I just had a long chat with a friend who said I am hysterical and hyperbolic when I say that the public health response to COVID is the worst response in history.
Some people seem unconvinced about the bleak future we face in terms of loss of freedoms, medical nationalism...
...exacerbated inequality, rise in disease (TB, etc), plunging 130M people into poverty throughout the globe, people dying alone and in isolation, mental health impacts for decades to come, and so much more.
Maybe I am exaggerating?
Can you imagine 13 months ago - if I told you that we would have western countries closing their borders and implementing quarantine hotels? With no data to govern these restrictions? No end date? No goal, except suppression of a single virus at all costs?
Imagine if I told you that kids would be kept out of school for what will likely be 18 months OR MORE for a virus that is less dangerous to them than influenza?
But only in areas governed by Democrats - Kids in Republican areas can go to school.
What if I told you that Scientists throughout the globe would collaborate and produce the most amazing set of vaccines ever created, which prevents severe illness in 95% of cases, and transmission in close to 90%, and that it wouldn't be good enough for some?
Imagine just 1 year ago, if I told you that western countries throughout the world would mandated people stay in their homes for MONTHS AT A TIME, with no consistent data governing the closures or the reopening?
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Hmm... looks like NY has some of the most adequate funding, specifically for higher poverty districts than anywhere in the US.
We also happen to have one of the most progressive funding systems in the country right here in NYC, which leverages the "Fair Student Funding" formula to maximize funds in areas with the most need.
You should not have to subject your 6 year old child to a medical procedure without your presence in order for them to have access to in-person learning.
We don't live in a medical dictatorship.
If Teachers are "scared", let them consent to testing.
Looks like this rule was changed as a result of a legal challenge.
Before this nightmare, I never saw myself as much of a child advocate. To be honest, I'm not a particularly warm/fuzzy person who loves the presence of kids.
But I believe in a society that puts the needs of the most vulnerable ahead of their own.
We have created a situation where the people who are least at risk of this virus are bearing the brunt of the restrictions and the associated stress.
But only in some parts of the US.
How can anyone be OK with innocent kids being harmed like this for political reasons?
And despite the fact that this article was meant to center the impact on children, the author felt the need to ensure that Teacher "feelings" were highlighted.
It's not society's job to make sure ONE profession "feel safe and supported" in order for them to do their duty.
I avoided doing a thread on Rebekah Jones but I just can't ignore that there appears to be a massive number of people who believe that "Florida is hiding deaths" because of her, when there is no data to back this up.
It is a conspiracy theory no better than Qanon or Pizzagate.
I've also seen people say "she had coworkers backing her up!".
Just an FYI, the Trump campaign had signed affidavits alleging mass voter fraud.
That doesn't make either theory true.
Besides the obvious, do people think that the citizens of FL wouldn't notice overflowed hospitals and/or refrigerator morgues?
We had them in NYC and they are a little difficult to overlook.
Or maybe DeSantis is just dumping bodies somewhere? And Hillary Clinton eats babies too?
This has been said many times, but worth saying daily.
School closures are the biggest crisis of this pandemic. The effects will be with us for generations - harm to children, families, the future of public ed, support for labor, & political disruption.
Some of these families may return when schools reopen, but many will not.
Some of these children are missing from society. We don't know if/when they will return, and what is happening to them in the meantime.
Some come from MC & affluent families - who may discover that their child is actually thriving w/ a private teacher, pod, microschool, or a private school.