There may be no NCAA Tourney

[Volfaninfl2]

An article from NY Times (which I do NOT subscribe to):

“Which virus makes you sicker?

As of Feb. 22, in the current season there were at least 32 million cases of flu in the United States, 310,000 hospitalizations and 18,000 flu deaths, according to the C.D.C. Hospitalization rates among children and young adults this year have been unusually high.

There would be even more illnesses and deaths if there were no flu vaccine. Most people recover in less than two weeks, and sometimes in just days.

By contrast, about 200 people in the United States have been infected with the new coronavirus, and there have been at least 12 deaths. There are no treatments or vaccines for the coronavirus, only supportive care for infected people.

Most cases of coronavirus infection are not severe, but some people do become quite sick. Data from the largest study of patients to date, conducted in China, suggests that of coronavirus patients receiving medical attention, 80 percent had mild infections, about 15 percent had severe illnesses, and 5 percent were critical.”


So, we have 18,000 flu deaths, and 12 coronavirus deaths (mostly in people over age 80), and the stock market is tanking, hm, wonder why.

 

[Lucy]

An article from NY Times (which I do NOT subscribe to):

“Which virus makes you sicker?

As of Feb. 22, in the current season there were at least 32 million cases of flu in the United States, 310,000 hospitalizations and 18,000 flu deaths, according to the C.D.C. Hospitalization rates among children and young adults this year have been unusually high.

There would be even more illnesses and deaths if there were no flu vaccine. Most people recover in less than two weeks, and sometimes in just days.

By contrast, about 200 people in the United States have been infected with the new coronavirus, and there have been at least 12 deaths. There are no treatments or vaccines for the coronavirus, only supportive care for infected people.

Most cases of coronavirus infection are not severe, but some people do become quite sick. Data from the largest study of patients to date, conducted in China, suggests that of coronavirus patients receiving medical attention, 80 percent had mild infections, about 15 percent had severe illnesses, and 5 percent were critical.”


So, we have 18,000 flu deaths, and 12 coronavirus deaths (mostly in people over age 80), and the stock market is tanking, hm, wonder why.

Uncertainty. No one including the experts know exactly how this will end. Hunches should also be ignored.
Please don’t make a difficult situation worse by trying to insert conspiracy theories.

 

[VOL_Lyfe]

 

[madtownvol]

1

 

[volnationnj]

1

 

[lvocd]

Madtown, I actually believe the OP was being facetious.

 

[madtownvol]

From the NYT, just posted:

But now there is evidence on six continents of sustained transmission of the virus, which has infected more than 120,000 people and killed more than 4,300, and by most scientific measures the spread qualifies as a pandemic. The designation itself is largely symbolic, but public health officials know that the public will hear in the word elements of danger and risk.
According to the W.H.O., an epidemic is defined as a regional outbreak of an illness that spreads unexpectedly. In 2010, it defined a pandemic as “the worldwide spread of a new disease” that affects large numbers of people. The C.D.C. says it is “an epidemic that has spread over several countries or continents, usually affecting a large number of people.”
Coronavirus Live Updates: W.H.O. Declares Pandemic as Number of Infected Countries Grows

 

[volnationnj]

You mean this expert source:


"The [coronavirus] tests are all perfect. Like the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect. This was not a perfect as that, but pretty good. "

"We're ordering a lot of, uh, elements that, frankly, we wouldn't be ordering unless it was something like this. But we're ordering a lot of different elements of medical."

"When people have the flu, you have an average of 36,000 people dying. I've never heard those numbers. I would -- I would've been shocked. I would've said, 'Does anybody die from the flu?' I didn't know people died from the flu."

I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it. Every one of these doctors say, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should’ve done that instead of running for president"

Like I said, check your sources....

That's the one.

 

[madtownvol]

Madtown, I actually believe the OP was being facetious.

On further review, I see that now.....edited accordingly. My additional thought is that satire/sarcasm is maybe not the best strategy when many people are quite seriously advancing the same misinformation. I see it a bit like yelling fire (sarcastically) in a crowded theater.

 

[508mikey]

From the NYT, just posted:

But now there is evidence on six continents of sustained transmission of the virus, which has infected more than 120,000 people and killed more than 4,300, and by most scientific measures the spread qualifies as a pandemic. The designation itself is largely symbolic, but public health officials know that the public will hear in the word elements of danger and risk.
According to the W.H.O., an epidemic is defined as a regional outbreak of an illness that spreads unexpectedly. In 2010, it defined a pandemic as “the worldwide spread of a new disease” that affects large numbers of people. The C.D.C. says it is “an epidemic that has spread over several countries or continents, usually affecting a large number of people.”
Coronavirus Live Updates: W.H.O. Declares Pandemic as Number of Infected Countries Grows

main age group of the 4300 dead ?

 

[madtownvol]

main age group of the 4300 dead ?

Coronavirus Age, Sex, Demographics (COVID-19) - Worldometer

 

[Lucy]

main age group of the 4300 dead ?

So are you saying older folks don’t count? My mother could whip your intellectual hinney from here to next month. I think she’s still pretty valuable.

 

[508mikey]

So are you saying older folks don’t count? My mother could whip your intellectual hinney from here to next month. I think she’s still pretty valuable.

many older adults are healthy -- its the one with poor immune systems that are dying - those are the one that need to stay home until this blows over

 

[madtownvol]

many older adults are healthy -- its the one with poor immune systems that are dying - those are the one that need to stay home until this blows over

I have to ask: what is about this illness that makes individuals just want to make up sh#t and then present it as a "fact"?

From a W.H.O. report:

About half of the 109 Covid-19 patients (ages 22 to 94) treated at Central Hospital of Wuhan, researchers there reported, developed acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), in which fluid builds up in the small air sacs of the lungs. That restricts how much air the lungs can take in, reducing the oxygen supply to vital organs, sometimes fatally; half of the ARDS patients died, compared to 9% of patients who did not develop the syndrome.The ARDS patients had an average age of 61, compared to an average age of 49 for those who did not develop ARDS. Elderly patients “were more likely to develop ARDS,” the researchers wrote, suggesting how age can make Covid-19 more severe and even fatal: age increases the risk that the respiratory system will basically shut down under viral assault. Youth, in contrast, seems to be protective. The WHO mission reported a relatively low incidence in people under 18, who made up only 2.4% of all reported cases.

So, just being older is a risk factor. And yes, if you have other medical conditions, you would be even worse off but the primary respiratory risks are a direct function of age related declines.

 

[Raebo]

The governor of Ohio has banned fans from attending NCAA Tourney games. This affects the men's games at Dayton and 2nd round games in Cleveland. TV crews etc are allowed. Should be interesting.

 

[lvocd]

So, we have 18,000 flu deaths, and 12 coronavirus deaths (mostly in people over age 80), and the stock market is tanking, hm, wonder why.

DESPITE having a vaccine for flu there have been 18,000 deaths associated with it. The problem with comparing death tolls at this point is that there isn't a vaccine for COVID-19, and the virus is, so far, spreading exponentially, with no vaccine or cure likely to be available for another 18 months.

While I'm at it, I'll take this opportunity to spread a little education. I've noticed that many of us have been using "Coronavirus" and "COVID-19" interchangeably, but they are not the same thing. COVID-19 is the illness that people are getting after having been exposed to the Coronavirus. The virus isn't the illness.

 

[creekdipper]

Just to put things into perspective, around 100 people die in the U.S. each day from automobile-related accidents.

We've reduced deaths to an average of 34,000 per year since 2008 (there were around 36,500 in 2018). 1981-2007 saw over 40,000 deaths per year. The peak death total years were 1966-73 and 1977-80 with over 50,000 deaths per year.

I'd think that for most people, there's a far greater risk of dying just traveling to and from the games than from COVID-19. Yet that hasn't stopped people from attending.

Edit: That's not to say that we shouldn't take reasonable precautions to contain and/or prevent contracting illness. Just that we should avoid panic mode as though this is some kind of mutant apocalypse.

 

[madtownvol]

Just to put things into perspective, around 100 people die in the U.S. each day from automobile-related accidents.

We've reduced deaths to an average of 34,000 per year since 2008 (there were around 36,500 in 2018). 1981-2007 saw over 40,000 deaths per year. The peak death total years were 1966-73 and 1977-80 with over 50,000 deaths per year.

I'd think that for most people, there's a far greater risk of dying just traveling to and from the games than from COVID-19. Yet that hasn't stopped people from attending.

With all due respect that is a bad analogy. The concern is not so much about the current risks but the potential risk if the virus is not contained; that is why so many universities are suspending classes. It is to contain the spread of the virus.

Health officials are worried that without measures to prevent a geometric spread, we could have a global pandemic that starts to resemble the Spanish flu outbreak of 1918.

At this point, with more and more colleges and universities suspending on campus instruction and large group gatherings at least until sometime in April, it close to certain that the NCAA tournament not be "business as usual."

Too much $ is tied up in the TV contracts for an all out cancellation (barring some disastrous turn of events) but I think we will see something like the European pro soccer solution where games are played and televised but without live fans.

 

[creekdipper]

I understand the concerns about the unchecked spread, threat to senior citizens in particular, overwhelming the health care system, damage to economy, etc. And I'm not discounting measures to contain outbreaks.

It just seems that many people (judging from interviews) seem to think that this is like a 100% fatal disease with no hope of recovery and are presently living in fear like the Medieval Plague Years.

I was speaking more to people's fears than to officials' precautionary steps. The world wouldn't come to an end if sports events had spectators banned or were canceled entirely.

FWIW, I'm almost 66, so I'm in a higher-risk group myself. I think the Spanish flu pandemic affected all age groups fairly equally, although obviously those with compromised immune systems will always be more susceptible to illnesses in any event.

 

[madtownvol]

I understand the concerns about the unchecked spread, threat to senior citizens in particular, overwhelming the health care system, damage to economy, etc. And I'm not discounting measures to contain outbreaks.

It just seems that many people (judging from interviews) seem to think that this is like a 100% fatal disease with no hope of recovery and are presently living in fear like the Medieval Plague Years.

I was speaking more to people's fears than to officials' precautionary steps. The world wouldn't come to an end if sports events had spectators banned or were canceled entirely.

A fair point and the hoarding of toilet paper, hand sanitizers etc. is counter productive. While it is not a time for panic, it is probably better to have the motivation of fear than being lackadaisical. From what I have read about Italy, government officials and many Italians were just completely apathetic about the threat which eventually necessitated the imposition of severe measures after the country hit a crisis point.

 

[creekdipper]

Speaking of FYI...and this probably has already been mentioned...I've seen several health officials stating that the regular thin surgical mask (sometimes used by allergy sufferers) don't do much to prevent contracting the virus. They do seem to be somewhat effective in stopping the spread of droplets from sneezes or coughs from already-diagnosed patients.

 

[Smokeyone]

With all due respect that is a bad analogy. The concern is not so much about the current risks but the potential risk if the virus is not contained; that is why so many universities are suspending classes. It is to contain the spread of the virus.

Health officials are worried that without measures to prevent a geometric spread, we could have a global pandemic that starts to resemble the Spanish flu outbreak of 1918.

At this point, with more and more colleges and universities suspending on campus instruction and large group gatherings at least until sometime in April, it close to certain that the NCAA tournament not be "business as usual."

Too much $ is tied up in the TV contracts for an all out cancellation (barring some disastrous turn of events) but I think we will see something like the European pro soccer solution where games are played and televised but without live fans.

China has already weathered the storm and are on the extreme down swing of the model.

 

[lvocd]

It's official: The entire NCAA Tournament will be a restricted-attendance event.

 

[ocoandasoc]

It's official: The entire NCAA Tournament will be a restricted-attendance event.

The NCAA had a choice: no fans or no Tournament. This decision is in the best interests of the student athletes and the important virus mitigation efforts in place in most states. There may still be venue changes as the cost to turn on the lights at some of these arenas makes it a financial hardship to do so with no paid admissions to offset the cost. A lot of vendors will also lose anticipated income. As will the NCAA and participating schools.

As of this moment, the SEC Men's Tourney is still on as a spectator event. But that could change as additional virus cases have just been reported here in Nashville.

 

[508mikey]

The governor of Ohio has banned fans from attending NCAA Tourney games. This affects the men's games at Dayton and 2nd round games in Cleveland. TV crews etc are allowed. Should be interesting.

I refuse to watch any games in an empty arena