This could be somewhat of an answer to my question. If all the media coverage focuses on everyone helping to smooth out the “infection curve” then the youth and young adults in the world might be more apt to take it seriously as opposed to only self concerned attitudes.
It surely would still ease some of us “more at risk” individuals minds to hear some positives and success stories about people coming out the other side though. 
Meanwhile in the real world. CDC estimates that so far this season there have been at least 36 million flu illnesses, 370,000 hospitalizations and 22,000 deaths from flu. You know, the one that arrives every fall like clockwork. Year after year after year.
COVID appears to be more easily transmissable than the flu because you can have it and infect others several days before you feel symptoms yourself.
COVID is about 10 times more deadly than the flu - the COVID fatality rate is around 2%, maybe higher, but let’s use that number
It is likely to infect 50-70% of the population. Let’s just say 50% because the math is easier:
Do we have enough hospital beds? No. Do we have enough ventilators? No.
Do we have a population of lots of people with other health problems like heart disease, morbid obesity, and diabetes that make them high risk? Yes
If you think this sounds ridiculous:
a) take a look at Italy - they are about 8-10 days ahead of us
b) come back here in 8-10 days and see how ridiculous it still sounds.
Whether that is our destiny depends very much on how seriously we take the danger and implement actions to slow it down now. Like extreme social distancing.
I would love to be wrong.
@amwassil CORVID-19…To poo poo or not to poo poo, that is the question! 
@Backspin and anyone else who has not checked out the link I posted here, please do so.
@amwassil The Hoover Institute article had some good points regarding the spread of the virus from a logical perspective. One particular fault was concerning things getting better possibly as the weather warms up forgetting that the world has two hemispheres and as one heats up the other cools off. Honestly though who knows. It could mutate easily as well so there’s no telling where it goes. Maybe more heat tolerant or more deadly if infected. Or drug resistant where it comes back seasonally adapted like the flu does now. It might not be simple and over soon like he suggested.
Check out the linked article here.
Finally, no prescription required and ships to anywhere.
http://rx.travelweblog.net/categories/Other/Chloroquine
There may be other sources and if anyone locates, please post.
Not so much.
I’m glad you’re getting more sleep but closing all leisure time business (and all arts productions) is sending my local economy into a tailspin. I have friends who will likely have to close businesses they’ve had for decades, and my husband and I will be hard put to pay our mortgage because we’ve had nearly all our spring events cancelled. No one I know is complaining - we obviously need to do what’s necessary to flatten that curve - but “can’t we take a break from those for a while” feels pretty glib for those of us who might lose our homes.
Anything that disrupts commerce is going to have a negative impact. I have already seen some businesses close. To those owners this is catastrophic vs someone who is going to stay home and binge watch TV and save money by not going out. Not saying they don’t care but just pointing out the contrast in their two worlds.
The unfortunate irony is that the better we are at flattening the curve, the longer the economic and societal implications will last. Dragging it out instead of having a dramatic spike is the whole point.
I’ve been worried about this as well.
My current thought is that we’re all stuck in a false dichotomy: save the elderly (and immuno-compromised) OR protect the economy. What if we had to come up with solutions that saved the elderly AND protected the economy. Lots of super-smart and creative thinkers in this world, and I’m sure there are a lot of great solutions.
There is a lack of time. Pubic officials believe the the medical system will be overloaded in many places in a few weeks. Can they let that happen while taking no counter measures? I would hesitate to do that in their position. But there’s only so long they’ll get away with locking down the economy. There’s some bittersweet to paying medical insurance for decades, then need care but it’s not available because of the epidemic.
I’m not disagreeing with the policies in place right now (well, actually I disagree a little but it’s just that I think that the work in protecting the vulnerable and shoring up medical system can be stronger and more targeted); I was just letting you know that for many of us, the non-medical effects are dramatic and painful, that it’s not just a question of missing out on the bar scene for a few weeks.
I watch the numbers and definitely see no downturn at all. It barely started anyway, we know nothing at this point (except that it can be VERY bad if we aren’t careful. the numbers go up like crazy in many places). China is special, not every country can do the same - and it’s not a given China will be safe in the near future, of course.
We can’t make good predictions at this point. The economy will suffer and many old or unhealthy people will die in some countries but actual numbers? No one can say much about that.
Humanity will survive, sure, no sane person ever thought we all will die… Most of us will survive it with mild symptoms for sure (or won’t get infected at all). It still causes huge problems and millions of people may die. They surely would if we wouldn’t take this seriously enough.
I heard that Boris Johnson was thinking that “we might as well let everyone get it and get the whole thing over with” An advisor tapped him and asked “you do realize that we will have 1.5 million deaths if we do that” That is when he changed his mind. I heard this on talk radio and have no way of knowing if it is based on fact.
