It's official, March Madness is cancelled

[Gold Vision]

I don't think anyone is saying not to take any action, but I think there has been an overreaction when considering the number of deaths in this instance and the H1N1 pandemic. H1N1 also spread through the air, yet we did not have this all out action to cancel all sporting events, etc. As a result, over 12,000 Americans died and there was no outrage from anyone. Here, we have 39 deaths and you would think that we are on the verge of the apocalypse.

So your solution is to take a wait and see approach while other countries have already shown what a devastatingly outbreak of the virus looks like? Keep on going with business as usual?
By the time you know how wide the virus may spread in the US, it’s too late. You have to take these precautionary actions swiftly and broadly to avoid a rapid outbreak and the resulting overwhelmed healthcare resources.

 

[LesBolstad]

Yes they should have if 39 deaths is enough to cancel any and everything today. Why didn't they over-react during the days of the H1N1 and destroy the economy when the body count was totaling 1,000 a month? I'll give you one guess.

You are 100% correct. I would not be surprised to see a net decrease in deaths from All combined communicable diseases after all is said and done.

 

[GO4INLALALAND]

So your solution is to take a wait and see approach while other countries have already shown what a devastatingly outbreak of the virus looks like? Keep on going with business as usual?
By the time you know how wide the virus may spread in the US, it’s too late. You have to take these precautionary actions swiftly and broadly to avoid a rapid outbreak and the resulting overwhelmed healthcare resources.

No. Why don't we follow the Obama approach? Why was allowing 1,000 people to die a month under Obama OK? But 39 people die in 2 1/2 months and everything is being shut down. Why now and not under Obama? Why shouldn't we follow Obama's approach on handling a pandemic. Under Obama, there were no cancellations of sporting events, there was no closing of businesses, no travel bans.

Yes, I do think some of these cancellations are absurd. My son's little league cancelled games AND PRACTICE for 2 weeks due to the virus. There are 13 individuals at practice. Come on. Yet, when we had H1N1, an airborne virus, we just kept plugging along without any changes to our daily lives. What has changed since the H1N1, which caused so many more deaths?

 

[Gold Vision]

Is it though? In one year there were OVER 12,000 deaths from H1N1, which comes to 1,000 deaths per month. Since the beginning of this year, there have been 39 deaths due to the corona virus, that amounts to under 18 deaths a month. It appears H1N1 was much more lethal.

H1N1 started in the USA! There also wasn’t the same opportunity for early intervention.

You are also conveniently only focusing on the 40 US deaths in your rant. 4600 people have died since December 1st. H1N1 had a mortality of rate of .01-.08%. Covid-19 currently has a rate of 3.4% worldwide and 2.4% in the early stages in the US.

 

[Seany]

Is it though? In one year there were OVER 12,000 deaths from H1N1, which comes to 1,000 deaths per month. Since the beginning of this year, there have been 39 deaths due to the corona virus, that amounts to under 18 deaths a month. It appears H1N1 was much more lethal.

No, no, no, no, no, dude. You're not getting it. The mortality rate is not measured by month, but by the death rate in confirmed cases. As of this evening there were at least 1,599 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States (and all since the beginning of this month) with 39 (now 40) confirmed fatalities, which is a mortality rate of 2.501%, and that is a very, very concerning number.

By contrast, the mortality rate in the outbreak of 2009-2010 H1N1 swine flu (which is believed to have infected at least one of every five persons on earth), the mortality rate was approximately .02%. That's not some political agenda. Those are cold, hard numbers. This is a highly dangerous virus, and it is just now getting started here.

 

[GO4INLALALAND]

H1N1 started in the USA! There also wasn’t the same opportunity for early intervention.

You are also conveniently only focusing on the 40 US deaths in your rant. 4600 people have died since December 1st. H1N1 had a mortality of rate of .01-.08%. Covid-19 currently has a rate of 3.4% worldwide and 2.4% in the early stages in the US.

H1N1 started in Mexico. Also, it's not a rant, I am merely pointing out how 1,000 Americans dying a month was no big deal under Obama, but under a Republican 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months is the end of the world. My point is that the corona virus coverage is purely political.

Also, I am not concerned about the mortality rate, I am concerned about the number of deaths. In Singapore, there is a 0% mortality rate. So providing worldwide mortality rates is useless. I'm more concerned about the number of people who have assumed room temperature.

Lastly, I don't recall at anytime, anyone being concerned about 1,000 American dying a month. There certainly was never a call to cancel any sporting events, shut down schools, close businesses, etc. Why? I know you know.....

 

[GopherVotary]

I read the PGA is going to continue without fans. Having been to The Masters, the patrons really do a number on that course. I am interested in seeing it without people on it.

PGA just canceled the next three tournaments.

 

[bga1]

H1N1 started in the USA! There also wasn’t the same opportunity for early intervention.

You are also conveniently only focusing on the 40 US deaths in your rant. 4600 people have died since December 1st. H1N1 had a mortality of rate of .01-.08%. Covid-19 currently has a rate of 3.4% worldwide and 2.4% in the early stages in the US.

It's bad but Covid 19 is likely to settle in at far lower death rates. A lot of people who had it were not tested and have not had severe symptoms. Experts are expecting 1%- still bad but not where it sits now. With isolation of the elderly it could drop far below that. The average age of those who are dying from it in Italy is 8.

 

[GO4INLALALAND]

No, no, no, no, no, dude. You're not getting it. The mortality rate is not measured by month, but by the death rate in confirmed cases. As of this evening there were at least 1,599 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States (and all since the beginning of this month) with 39 (now 40) confirmed fatalities, which is a mortality rate of 2.501%, and that is a very, very concerning number.

By contrast, the mortality rate in the outbreak of 2009-2010 H1N1 swine flu (which is believed to have infected at least one of every five persons on earth), the mortality rate was approximately .02%. That's not some political agenda. Those are cold, hard numbers. This is a highly dangerous virus, and it is just now getting started here.

Again, 1,000 Americans were dying a month and no one was calling for the cancellation of sporting events, closing schools and shutting businesses. We have 39 deaths in over 2 months and now we are told to stay at home and self quarantine. Why?

What is worse, 1,000 Americans dying a month or 18 dying a month? Furthermore, the numbers are skewed in the US, because one of the outbreaks occurred at a nursing home in Washington State that alone killed 19 senior citizens. As I am sure you know, elderly are always more susceptible to death from any virus, including the regular flu.

 

[GO4INLALALAND]

Selfish and stupid also - it’s not hysteria , it’s smart actions taken to get the spreading virus to wash over America at a slower rate so our medical facilities aren’t overwhelmed - read some news out of Italy of triage decisions and they have to choose who gets the dwindling ventilators or care. Cases are much higher than reported and without increased testing there’s a lot of people walking around with it. The administrations decision to close borders is like locking the door after the murderers already in your house.

So I presume you practice what you preach? You are locked at home, giving up your life to prevent getting the corona virus?

 

[SixBySix]

H1N1 started in Mexico. Also, it's not a rant, I am merely pointing out how 1,000 Americans dying a month was no big deal under Obama, but under a Republican 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months is the end of the world. My point is that the corona virus coverage is purely political.

This is your brain on Fox. You clearly don't understand how infectious diseases work. You are going to feel very foolish about these posts over the next month or two.

That's ok--just wash your hands, stay away from large gatherings, and if you feel sick, don't visit your parents or any other elderly people and you won't do too much harm.

 

[GO4INLALALAND]

This is your brain on Fox. You clearly don't understand how infectious diseases work. You are going to feel very foolish about these posts over the next month or two.

That's ok--just wash your hands, stay away from large gatherings, and if you feel sick, don't visit your parents or any other elderly people and you won't do too much harm.

No. You don't understand how you are being manipulated by the media. So when a democrat is in charge, 1,000 lives lost a month is acceptable, so no need to get people worked up. 60 million people were infected with H1N1, but no need to get people worked up. Now when a republican is in charge, 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months is unacceptable and a little over a 1,000 infected and the country must be shut down. Again, when thousands of people were dying under Obama due to H1N1, there was no mass hysteria. Why? So if we only loose 12,000 to the corona virus, is that acceptable like it was under Obama?

This has nothing to do with Fox News (I know that is how some people like to deflect facts), it is about the mass hysteria being created for political purposes. This is not about praising or bashing Trump or Obama, it is about how two similar circumstances are being treated completely differently in the media. You can argue that the corona virus is deadlier, but right now the facts just do not bear that out. Here in the US there have only been 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months compared to 1,000 a month under H1N1. In Singapore, there is a 0% mortality rate.

I think it is foolish not to think that the media coverage is politicized, but that is my opinion.

 

[bga1]

No. You don't understand how you are being manipulated by the media. So when a democrat is in charge, 1,000 lives lost a month is acceptable, so no need to get people worked up. 60 million people were infected with H1N1, but no need to get people worked up. Now when a republican is in charge, 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months is unacceptable and a little over a 1,000 infected and the country must be shut down. Again, when thousands of people were dying under Obama due to H1N1, there was no mass hysteria. Why? So if we only loose 12,000 to the corona virus, is that acceptable like it was under Obama?

This has nothing to do with Fox News (I know that is how some people like to deflect facts), it is about the mass hysteria being created for political purposes. This is not about praising or bashing Trump or Obama, it is about how two similar circumstances are being treated completely differently in the media. You can argue that the corona virus is deadlier, but right now the facts just do not bear that out. Here in the US there have only been 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months compared to 1,000 a month under H1N1. In Singapore, there is a 0% mortality rate.

I think it is foolish not to think that the media coverage is politicized, but that is my opinion.

I don't think any of us know how this is going to come out, but the media has been beyond shameful in this episode. Just horrid. I actually think that the measures being taken now by both the government and the sports world will be helpful, but the way the media has politicized this is awful and lacking in fairness and honesty.

 

[fair]

Are you kidding about Italy, or are you really that ignorant? 457,000 people died there during WW2. Bernie is completely out to lunch.

I said nothing about the casualties of the two scenarios. I specifically said response. The lock down is something not seen in Italy since WWII. Whether it's necessary is not what I'm arguing.

 

[USAF]

H1N1 started in the USA! There also wasn’t the same opportunity for early intervention.

You are also conveniently only focusing on the 40 US deaths in your rant. 4600 people have died since December 1st. H1N1 had a mortality of rate of .01-.08%. Covid-19 currently has a rate of 3.4% worldwide and 2.4% in the early stages in the US.

Your mistake here is in thinking a presentation of fact, reason, and common sense will have any effect on a Trump supporter.

They've shown zero respect for any of the above for 4 years now, a worldwide pandemic certainly isnt going to make a lightbulb suddenly go off in their pea brains.

I mean, noted health expert Sean Hannity has told them it's the media's fault.

 

[GO4INLALALAND]

Your mistake here is in thinking a presentation of fact, reason, and common sense will have any effect on a Trump supporter.

They've shown zero respect for any of the above for 4 years now, a worldwide pandemic certainly isnt going to make a lightbulb suddenly go off in their pea brains.

I mean, noted health expert Sean Hannity has told them it's the media's fault.

I'm sure you thought Obama was doing a masterful job when we were losing 1,000 Americans a month to H1N1. Yet 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months under Trump and it's armageddon. Who has the pea brain?

 

[MennoSota]

Breaking News: Life has been cancelled. Please prepare for the after life. ?

 

[WriterGoph]

No. You don't understand how you are being manipulated by the media. So when a democrat is in charge, 1,000 lives lost a month is acceptable, so no need to get people worked up. 60 million people were infected with H1N1, but no need to get people worked up. Now when a republican is in charge, 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months is unacceptable and a little over a 1,000 infected and the country must be shut down. Again, when thousands of people were dying under Obama due to H1N1, there was no mass hysteria. Why? So if we only loose 12,000 to the corona virus, is that acceptable like it was under Obama?

This has nothing to do with Fox News (I know that is how some people like to deflect facts), it is about the mass hysteria being created for political purposes. This is not about praising or bashing Trump or Obama, it is about how two similar circumstances are being treated completely differently in the media. You can argue that the corona virus is deadlier, but right now the facts just do not bear that out. Here in the US there have only been 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months compared to 1,000 a month under H1N1. In Singapore, there is a 0% mortality rate.

I think it is foolish not to think that the media coverage is politicized, but that is my opinion.

Shut up. You keep repeating yourself, Ann Coulter. Did you ever stop and think that maybe our response and handling of infectious diseases may have evolved after 10 years? Maybe they learned something from previous experiences? It's not all about your imaginary agenda, Tucker.

 

[Some guy]

I think that having the tournaments without crowds present would not lead to a massive out break throughout the country.

Well. Unless they all self quarantine at the end for 14 days it could since the virus can transfer when you are without symptoms

 

[Some guy]

Yes they should have if 39 deaths is enough to cancel any and everything today. Why didn't they over-react during the days of the H1N1 and destroy the economy when the body count was totaling 1,000 a month? I'll give you one guess.

Here is my guess:
Because around 10% of people who get coronavirus need hospitalizations while H1N1 only around 0.5% required hospitalizations?
Because around 1% of people die from coronavirus and only around 0.2% of people died from H1N1?

 

[Some guy]

Is it though? In one year there were OVER 12,000 deaths from H1N1, which comes to 1,000 deaths per month. Since the beginning of this year, there have been 39 deaths due to the corona virus, that amounts to under 18 deaths a month. It appears H1N1 was much more lethal.

For sure. And since we are in the 10th day of the outbreak I’m sure the current rate of deaths will not change. Over/under US Coronavirus deaths is set at 300 and you are taking the under. Got it

 

[NotAFanOfBecky]

It's bad but Covid 19 is likely to settle in at far lower death rates. A lot of people who had it were not tested and have not had severe symptoms. Experts are expecting 1%- still bad but not where it sits now. With isolation of the elderly it could drop far below that. The average age of those who are dying from it in Italy is 8.

You meant 81 according to the article I read. Some interesting points being made on both sides. Is the fatality rate skewed because of the elderly? Are there many more cases (maybe thousands or tens of thousands more) because many younger folks have minimal symptoms but don't get tested? No one knows yet. I also wondered about the H1N1 numbers, thanks for posting. Perhaps the urgent approach should have been done before, perhaps this is indeed fear mongering on a grand scale for political gain (doesn't explain the worlds reaction of doing similar steps so I doubt that's true.)? Regardless, as a small business owner that is entirely reliant on face to face with customers and has 7 employees that need their jobs to make ends meet, that have families, I'm scared shitless as to how I can possibly weather this storm that's coming financially. My profit margin is not enough to pay them for longer than a couple of weeks and I'm not sure my landlord will forgive me if I have to shut down for months like they are talking. I know there are probably millions like me both on the owner side and employee side that are in the same boat. Regardless of your political beliefs I hope you keep people like us in your prayers, hope that the government has a financial plan for folks like us. All of you with the whole I can work from home or virtual model consider yourself very lucky to not have that stress.

 

[gopher8190]

I read the PGA is going to continue without fans. Having been to The Masters, the patrons really do a number on that course. I am interested in seeing it without people on it.

PGA is cancelled until the Masters.

 

[jonasty]

Boy, if the Masters happens this year I bet it's going to get absurd TV ratings.

 

[XMan]

61 million Americans came down with N1H1 and 12,400 Americans died. Do the math on that mortality rate. It is .02%. Not 2%, .02% Globally the carona virus has shown a 3.4% mortality rate. Which is considerably higher than N1H1. It is not even close. Anyone who claims that it was reportedly differently when Obama was President is ignorant.

 

[Thymanst]

No. You don't understand how you are being manipulated by the media. So when a democrat is in charge, 1,000 lives lost a month is acceptable, so no need to get people worked up. 60 million people were infected with H1N1, but no need to get people worked up. Now when a republican is in charge, 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months is unacceptable and a little over a 1,000 infected and the country must be shut down. Again, when thousands of people were dying under Obama due to H1N1, there was no mass hysteria. Why? So if we only loose 12,000 to the corona virus, is that acceptable like it was under Obama?

This has nothing to do with Fox News (I know that is how some people like to deflect facts), it is about the mass hysteria being created for political purposes. This is not about praising or bashing Trump or Obama, it is about how two similar circumstances are being treated completely differently in the media. You can argue that the corona virus is deadlier, but right now the facts just do not bear that out. Here in the US there have only been 39 deaths in 2 1/2 months compared to 1,000 a month under H1N1. In Singapore, there is a 0% mortality rate.

I think it is foolish not to think that the media coverage is politicized, but that is my opinion.

good article from Bloomberg news on differences in h1n1 and covid 19:

Calling attention to 2009 pandemic has become a theme in pro-Donald-Trump circles, with extremely similar articles on PJ Media, Red State and Printly all claiming that President Barack Obama didn’t declare a public health emergency until the H1N1 outbreak had been raging for months (as seen above, the public health emergency was declared less than two weeks after the virus was discovered, although Obama did up that to a “national emergency” in late October). President Trump himself argued on Twitterthat “the April 2009-10 Swine Flu, where nearly 13,000 people died in the U.S., was poorly handled.” Such charges are to some extent just “whataboutism,” a propaganda technique used heavily by the Soviet Union back in the day to divert attention from misdeeds and problems by calling attention to the purported misdeeds and problems of others. But comparing Covid-19 with H1N1 can shed some light on why the former has elicited the reaction it has.

For example: Why was H1N1 allowed to spread around the world more or less unchecked, while countries are going to far greater lengths to try to halt Covid-19? Why did the WHO call H1N1 a pandemic but not Covid-19? Isn’t 12,469 deaths a lot worse than the 26 that have been attributed to Covid-19 in the U.S. so far?

That last one is the simplest to answer: Covid-19 is near the beginning of its spread in the U.S., and thus cannot be compared with H1N1’s effect over a full year. If the U.S. death toll from Covid-19 is only 12,469 a year from now, that will likely be counted as a great success. The legitimate worry is that it could be many, many times higher, because Covid-19 is so much deadlier for those who get it than the 2009 H1N1 influenza was.

How much deadlier is still unknown, but of the cases reported to the WHO so far 3.4% have resulted in fatalities. That’s probably misleadingly high because there are so many unreported cases, and in South Korea, which has done the best job of keeping up with the spread of the virus through testing, the fatality rate so far is about 0.7%. But even that is 35 times worse than H1N1 in 2009 and 2010. Multiply 12,469 by 35 and you get 436,415 — which would amount to the biggest U.S. infectious-disease death toll since the 1918 flu. Hospitalization rates are also many times higher for Covid-19, meaning that if it spread as widely as H1N1 it would overwhelm the U.S. health-care system.

 

[ltf]

Maybe I am missing something, but why not keep open the option of May madness. MLB and NBA are just suspending for a short time at this point. There is some thought the virus will subside with warmer weather. Could allow the teams a couple scrimmages leading up to it - would at least give the players some hope of realizing their dreams. Am sure the logistics would be tricky, but seems like it could be done.

 

[bga1]

good article from Bloomberg news on differences in h1n1 and covid 19:

Calling attention to 2009 pandemic has become a theme in pro-Donald-Trump circles, with extremely similar articles on PJ Media, Red State and Printly all claiming that President Barack Obama didn’t declare a public health emergency until the H1N1 outbreak had been raging for months (as seen above, the public health emergency was declared less than two weeks after the virus was discovered, although Obama did up that to a “national emergency” in late October). President Trump himself argued on Twitterthat “the April 2009-10 Swine Flu, where nearly 13,000 people died in the U.S., was poorly handled.” Such charges are to some extent just “whataboutism,” a propaganda technique used heavily by the Soviet Union back in the day to divert attention from misdeeds and problems by calling attention to the purported misdeeds and problems of others. But comparing Covid-19 with H1N1 can shed some light on why the former has elicited the reaction it has.

For example: Why was H1N1 allowed to spread around the world more or less unchecked, while countries are going to far greater lengths to try to halt Covid-19? Why did the WHO call H1N1 a pandemic but not Covid-19? Isn’t 12,469 deaths a lot worse than the 26 that have been attributed to Covid-19 in the U.S. so far?

That last one is the simplest to answer: Covid-19 is near the beginning of its spread in the U.S., and thus cannot be compared with H1N1’s effect over a full year. If the U.S. death toll from Covid-19 is only 12,469 a year from now, that will likely be counted as a great success. The legitimate worry is that it could be many, many times higher, because Covid-19 is so much deadlier for those who get it than the 2009 H1N1 influenza was.

How much deadlier is still unknown, but of the cases reported to the WHO so far 3.4% have resulted in fatalities. That’s probably misleadingly high because there are so many unreported cases, and in South Korea, which has done the best job of keeping up with the spread of the virus through testing, the fatality rate so far is about 0.7%. But even that is 35 times worse than H1N1 in 2009 and 2010. Multiply 12,469 by 35 and you get 436,415 — which would amount to the biggest U.S. infectious-disease death toll since the 1918 flu. Hospitalization rates are also many times higher for Covid-19, meaning that if it spread as widely as H1N1 it would overwhelm the U.S. health-care system.

I think we will find in the end that the fatality rate of this thing ends up being far, far lower than current projections. Lower than even the .7%. So many in China have had it that were never tested, probably millions. Most people don't get severe enough symptoms to report or test- they don't even know they have it. It appears to be slowly ending in China with only 8 new cases yesterday in Wuhan.

That said, the rate of mortality with old people IS high and I think cancelling things to flatten the short term curve is smart. Be smart, don't panic.

Long term we need to be less dependent on China for our manufacturing. Much less.

 

[BarnBurner]

I think we will find in the end that the fatality rate of this thing ends up being far, far lower than current projections. Lower than even the .7%. So many in China have had it that were never tested, probably millions. Most people don't get severe enough symptoms to report or test- they don't even know they have it. It appears to be slowly ending in China with only 8 new cases yesterday in Wuhan.

That said, the rate of mortality with old people IS high and I think cancelling things to flatten the short term curve is smart. Be smart, don't panic.

Long term we need to be less dependent on China for our manufacturing. Much less.

Nailed it.

What will DC do? Companies?

 

[PeoplesFront]

Long term we need to be less dependent on China for our manufacturing. Much less.

We still have a lot to learn about COVID-19. However, at this point in time, the quote above is the most important lesson learned from this pandemic as China manufactures the majority of our pharmaceuticals.