Conversation #64: Five Myths About COVID-19 (April 17, 2022)

On a beautifully cool spring day, Grace and I went for a walk and talked about the plants coming back to life in our garden, the black-capped chickadees, and five widely-believed but false myths about COVID-19, which are based in part on wishful thinking, in part on anti-vax and pro-vax talking points, and in part on our understanding of other diseases. These myths are:

1. COVID-19 is best countered by sanitizing surfaces.

2. We can achieve herd immunity.

3. COVID-19 will become endemic like the common cold.

4. Long COVID is not a big deal.

5. The after-effects of COVID-19 are mild so re-infection is not a big deal.

The hard truths we must accept instead are:

1. COVID-19 is not typically transmitted by contact with surfaces.

2. We will not be able to achieve herd immunity against COVID-19, either through vaccination or infection.

3. COVID-19 will not shift to an acceptable endemic state.

4. So-called long COVID is not rare, not mild, happens to both vaccinated and unvaccinated people, and is not a product of hypochondria.

5. The after-effects of COVID-19 infection are not yet fully understood, but evidence suggests they are very dangerous and may be cumulative, leading to hepatitis, diabetes, cardiac problems, severe vascular damage, and damage to the immune system allowing opportunistic infections.

So, what do we do next? Grace has realistic but unpopular policy proposals: ongoing masking, improved ventilation, and filtration. It starts with risk mitigation, and identifying and resisting the gaslighting going on all around us, including workplaces, institutions, and government.

The music clips are from Thomas Dolby’s song “Radio Silence,” originally released in 1982. This is the original version of the song. A re-recorded version called the “guitar version” was included in the US vinyl releases. The 1984 US CD release restores the original version.

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