I would hope everyone interested in this virus situation do your own homework. In Seattle, life is currently quite different. To give you an idea of how much less people are going out right now, my wife drove home from work yesterday going through downtown at 5pm GOING THE SPEED LIMIT. Not saying that to be funny-I can't remember being able to do that on a work day in 20 years.
My wife is in the medical field, and has some doctor friends keeping tabs. She showed me the postings of a couple of doctors on the ground in Northern Italy. This is a well developed and supported part of the country. The thought was they downplayed the risks and it spread suddenly and quickly to the population. Though the percentages of people with bad reactions probably wasn't out of line with previous viruses, they all got sick at the same time and overloaded the hospitals and ER's, to the point where they're not doing elective procedures because they're trying to keep the ER afloat. The ventilators needed to keep folks alive are getting to be in short supply, so some of the hospitals are having to prioritize who gets them. If you have a pre morbidity or are into retirement age, they're going to prioritize otherwise healthy or younger people ahead of you-they're simply a better bet given the odds. This is what is feared by the other countries in Europe, and here as well.
Let's say this bug just takes out a good, quick number of the gray haired and infirm among us. That's pretty much the population every Goodguys, NCRS, and car club meeting I've been to in the last few years. Who's interested in being the one who brings the bug to your club, or your parents? Nobody here wants to die, but nobody REALLY wants to be Typhoid Mary of the Northwest, either.
I may be sensitive being in the eye of the storm here, but until you start seeing the fear and empty streets and stores, I don't think you're quite getting it.
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