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My Thoughts | Lockdowns are Suicide

PakPrinciples

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** I originally wrote this back around March 20th, 2020 around when my laptop broke and I only received a replacement recently so a lot of the information may seem old now but I have updated it a little **

My Thoughts | Lockdowns are Suicide


The actions, most very late to this pandemic, world governments have taken made no sense and there are those in Pakistan who seem to be losing their minds over the spread of the novel coronavirus namely parties like the PPP and PML-N who have over exaggerated the threat this virus poses to Pakistan while admittedly others in the country seem to outright discount the threat all together.

I want to preface what I’m about to say with the fact that I am NOT a medical professional, I have no experience in dealing with infectious disease pandemics so we should always be consulting the relevant experts but what I am about to write is based on my readings of findings and research materials. I could be way off, the effect malnourishment and polio have had on our population isn't totally understood or known but I'm interested in seeing what others have to say on this.

SARS-CoV-2 is not airborne, at least there’s very little evidence to suggest this, instead what we do know is that it’s transmitted through contact with respiratory droplets containing the virus whether that comes from someone coughing on you, shaking your hands after having wiped their nose or having coughed on an object you touched in all cases getting respiratory droplets/bodily fluid containing the virus into your respiratory tract (mouth/nose).

We have a pretty good understanding of the symptoms which appear in stages, so it’s crucial to educate the public and have people self quarantine then report to local medical authorities when you exhibit the following:
  1. Mild Symptoms (81%)
    • Fever
    • Dry Cough (no phlegm)
  2. Symptoms in severe cases (14%)
    • Shortness of Breath
    • Pneumonia like symptoms
  3. 3. Symptoms in critical cases (5%)
    • Respiratory failure
    • Septic shock
    • Multi organ failure
Sneezing, runny or stuffy noses aren’t normally known to be symptoms of the coronavirus appearing in only 5% of cases and are more associated with the common cold or flu but precautions should still be taken including wearing a face covering (ex. tie a shirt around your mouth) and avoiding physical contact with others to avoid spreading the virus preferably with you self isolating at home.

It’s also understood how long the coronavirus remains viable on a host of surfaces:

file-20200327-146724-itrxx8.png


Instead of enforcing draconian lockdowns steps that should have been taken immediately could include :
  1. Impose a mandatory requirement for everyone to wear a face covering in public. This is especially important for those who are coughing to protect others as it limits their ability to spread respiratory droplets containing the virus.

  2. Dispense soaps to the general public specifically the impoverished and encourage regular hand washing.

  3. There should be public announcements made via TV, radio, newspapers, flyers and volunteers presenting on the streets running 24/7 for the next few months to educate the public especially about how to properly wash your hands.

  4. Ban large gatherings over 50 people and close restaurants but allow people to pickup food or have it delivered.

Recall Pakistan is a nation of very young people:

Bev%C3%B6lkerungspyramide_Pakistan_2016.png


The virus worst affects those over 60 years of age which represents a small portion of our entire population with 65+ year olds representing about 5% of our total population:

20860.jpeg


Now that doesn’t mean people under 60 aren’t in danger however observed mortality rates among 0 to 50 years olds was at most 1.3% in China even less in Italy which was worse affected.

Furthermore due to Pakistan’s lack of economic development and opportunities women primarily work at home so you may see less exposure to covid19 by a large segment of half our population while our elderly aren't relegated to live and suffer through the illness alone like they do in the west because of our cultural norms which itself could help in preventing, detecting and reporting the illness to relevant authorities and securing prompt treatment averting higher death tolls.

Why you likely see higher hospitalization and death rates in countries like Italy is because of their aging population where the 65+ year olds represent almost 22% of their country:

italy-population-pyramid-2018.jpg


In China about 11% of their population was over 65 while in Spain, almost as badly affected as Italy, their 65+ population represents over 18% of the population.

There are major concerns though...

When it comes to Pakistan, I’ve stated this years ago, malnourishment has compromised the immune systems of many of our people especially the young as has polio while our health care system is nowhere as developed as those in the West or China meaning we cannot provide the level of care they can so our government should have aired on the side of caution when handling this pandemic despite the virus not impacting children, teens and young/middle aged adults the way it does the elderly.

Unfortunately the best opportunity to suppress this was 2 or 3 months back which both the PTI federal government and provincial governments like the PPP squandered.
https://globalnews.ca/news/6731689/who-squandered-window-coronavirus/amp/

It’s likely that Pakistani officials discounted this threat due to SARS-CoV-1 having infected only about 8000 people in 26 countries with a similar R0 of 3. However one should note the viral outbreak was contained due to similar measures I keep referring to as those cited in a Lancet study which states:

“SARS was eventually contained by means of syndromic surveillance, prompt isolation of patients, strict enforcement of quarantine of all contacts, and in some areas top-down enforcement of community quarantine.”
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(20)30129-8/fulltext
These are the exact same strategies countries like South Korea, Mongolia, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong employed without resorting to the type of lockdowns like you see in Italy and libtards or corrupt nitwits like the PPP and PML-N are asking for.

Even now they are squandering time bickering about lockdowns which will wind up badly hurting our economy resulting in increased poverty that will kill a lot more of our people than the coronavirus could.

Despite massive lockdowns in Italy and Spain you see better outcomes from no lockdowns in countries like Sweden.

The $5 Billion stimulus announced by the PTI is not enough to avert financial disaster instead the money would be better spent on:

  • Capital equipment to produce necessary supplies to treat and combat the spread of the virus with the immediate need to produce reagents, face masks (particularly N95 masks) along with gloves, soap and hand sanitizer.

  • Retooling cosmetics, pharma, chemical and textile manufacturing companies to produce essential supplies.

  • Immediately building millions of testing kits and start testing across the country quarantining those who have been in contact with the infected while isolating and treating the sick.

  • Convert military, university, private/public school chemistry labs into clean rooms to test samples.

  • Convert available buildings with power supplies into makeshift hospitals.

Right now you have a fearful population which is ignoring clinical data and the most vulnerable with libtards and corrupt garbage like the PPP and PML-N demanding lockdowns, brainwashing the public into supporting them at the cost of tens of millions.

How long does the PPP intend to shut down Sindh for?

How long do the morons in the PPP expect the PTI to shut down Pakistan for?

Who is going to pay for the food and rents of possibly millions of labourers who ventured into Pakistan’s cities, what we call urbanization, to work low paying jobs in a country which already struggles to collect tax revenues will now collect even less?

We don’t have a cure all for influenza nor do we have one for SARS-CoV-1 or AIDS and there’s no guarantee SARS-CoV-2 won’t mutate into something that the “upcoming” vaccine can’t fight considering MERS-CoV had at least 3 distinct genotypes.

Even if a vaccine is developed scientists estimate it could take 18 months to do so, which itself is fast, and that doesn’t include the time needed to manufacture it on a large scale, organize distribution channels, training for personnel to vaccinate maybe millions of people because we don't have enough doctors and nurses to do this quickly and then actually organizing the vaccination of those people.

What astounds me is that since the 90s, under PPP and PML-N rule, over 150,000 Pakistani children under the age of 5 have been dying a year due to malnourishment. Italy, probably the worst affected by the coronavirus, has seen about 151 deaths per 1 Million people whereas malnourishment has killed about 850 Pakistani’s per 1 Million people and that's just our children under the age of 5.

This panic didn’t exist for years, no public health emergencies demanded by the PPP or PML-N then, so why now?

All this while the novel coronavirus has a mortality rate of 1 death per 1 Million people in Pakistan which is one of the lowest in the world. Even if we're off by 85,000% it would only be as bad as undernourishment on our country.

Maybe they care so much because it isn’t only the poor dying or suffering anymore instead Pakistan’s trash like Zardari, Shabaz Sharif, Bilwal Bhutto and Sherry Rehman are at risk now too.

To quote Shabaz Sharif “...we’re all going to die.”

Because the public doesn’t comprehend the truly dire financial situation we’ve been put into by military rule under Musharraf and civilian rule under Nawaz Sharif (PML-N) or Zardari (PPP) they think a lockdown on the scale they imagine or see in richer economies is no big deal ignoring the massive financial burden they’ve taken on.

In neighbouring Iran, which is under severe sanctions and has imposed limited to no lockdowns, they’ve only seen about 0.0004% of their population infected. If reports from their country are to be believed, which I don’t fully trust, they may reach a point total infections will level out and stabilize within a few months and start to decrease as more people recover and there are fewer infected (view attachments):

IMG_E1374.JPG


Iran Coronavirus growth.png


As Andrew Cuomo famously stated Iran will eventually “flatten the curve” and so will Pakistan.

Instead financial assistance should be focused on the most vulnerable segments of the population specifically those over 60 years of age and others with Pre-existing health conditions (ex. cancer, asthma, diabetes, heart disease, AIDS, etc...) who need to be isolated in their own private rooms and their families provided the financial and material support to ensure their well being.

This is backed by data coming out of New York City which confirms that, within any age group, at least 70 to 80% of all deaths resulting from this novel coronavirus are among those who have pre-existing health conditions (view attachment):

NYC Coronavirus Deaths.jpg


Instead what a host of world governments have done is isolated everyone, wreaked havoc on their domestic economies especially detrimental to nations not as industrialized and well off where hunger resulting from them will likely kill far more over the long term than this virus would have.
 
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absolutely right and this is also what i feels should be done. govts world wide are confused with this virus and trying to do impossible things that will not going to help alot.

when police can close the shops why cant police force people to wear masks? banning pillion riding i mean pls for god sake you cannot stop same people who are going on bike together at their home so whats the purpose of these illogical things which are only increasing economic and financial troubles.
 
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absolutely right and this is also what i feels should be done. govts world wide are confused with this virus and trying to do impossible things that will not going to help alot.

when police can close the shops why cant police force people to wear masks? banning pillion riding i mean pls for god sake you cannot stop same people who are going on bike together at their home so whats the purpose of these illogical things which are only increasing economic and financial troubles.
The upper middle and upper class cna afford for the lower classes it means huge economic hit
I know so many who are digging in their savings just to sta afloat
 
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govt is still not teaching the importance of face masks to public, i have this fear that in few days the fed up and hungry public will come out and will open their businesses on their own and then it will be too late for govt to force them for any thing even to wear masks.
 
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I think lockdown is not necessary if everyone is able to do a perfect social distancing.

But you know it's impossible.

And lockdown measurement is the only solution if you want to make the infection down to zero.

Wiping coronavirus forever.


Since the virus was already spreading widely, there's no use of lockdown strategy.

The only solution is Herd Immunity, to let the people get infected as much as possible.


But still, if you want to reduce the death number...

The only solution is Herd Immunity with social distancing, to prevent the curve to have a sudden jump and overrun the healthcare system in am entire country.

Once it's overrunning, death cases will be very high.

Because of many of them untreated.
 
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govt is still not teaching the importance of face masks to public, i have this fear that in few days the fed up and hungry public will come out and will open their businesses on their own and then it will be too late for govt to force them for any thing even to wear masks.

absolutely right and this is also what i feels should be done. govts world wide are confused with this virus and trying to do impossible things that will not going to help alot.

when police can close the shops why cant police force people to wear masks? banning pillion riding i mean pls for god sake you cannot stop same people who are going on bike together at their home so whats the purpose of these illogical things which are only increasing economic and financial troubles.

I completely agree, teaching is important but it goes so far there needs to be enforcement of the rules.

Maybe they should start fining people without a mask and let the police keep the money they collect like a bonus, would probably encourage them to work on overdrive going after anyone without something covering their nose/mouth.

It's also a lot easier than imposing state or country wide lockdowns.

Article released in Dawn apparently confirms the same thing that 75% of the people contracting this, or perhaps admitted to hospitals, are over 50 years old:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1559269/72pc-of-covid-19-patients-in-pakistan-are-50-plus

They may represent something like 15% of the overall population.

Instead it would be better to focus financial assistance not on everyone but specifically the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions to whom Covid19 poses the greatest risk. Help them get out of the workforce or kept isolated until things clear up. However even that is a massive financial burden that years of mismanagement thanks to the PML-N, PPP and Musharraf will simply not allow.
 
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I still think it's too late for govt to even make law.... First they did illogical reopening like who the fk in the world open small markets first where it is impossible to implement sops and in this summer heat forcing people to do shopping in hot afternoon that too with face masks and that too after two months in peak eid shopping time and with limited hours:o:
The spread was bound to happen and still the cases we are seeing today are the result of those idiotic actions of govt. Now the rush has gone and people somehow are now following sops when the govt now using some of their aqal and increased market timing till 7. Our govt people are jahils at of highest level.
 
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The only solution is Herd Immunity with social distancing, to prevent the curve to have a sudden jump and overrun the healthcare system in am entire country.

The upper middle and upper class cna afford for the lower classes it means huge economic hit
I know so many who are digging in their savings just to sta afloat

I still think it's too late for govt to even make law.... First they did illogical reopening like who the fk in the world open small markets first where it is impossible to implement sops and in this summer heat forcing people to do shopping in hot afternoon that too with face masks and that too after two months in peak eid shopping time and with limited hours:o:
The spread was bound to happen and still the cases we are seeing today are the result of those idiotic actions of govt. Now the rush has gone and people somehow are now following sops when the govt now using some of their aqal and increased market timing till 7. Our govt people are jahils at of highest level.

Well it's a couple of months later and:

Pakistan new cases coronavirus.png


Thank Allah (swt) that Imran Khan and the PTI weren't lead astray by these liberal lunatics. He literally employed the same tactics they used back in 2002 against SARS-CoV-1 to combat SARS-CoV-2 as highlighted in the article I mentioned earlier:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(20)30129-8/fulltext

Again, instead of nationwide lock downs the focus was on syndromic surveilance though IK and the PTI were very late and slow in implementing a lot of necessary changes.

India followed the suggestions PPP and PML-N were asking to be implemented in Pakistan and:

India new cases coronavirus.png


This itself should demonstrate to everyone how utterly inept and treacherous the PPP and PML-N are. They, and those like them, have been the bane of Pakistan's existence but how they keep getting re-elected by brainwashing good Pakistani's with their nonsense is a crime that should never have been permitted.

They've stopped progress on the construction of essential dams like Kalabagh, they've signed onto stupid FTA's like those with China (though this was officially Musharraf none of them have reversed course on it yet), they've completely over exaggerated CPEC which has diverted funds that were needed elsewhere and even spent money on totally useless projects (ex. solar power plants that produce electricity at exorbitant rates).

I can only hope that Pakistan wakes up to this liberal menace and starts dealing with them like Erdogan dealt with the treacherous and treasonous professors, academics and media personalities in Turkey.
 
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