On Restrictions

I get it:

• We want and NEED to get people back to work. The toll on the individuals and the families who cannot work from home is nothing short of catastrophic.
• We want to go to the park, to concerts, to sports.
• We want to get out .. I know I miss my haunt, but while I cannot go there, I’m able to support the business and the staff through curbside pickup (remember to tip the staff!).

Walking and running, being mindful of physical distancing are necessary substitutes, but nothing like the old days. I get this .. we all get this.

We have to respect this. COVID-19 attacks the respiratory system and it attacks rapidly. The outcome? At best, we have mild symptoms and get well. But, a critical case needs oxygen .. the worst cases, a ventilator.

Asymptomatic spread is the biggest risk to us all. Combined with the lack of testing, spread makes us really blind to where the virus is now, and to where it’s spreading. You can be spreading and not even know it. There is an upside: if the less-vulnerable (several definitions for this) are spreading the virus to other less-vulnerable, they may gain levels of immunity. But we have to ask ourselves: are the risks to more vulnerable worth spreading the virus .. given we do not know who has it today?

They’re not. They’re just not. Without testing .. without knowing who has self-resolved or who is currently testing positive, we need to continue and be diligent with our precautions: “Behave Like You Have It ..“, because you might.

Don’t get me wrong: We’re seeing a plateau. A plateau is good .. but it’s a plateau, and in itself, not a decline. It indicates that fewer cases are coming into the top of funnel .. tragically, too many cases are exiting the funnel by passing on. Too many people dying, too many impacted families.

But the saddest part? The deaths are the only number in the funnel that we absolutely recognize, because we lack testing capabilities. Disconnects between manufacturing the tests, delivering the tests and processing the tests are severely impacting our ability to truly understand our status.

The restrictions imposed on us are there for all of us. Your following them protects both you and me, and those you and I both love. Not following them will likely lead to a second wave, which could exceed the severity of our situation now.

We must avoid a second wave.

Stay connected. Stay safe. Stay home.