Here's another viewpoint on Covid 19 from a retired English professor.
"Robert Watson: A comparison of the relative magnitude of ‘COVID-19’ and ‘All other causes’ of deaths per 1,000 for age and sex cohorts
The analysis indicates that:
(i) whilst COVID-19 is most certainly a new cause of death, its victims are predominantly older men (75+) and very elderly women (80+); as both these cohorts are already very small (particularly so in the case of males) and also suffer from very high rates of death from all other causes, COVID-19 deaths only make up a small minority of the deaths (many of which would have occurred anyway within a few months); hence, it seems highly unlikely that COVID-19 will result in a long-term increase in death rates even amongst these vulnerable age cohorts.
(ii) Covid-19 does not kill off young people at all or even the middle aged to any significant extent; indeed, the pattern of deaths largely replicates existing patterns of deaths from all other causes; moreover, COVID-19 actually marginally reinforces the existing pattern of early male death rates
and the very high death rates experienced by the very elderly of both sexes;
(iii) as a new ‘killer’ disease, COVID-19 has the benign characteristic of choosing its victims from the already elderly, i.e., it is best seen as reinforcing the natural order of death; essentially, is there an alternative age cohort that one would rather this new disease decimates?; COVID-19 really would be a human life game-changer if it drew its victims from the young and/or otherwise healthy people in their prime of life!
(iv) If the blither being put about in the media that ‘every life saved is worth it’ really is to be taken seriously, then it is clear that we ought to forget about COVID-19 and instead throw vast medical resources at trying to reduce the existing massive premature slaughter of males in their 40s, 50s and 60s."
Hat tip Rodney Hide
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7 comments:
Very upbeat and heartening -
Unless you are elderly, of course......
My parents are 88 and 85 and they have been fairly sanguine about the threat. Both have already almost died in recent times and feel lucky. They are more worried about their grandchildren than themselves.
Hmm, at middle 70's, immuno-compromised and sadly, with the wrong blood type, I am a bit comme ci, comme ça about it..... I dont have any burning desire to live for ever, and the only real reason I carry on, is to see my dog into the next life without trauma - so am fairly indifferent.
All of us dog servants are lucky people Oi. I appreciate your comments.
It seems that Robert Watson ex professor does not exist. The two Professor Watsons, one who is climate scientist and works for DEFRA and the other is an electrical engineer at Bath university, both are still working and both deny writing that article.
Over to you to produce the real Professor (retired) Watson who might be a scholar of ancient Sumaria or a dental surgeon. Reposting stuff that was posted on May the 2nd is not helpful in this fast changing scene.
Neufchateau
Maybe 'Robert Watson' is an alias. Like Neufchateau.
Hence his provision of all the data tables used and sources. The Office for National Statistics UK.
Well Oi it would kind of sad if someone over seventy hadn't come to terms with their own inevitable mortality
What's part of what has gone horribly wrong here is that modern Western people see death as an anomaly coupled with the fact that they expect GOVERNMENT to be able to fix everything. which of course they can't.
And our leaders having feet of clay faced with a media induced panic have themselves panicked, in my view, and the worst thing that can happen in the face of a crisis real or imaginary is to panic.
Real leaders would have calmly assessed the situation, calmed the public and taken the necessary steps to mitigate the impact of this virus on those who are vunerable
And we need to accept that elderly people with chronic conditions are going to die and that is just part of the deal whether we like it or not and it will eventually happen to us.
Eat, Drink and be merry for tomorrow we die
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