Perspectives On The Wuhan Pandemic
Here are some thoughts pertaining to the Wuhan Virus pandemic:
1) I was pleased to see the the Federal Government, as explained by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, adopted “Wuhan Virus” as the preferred name of the current pandemic. As I discussed at length in my essay, “The Wuhan Virus: What’s In A Name?” from Friday, 3/20/20, there are several cogent reasons to do so. By using the term “Wuhan Virus” Secretary Pompeo has clearly demonstrated that the United States will NOT be cowed into politically correct euphemisms designed to exonerate China, whose culpability in this disaster is quite clear. And, I’ve just learned today that the Chinese propaganda machine is now calling the Wuhan Virus, get this, the “Trump Virus.” As if ANYONE outside the range of armed Chinese thought police will believe that. What IS it with these people? Although the Chinese culture abjures “losing face” above all else, “saving face” begins with honesty. As said by the Buddha: “Three things can not be long hidden: The sun, the moon and the truth.”
2) I also have three more data points to add to the analysis offered in my essay “Connecticut Wuhan Virus: Countermeasures ARE working.” posted on Saturday, 3/21/20. The raw data (cumulative numbers of cases) for the last three days:
Sat March 21 = 223
Sun Mar 22 = 327
Mon Mar 23 = 415
Tue Mar 24 = 618
The “deltas” are:
From 3/20->3/21 the delta is 29
From 3/21->3/22 the delta is 104
From 3/22->3/23 the delta is 88
From 3/23->3/24 the delta is 203
The percentage change in the deltas:
3/20->3/21 = 15%
3/21->3/22 = 46%
3/22->3/23 = 27%
3/23->3/24 = 48%
While these figures reflect the continued increase in Wuhan Virus cases (as expected), they don’t show an accelerating increase. Our countermeasures do appear to be “flattening the curve.”
3) There’s also some evidence, referenced recently by Governor Cuomo, that similar containment efforts are having a positive effect in New Rochelle, NY, the first “hotspot” in New York State, and the first to impose quarantine and other restrictions.
4) Lastly: They’re at it again! The Democrats, “progressives”, and obedient media have no intention of letting a “good disaster” go to waste. One again they sense another cudgel with which to pillory our President. Continually, there are interviews with politicians and “talking heads” as well as editorials in print that try to impugn President Trump’s response to the virus. The media persecution of our President continues to reach new and absurd lows. Some “progressives” have advocated completely banning the broadcast of the President’s daily updates!!!!! Can you imagine that ANYONE, during a national crisis, would want to stop communication from our nation’s leader to the populace???? Thought experiment: Imagine what the “progressives” would say if Mr. Trump decided, of his own accord, to suspend the briefings? There would be OUTRAGE, and universal condemnation, wouldn’t there?
Further, the Democrats, “progressives” and complicit media are also trying to create the impression that the CDC and President Trump are at odds medically.
The CDC director of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci has, yet again, had to go to the national media to dispel such a notion. During a segment of “Mornings on the Mall,” host Vince Coglianese asked Dr. Fauci if he thinks the media are trying to over emphasize differences of opinion between the president and the leaders of the White House coronavirus task force. “That is really unfortunate,” Fauci replied. “I would wish that would stop because we have a much bigger problem here than trying to point out differences. There really, fundamentally at the core, when you look at things, there are not differences.”
The “progressives” also seem to want to blame Mr. Trump for the CDC’s somewhat slow (arguably) startup response to the virus. Folks, President Trump is NOT an an infectious disease specialist nor is he an epidemiologist! This virus has behaved differently than ANY virus that came before it. Up until the Wuhan Virus, the most virulent viruses (ebola and SARS, for example), although deadly, were NOT terribly contagious. The Wuhan Virus is unprecedented because it is BOTH terribly virulent AND terribly contagious. It took the CDC several weeks to come to grips with this new reality, but it’s NOT Mr. Trump’s job, after all, to educate the CDC! And, keep in mind, that the World Health Organization (that favorite agency of “progressives” everywhere) refrained from even calling the virus a “pandemic” UNTIL MARCH 11TH! That was ELEVEN DAYS AFTER President Trump initiated the travel ban.
And, the Democrats and “progressives” seem to have a very short memory; when President Trump initiated the travel ban on China on January 31, they were quick to call such a measure that most feared term of contemporary opprobrium: “RACIST.” It is now fully appreciated that his “racist” ban significantly decreased the spread of the disease in the United States (source: Margot Cleveland writing on thefederalist.com). Because Mr.Trump has done such a good job with this horrible disease, I can’t but think that continued blatant attempts at character assassination will backfire on these wrongheaded malcontents in both the government and the media and further tarnish what ever small amount of credibility they have left.
And, again, not wanting to let a “perfectly good disaster” go to waste, Senate Democrats continue to block the President’s ONE TRILLION PLUS aid package designed to allow employers to continue paying worker’s salaries, keep businesses afloat, give citizens cash that will function as an economic stimulus and get America through this crisis. Democrats see the pandemic, however, as a golden opportunity to get various “wish list” provisions enacted, including environmental provisions that have absolutely nothing to do with the pandemic. Democrats also appear concerned that the caps on executive pay raises (caps that ARE ALREADY IN the current bill) ONLY apply for TWO YEARS. One would THINK that two year caps SHOULD be quite sufficient, however, as most experts are forecasting significant resolution of the pandemic in less than a year. For the most part, the foot dragging by the Democrats, is just another ploy with which they wish to insinuate portions of their agenda into law. And, in this case, the need for governmental action is so great, the Republicans will have to go along, to some extent, with this ploy. A deal will, ultimately, be reached and it appears likely to have a significant amount (no matter how they portray it) of what used to be called “PORK.”