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James Hamilton, M. D.
Mike McL.,
For once we agree? Let's make this a habit!
Tim,
Lean on my MD credentials to try to influence others? You give me more power than I have. I just try to bring up some medical points that I feel need to be explored and considered. Just like others on this Forum who are much more knowledgable in music, literature and the arts than I and contribute to my understanding of these areas, I hope to add some of my experience to the discussion.
Dave M.,
I agree that age is a factor that should be considered, but 65 may be too young. Certainly I would be in favor of a defined retirement age for Supreme Court Justices who are in there for life. Perhaps medical/psychological testing after a certain age or if an individual is exhibiting certain (and this would need to be defined) behavior would be an acceptable alternative.
Clare (and Dave B.),
There can be made arguments/"talking points" on both sides for mistakes made in the "management" of the coronavirus pandemic. Some Democrats were promoting how safe it was to congregate in public places and calling President Trump xenophobic and racist for curtailing travel from other countries to the US. Early on nobody really knew, nor could they predict, the severity of this pathogen. In fact, we still have a lot to learn about SARS-CoV-2. I am totally impressed how much we have learned about the virus itself, its transmission, how many organ systems it can affect, which medications have at least some efficacy, the ingenuity of America to go into a "WWII" type of alternate productivity to manufacture PPE, respirators and build more hospital beds to handle the sick and mobilize military and civilian personnel to provide care. The speed at which multiple vaccines are being developed, their ability to be mass produced and distributed when they are available is nothing short of amazing. Multiple different and faster turn-around-time tests continue to emerge. Pandemics occur and I suspect these will occur more frequently what with international business, travel and more high density apartments and condos being built as, once again, people are moving more toward downtown areas and less to the suburbs. Also, as we humans encroach on and occupy land that has for eons been mostly populated by animals (often primates) we will become targets of their biomes and pathogens.
Like so many other things some individuals and groups expect the governments of the earth to have control over the microbial world and over pandemics. In fact, we have very little to prevent them from starting. With each one we will, hopefully, become better at limiting them and I do believe we will be faster at developing treatments, cures and vaccines. We have all found out how hard it is to restrict our lifestyles and how doing so has brought about its own problems, morbidity and mortality.
Yes, we can semi-prepare by stockpiling the medical equipment of the era but that will be most likely outdated by the time the next pandemic occurs. That costs a lot of money. And there is only so much of that to go around. Everyone wants dollars for their pet projects.
We can argue until the cows come home (or monkeys and bats depending on your location!) about who should have done what and when it should have been done. In reality, the viruses, bacteria and perhaps the prions are in control. At least for now.
Jim
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