The Impact of Social-Distancing as a New Normal

[Sy Borg]

I see Singapore, HK and Tokyo as the future, not one I want personally, but seemingly where things are headed in urban areas around the world. As the old saying goes, "All roads lead to Rome"; in this case, all events lead to remote digital interactions replacing face-to-face ones. COVID is one more nail in the coffin of the physically interactive world that older people remember.

By following your argument on the trend to replace face-to-face contact, would there not be more population dispersal from the metropolis to suburb and rural areas? Do you mean this to be a new normal?

That depends on infrastructure and distribution networks. No sense for the elderly, for instance, to move to a place where you have to wait a month to see the town's only doctor.

[gad-fly]

What makes you think the next emergency will be prevented by the same expedients that help to decrease the effects of this one?
Physical distance will not be the least bit effective against rising sea levels. Physical distancing will not avail against nuclear fallout, or global crop failure or any of the other things coming down the pipeline we should never have built.

Once bitten, twice shy. That applies more or less to all creatures, don't you think? We may be kicked into the New Normal, a more prepared position.
I agree with you that distancing is not cure-all.

[h_k_s]

We are simply in the early stages of Covid, the Chinese bat virus from Wuhan.

Eventually everyone will get this virus, and many people will die, similar to the 1918 pandemic.

Once all that happens, then there will be less angst (Yiddish word from the German, meaning anxiety) over it.

I then see only facemasks remaining in world culture both eastern and western like it already is in Japan. But otherwise this will mostly be forgotten soon, after however long it takes to get all the way around, maybe a couple of years, just like 1918-1919.

[Alias]

Once bitten, twice shy.

I don't see the relevance. We have never, afaik, had the same threat twice in a row, except for wars, and we do those with eyes wide open, willingly, enthusiastically.

That applies more or less to all creatures, don't you think?

It applies to all the creatures that do learn from their past mistakes. Humans are exempt.

We may be kicked into the New Normal, a more prepared position.

No. There is no normal, and we will never be prepared for what's about to happen. Perfectly doable protocols were set out after the SARS epidemic, but they were abandoned as soon as somebody started weighing cost vs risk. The cost consideration always wins in the short term and the risk always bites us in the ass.

Eventually everyone will get this virus, and many people will die, similar to the 1918 pandemic.
Once all that happens, then there will be less angst (Yiddish word from the German, meaning anxiety) over it.

Probably. So, if Gaia has anything to say about it, the next one will wipe us out.

I then see only facemasks remaining in world culture both eastern and western like it already is in Japan.

That's for the air pollution. In 'normal' times, about three times as many people die of [normal] industrial air pollution as will die of covid-19 this year. And masks do nothing against pollutants in the water, soil and food supply.

But otherwise this will mostly be forgotten soon, after however long it takes to get all the way around, maybe a couple of years, just like 1918-1919.

Sure. The next catastrophe will displace it.

[gad-fly]

Once bitten, twice shy.

I don't see the relevance.

That applies more or less to all creatures, don't you think?

It applies to all the creatures that do learn from their past mistakes. Humans are exempt.

We may be kicked into the New Normal, a more prepared position.

No. There is no normal

Learning from experience has been generally recognized as a common trait in human behavior. Admittedly such learning capability can vary widely, from one person to another person, from one group to another group, and from one occasion to another occasion. I can see your gloomy view in this respect which cannot be dismissed as unjustified. I believe you are tolerant of more open view.

There is no normal? It depends on what you can understand as Normal. Until recently, homosexual was a sickness. Now it is called gay, a normal, even though the community will remain the minority. If Social Distancing does become the new normal, more likely we would be kicked rather than be persuaded into it. Against our will, we may be shouting all the way: No new Normal.

[h_k_s]

Once bitten, twice shy.

I don't see the relevance. We have never, afaik, had the same threat twice in a row, except for wars, and we do those with eyes wide open, willingly, enthusiastically.

That applies more or less to all creatures, don't you think?

It applies to all the creatures that do learn from their past mistakes. Humans are exempt.

We may be kicked into the New Normal, a more prepared position.

No. There is no normal, and we will never be prepared for what's about to happen. Perfectly doable protocols were set out after the SARS epidemic, but they were abandoned as soon as somebody started weighing cost vs risk. The cost consideration always wins in the short term and the risk always bites us in the ass.

Eventually everyone will get this virus, and many people will die, similar to the 1918 pandemic.
Once all that happens, then there will be less angst (Yiddish word from the German, meaning anxiety) over it.

Probably. So, if Gaia has anything to say about it, the next one will wipe us out.

I then see only facemasks remaining in world culture both eastern and western like it already is in Japan.

That's for the air pollution. In 'normal' times, about three times as many people die of [normal] industrial air pollution as will die of covid-19 this year. And masks do nothing against pollutants in the water, soil and food supply.

But otherwise this will mostly be forgotten soon, after however long it takes to get all the way around, maybe a couple of years, just like 1918-1919.

Sure. The next catastrophe will displace it.

The Earth (Gaia) was overdue for a population adjusting pandemic, yes. Now it's here. Many will die. Nothing can be done about it. The vaccines won't work. The corona virus like all corona viruses is already morphing into new strains.

[Angel Trismegistus]

Nothing is ever the same, really. Heraclitus had this right a long time ago. There's always a new normal in development.

Social distancing is not a bad idea for humankind. It may herald a new golden age of moderation.

[gad-fly]

Nothing is ever the same, really. Heraclitus had this right a long time ago. There's always a new normal in development.

Social distancing is not a bad idea for humankind. It may herald a new golden age of moderation.

A new normal can only be so qualified if the impact on the specified normality has undergone game change. A normal is what people can expect as usual, common, and standard. For example, if you fly economy, you can expect to seat spaced as in Second Class, and pay Second Class.

[Sculptor1]

I don't see the relevance. We have never, afaik, had the same threat twice in a row, except for wars, and we do those with eyes wide open, willingly, enthusiastically.

It applies to all the creatures that do learn from their past mistakes. Humans are exempt.

No. There is no normal, and we will never be prepared for what's about to happen. Perfectly doable protocols were set out after the SARS epidemic, but they were abandoned as soon as somebody started weighing cost vs risk. The cost consideration always wins in the short term and the risk always bites us in the ass.


Probably. So, if Gaia has anything to say about it, the next one will wipe us out.


That's for the air pollution. In 'normal' times, about three times as many people die of [normal] industrial air pollution as will die of covid-19 this year. And masks do nothing against pollutants in the water, soil and food supply.


Sure. The next catastrophe will displace it.

The Earth (Gaia) was overdue for a population adjusting pandemic, yes. Now it's here. Many will die. Nothing can be done about it. The vaccines won't work. The corona virus like all corona viruses is already morphing into new strains.

The COVID infection will have no effect on the human population. Early indications suggest quite the opposite of that expected.
The population increase since January is already.
47,630,000.
Shutting people together in houses with not much to do is more likely to lead to more pregnancies.

And as for the Covid strain itself. You are wrong about that too. Much can, and has been done about it; several vaccines are now in production.

[Sculptor1]

We are simply in the early stages of Covid, the Chinese bat virus from Wuhan.

So many misconceptions in such a small mind.
The source of the virus is unknown. There is an equal chance that humans gave it to bats.

Eventually everyone will get this virus, and many people will die, similar to the 1918 pandemic.

Not everyone will get it since the virus relies on transmission of previously uninfected individuals. That means the transmission requires a certian density uninfected. Social distancing speeds up virtual herd immunity.

Once all that happens, then there will be less angst (Yiddish word from the German, meaning anxiety) over it.

Angst is not Yiddish. It is a perfectly ordinary German word, tracing its roots through most Germanic languages from OHG.

I then see only facemasks remaining in world culture both eastern and western like it already is in Japan. But otherwise this will mostly be forgotten soon, after however long it takes to get all the way around, maybe a couple of years, just like 1918-1919.

[Angel Trismegistus]

Nothing is ever the same, really. Heraclitus had this right a long time ago. There's always a new normal in development.

Social distancing is not a bad idea for humankind. It may herald a new golden age of moderation.

A new normal can only be so qualified if the impact on the specified normality has undergone game change. A normal is what people can expect as usual, common, and standard. For example, if you fly economy, you can expect to seat spaced as in Second Class, and pay Second Class.

Yes, that is what we mean by "normal" in this context.

[h_k_s]

Sculptor1 you don't need to reply to me. I muted you a long time ago. Can't remember why, but probably for undue verbosity, aka belaboring the point, further aka kicking a dead horse.

[Sculptor1]

@Sculptor1 you don't need to reply to me. I muted you a long time ago. Can't remember why, but probably for undue verbosity, aka belaboring the point, further aka kicking a dead horse.

I always respond to silly comments. I'm not so concerned that you read them, But it's important that others see my critique of your silly comments What you said above is silly.
Covid is not going to have a major impact on the world population. Even the worst of plagues in history only had a minor impact.

Since I wrote the above. there has been more people born than the virus is likely to take in the whole year. World increase in population since January is now 48.3 million and counting

[Arjen]

What amazes me most about social distancing, is that in the very beginning, everyone was painted a racist, if distancing from Asians that just came from China. Or wearing face masks near Chinese, directly after the Chinese new year, for which everyone travels back to China. Or quarantining the travellers themselves.

That would have controlled the spread efficiently initially. However, because everyone was afraid to be painted a racist, or extreme right, now we have to distance from everyone?

[Newme]

Disappointed more haven’t seen through the lies and fear-mongering. Even the CDC admitted covid is much less fatal than previously suggested - with similar rates as seasonal flu. Cabal is just using fears to deny constitutional rights like right to peacefully assemble.

A study found that more than diet, genetics etc., social connections contributed most to health and longevity. Already we see spikes in suicide and domestic violence from being i prisoner in homes. People are dying alone. And here you guys are happy about and wanting this to be the “new (insane) normal.”