Very cool bar charts. I watched the # of cases one and the # of deaths one (per million) .
I’d say that covid is a death tax on stubbornness. Americans don’t want to live a life where they have to wear masks all the time, where they cannot see or hug their loved ones, where they cannot gather. It may sound stupid to those of us who are more used to doing these things . Also, these measures have become politicized. But even more, I think for many Americans it’s been a steep learning curve this year to have to make these changes in the way they’ve always done things.
Uhm, you’ve just described almost all of the world’s population. Humans are social creatures and we live in a highly-interconnected global civilization.
There is revolt over indefinite lockdowns and restrictions happening all over the world.
You could replace what you wrote with just about every major nationality. There are a dozen countries with over 1 million covid cases. And the 55+ million global cases just scratches the surface. By some estimates, as much as 10% of the world’s population might have already had this thing.
Countries like Indonesia, which is the world’s 4th largest country by population, has way more than the 500,000 cases they’ve reported. And yes, China has more than -100,000 cases.
Like, think about when Italy got hit with the coronavirus spike in March, it was devastating, not only because people were left out to die in overflowing hospitals, but because people were told that you can’t hug your loved ones - it’s like an identity crisis for them. How is this an acceptable way to live? But anyway, they managed. But it’s spiking again.
It’s happening in places all over the world. Mental illness is also spiking. My point is , how about we quit blaming or pointing fingers and try to understand that it sucks for everyone, and not necessarily in the same ways.
It would help if everyone acknowledged that pandemics have happened before and we get through them. With bruises of course.
The real shame is that almost nobody is talking about the ways our destruction of the environment and food/farming practices contribute to and will likely increase the frequency of pandemics.
We should be blaming ourselves. Not because governments and health systems around the world failed to protect us. But because our way of living, which is totally out of balance with what the planet can support, creates an environment in which zoonosis is inevitable.
Clearly there’s a difference between variables that lead to people getting infected and people dying. People are dying at higher rates likely due to demographics of the infected population and associated co-morbidities. Whereas people are getting infected at higher rates due to lack of preventive measures. That’s not partisan. It’s just data.
Has any government or health agencies promoted exercise and healthy dietary/living habits during this time?
There definitely a correlation between poor physical health from poor diet and lifestyle to covid deaths.
A PHE review earlier this year found that obese people are significantly more likely to be admitted to intensive care than those with a healthy Body Mass Index (BMI). One study found that for people with a BMI of 35-40, classed as severely obese, the risk of death increased by 40 per cent compared to those at a healthy weight. For those with a BMI of over 50, classed as morbidly obese, it rose by 90 per cent
Notice how the conversation is about minorities having higher deaths but not how we can improve the health of people at all. Western countries have seemingly given up on tackling obesity and poor dietary issues.
I’m still convinced the virus likely escaped from a lab in China. But I guess we will never know for sure since China will never let any independent investigation happen.
Again it’s just data. The oppression “narrative” is in your head. The reason why its called systemic racism is because historical factors led to the current situation we have today. So in order to fix something you have to understand why it’s happening. But I guess that’s an “oppression narrative”.
Minorities have less access to nutrition in poor communities. Ever been to the ghetto? How many actual grocery stores vs. liquor stores vs. dollar stores vs. fast food chains did you see?
There is a correlation between poor nutrition, higher rates of obesity/diabetes with race. The correlation is based on socioeconomic factors, but the historical reasons for higher rates of minorities with lower socioeconomic status is well… obvious. But I guess these people are being stripped of their agency and just lazy. Why don’t they just move somewhere else?
“Typically, racial and ethnic minority groups --defined here as Black or African American, Hispanic, Asian, and American Indian/Alaska natives – experience diet-related disparities, and consequently tend to have poorer nutrient profiles and dietary behaviors and patterns relative to whites. These disparities are often defined as diets high in fat, particularly saturated fat; low in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains; and high in salt. However, it is important to note that while disparities are often defined on the basis of race and ethnicity, factors contributing to disparities may be more associated with socioeconomic status rather than ethnicity or race.”
“Our environment can have an appreciable effect on diet behavior. Environmental influences on what and how we eat include the availability of healthy food choices (e.g., proximity to fast food restaurants), convenience of purchasing healthy foods (e.g., access to healthy shopping establishments), and costs of healthy foods (e.g., it is often less expensive to purchase unhealthy snack foods compared to fruits and vegetables).”
If you want to talk about historical factors leading to current situations, that’s fine and it makes sense. If you want to talk about current systemic racism (racism built into American systems), I’m going to need to see evidence.
Why even respond to me if you’re going to misrepresent my position?
Two things can be true at once. Historical injustices can be a factor in present inequities, and people can be pushing an oppression narrative which strips people of their agency.
If you need to see evidence then you’ve living under a rock.
Minorities are concentrated in poorer communities due to historical factors like redlining and school funding. Taxpayers fund schools, schools underperform when they don’t have funding. Students are unable to prosper and leave the community as a result. It’s called a vicious cycle.
Who’s pushing an oppression narrative? If systemic racism exists is it a narrative or just explaining reality? That is not stripping people of their agency. But ignoring systemic factors and putting it all on personal responsibility certainly is.
I’ve mentioned it before, but I suggest reading some of Thomas Sowell’s books on this subject. The picture is far more nuanced than it’s usually presented. “Oppression”, while it might exist, is far less of an issue today than it was, say, in 1950; and prior to 1960ish, the story for “minorities” was one of continual personal and social improvement. Things were getting steadily better, both for individuals and for non-whites at large. Then it all turned to shit (both for minorities and the “urban poor” in general), and that largely coincided with a general shift in public opinion away from the idea of personal responsibility for one’s own destiny and towards the victimhood narrative. In other words, people were deprived of the idea that their future is within their own control.
I find it hard to believe that everyone’s opinion changed and that’s what caused it. Unless people’s opinions led to actual systemic changes which led to it “going to shit”. And if that’s the case which systemic changes led to this change?
Things have improved since the war on poverty began in the 1960s, but that doesn’t mean all factors leading to disparities among minorities have been completely eradicated. In fact, I would argue the opposite has happened. The rise of Libertarianism has led to policies that focus an over reliance on free market solutions when the motive for profit almost never coincides with improving the lives of minorities.
