Coronavirus spreads. But don't panic! (topical thread)

[Cavebear]

1.  The details of Omicron caught most medical experts by surprise.  It is far more infectious yet far less lethal than a normal viral mutation.  The greater danger is less infectious but more lethal. We can isolate, but lethal is lethal.

Please support this statement. One article I linked to quotes an expert saying “I don’t think this virus is as transmissible as it can be.” You post assertions with no support. I've shown with actual expert quotes that new, more transmissible variants were indeed expected well before omicron. The government had time to ramp up production of tests. Even liberal sources are saying it:
https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/28/politics/...index.html

Yet the failures surrounding testing have led to accusations that the White House failed to anticipate the pandemic's course and overemphasized vaccinations as a solution to ending the crisis, even as outside experts warned of a looming test shortage directly to administration officials.

Experts are sometimes surprised. The possible combinations of viruses are greater than a 2-slice toaster but not infinite. So while they understand the basics of likely combinations, nature can throw sand into the gears.

Holding an expert to the fire of "best guesses" is unfair. Liklihood is not always reality. Guess a lottery number based on past ones, for example.

But I see another issue here. There are things I know from some dedicated interest to reading knowledge sources like science mags and health sections of newspapers and watching knowledge-oriented TV channels. So, I tend to assume some basic scientific or medical knowledge from people I post to. If you don't understand the basics and depend on political commentators, just stop trying to discuss it.

I can tell by your phraseology that you have a particular political view (and I'm not challenging that here) but please try to understand that some basic scientific understanding is assumed. If I mention that F=MA, I don't expect to have to reference it all the time. Likewise, in this subject, how VIRUSES function.

Regarding "One article I linked to quotes an expert saying “I don’t think this virus is as transmissible as it can be.” You post assertions with no support. I've shown with actual expert quotes that new, more transmissible variants were indeed expected well before omicron":

That person made no actual prediction. New variants could be less or more transmissible. Let's say it is more. "Transmissibilty" is not a great health concern. The Common Cold is highly transmissible virus but hospitals are not filled with Common Cold patients. It USED to be pretty lethal way back when, but we have adapted to it (or more properly, IT has adapted to not killing us).

If I said that experts said there would not be "more transmissible variants", I apologize, but would like to see the quote. I doubt you'll find one. There are likely to be some more transmissible variants of Covid. The question is their lethality.

Do you plan to take any anti-biotics to avoid Covid?