Tag: COVID-19

I’ve been writing more essays and articles this week but the memes didn’t stop.      

WWII has become a popular metaphor for our war with COVID-19. All around the country, Americans shelter in their homes, like the air-raid drills of the 1940’s. Our current Administration’s lack of preparedness for this pandemic, echos FDR’s in the months before Pearl Harbor: overconfident, distracted and dismissive of the threat from Asia. Today, the U.S. surpassed China in the total number of patients…

Why is Germany’s COVID-19 death rate so much lower than the rest of Europe? A German might say, “It’s because we practice social distancing––normally.” The short answer is, Germany was able to test and identify more infected individuals. An accurate accounting of infection numbers determines how accurately you can calculate mortality rate. Germany reports a mortality rate of 0.5%;…

Remember a month or two ago when the only time we talked about coronavirus was in memes involving Mexican beer? One of our best chances to stop the COVID-19 was in late January when the outbreak didn’t even have a name. But in China, the authorities were actively suppressing news about the worsening outbreak. Here in…

Dire shortages of N95 masks have sparked desperate calls for donations of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to hospitals. Some have resorted to reusing disposable masks. Even the CDC has recommended using bandannas if hospitals run out of N95 masks. Authorities have stressed that N95 masks are the only grade of mask that can protect you from infection. They point out that…

  Deep diving scientific papers on COVID-19 I’ve come across other some other interesting studies. Yay, science. A new study shows consuming sucralose (Splenda) sweetened drinks with carbs suppresses insulin sensitivity (Insulin Resistance). This may help explain why drinking “diet drinks” doesn’t help people lose weight. NYC and other municipalities have passed “soda” taxes aimed at curbing sugary drink consumption. Many people have turned to…

We are now at war. We are literally in a World War with a virus. The damage to America’s economy and the changes to everyday lives in America hasn’t been seen since World War II. So I guess it’s appropriate that since my cousin Melissa and her family are stuck at home with the Bay Area lockdown, her husband…