COVID-19 Madness in Minnesota (and California)

 

If you think the public health response in Blue States to COVID-19  is anything other than a proxy for generalized state control of individual liberty, let me point you to Minnesota (and California). As has been detailed by Scott Johnson at Powerline blog in his series CORONAVIRUS IN ONE STATE, Democratic governor Tim Walz has been exercising autocratic rule on thin data. Remember the SARS-CoV-2 panic was started by visions of Chinese authorities welding high-rise apartment doors shut and Italian hospitals refusing ventilators to anyone over 80. The viral tsunami was coming and it was going to crash our health care system.

“Flatten the curve” was the mantra as government took extraordinary control over our lives and livelihoods for a brief period. Yes, the refrigerator trucks parked outside of New York hospitals were alarming. Yes, the mobilization of the government to provide emergency health care facilities in New York and Los Angeles was dramatic. Yes the response of private companies to providing PPE and tests was heartening and hopeful. And the wave passed. That didn’t mean there would be no more illness and death. But the health care system survived, treatment protocols were developed and shared. So now, let’s get back to living our lives, right?

Slow down there, Mr. and Ms. American. When we said “flatten the curve” we really meant “until there’s a cure.” Your individual civil liberties are a threat to public health so we still need to control your lives. Don’t you know, that if we maintain control of your life, death and disease will be banished?

That is certainly the rationale of the government in Minnesota (and California). You would think the absurdity would be obvious. And yet, here we are.

As Scott Johnson reported:

New deaths attributed to the epidemic have cratered. In the past three days, for example, the authorities have reported four (7/11), three (7/12), and two (7/13) new deaths. Six of the 9 new deaths occurred among residents of long-term care facilities. As I noted over the weekend, the median age of decedents as last reported is 83.6. The number of hospitalizations attributed to the disease would be unnoticeable under normal circumstances. It should be difficult to sustain the panic and to make the case that one-man rule is warranted on these facts.

But if you don’t sustain panic what is your justification for controlling everyone? As quoted by Scott, from a report in the Star Tribune:

State health officials worry that a recent uptick in COVID-19 cases among young adults and teenagers could spread the virus to people at higher risk — which would result in more deaths and hospitalizations.

In other words, we know the younger people will not get seriously ill but they will continue to be a vector for disease which threatens other people. So everyone must be controlled to preserve…what exactly? Is this strategy a conquering of death? No. People have and will continue to die of a variety of causes. But if government is permitted to control everyone in this “crisis” what prevents government from exerting control to attack other presumed bad outcomes for a subset of the population?

This same rationale is being applied in California. Our death count is higher than Minnesota but our deaths/1 million population is actually lower (Minnesota 273; California 180). Both of these states have higher deaths/1 million population than the Red States of Texas (115) and South Dakota (123) even while exercising far greater control of their respective populations. Flattening the curve never assured that the area under the curve would be any less. And so death continues to collect its tithe as it always does, but somehow this eternal phenomena justifies government control over my life?

In an America where we believe that…

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness

it is unimaginable that we have let our government exert such control over us. And yet here we are. This is madness.

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There are 22 comments.

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  1. Buckpasser Member
    Buckpasser
    @Buckpasser

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    • #1
  2. Richard Easton Coolidge
    Richard Easton
    @RichardEaston

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    We meant do whatever we can to defeat Trump.

    • #2
  3. Wintermute Member
    Wintermute
    @Wintermute

    The only relief from the scourge of COVID-19 will come when the Democrats are swept into power in November.  Then suddenly the danger from this virus will fade away…

    • #3
  4. Hugh Member
    Hugh
    @Hugh

    Good to have your analysis.  It seems like this is going to go on forever (or until the election)

    • #4
  5. Hammer, The Inactive
    Hammer, The
    @RyanM

    And Washington.

    At some point, there has to be a judge who agrees that this does not rise to the level of a “state of Emergency,” in spite of the constant declarations that it does.

    In Idaho, I believe, the declaration of emergency expires after 30 days and then must include the entire state legislature (obviously, if an “emergency” lasts more than 30 days, that is plenty of time to go through the actual political process), and there is a movement to have their governor impeached for ignoring that process.  I hope it is successful, and that it gets other states to thinking.

    • #5
  6. Hammer, The Inactive
    Hammer, The
    @RyanM

    Wintermute (View Comment):

    The only relief from the scourge of COVID-19 will come when the Democrats are swept into power in November. Then suddenly the danger from this virus will fade away…

    But will it?  I believe I saw something where Biden had suggested a federal mask mandate.  Now, if my own little-napoleon governor is enjoying his new-found dictatorial powers, who is to suggest that a democratic president would not relish this everlasting state of emergency?

    • #6
  7. The Elephant in the Room Member
    The Elephant in the Room
    @ElephasAmericanus

    I’m in Los Angeles, and when this began, I told people that California would be the last place in the country to reopen. Nothing has happened to change my mind. The conventional wisdom is that any spike in Chinese bat flu has been due to restaurants’ reopening, not because of tens of thousands of people taking to the streets to riot, loot, and vandalize for days on end.

    It was apparent fairly soon that this was mostly a sort of kabuki theater as people still had to herd into grocery stores, and many of the poorest people we’re still on mass transit where, especially on buses, it’s impossible to social distance. Despite the fact that taxpayers are paying for long-term vacations in the city’s hotels for thousands of homeless people, the streets are still lined with tents full of homeless who are not social distancing or wearing masks. It’s evident that there are two standards for law enforcement: One for “regular” Angelenos, and another for politically favored classes (the homeless, BLM rioters, etc.). While many development projects have been halted, politically privileged ones like the destruction of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art – to build a horrible new building that will actually give less gallery space to a museum needing more as well as no storage, curation, or office space – are allowed to continue.

    Businesses are starting to drop like flies. California seemed to defy the odds despite insane taxation and regulation and kept booming and growing. But the slightest bump in the road shows the fragility of the California economy, and the longer this continues, the harder it will be for it to recover to anything like it was before this panic began. I think the next stage – the exodus of residents – will start soon. One friend just came back from five weeks outside the state and told me she’s “over L.A.” I agree: For the first time in two decades, I really want to leave the state. The beautiful weather can’t make up for the rest of this crap any more.

    • #7
  8. cdor Member
    cdor
    @cdor

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    Richard Easton (View Comment):

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    We meant do whatever we can to defeat Trump.

    I’m sure you both meant, “THEY meant”.

    • #8
  9. The Elephant in the Room Member
    The Elephant in the Room
    @ElephasAmericanus

    Hammer, The (View Comment):

    Wintermute (View Comment):

    The only relief from the scourge of COVID-19 will come when the Democrats are swept into power in November. Then suddenly the danger from this virus will fade away…

    But will it? I believe I saw something where Biden had suggested a federal mask mandate. Now, if my own little-napoleon governor is enjoying his new-found dictatorial powers, who is to suggest that a democratic president would not relish this everlasting state of emergency?

    Yeah, it will. If and when the Democrats get their blood-stained hands on the levers of power, everything will suddenly be turning around, and it will now be time to come together as Americans and work toward the common goal of something or other. The media will be all positivity and happy talk, and the Chinese bat flu will be no worse than a bad cold. Anyone saying otherwise will be a fearmonger and a racist. Wearing a mask in public? That’s un-American! And racist!

    After all, we must make everything look shiny and rosy for Our Glorious New Regime…

    • #9
  10. cirby Inactive
    cirby
    @cirby

    …and still, in Florida, the number of COVID deaths reported by the news is much, much higher than the numbers actually reported by the state’s official COVID tracker page. It still looks like the Tribune papers are adding up multiple days of deaths and reporting it as one day.

     

    • #10
  11. StChristopher Member
    StChristopher
    @JohnBerg

    Here in Oregon our governor has the power to declare an emergency, decide how long it lasts, and declare what rules the governed, must abide by.  

    There was a challenge to this scheme in court because there was a conflict between statutes giving the governor emergency powers.  One statute specifically dealt with diseases and gave the governor only a total of 28 days before getting legislative approval.  The other older and more general statute allows for perpetual one-woman rule.  Of course when the Oregon Supreme Court reviewed the issue (all of whom are appointed by Democrats since our last Republican Governor left office in the mid-80’s),  they found the governor has all the power she wants with no end in sight.

    As for our legislature, both houses are controlled by Democrats and they are happy with this situation.  

    And for those wondering, the riots continue here in Portland.  Last night a major intersection was blocked by a mob in my neighborhood north of downtown.  Other than blocking traffic and disobeying police orders, It seemed peaceful.  Go to Andy Ngo on Twitter to find out more about the violence every night downtown Portland.  The local papers don’t publish any news here.   

    • #11
  12. Bishop Wash Member
    Bishop Wash
    @BishopWash

    The Elephant in the Room (View Comment):
    Businesses are starting to drop like flies. California seemed to defy the odds despite insane taxation and regulation and kept booming and growing. But the slightest bump in the road shows the fragility of the California economy, and the longer this continues, the harder it will be for it to recover to anything like it was before this panic began. I think the next stage – the exodus of residents – will start soon. One friend just came back from five weeks outside the state and told me she’s “over L.A.” I agree: For the first time in two decades, I really want to leave the state. The beautiful weather can’t make up for the rest of this crap any more.

    I saw a headline that California is fearing that it will lose one or two representatives after the 2020 census is finished. Could it lose a third if WuFlu creates another exodus, although most people should have already completed the census?

    • #12
  13. Rodin Member
    Rodin
    @Rodin

    The Elephant in the Room (View Comment):
    I think the next stage – the exodus of residents – will start soon. One friend just came back from five weeks outside the state and told me she’s “over L.A.” I agree: For the first time in two decades, I really want to leave the state. The beautiful weather can’t make up for the rest of this crap any more.

    Agree. If Dems win In November nationally there is no strategy to take on one party rule in California that does not involve armed insurrection. So I will have to look for liberty elsewhere  

     

    • #13
  14. Rodin Member
    Rodin
    @Rodin

    StChristopher (View Comment):
    when the Oregon Supreme Court reviewed the issue (all of whom are appointed by Democrats since our last Republican Governor left office in the mid-80’s), they found the governor has all the power she wants with no end in sight.

    It seems this would violate fundamental representative government and might be addressable by the US Supreme Court. 

    • #14
  15. The Elephant in the Room Member
    The Elephant in the Room
    @ElephasAmericanus

    Rodin (View Comment):

    Agree. If Dems win In November nationally there is no strategy to take on one party rule in California that does not involve armed insurrection. So I will have to look for liberty elsewhere

    Sadly, I fear that, if the Democrats win in November, there will be no way to take on one-party rule nationwide: They’ve already shown what they planned to do with the whole D.C. statehood gambit. They plan to break they system and rig it to where they can’t lose power again under the guise of democracy. New states, court packing, mass amnesties and quickie citizenships, eventually going for constitutional amendments to dispatch with things like the electoral college, all presented with government giveaways against a backdrop of race wars – these will all be the tools in fixing it to where Democrat power in America will be as dominant and unchallenged (and corrupt) as the ANC’s in South Africa.

    • #15
  16. Al French of Damascus Moderator
    Al French of Damascus
    @AlFrench

    Rodin: This same rationale is being applied in California. Our death count is higher than Minnesota but our deaths/1 million population is actually lower (Minnesota 273; California 180)

    Oregon’s death count is 244, which is 55 per million. Because the infection rate among young people is rising. But the gov is retightening The lockdown screws.

    • #16
  17. Rodin Member
    Rodin
    @Rodin

    Al French of Damascus (View Comment):

    Rodin: This same rationale is being applied in California. Our death count is higher than Minnesota but our deaths/1 million population is actually lower (Minnesota 273; California 180)

    Oregon’s death count is 244, which is 55 per million. Because the infection rate among young people is rising. But the gov is retightening The lockdown screws.

    Can you spell p-r-e-t-e-x-t  t-o  s-e-i-z-e  p-o-w-e-r?

    • #17
  18. The Elephant in the Room Member
    The Elephant in the Room
    @ElephasAmericanus

    Rodin (View Comment):

    Can you spell p-r-e-t-e-x-t t-o s-e-i-z-e p-o-w-e-r?

    According to CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, NBC, BBC, Deutsche Welle, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, HuffPo, Vox, NPR, ESPN, The New Yorker, TheBulwark.com, TheDispatch.com, and all other completely impartial and objective sources, it’s spelled “T-R-U-M-P.” That is why we must give our blind and unquestioning obedience to the Democrats!

    • #18
  19. Richard Easton Coolidge
    Richard Easton
    @RichardEaston

    cdor (View Comment):

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    Richard Easton (View Comment):

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    We meant do whatever we can to defeat Trump.

    I’m sure you both meant, “THEY meant”.

    I can think of at least one person on R for whom the first person is appropriate.

    • #19
  20. Ontheleftcoast Inactive
    Ontheleftcoast
    @Ontheleftcoast

    Slow down there, Mr. and Ms. American. When we said “flatten the curve” we really meant “until there’s a cure.”

    Then no doubt “we” will find this heartening:
    Vladimir Zelenko and colleagues have published a retrospective study.

    COVID-19 Outpatients – Early Risk-Stratified Treatment with Zinc Plus Low Dose Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin: A Retrospective Case Series Study

    Abstract [formatting and emphasis added]

    Objective: To describe outcomes of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the outpatient setting after early treatment with zinc, low dose hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin (the triple therapy) dependent on risk stratification. 

    Design: Retrospective case series study. 

    Setting: General practice. 

    Participants: 141 COVID-19 patients with laboratory confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections in the year 2020. 

    Main Outcome Measures: Risk-stratified treatment decision, rate of hospitalization and all-cause death. 

    Results: Of 335 positively PCR-tested COVID-19 patients, 127 were treated with the triple therapy. 104 of 127 met the defined risk stratification criteria and were included in the analysis. In addition, 37 treated and eligible patients who were confirmed by IgG tests were included in the treatment group (total N=141). 208 of the 335 patients did not meet the risk stratification criteria and were not treated. After 4 days (median, IQR 3-6, available for N=66/141) of onset of symptoms, 141 patients (median age 58 years, IQR 40-67; 73% male) got a prescription for the triple therapy for 5 days. Independent public reference data from 377 confirmed COVID-19 patients of the same community were used as untreated control. 4 of 141 treated patients (2.8%) were hospitalized, which was significantly less (p<0.001) compared with 58 of 377 untreated patients (15.4%) (odds ratio 0.16, 95% CI 0.06-0.5). Therefore, the odds of hospitalization of treated patients were 84% less than in the untreated group. One patient (0.7%) died in the treatment group versus 13 patients (3.5%) in the untreated group (odds ratio 0.2, 95% CI 0.03-1.5; p=0.16). There were no cardiac side effects. 

    Conclusions: Risk stratification-based treatment of COVID-19 outpatients as early as possible after symptom onset with the used triple therapy, including the combination of zinc with low dose hydroxychloroquine, was associated with significantly less hospitalizations and 5 times less all-cause deaths.

    That’s a pity.

    Your individual civil liberties are a threat to public health so we still need to control your lives. Don’t you know, that if we maintain control of your life, death and disease will be banished?

     

    • #20
  21. Z in MT Member
    Z in MT
    @ZinMT

    Yep, madness. I am convinced that there are a while lot of people out there that are enjoying the shutdown. Not just those mad on power, but those that get a weird sense of meaning out of “flattening the curve”. Also, I am amazed by the young smart engineers in our CA offices that are scared of getting the virus when their risk of death from covid-19 is less than from a car accident. 

    • #21
  22. cdor Member
    cdor
    @cdor

    Richard Easton (View Comment):

    cdor (View Comment):

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    Richard Easton (View Comment):

    Buckpasser (View Comment):

    When we said “flatten the curve” we meant “flatten the economy”.

    We meant do whatever we can to defeat Trump.

    I’m sure you both meant, “THEY meant”.

    I can think of at least one person on R for whom the first person is appropriate.

    That still makes him and the other R’s like him a “THEY”.

    • #22
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