RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt
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I know we're only hearing about the bad cases, but there are a lot of those, it seems. There are also plenty of people not dying but getting really sick, and if hospitals are overwhelmed, then it seems likely that a lot more of these people will die, which is what we're trying to avoid, after all. I was tempted not to even point this out, as it seems so blindingly obvious, but apparently some people still don't actually believe it, or think it's important.
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@jon-nyc said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
@jon-nyc said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
Remarkable the amount of ideological commitment some people can display.
It was the first thing that had me shaking my head about the VDH piece. He still believes there is a potential fact we could discover that would confirm his initial ‘flu is worse’ stance. We are well passed that point.
Yes, we might finally be past that point.
The current US COVID death toll according to CDC is 37,202
Yesterday the US COVID death toll passed the 2018-2019 estimated deaths due to flu of 34,157
The CDC 95% UI estimate of deaths due to flu could actually go as high as 52,664.
But let's just go with the single number estimate, COVID wins
This means Dr. Fauci and Mr. Trump were wrong when they said "flu is worse".
As of yesterday, no doubt about it they were wrong, wrong, wrong.
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@Aqua-Letifer said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
Personally I think saving as many fucking lives as possible is the best argument, but apparently that's unreasonable crazy talk.
Crazy is a little harsh, but it is certainly unreasonable.
I think if you thought through what it would take I'm sure you would agree. The number of people and time and money needed is probably more than exists in the universe.
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@Copper said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
@jon-nyc said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
@jon-nyc said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
Remarkable the amount of ideological commitment some people can display.
It was the first thing that had me shaking my head about the VDH piece. He still believes there is a potential fact we could discover that would confirm his initial ‘flu is worse’ stance. We are well passed that point.
Yes, we might finally be past that point.
The current US COVID death toll according to CDC is 37,202
Yesterday the US COVID death toll passed the 2018-2019 estimated deaths due to flu of 34,157
The CDC 95% UI estimate of deaths due to flu could actually go as high as 52,664.
But let's just go with the single number estimate, COVID wins
This means Dr. Fauci and Mr. Trump were wrong when they said "flu is worse".
As of yesterday, no doubt about it they were wrong, wrong, wrong.
I never know how seriously to take your posts, but there's far more to it being obviouly wrong than the current death count.
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@Doctor-Phibes said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
I know we're only hearing about the bad cases, but there are a lot of those, it seems. There are also plenty of people not dying but getting really sick, and if hospitals are overwhelmed, then it seems likely that a lot more of these people will die, which is what we're trying to avoid, after all. I was tempted not to even point this out, as it seems so blindingly obvious, but apparently some people still don't actually believe it, or think it's important.
Quoted for emphasis.
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More Levitt, posted yesterday:
Link to video -
@Levitt said >
In this interview with Freddie Sayers, Executive Editor of UnHerd, Professor Levitt explains why he thinks indiscriminate lockdown measures as “a huge mistake,” and advocates a “smart lockdown” policy, focused on more effective measures, focused on protecting elderly people.
huge mistake
I wonder if he has visited tncr
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Yeah Mr Levitt is saying a bunch of reasonable stuff that people are castigated as stupid and evil for saying. To wit:
- The damage from the lockdown will be greater than the damage from the virus
- There is a meaningful difference between a young person dying and an old person dying
- If we could protect the old people, the death rate numbers would not be alarming.
- Face masks are a viable mitigation, without a lockdown, and no you don't need an n95 mask
- If you want to find the people who are making this into a political football, look first to those getting righteous about the incalculable value of life. That idea is not so prevalent in the virus rhetoric in a culture like Sweden where there are fewer political concerns.
- Nobody risks anything personally by blowing risk out of proportion. Nobody will care if they're wrong. The attitude which assumes some personal risk is to encourage people to think clearly about the cost of the lockdown
- The people incurring the costs of this lockdown are the young folk, and that cost extends far beyond the immediate concerns of this virus. The people the lockdown is in service of, is the old folk.
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@Copper said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
@Levitt said >
In this interview with Freddie Sayers, Executive Editor of UnHerd, Professor Levitt explains why he thinks indiscriminate lockdown measures as “a huge mistake,” and advocates a “smart lockdown” policy, focused on more effective measures, focused on protecting elderly people.
huge mistake
I wonder if he has visited tncr
TNCR has appeared to veer left in response to the virus.
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@Horace said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
Yeah Mr Levitt is saying a bunch of reasonable stuff that people are castigated as stupid and evil for saying. To wit:
- The damage from the lockdown will be greater than the damage from the virus
- There is a meaningful difference between a young person dying and an old person dying
- If we could protect the old people, the death rate numbers would not be alarming.
- Face masks are a viable mitigation, without a lockdown, and no you don't need an n95 mask
- If you want to find the people who are making this into a political football, look first to those getting righteous about the incalculable value of life. That idea is not so prevalent in the virus rhetoric in a culture like Sweden where there are fewer political concerns.
- Nobody risks anything personally by blowing risk out of proportion. Nobody will care if they're wrong. The attitude which assumes some personal risk is to encourage people to think clearly about the cost of the lockdown
- The people incurring the costs of this lockdown are the young folk, and that cost extends far beyond the immediate concerns of this virus. The people the lockdown is in service of, is the old folk.
I haven’t listened to yet but if this is accurate #7 is the most alarming.
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he goes into that towards the end of the interview. It becomes a little touchy feely where he says how much joy young people like his grandchildren give him and that as an old person he's had a great life and is willing to sacrifice to ensure the young folk have those same opportunities.
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@Horace said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
- The damage from the lockdown will be greater than the damage from the virus
The damage from the lockdown is damage from the virus.
People think the current economic problems are entirely due to a coerced supply disruption. But Sweden tells us otherwise.
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The thing is, first they say it's not that bad, then it morphs into 'only sick people are going to die' - now it's 'sacrifice the old to save the young'.
I don't trust these people.
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@jon-nyc said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
@Horace said in RNZ Interview with Michael Levitt:
- The damage from the lockdown will be greater than the damage from the virus
The damage from the lockdown is damage from the virus.
Oh I see. It appears that everybody's thinking on this issue from the get-go has been based on a non-existent distinction. That's a shame.
People think the current economic problems are entirely due to a coerced supply disruption. But Sweden tells us otherwise.
I'm sure people are hard at work trying to find the numbers they want to find coming out of Sweden. And if they don't find them, they will attribute the success to a culture capable of social distancing without coercion. Meanwhile, people are still going to work and kids are still going to school.
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Right or wrong, they have a hell of lot more fatality. This is a log scale.