Omicron variant

btw, if I remember correctly, we’ve seen the US and a few other places put on special watchlists before 🤔

Linda Harris59 said:It’s complete nonsense. To actually build up natural immunity, you would have had to face the virus head-on without any preventative measures, essentially gambling with your life and risking a fatal outcome.

It stands to reason.

The Omicron variant emerged from regions where vaccination rates were practically non-existent. That is precisely why this specific mutation gained such massive traction; it evolved to bypass even the natural immunity people had already built up.

Over half a million Americans have dealt with COVID and didn't die. The risk of a fatal outcome is mostly under 2%.

Charles Ramos7 said:What supply chains? Passenger travel is blocked, not freight.

In reality, the biggest hit will be taken by the South African diaspora looking to head home for Christmas—plus whatever tourists actually decided to travel. By the way, those Asian restrictions were already pretty intense long before Omicron showed up (that’s how they caught that one case in Hong Kong; the guy was already in quarantine despite being vaccinated).

A doctor from South Africa who sounded the alarm regarding the Omicron variant notes that while symptoms seem "unusual," they remain relatively mild.

( For now. )


In short:

Nicholas Davis4 said:

A doctor from South Africa who sounded the alarm regarding the Omicron variant notes that while symptoms seem "unusual," they remain relatively mild.

( For now. )

In short:

Fatigue, a sore throat, mild headaches, and body aches have apparently become "unusual symptoms."😵

Charles Ramos7 said:What kind of "drastic move" is just suspending flights for two or three weeks?

Since the pandemic started, nothing like this has actually helped stop the spread—maybe just slowed it down a bit. Honestly, I'm pretty sure Omicron has been making its rounds through Europe for quite some time now. It might not be everywhere yet, but it's there.

So, at this point, this whole 🤷

It’s actually a good thing that South Africa—since they have such tight COVID monitoring—suffered this setback; hopefully, others will learn their lesson and stay quiet next time.

Charles Ramos7 said:What supply chains? Passenger travel is blocked, not freight.

We’ve been dealing with passenger travel being either totally blocked or severely restricted this whole time, so once again, we’re stuck in a complete circus. It doesn't matter... I'm certain this will blow over quickly too... maybe two or three weeks at most...

"People who got their shots against COVID-19 might actually find themselves less protected against this new Omicron variant than those who caught the virus and recovered naturally," says Dr. Alojz Ihan, a prominent immunologist.

Shut down the internet and start untangling cables... ☕

According to the latest news, the entire Beleneses squad—yes, an entire soccer team in Portugal—has been hit by Omicron. It seems pretty much certain at this point that this variant has already swept through Europe, which makes me wonder if these measures in the USA are actually going to make much of a difference.
What’s truly unsettling, though, is that the WHO will be releasing travel guidelines shortly. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if we see more than just travel restrictions from South Africa—which, let's face it, barely affects anyone anyway—but actual disruptions within the EU itself.

The most divided nations, like the UK and Portugal, have already started implementing testing requirements for entry regardless of vaccination status. In the best-case scenario, this becomes the standard across the EU. In the worst case? I can't say it's out of the question that we see a total lockdown.

https://twitter.com/BWGovernment/sta...785280/photo/1

The BW task force just released this, showing that four out of the samples tested positive even in fully vaccinated individuals. Now, I know the moderators might lose their minds over this one, but when you look at these COVID confirmations... 🤦

Why would my hair stand on end? There isn't even a debate about whether the Delta variant can spread among the vaccinated—it clearly can. I just finished "getting over" a case of that exact strain myself. 😁

P. S. This whole thing already did several laps around Twitter over the weekend...

This whole media-driven panic over Omicron is basically just a carbon copy of how they handled the Delta wave. It feels like since people have finally stopped obsessing over COVID, we suddenly need to manufacture some sensation around these new variants just to justify slapping more restrictions on us. ☕

William Barrett7 said:This whole media-driven panic over Omicron is basically just a carbon copy of how they handled the Delta wave. It feels like since people have finally stopped obsessing over COVID, we suddenly need to manufacture some sensation around these new variants just to justify slapping more restrictions on us. ☕

Even this isn't entirely accurate—Delta showed up with footage from India showing hospitals overwhelmed by the sheer number of deaths, sending aid to Indians and such.

It’s just not happening over in South Africa. Their daily death toll is—to put it bluntly—negligible; we're talking just a handful of people a day in a nation of 60 million. Even the infection rates are about half of what we've been seeing here at home. You don't see those horrific images of overflowing hospitals or people in critical condition, either. From what we know so far, most of those who have tested positive are either completely asymptomatic—which, if you ask me, suggests the vaccine will still be effective down the line—or they're just dealing with a mild cold.
We really ought to wait and see how this virus plays out once it hits Europe—though, truth be told, it’s likely already making its way through there. My main concern is how it will affect the older demographic, particularly those who haven't been vaccinated. If the vaccinated seniors can manage to weather this storm without much trouble, then this new variant might actually turn out to be a silver lining for all of us.

Personally, I’m quite an optimist when it comes to hospitalization rates and mortality numbers—nothing in the current data suggests we're headed for a catastrophe there—but I have to admit, I am feeling incredibly pessimistic regarding the rollout of new restrictions. Between the looming threat of fresh quarantines and those mandatory testing requirements being implemented for both vaccinated and unvaccinated folks, it feels like we're moving backward. Worst of all? I wouldn't be surprised if they actually scrap the digital vaccine passports entirely, only to "reward" us by forcing everyone to purchase two or three individual tests just to go anywhere. Everything points toward this new variant having a knack for bypassing vaccine protection—though, thankfully, it seems even if you catch it, the vaccinated aren't facing much more than a minor setback.

Susan Martin4 said:Everyone keeps harping on about how much more contagious it is or how fast it spreads. But honestly, does anyone actually care about what kind of illness it causes?
If the R value hits 5 but all it does is give people a runny nose and a cough—basically just a bad cold that keeps people out of the ER because they're staying home instead—then I don't see why there needs to be this massive panic or freakout.

That’s actually something to celebrate, not something to freak out about. 👍

rowdyranger44 Asks:
Everyone seems to be overlooking the high probability that people in the Far East might possess some level of partial immunity to this virus, given that their populations likely encountered a similar strain during the recent SARS outbreak...

If Europe and the US had adopted the same tactics as China, there is no telling what the fallout would have been. Shutting down such a massive territory would have been far more devastating than the current clumsy attempts at management, especially since you wouldn't be able to maintain the distribution of essential supplies and services, which would only increase the risk of the virus spreading further...

I suspect it isn't actually immunity at play, but rather that people are still clinging to certain restrictions. The article suggests we could be looking at 600,000 infections a day; if China managed to weather that storm by shutting everything down, I believe Europe could hold out for a month too... even if it meant living on nothing but cornmeal for thirty or sixty days...

So, when this whole Omicron thing supposedly crawled out of South Africa, wouldn't it make more sense if it absolutely wrecked the African continent first before ever touching Europe?
Instead, these viruses seem to just skip over tens of thousands of miles to pop up right here, which usually means European countries—plus Israel, and probably the US, Australia, and New Zealand pretty soon—are all going to start making a mess of things with lockdowns and those heavy-handed surveillance tactics you see in Israel.

bluerider63 said:So, when this whole Omicron thing supposedly crawled out of South Africa, wouldn't it make more sense if it absolutely wrecked the African continent first before ever touching Europe?
Instead, these viruses seem to just skip over tens of thousands of miles to pop up right here, which usually means European countries—plus Israel, and probably the US, Australia, and New Zealand pretty soon—are all going to start making a mess of things with lockdowns and those heavy-handed surveillance tactics you see in Israel.

Viruses crave crowds, not empty spaces. The bottom line is simple: regardless of where you are, stay away from the crowds.

I mean, South Africa probably sees something like 50 flights a day heading out toward the USA, Europe, the Middle East, or Asia... that’s easily 15,000 people traveling daily.

If you really have to talk about the series, just take it to the chat—I've moved the posts over here.