. In Germany there were about “35,000 coronavirus tests done in private practices last week” and they are able to do about 12,000 tests per day now.
https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-03-10/germany-and-coronavirus
So with all those tests they have relatively little more people testing positive than we have. Why? The thing to understand is that we have not been testing near enough and will not be able to ramp up our testing for some time. That means that likely there are a number of undiagnosed people moving through their lives infecting more people.
Trump denied there was a problem even while experts told him there was, he spewed misinformation (anyone who wants a tests gets a test…yikes, that is so not true), Funds to deal with the coronavirus should have been appropriated sooner (remember he asked for so little that it took a bipartisan push to up it to $8.3 billion), there aren’t enough respirators for health care workers, etc.
The deaths that are likely coming will be in large part on Trump’s shoulders.
The US was already sinking in the morass of globalism-noble- US-pathetic nonsense long before Trump was elected. That began decades ago with ceasing to protect US workers from foreign goods. In fact the liberals of the world assured the exact position the US is in right now where Ma offers to ship face masks to the US and Mexico is looking to close its borders. The foolish idea that the US is inferior has taken over politics and the media do that it has become a self fulfilling prophecy. It is born of the idiocy that liberals have that the natural state of humanity is well fed, unchallenged and benign.
Trump can not be blamed just because what liberals were warned would happen is exactly what happened. That is scapegoating of the most oblivious nature. Not that there is any chance they will stop, not matter how clear it is that their own constant flitting from complaint to complaint only stopped any sensible actions without offering anything useful.
Hum, the bank bail out, people that lost their homes. Obama
Katrina people that lost their lives and their homes. Bush
And I appreciate that even though you disagree with others you mainly do so in a non-hostile way.
Then what’s your lapdogs excuse?
My dog died this year…
If you are referring to a human being, it would go a long way to support my suspicions on who you are.
I’m sorry, Kym
The Power of the Dog
Rudyard Kipling – 1865-1936
There is sorrow enough in the natural way
From men and women to fill our day;
And when we are certain of sorrow in store,
Why do we always arrange for more?
Brothers and Sisters, I bid you beware
Of giving your heart to a dog to tear.
Buy a pup and your money will buy
Love unflinching that cannot lie—
Perfect passion and worship fed
By a kick in the ribs or a pat on the head.
Nevertheless it is hardly fair
To risk your heart for a dog to tear.
When the fourteen years which Nature permits
Are closing in asthma, or tumour, or fits,
And the vet’s unspoken prescription runs
To lethal chambers or loaded guns,
Then you will find—it’s your own affair—
But… you’ve given your heart to a dog to tear.
When the body that lived at your single will,
With its whimper of welcome, is stilled (how still!).
When the spirit that answered your every mood
Is gone—wherever it goes—for good,
You will discover how much you care,
And will give your heart to a dog to tear.
We’ve sorrow enough in the natural way,
When it comes to burying Christian clay.
Our loves are not given, but only lent,
At compound interest of cent per cent.
Though it is not always the case, I believe,
That the longer we’ve kept ’em, the more do we grieve:
For, when debts are payable, right or wrong,
A short-time loan is as bad as a long—
So why in—Heaven (before we are there)
Should we give our hearts to a dog to tear?
I’m leaking…
I hope it’s a bit cathartic. I have read this poem too many times over the years and I “leak” every time…
“Another Guest in the wall” was another Sid alias you banned if I’m not mistaken.
So happy your on it.
And sorry for your dog.
I still have Bo Dee if you want! He’s a great boy!
I’m not ready to have another puppers yet. I’m still missing my girl.
What a… If some people have been holing the boat for decades, it’s not believable to give a pass to those same people when they complain the one person trying to bail it out is not doing it fast enough. What other countries have done what South Korea has done? And as of yet, what South Korea has done has not been proven superior. All this is just window dressing on the usual hate-trump-ism politicking. Insanity would be believing it now. Even if you’re right, it’s an accident. And you don’t even know you are right. It took a bazillion posts to even nudge the liberal boat into understanding what a statistic meant and what it didn’t mean. It will be a surprise If that much movement will be a cause for self examination in the future when losing the last election just meant doubling down on the very attitude that lost it.
Kym Kemp,
I’ve yet to find an explanation for this double whammy at the same instant.
“Trump downplayed the threat of a recession, saying “this is not a financial crisis.”
There’s a lot more at work here than the Wuhan Virus.
#1 Impeachment of the American President
#2 Wuhan released into the public in Communist China
#3 Stock market short sellers take charge
#4 Political election rallies get cancelled due to safety
#5 MSM demands a virtual campaign
#6 Toss away our Constitution
When the Nancy and Chuck impeachment party played for the free world to spectate in amazement, Wuhan was at work. “Hurry up” Nancy said “Get this done before Christmas.” Well, she got more than she hoped for.
I’m hoping the naysayers of our President pause and consider how they contributed to this timeline. You created a national and world-wide dogpile on the President. Fun wasn’t it?
Yep. I only wish Obama was in charge still. I think Obama would have taken this seriously from the start. Not blown it off like.. It WiLL jUsT gO AWaY. We would probably have free testing by now, and much better insurance coverage for people who have none. As it stands now.. 27.5 million people in the US have no health insurance At All! You think they will go to the doctor? The testing is very expensive. No way! They will just continue to work, not like there is much of a choice. You think that people with symptoms of a minor cold and minimum wage or less will stop working because they have minor symptoms.. doubt it. They will just keep working.. undiagnosed. I probably would too. What else you supposed to do? The truth is our health care system and or economic system is grossly unprepared to handle an epidemic like this, because our system is based purely on unchecked economic growth, and not humanitarian measures. And we are weaker because of it. Where are homeless people supposed to “self isolate”..? Chump handled this epidemic terribly from the very get go.. that’s the bottom line! Pence is a slightly better bet.. but the denial and inaction from the beginning has sent this on a out of control downward spiral! With soo many people under or uninsured in America, this will surely get to a bad place! Make Covid 19 testing and treatment free NOW!
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/9/10/20858938/health-insurance-census-bureau-data-trump
Trump is the one that told Gavin if he didn’t help get the homeless off the street the federal Government will. That was before anyone heard about the virus.
This is a problem you’ll find basically in democratic cities.
We are unprepared as we were if it had happened during the last 3 administrations.
We are not prepared for a world wide famine either, should that arise.
No one is paying attention but there is a locust plague as well.
tRump is also the one cutting social services like a greedy mad man, and increasing spending on military programs like “Space Force”.. Ground Control to Major tRump.. But a tiny little virus is on course to wipe out a good number of people on the the planet! And let’s face it.. Homelessness is a problem Everywhere! Sure California has the largest problem in the nation. Both tRump and Gavin Newsom have failed to address this issue. What Chumps plan? Tweet about it some more? Ohh effective. Yah, a virus really gives a Fuk about Chumps ridiculous tweets. At least Obama had a level head and abilities to deal with situations like these. At least there was some sort of affordable insurance option for people. Now what? Nothing! Tweets and golf Vacations? No, Obama would have handled this situation much more effectively and humanily.. probably because he actually takes and reads the Morning briefing reports! Chump gets his briefing from tabloids, Fox News and Twitter!
And yes I am aware of the locust plague as well! That’s bad on top of bad! I hope Farmers stay healthy or we might have ourselves one hell of an epidemic!
That’s like a pregnant woman who now suddenly notices how many pregnant women there are. Focusing only on what is important to them.
In truth, Trump has not done enough to stop the outflow of government unaccounted monies that has created a culture of funding unproductive social programs- unproductive being the operating word that so many can not grasp. Obama went golfing in several occasions where it was criticized as inappropriate. “It’s understandable that Obama would want to get away from it all, but for a president struggling to build support for his foreign policy, vacationing during a crisis is no day at the beach,” wrote Washington Post opinion writer Dana Milbank.” “President Barack Obama raised anew the issue of cutting entitlements such as Medicare and Social Security as a way out of damaging budget cuts, a White House official said on Sunday, as both sides in Washington tried to limit a fiscal crisis that may soon hit millions of Americans.” https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-fiscal-idUSBRE91P0W220130303 “President Barack Obama moved to downplay the international threat from Russia on Tuesday, branding it a “regional power” that is threatening its neighbors in Ukraine “not out of strength, but out of weakness.” https://time.com/37120/obama-downplays-threat-from-regional-power-russia/
The problem is that people are choosing what to notice and what not to notice based on who is doing it. And refusing to notice only because it doesn’t play into their own fantasies. Every time Trump renegotiated a trade treaty or takes pot shots at China’s rampant propaganda, I hope that it reverses some of the damage done by previous Presidents who thought making nice to foreign interests was more important than their own citizens. I also think that Trump will turn out to be right about this virus that is certainly not “on course to wipe out a good number of people on the the planet!” It’s fatality rate is going to be less than 1%. And will be only a footnote on the history of politics in the US ten years from now. The real challenge has not yet appeared but eventually will make this look like what it is- a wakeup call for the delusional.
He’s not. The problem is, none of them are.
Well Bernie is giving a great speech…however everything he’s asking for has already been proposed and mostly agreed to, so he’s a little late to the party.
No Bernie no universal health care. Anyone who checks Canada’s health care knows Canadians come here for surgeries cause wait time there can be 2 years for a hip replacement. Ditto for all other non emergency care.
Canadians have the option of public or private insurance, we do not. And you think that’s a GOOD thing somehow?
Jaek,
Good to see you again.
The word “pandemic” just means all people. But folks just panic when they hear that word.
jaek,
Meaning the wealthy get more & better treatment than the poor, just like here.
Meaning they have a shortage of doctors just like here.
They have options that we don’t. They have better healthcare outcomes. They are not at the mercy of their employers or insurerers. There is absolutely no downside to the Canadian model over the American model, and NUMEROUS, UNFORGIVABLE downsides.
This might be tough for you to accept, but the ultrarich are not suddenly going to like you if you suck up to them hard enough, or vote against your own interests often enough.
Not quite. “Canada is the only country with a universal health care system that does not include prescription drugs. This means that Canadians still pay for approximately 30 per cent of their health care directly or via private insurance with only 70 per cent of health costs paid for publicly. In fact, Canadians are as likely to hold private health insurance as Americans.” https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/five-things-canadians-get-wrong-about-the-health-system/article20360452/
The Ultra rich on either side couldn’t care less about either of us.
And you insult is just as irrelevant.
” no downside to the Canadian model”
You can pretend if you want.
For those who appreciate real research.
From The virtual BioSecurity Center.
Op-Ed – A Necessary Biopreparedness Priority: Strengthening the Medical Countermeasures Enterprise
https://www.virtualbiosecuritycenter.org/blog/op-ed-a-necessary-biopreparedness-priority-strengthening-the-medical-countermeasures-enterprise/
from
1. This article is based on research carried out while with the Federation of American Scientists. For a more in-depth look at the challenges facing the medical countermeasures enterprise, see: Christina England, “The United States Medical Countermeasure Enterprise: A Broken Link in US Biopreparedness,” Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Volume 0, Issue 0, Pages 1–14, ISSN (Online) 1547-7355, ISSN (Print) 2194-6361, DOI: 10.1515/jhsem-2013-0043, January 2014.
And it looks like we might just get free Covid testing for everyone in America! Let’s hope so!
Opinion: Watch Katie Porter relentlessly grill CDC chief into saying ‘yes’ to free COVID-19 tests
The congresswoman would not take no for an answer, for the betterment of us all
https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Watch-Katie-Porter-Relentlessly-Grill-CDC-Chief-15127501.php
I’ve gotten some flak for various reasons because pointed out that Italy is a bad example of handling this crisis, and that S. Korea is a goodexample of what went right in this crisis.
CNN noted S.Korea today for 3 reasons.
South Korea is the hardest-hit Asian country outside China — but recently it has also become a model for the rest of the world in terms of testing, detection, and containment.
“Since this started there’s been almost a quarter of a million people in this country that have been tested,” said CNN Correspondent Paula Hancocks, joining CNN’s ongoing coronavirus town hall from Seoul, South Korea.
“That’s far more than most other countries around the world. Over the last week the number of new cases every day has been decreasing. They have new cases but it does appear at least at this point to be a slow down.”
Just earlier this week, South Korea’s health minister told CNN he hoped the slowdown was a sign that the country has passed the peak of the outbreak.
Some lessons we can take from South Korea:
Early detection:
Widespread, fast, accessible testing is key — South Korea has drive-through testing sites, and runs thousands of tests a day. That allows health authorities to detect and isolate patients quickly, and conduct contact tracing, before the virus can be further transmitted.
Allocate medical resources well:
Not every patient will need hospitalization — only about 10% of South Korean cases actually stayed in the hospital.
Citizens need to take responsibility:
It’s not just up to government and health authorities to contain the virus — we all have a responsibility in this. “No matter how efficient the health system in the country and how quick the government is to react, it is key that citizens are honest and cooperating,” Hancocks said.
https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-outbreak-03-13-20-intl-hnk/h_a8a8a270c5b0aa26625866ba30e2a803
Area of South Korea: 38,691 mi² and 52 million people.
Area of USA: 3,797,000 mi² and 327 million people.
The logistics between the two are not comparable.
Geography! Neat-o.
Since this has nothing to do with US, or sq. miles, did you compare S. Korea to Italy?
It’s a comment to your continual critique of the US response and lauding of South Korea’s response.
Italy is 116,347 mi² with 60 million people.
When you are trying to contain an area then area has everything to do with it..
Area has nothing to do with it.
Italy is 3x bigger than S. Korea, so by your assertion, Italy should have…what, 1/3 the case load or deaths?
Or 3x as much?
Weird. That’s not what’s happening….
The virus doesn’t have an odometer.
Here’s a very informative article to keep broadening your horizons:
https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN20Z27P
Most Americans would be worried of the tactics by the S. Korean Government, however, with the apparent 100% transparency goal of the Government, the S. Korean society has a balance of public/Government trust that America is very, very far from.
That’s not my assertion. South Korea is a mostly contained population. Dealing with the logistics of funneling a relevant percentage of the population through testing facilities is much simpler in small area with a dense population.
Italy has 1/3 the population density and the US has 1/15th the population density.
I’m not saying the US and Italy should not have done more for testing, but direct modeling of South Korea is not applicable.
Also, I don’t know what is involved with the testing. What is needed, how it is manufactured and how the test works along with error rates.
Italy is far more ahead in testing.
They can test 10,000 people a day too.
Rome, Venice, Milan are all very densely populated areas.
You know of course how we got there? By having red tape up the wahzoo regarding who is allowed to test and who isn’t. If a State wanted federal funding, they played along with the CDC. As for commercial testing- which could have helped ? Think on it. That would certainly bring the wrath of the press down upon Trump but that is exactly how South Korea started their “drive though” testing. With the exact same limitations as screening in the US- ” Health workers screen visitors with a questionnaire about their travel history and symptoms. Only those deemed to be at-risk will be tested.”
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/south-korea-drive-through-coronavirus-test-facilities-12477046
And suddenly after the deaths spike and the hospitals reported on crisis.