i think at this point it is fair to say 'Covid damages the country' - whatever policy is pursued there are massive consequences.
In 'let it rip' countries, not only have thousands died but many more are now unable to work or else looking out for sick relatives. Up to 4 million US workers apparently in this situation, a part explanation of the labour force participation rate being what it is. All this is not to mention the potential long term debilitating of mass Covid infections could well lower the overall IQ of the population.
Yes, a neuroscientist friend of mine researching this says that maybe the Chinese know something we don’t about the long term effects.
There was this article published (by someone else) in Nature on 2022-04-01 titled “Neuropathology and virus in brain of SARS-CoV-2 infected non-human primates”, that found neurlogical damage in monkeys even after mild symptoms: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-29440-z
There are other possible explanations for China’s policy, but this one concerns me the most.
yes indeed, we are discounting the long term impact on individuals and the aggregate impact on society. The appropriate response to China's Covid Zero is should 'what do they know that we don't' rather than the dismissive attitude we mostly commonly see
You can look at China's actions and attempt to explain them as a regime testing the bounds of control that can be exerted over its population.
You can also look at China's Zero Covid policy from the lens that they know something about this virus that we do not. Regardless of said virus' origins, Chinese scientists have been studying corona viruses intently for the last 20 years. My belief, backed up by a good volume of research, is that SARS-CoV2 is an airborne, persistent virus. LongCOVID is simply a persistent viral infection (think HIV or Hepatitis). Given the diversity and large number of cell types impacted, symptoms manifest in a multitude of ways, helping to confuse a Western medical community that assumes the virus clears quickly. The only real question is whether the virus is persistent even in individuals who appear to fully recover. As of now, we are not willing to do the research to detect a slow burn persistent virus of this type. If you need convincing that this is possible, just read up on Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP), another corona virus that persists and ultimately kills a percentage of cats. Interestingly enough, FIP can be treated with the exact same anti-virals effective against COVID. From this perspective, the Zero Covid Policy looks quite rational.
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[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 25.5 ms ] threadIn 'let it rip' countries, not only have thousands died but many more are now unable to work or else looking out for sick relatives. Up to 4 million US workers apparently in this situation, a part explanation of the labour force participation rate being what it is. All this is not to mention the potential long term debilitating of mass Covid infections could well lower the overall IQ of the population.
Pretty damaging alternative to Covid Zero
There was this article published (by someone else) in Nature on 2022-04-01 titled “Neuropathology and virus in brain of SARS-CoV-2 infected non-human primates”, that found neurlogical damage in monkeys even after mild symptoms: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-29440-z
There are other possible explanations for China’s policy, but this one concerns me the most.
You can also look at China's Zero Covid policy from the lens that they know something about this virus that we do not. Regardless of said virus' origins, Chinese scientists have been studying corona viruses intently for the last 20 years. My belief, backed up by a good volume of research, is that SARS-CoV2 is an airborne, persistent virus. LongCOVID is simply a persistent viral infection (think HIV or Hepatitis). Given the diversity and large number of cell types impacted, symptoms manifest in a multitude of ways, helping to confuse a Western medical community that assumes the virus clears quickly. The only real question is whether the virus is persistent even in individuals who appear to fully recover. As of now, we are not willing to do the research to detect a slow burn persistent virus of this type. If you need convincing that this is possible, just read up on Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP), another corona virus that persists and ultimately kills a percentage of cats. Interestingly enough, FIP can be treated with the exact same anti-virals effective against COVID. From this perspective, the Zero Covid Policy looks quite rational.
Of course, both perspectives above could apply.