Time is swinging toward the end of September, when many of us get a flu shot. I’ve been getting them for years, whether at the company I worked for, or, now, going to a grocery store nearby. For a day, I might feel crummy, but not always, and have been fortunate to not have had the flu for several years. Don’t jinx it, OK?
So now, with a new virus in our midst, reports this week note that 200,000 Americans have died from COVID-19. It is a sobering number, and extremely sad, since we were promised it would (wait for it) disappear when the weather became warm. Since we are pretty certain that it will get colder in October and later, and since Autumn just visited us earlier today, just roll your eyes and remember that a politician is not a doctor or a scientist or an epidemiologist. I’ll stop right there. Politics and science really do not mix.
(The image above is credited b=to Kristian Thackery for The New York Times.)
Yesterday, a story with a lot of information about seasonal flu was posted on CPR — Colorado Public Radio. It is down-to-earth, with resources of where people can receive these shots and more.
Starting in August, there were stories about a “twindemic,” where the seasonal flu and the new virus would be around at the same time. And newer stories about this have noted that Australia has had a very low count of seasonal flu. In the United States, because of so many different restrictions in 50 states, there is speculation, but Dr. Anthony Fauci said this:
“ Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has been imploring people to get the flu shot, ‘so that you could at least blunt the effect of one of those two potential respiratory infections.’ ”
That is from a story in The New York Times posted in August, but newer stories seem to be speculating about the future. Since speculation has been haunting us since March, especially since politicians have been messing with messages from the CDC, who knows? In short: Leave the CDC alone.
Below are links that include the CPR story, a story in the New York Times reporting 200,000 deaths from COVID-19, the CDC’s guidance to the 2020-2021 flu season, and the twindemic story that has created a new word.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/season/faq-flu-season-2020-2021.htmhttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/16
Chandler in Denver 