Vicki posed a good question, why are Japan’s numbers high right now? After all, Japan has a high vaccination rate and does universal masking. Well, it’s hard to know for sure. But, we do know that BA.5 has immune escape routes, if you will, which means that it will not only infect many vaccinated people it will also cause severe disease in a small subset of vaccinated folks. And, masking isn’t as effective at blocking transmission with BA.5 as it was with previous Omicron sub-variants, and certainly compared to Delta, Alpha, and the original Wuhan strains. Moreover, and paradoxically, the Japanese population has a smaller natural immunity wall because it masked and distanced well. So, BA.5 has an even greater population-wide penetration than it does here or in other countries.
This does NOT mean, however, that masking and distancing are futile. Japan has done a good job at keeping all other variants from wreaking havoc. Meanwhile, it vaccinated a very high proportion of the population.
That makes perfect sense. Thank you
I think people are prone to thinking in binary terms. [Please note, I’m not referring to the discussions concerning people who self-identify as “non-binary.”]
So, they often think, either masks work or they don’t. Or, either vaccines work or they don’t. Needless to say, as in most facets of life, there is a very large gray area in which we operate. Reality is messy. It is complex. It is layered.
I believe most people are capable of sorting through this complexity. Our brains are quite sophisticated. Yet, a part of us is lazy. We want the facile explanation. The easy way out, if you will. The soundbite that appeals to us.
Thanks Joshua for clearing that up.
I’ve struggled with this. I think you are correct. But I still don’t get it. I’m 73. I’ve been aware of the workings of the world around me for at least seven decades thanks to a mom who was always in the thick of things. I’ve seen horrific racism and bigotry. I’ve applauded groups of individuals as they fought for recognition of who they are. Repeating something as simple as who they are. But I’ve never seen whatever it is that this pandemic brought out in many….surely not all…but too many.
This pandemic, especially early on, brought out a lot of good, but almost equally a lot of bad in people.
Interesting how just the word “pandemic” when a few letters are removed, reveals the word “panic”.
Framingham is 65 teachers and several bus drivers short. I sure hope this year has far fewer disruptions than last.
Vicki posed a good question, why are Japan’s numbers high right now? After all, Japan has a high vaccination rate and does universal masking. Well, it’s hard to know for sure. But, we do know that BA.5 has immune escape routes, if you will, which means that it will not only infect many vaccinated people it will also cause severe disease in a small subset of vaccinated folks. And, masking isn’t as effective at blocking transmission with BA.5 as it was with previous Omicron sub-variants, and certainly compared to Delta, Alpha, and the original Wuhan strains. Moreover, and paradoxically, the Japanese population has a smaller natural immunity wall because it masked and distanced well. So, BA.5 has an even greater population-wide penetration than it does here or in other countries.
This does NOT mean, however, that masking and distancing are futile. Japan has done a good job at keeping all other variants from wreaking havoc. Meanwhile, it vaccinated a very high proportion of the population.
That makes perfect sense. Thank you
I think people are prone to thinking in binary terms. [Please note, I’m not referring to the discussions concerning people who self-identify as “non-binary.”]
So, they often think, either masks work or they don’t. Or, either vaccines work or they don’t. Needless to say, as in most facets of life, there is a very large gray area in which we operate. Reality is messy. It is complex. It is layered.
I believe most people are capable of sorting through this complexity. Our brains are quite sophisticated. Yet, a part of us is lazy. We want the facile explanation. The easy way out, if you will. The soundbite that appeals to us.
Thanks Joshua for clearing that up.
I’ve struggled with this. I think you are correct. But I still don’t get it. I’m 73. I’ve been aware of the workings of the world around me for at least seven decades thanks to a mom who was always in the thick of things. I’ve seen horrific racism and bigotry. I’ve applauded groups of individuals as they fought for recognition of who they are. Repeating something as simple as who they are. But I’ve never seen whatever it is that this pandemic brought out in many….surely not all…but too many.
This pandemic, especially early on, brought out a lot of good, but almost equally a lot of bad in people.
Interesting how just the word “pandemic” when a few letters are removed, reveals the word “panic”.
Framingham is 65 teachers and several bus drivers short. I sure hope this year has far fewer disruptions than last.
https://twitter.com/datadrivenmd/status/1562813018550939648?s=21&t=CKE_8jUMKUUckEJxtr–Mw
C-19
8-26
ready