If you’ve stopped mitigating against SARS2, you’re misinformed. Accepting facts & being proactive toward a threat isn’t cowardly or neurotic.
Multiple & replicated peer-reviewed (worldwide) studies over the last 2-3 years support:
-SARS2 weakens immune system, like HIV, so initial “mild” illness is NOT THE DANGER NOR THE DISEASE.
-It’s airborne -moving & lingering like smoke, even hours after infected people leave.
-40-60% of transmission is asymptomatic. Airborne & asymptomatic spread was obvious all along -otherwise there wouldn’t be a pandemic in the first place. Years ago, SARS1 didn’t become a pandemic because of MOSTLY SYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SO IT WAS EASIER TO CONTAIN.
-EVERYONE is vulnerable to Long COVID, regardless of age, health & vaccines. Vaccines help but don’t protect from infection or Long COVID.
-Each COVID infection could disable you with lifelong chronic illness, even after “mild.”
-You can get reinfected in a few weeks *cumulative damage & disability with each reinfection. (Reinfection busts the “once & done” myth.)
-vascular disease that affects most organs
-3rd/4th leading cause of death worldwide
-causes brain damage & shrinkage -memory & concentration loss, mood changes, etc.
-Heart attack, stroke blood clot (even onset diabetes) risks remain high at least 18 months, even after “mild.”
-Risk of Long COVID is high (10-30%) with each infection (NOT PEOPLE) & increases each time. Depending on travel and public exposure, estimate 3+ infections a year if you’re careless.
- Stay updated on boosters & wear a mask as protection, like science always required.
Sealed N95 masks are obviously better than surgical. N95s reduce the risk of infection & Long COVID. (Imperfect masking is better than none.)
Helmets. Seatbelts. Gloves. An N95 respirator mask is a safety & health device. Would we make fun of someone on crutches? With a tracheostomy? A wheelchair user? It's hostile, harassing & discriminatory behavior.
“The pandemic is over because we have the tools.” The tools are not fully effective (vaccines can’t keep up with a constantly mutating & unpredictable virus) or aren’t accessible to everyone (Paxlovid) or most people don’t use the easiest tool of all: N95-masking.
COVID is always present, so it’s not seasonal. Lack of testing & data give the convenient illusion the pandemic is over to support Urgency of Normal. Billionaires own mainstream media & want to keep the economy going, so unless we look for studies on our own, the media will continue to minimize threats & misinform. The pandemic never ended -cases, hospitalizations & deaths continue worldwide. Always anticipate a surge after a “lull.” We can discuss waves & pandemics, but even when wastewater levels are “low,” it’s still in significant circulation. Prevalence influences the probability of infection but it's never been low enough to be considered safe.
LOW RISK DOES NOT MEAN NO RISK
BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY WITH A TRICKY VIRUS
TOO MANY UNKNOWNS
Until governments and “public” health and all of us work together to cut transmission (masking, nasal sprays, no unnecessary travel) and enforce indoor air quality standards, it's unsafe to unmask in shared indoor air (public AND in household—-> once there’s a suspected exposure). No need to wait for surges or mandates. Be proactive and stay protected throughout!
“Health officials” need to share accurate info about transmission and masks, run info campaigns, set IAQ standards, incentivize them, enforce them, make tests and protections free, etc. NOT VACCINES ONLY.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Zero mitigation—-> More transmission—-> more immunity evasive variants—-> more Long COVID
It's always “99% survival rate” with those who boast about good health & minimize COVID-19. Parroting a meaningless metric, survival is not the point -SARS2 damages organs. Again, phase1 (“it’s just a cold”) is not the disease! This repulsive and insidious virus silently damages your organs with each reinfection. This damage spares no one. No one -regardless of age, health, vaccination status or whether initial symptoms were non-existent, “mild,” or severe. Sure, widespread damage might take years to manifest in “healthy” people but this doesn’t mean we should shrug off the virus as just another risk we need to “live with.” Living with SARS2 means taking precautions, not denying its dangers.
Most survive HIV onset, too. Short-sighted minds fail to see or willfully deny long term health consequences! The high survival rate of SARS2 doesn’t warrant carelessness!
It was a mild infection, I was barely sick for four days. Vaccinated and boosted. It still completely destroyed my life weeks later - Reports like this are NOT medically rare. The longer SARS2 spreads uncontrolled, the more of the fit and young population will become disabled or worse, regardless of lifestyle. Yes, regardless of lifestyle. Repeat studies show that blood type A’s have more severe initial symptoms AND long term damage, so we can’t sleep or exercise or “Vitamin D” or “tea” or vaccinate or positive-think our way out of long term damage.
“It only kills the old and disabled, so I’m not worried” is a dangerous and ableist message. NO LIFE IS DISPOSABLE! Please remember each reinfection raises YOUR chance of disability. The CDC “guideline” that only elderly and people with disabilities and chronic conditions need to mitigate, is false.
Reliable Sources johnsnowproject.org okdoomer.io
MeetJess@X nature.com thelancet.com salon.com nih.gov scientificamerican.com ncbi.nlm.nih.gov the-peak.ca newscientist.com bylinetimes.com theguardian.com. medpagetoday.com verywellhealth.com wsws.org axios.com clarion.unity-struggle-unity.org whn.global frontiersin.org thetyee.ca livestrong.com medrxiv.org livescience.com thenation.com wired.com theconversation.com
Forbes NationalGeographic Time (not as minimizing as the big 3 -ABC CBS NBC)