Thread by @TheChalis

Sometimes I think about the fact that the passengers on the Titanic knew about how many people there were on board, and had opportunity to take stock of how many life boats there were in the days prior to the iceberg. 🧵

There were observable facts that should have caused them to demand every lifeboat was as full as possible before it was lowered, but the propaganda was that the ship was unsinkable. /2

As the first lifeboats were lowered, survivors reported no signs of panic. That is largely due to the crew insisting that another ship would be by presently, and the fact that the band played on.

Nothing to see here. Everything is urgently normal. /3

As the ship began to list, more passengers became aware of their predicament, but the band played on. /4

After the last boats were lowered, survivors watched the boat cleave in two and sink, taking the majority of the passengers with it.

I cannot reemphasize enough that there was room in the boats.

There was room in the boats…/5

In fact, there is always “room in the boats” by design.

It’s the result of layers of propaganda we are easily sold on: that wealth equals virtue, that scarcity is the way of the world, that personal responsibility can solve systemic problems. /6

In the end, what 99% of us are left with are ridiculous calculations to try and survive:

Do I pay the light bill or buy medicine?
Can I pull this tooth myself?
Where is the safest place to sleep outside?
Will this mask protect me or not? /7

Ultimately, the ship builders - or those who are tasked with creating or changing the systems we live in - are to blame for forcing us to make impossible daily choices.

But they like to take shortcuts, because shortcuts are cheap.

Propaganda becomes their tool. /8

But we’ve hit an iceberg. People like @AshishKJha46 have secured their lifeboats: highly ventilated schools for their kids, access to testing and antivirals, great insurance should they become disabled.

He’s telling you the ship is unsinkable.
He’s wrong.
#CovidIsNotOver

@AshishKJha46 The band plays on, you never see people in masks anymore, and everyone says they’re fine. But it’s been 10 months since you were eligible for a booster, your wife is immunocompromised and Evusheld is no longer effective, and your kids seem to keep getting sick every month. /10

@AshishKJha46 Your neighbor has early onset dementia at 40. Your niece had a heart attack at 19. Your boss has some rare disease they say is an AIDS-defining illness, but he doesn’t have HIV. Your coworkers are constantly out, caring for family or sick themselves. It’s not all #Covid is it?/11

@AshishKJha46 People had all these conditions before, but it’s important to see patterns.

Count the damn lifeboats.

Excess deaths, rare complications becoming less rare…it all adds up to a pandemic that is very much not over.

You just think the ship is unsinkable.
You’re in steerage class.

@AshishKJha46 Fortunately for you, Jha says the important part out loud.

“The only way to prevent Long Covid is to avoid catching Covid.”

Vaccines may prevent some cases.
Vaccines do not completely prevent Covid.

Paxlovid exists, if you can get it, that is. If you can take it. If. /12

@AshishKJha46 But Paxlovid and vaccines do not prevent Long Covid.

And what is Long Covid, anyway?
How big is the iceberg?

There’s been an attempt to define a list of conditions that may mean you have Long Covid, but that is just the tip of the iceberg.

Time to look under the surface. /13

@AshishKJha46 The Merck Manual is a central reference text for healthcare providers. It lists Covid as a cause of Lymphocytopenia.

That’s a colossal iceberg. Don’t worry, you can still dine indoors. /s
/14

msdmanuals.com/professional/m…

@AshishKJha46 If you don’t want to read the Merck Manual, I can tell you that other conditions that cause Lymphocytopenia are HIV and Epstein-Barr.

Lymphocytopenia means you’re going to get sick more often. So are your kids. And every single time you get Covid, you increase the damage. /15

What is not known is how long everyone experiences viral persistence, which can do silent damage to your immune system, endothelial tissues, and every organ including your brain. /16

thelancet.com/journals/lanmi…

But I’ve been counting the lifeboats while the band is playing:

Viral persistence plus the same viral reservoirs seen in HIV, plus similar neurocognitive symptoms, plus airborne transmission equals the need for repurposed meds and N95s. /17

If you’re tired of getting sick, or would like to avoid it, adopt multilayered protection:

Don’t leave more than 4-6 months between boosters. Annual is bunk, as mRNA wanes.

Wear a well fitting N95 head strap mask everywhere indoors, and outdoors around people. /18

Stop believing the propaganda. Go with the measurable facts. One in 10 infections resulting in Long Covid is playing Russian Roulette with a 10 chambered gun. You doing that? I’m not.

Make a plan for Paxlovid with your GP BEFORE you get Covid. One round is frequently not enough.

On the advocacy side, we need to #KeepMasksInHealthcare because no one should get sick from a preventable illness when they seek care.

We need to push to fund studies that repurpose antivirals that are already approved for other conditions. In China, they use Azvudine. /20

Friends, they’re shouting “You do you,” from the last of the lifeboats.

It’s time to build our rafts and get comfortable with N95s for the foreseeable future. /21
#CovidIsntOver
#CovidIsAirborne
#MaskUp

https://twitter.com/thechalis/status/1686128994180116480

And listen, if you’re in healthcare and your employer says you don’t have to mask, please understand they DIDN’T say you COULDN’T.

You can choose better patient care. Or drown in staffing shortages. Totally your call. /22

https://twitter.com/thechalis/status/1684924238585565184

#Covid travels on the air like smoke

https://twitter.com/rainmaker1973/status/1687066198511386624