LINK ‘Makes you ask why the hell we even bother.’ Infectious disease experts face disillusionment as COVID-19 pandemic worsens - The Boston Globe
Michael Mina could have pursued a career as a potter. Or remained a Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka. Instead, he opted to become an epidemiologist, a profession that now has his head hitting the pillow around 4 a.m. each day for five hours of sleep. He spends the bulk of his time in his office — or rather, the coffee table jury-rigged into a standing desk in his Jamaica Plain apartment — searching for ways to ease the pandemic’s devastation and fielding a barrage of media requests.
But each week, amidst the thousands of e-mails he receives and the thousands of patients filling intensive care beds across the country, it is not the exhaustion that weighs most heavily on Mina. It’s the dejection.
“At almost every step of this pandemic, we have failed magnificently as a country,” the Harvard scientist said Monday. “And in ways that we just really didn’t need to fail.”
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Join the club. I'm just a retired person with no medical background and I am stunned at the level of almost 1/2 of Americans. That would be about the same percentage who also voted for 4 more years of lying, cruelty, self serving graft, corruption and greed.
WA State was again in the news. A 300 person indoor wedding in early November led directly to 2 different outbreaks and at least 7 deaths. This mostly definitely was against the governor mandate for indoor gatherings and mask wearing. 
silverotter11
Level 9
Dec 6, 2020
2
Unfortunately, when it comes to 'family' too many think this makes them immune. A very close friend and his wife went to visit his step-father (one of several) because he was dying. A week later he did die and they returned to the seat of hoax village (Moses Lake). I asked what he died of and they said. Last time I looked old age is not a disease (for some of us it is a blessing). Either they did not know or someone was hiding something. I informed my friend there will be a 2 week quarantine. This county has had no deaths and has the lowest rate in the state. No sense in tempting fate.
@JackPedigo Good for you!! A 300 person indoor wedding in Ritzville, WA on November 7th became a super spreader event that lead to outbreaks in 3 LTC facilities in Grant County as attendees who went to the wedding worked in the facilities. As many as 7 deaths are attributed to the indoor event.
Right now the only way to stay safe is not have contact with people who do risky things. I sure do wish my county was not so heavily gop stupid. Infects way up and lots of community spread in Kittitas County.
What truly pisses me off is that the ignorance of so may Americans (no masks, large indoor gatherings, etc., etc.) is making the lives of the rest of us miserable under the guise of "freedom". Fuck you, Assholes. What about my freedom to not be killed by your ignorance and stupidity. Denial of science doesn't change facts. These scientists are absolutely correct. It didn't need to be this bad, nowhere near it. I know a family that killed their grandmother because they continued having large family gatherings. Good thing that I am terrified of going anywhere as when I see people maskless I want to punch them in the face.
MizJ
Level 8
Dec 6, 2020
4
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