My Thoughts on Covid-19

So pretty much everywhere in the United States has been disrupted by this virus.  Some places have been disrupted more than others.  And it seems like that falls along political lines rather than other lines.  And honestly, I'm not 100% sure about all the hype over this virus but I do kind of understand why the hype is there.

Covid-19 is a disease caused by a Severe Acute Respiratory Virus (SAR-CoV2).  It is a type of coronavirus which makes it similar to the common cold virus.  It was first identified in December of 2019 in China's Wuhan Province.  It is not entirely clear how the virus can spread, but it is believed that is can be spread while people are not showing symptoms.  This makes for a very dangerous virus because it eliminates many of the warning signs that are prevalent with other viruses.

If you get it, you can experience a wide range of symptoms from shortness of breath, high fever, loss of smell and other things.  The breathing issues can be so severe that you might end up needing a respirator.  And based on current data, it has about a 1% fatality rate.  But I think the fact that it can be transmitted asymptomatically is what makes everyone nervous.

If you look at the chart above, the first case showed up in Michigan on March 7 and things started to really take off around March 22.  The Michigan Governor issued a partial lockdown on March 16 and a full lockdown a couple of days later.  The lockdown is one of the ways that can help prevent the spread because a person can spread it up to 6 feet (or more I've heard) away.  They say that masks help with the person not spreading the disease but they aren't sure if it helps a person from catching it.  Washing hands helps in that regard.

Anyway, based on the blue curve which is new cases, it looks like the lockdown may be doing what is supposed to be doing.  Looking at information from other states, it is happening elsewhere.  It looks like we may be seeing sort of an end to this thing.  Although there is still some uncertainty whether this will flare up again.

Anyway, maintain an even keel and we will get through this.