kungfoodude

I am just saying that people are freaking out for little reason. We are more than welcome to revisit this in the future when I am proven to be correct. My father is in his late 60's and has heart problems. My advice to him, full fuging lockdown. Stay the fug home and away from everyone. He's right in the demographic for people that are going to experience a much higher mortality rate. I, on the other hand, am in my 30's, have no heart disease issues but perhaps have an elevated risk due to a period of smoking some years ago. I am going to go about my daily life, being mindful to wash my hands regularly(like I always do anyway) and not touch my face(which I will be much more mindful of). You know, the things that the WHO and CDC have said to do. I'm also not planning on licking any doorknobs in airports, invading people's personal space to talk directly into their mouths, you know.....just reasonable and sensible things.

So then influenza is a far greater threat than COVID-19? Because the worldwide annual estimates for influenza deaths are 250-700k per year. I assume that means that is worse than COVID-19 by your logic, right?

That's also not looking at the rates compared to the countries specific demographics. That's not really the best way to look at that data to compare it.

I believe your knowledge of sexually infectious diseases is probably pretty broad. Or at least the direct experiences with dealing with them.

The fact that politics has somehow managed to worm it's way into a pandemic discussion at all just shows how completely broken this country is. To be sure, there are valid political considerations and there are GLARINGLY obvious blunders but the fact that we cannot disconnect from this "MY TEAM VERSUS YOUR TEAM" mentality over something so bi-partisan as a serious public health issue is completely and totally damning.

Why am I not surprised that you are just as ignorant in this subject as you are every sports related subject here? Stunning.

You sure about that? The truth is, we won't know the full picture until this pandemic starts to die down and after a long period of actual study. Could it end up being a higher mortality rate than MERS or SARS? Maybe. But one thing is clear, it is not trending in that direction. One thing that helps is that this is not the first coronavirus outbreak in the past decade.

Oh really? So the 22 million cases of H1N1 in 2009 and the 3900 deaths in the US alone are THAT distant of a memory?

No. It will not be. We have seen two other coronavirus outbreaks in recent memory(SARS, MERS). In 3-4 years this will be a distant memory and we will be on to our new "pandemic" scare. These are going to be more frequent because the rate of global travel is so high. That's just the price of that luxury.

I think drawing a direct line from this pandemic to global warming doesn't particularly help the case for people trying to educate on climate change. Climate change is a very real and very substantial threat to humanity. It is likely not at all a very serious threat to overall life on this planet, however, which has proven to be extremely resilient. If there is a link from THIS virus to climate change, that will emerge over time and after serious study. I bristle at the need to say everything is "climate change" based on speculation and not hard research. It doesn't do credit to a cause I very much believe in(that being the very real dangers of climate change in the long term).

AIDS was unknown to us, as was Ebola or Hanta virus. We will adapt and survive, even if scores perish. That's just life. To paraphrase the great philosopher Lil' Dicky, "We go hard on Earth."

Italy also experiences high mortality rates due to influenza because they have a very aging population, the second largest portion of their population is 65 and older. When you dig a little deeper into the story, it's pretty clear why Italy is having these issues.

I am more concerned about quarantine than the virus. That is going to cause the panic to spread and the world economies to start crashing at an even more increasing rate. If we see a worldwide economic collapse, that will cause far greater harm to human lives than this virus ever will, IMHO. But, I suppose that is easy to say since the US has yet to see any real dramatic impacts from the virus. I would imagine the Chinese and Italians have quite a different perspective.

It is definitely a risk but American meat producers haven't been responsible for widespread transmission of this kind of virus to my knowledge. We have had our bouts with things like e. coli and salmonella in meat products but I cannot recall any large outbreaks like we are seeing from Asia in recent decades. I imagine that largely relates to having far more stringent regulations(although not up to the Europeans standards).

That is just a theory. It wouldn't matter if global warming "unlocked" dormant plagues of ages ago, viruses and bacteria continue to adapt and evolve the same way almost all other life forms do on this planet. There isn't anything crazy or supernatural about these kind of events. Within our lifetimes we have seen viral and bacterial epidemics that have killed scores of people. Within the last 150 years outbreaks have killed hundreds of thousands or more people in a single spread. It's just the way that it is. Sticking your head in the sand is just as counterproductive as freaking out. Just accept the reality, take the necessary and REASONABLE precautions and move on with life. Hold your leaders accountable when they are so unbelievably ill prepared.

MERS and SARS were transmitted from animals too. New viruses and diseases are just part of life and evolution. Freaking out about it isn't going to really do any good. Just invest more in research in to these various viruses and have a comprehensive strategy for outbreaks. Right now some countries have it and clearly some(ours being one) do not. If anything a virus this incredibly benign(relatively speaking) is a pretty good test to expose the large scale issues that would arise from a much more serious outbreak. Hopefully the long term impact will be a net positive and it will force the majority of the world to get serious about preparing for the inevitable spread of infectious diseases. They aren't going to go away now or in the future.

I just spent a week in crowds of people sharing beers in Tampa. I am sure coronavirus probably ran rampant through us, if it didn't get killed by the copious amounts of alcohol everyone was consuming.

I'd stay away from just about anything posted on Facebook as a general rule.....

Fair point. I am surprised it made it this far without being banished.

I mean, not an invalid point but not much has appreciably changed since the Super Bowl as far as that goes.

Nah. Unfortunately, internet+current news = mayhem. I wish it was different but people just aren't capable of being reasonable or behaving themselves. It is what it is.

I am not trying to get in your business but why is this even in the Panthers board anyway? It has nothing to do with football.

I am tired of all this nonsense. The hysteria over this is completely bananas, even if our country is insanely poorly prepared(and it is). This isn't fuging Ebola.

Romo = MVP. Cut Cam. Tony has accounted for 20 of 26 points. Stud.

Prepare yourselves, Bucs fans.