Is the coronavirus causing nothing more than the common cold?

[OldLady]

I watched Trump's press conference today and a few things concerned me.

About two weeks ago Trump appointed Pence to be in charge of the Covid-19 White House medical team. What a joke that has become. Trump cannot share the limelight with anyone. So, for the past two weeks it is Trump who conducts the press conferences, and Pence stands behind him. The worst part about all this is Trump is doing most of the talking on the pandemic, not the medical experts, and he is making a complete fool of himself. He has no idea what he is talking about.

Trump has this nasty habit of interrupting reporters from CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, and others. Using the over-talking method, he won't let them finish their questions. This is a sign of weakness and vulnerability. He doesn't want the television audience to hear their questions. However, he rarely interrupts John Roberts, the White House reporter from Fox News. Roberts asks the softball questions Trump most likely provided.

When we do get to hear from Trump's medical experts, they talk a great deal about testing and the increasing number of cases. They never talk about the death rate, the only true measure of the severity of a viral pandemic. Those numbers are too low, and discussing the death the death toll would seriously damage the message they are trying to deliver. Nor will they provide the ages of those who died. That, too, would harm the message.

As opposed to only a week ago, hundreds of thousands of tests have now been conducted, accounting for the dramatic rise in the number of cases, not necessarily increases in the number of new cases on a daily basis.

As of now in a population of 327 million there are 50,206 cases of the common cold caused by Covid-19 in the past three months of winter. That number is actually quite low.

606 Americans have died in the past three months from Covid-19 induced common cold. "80% of deaths associated with COVID-19 are among adults aged 65 years and older with the highest percentage of severe outcomes among persons aged 85 years and older. Also, the evidence shows those people were already sick with serious maladies before there ever was Covid-19. Again, in three months, 327 million people, that number is small.

Is it any wonder Trump's medical team doesn't want to talk about the death rate?

If you take a look at this, although it doesn't give the specific numbers, the hospitalizations are steadily far above the number of deaths. This is what the whole commotion is about--flattening the curve so the hospitals don't get overwhelmed. The article also refutes your assumption that young people aren't getting seriously ill.

Think you’re too young to be hospitalized by coronavirus? This chart shows why you’re wrong.

Of the more than 500 people known to be hospitalized in the US from the novel coronavirus, 18% were 45-54 years and 20% were aged 20-44 years.

www.weforum.org

 

[EvilCat Breath]

The common cold does not run a fever. That's why it's called a cold. Influenzas run a fever. COVID19 is a SARS related flu. It is the 19th corona virus discovered. It is not new. The hysteria is new. True that some elderly with pre-existing conditions are so frail that they will die. In that case they will die of whatever they were suffering from. The coronavirus is something they will die WITH but not die OF.

 

[AntonToo]

Italy, China, and Spain do not factor in on this analysis

[/retarded thread]

 

[Newtonian]

Have you had the virus or know anyone personally that had it? If not you wouldnt even be asking this question. I have family in the medical field and they all say they have never seen anything like it.

Yes, you, the media, and the government are giving us all the bad news. Here is the truth of the matter.

When we do get to hear from Trump's medical experts, they talk a great deal about testing and the increasing number of cases. They never talk about the death rate, the only true measure of the severity of a viral pandemic. Those numbers are too low, and discussing the death the death toll would seriously damage the message they are trying to deliver. Nor will they provide the ages of those who died. That, too, would harm the message.

As opposed to only a week ago, hundreds of thousands of tests have now been conducted, accounting for the dramatic rise in the number of cases, not necessarily increases in the number of new cases on a daily basis.

As of now in a population of 327 million there are 60,653 cases of the common cold caused by Covid-19 in the past three months of winter. That number is actually quite low.

819 Americans have died in the past three months from Covid-19 induced common cold. "80% of deaths associated with COVID-19 are among adults aged 65 years and older with the highest percentage of severe outcomes among persons aged 85 years and older. Also, the evidence shows those people were already sick with serious maladies before there ever was Covid-19. Again, in three months of winter, 327 million people, that number is small.

Covid 19 is out of control in SE Louisiana which is warm (record breaking this week - near 90 degrees) and humid - obviously this virus does not have a problem with summer. In fact, I think the spread has not been as great in colder climates - am I right?

Yes, the percentage death rate is low - it was for the worst plague in history in 1918 - the Spanish Influenza epidemic. The problem was, and is, the fact that all humans were (and probably will be) exposed. 20 million people died from that virulent highly contagious virus in those terrible 4 months.

Simple math shows that with a population of over 1 billion, 20 million is only a death rate of less than 2 %.

What is the death rate for the current pandemic? Can we slow down the spread so hospitals can keep up or will it spiral out of control and overwhelm the health systems in many countries?

Only time will tell. I hope it does not get as bad as the flu epidemic of 1918.

 

[Rigby5]

The virus kills a LOT of people 65 and older, and those with other chronic health issues. Italy has the oldest population on the planet. Over 23% are over the age of 65 that's why their death rate is so high. Plus they are a highly communal culture, multi-generational families living in homes, large social gatherings.

So our choice is treat this as a common cold and go on with our lives while we infect the elderly and sick and let them die, or try to avoid that.

You start off correct, but then say we should all quarantine in order to protect the elderly, and that makes no sense.
When you want to protect a small % of the population, you quarantine them away from the threat, not quarantine everyone else, which clearly can never work.

 

[Newtonian]

Answering my own question:

COVID-19 death rate by country 2022 | Statista

COVID-19 deaths per capita were 2 to 3 times higher in Italy, the UK and Belgium than in the United States.

www.statista.com

Many countries are below the 1918 death rate - but many countries are above that rate as well!

Of course, the statistics are skewed because they are based on known cases - there are probably many who were exposed to the virus and were not tested or did not show obvious symptoms. That's the good news. The bad news is that it can take 2 weeks just to show symptoms and it can take up to two weeks after that to have serious complications - notably pneumonia. I am susceptible to pneumonia - in the hospital twice this past year - in both cases I was cured with antibiotics - one case was caused by Strep.

The really bad news is that if you get pneumonia from a virus, antibiotics will not work. Anti-virals may work however - or they may not. Your own immune system is crucial. And no one has been exposed before so no one has antibodies when first exposed - that is one of the reasons this pandemic is so dangerous.

From:

One chart shows 10 countries' current coronavirus death rates, based on known cases and deaths. Italy's is highest: nearly 10%.

Italy has the greatest number of deaths related to COVID-19 — more than China — and also the highest death rate: 9.5%.

www.businessinsider.com

The global death rate is stated to be 4.4% . If accurate that would end up twice as bad as the Spanish Influenza. I doubt that - but either way, this is nothing to sneeze at (pun intended).

 

[Newtonian]

The virus kills a LOT of people 65 and older, and those with other chronic health issues. Italy has the oldest population on the planet. Over 23% are over the age of 65 that's why their death rate is so high. Plus they are a highly communal culture, multi-generational families living in homes, large social gatherings.

So our choice is treat this as a common cold and go on with our lives while we infect the elderly and sick and let them die, or try to avoid that.

You start off correct, but then say we should all quarantine in order to protect the elderly, and that makes no sense.
When you want to protect a small % of the population, you quarantine them away from the threat, not quarantine everyone else, which clearly can never work.

And is 4.4 % what you consider a small percentage? The Biblical answer is quarantine which is also the correct scientific answer.

4% of 8 billion people is 320 million people btw. That's allot of dead bodies not to touch! 1% would be better - that would only be 80 million people in 4 months - which is the time the Spanish Influenza killed roughly <2% of the world's population back then - i.e. 20 million dead bodies.

So what would be the age limit - anyone over 50? That would help for sure. But there would still be deaths. Ultimately you would need all health care workers to be teenagers!

The real answer in the United States is to "flatten the curve." Otherwise there won't be enough surviving health care workers to care for the sick!

Me personally - I hope for the best but expect the worst.

It's not that modern science cannot stop the pandemic - they can't.

It's much worse than that in this immoral world.

 

[Rigby5]

Have you had the virus or know anyone personally that had it? If not you wouldnt even be asking this question. I have family in the medical field and they all say they have never seen anything like it.

Yes, you, the media, and the government are giving us all the bad news. Here is the truth of the matter.

When we do get to hear from Trump's medical experts, they talk a great deal about testing and the increasing number of cases. They never talk about the death rate, the only true measure of the severity of a viral pandemic. Those numbers are too low, and discussing the death the death toll would seriously damage the message they are trying to deliver. Nor will they provide the ages of those who died. That, too, would harm the message.

As opposed to only a week ago, hundreds of thousands of tests have now been conducted, accounting for the dramatic rise in the number of cases, not necessarily increases in the number of new cases on a daily basis.

As of now in a population of 327 million there are 60,653 cases of the common cold caused by Covid-19 in the past three months of winter. That number is actually quite low.

819 Americans have died in the past three months from Covid-19 induced common cold. "80% of deaths associated with COVID-19 are among adults aged 65 years and older with the highest percentage of severe outcomes among persons aged 85 years and older. Also, the evidence shows those people were already sick with serious maladies before there ever was Covid-19. Again, in three months of winter, 327 million people, that number is small.

Covid 19 is out of control in SE Louisiana which is warm (record breaking this week - near 90 degrees) and humid - obviously this virus does not have a problem with summer. In fact, I think the spread has not been as great in colder climates - am I right?

Yes, the percentage death rate is low - it was for the worst plague in history in 1918 - the Spanish Influenza epidemic. The problem was, and is, the fact that all humans were (and probably will be) exposed. 20 million people died from that virulent highly contagious virus in those terrible 4 months.

Simple math shows that with a population of over 1 billion, 20 million is only a death rate of less than 2 %.

What is the death rate for the current pandemic? Can we slow down the spread so hospitals can keep up or will it spiral out of control and overwhelm the health systems in many countries?

Only time will tell. I hope it does not get as bad as the flu epidemic of 1918.

Out of curiosity, you might want to know that the 2009 Swine flu was H1N1, which is the Spanish flu. Why is it less deadly now? That is because everyone got it and now have more resistance. Same has to happen to COVID-19.

 

[Rigby5]

Answering my own question:

COVID-19 death rate by country 2022 | Statista

COVID-19 deaths per capita were 2 to 3 times higher in Italy, the UK and Belgium than in the United States.

www.statista.com

Many countries are below the 1918 death rate - but many countries are above that rate as well!

Of course, the statistics are skewed because they are based on known cases - there are probably many who were exposed to the virus and were not tested or did not show obvious symptoms. That's the good news. The bad news is that it can take 2 weeks just to show symptoms and it can take up to two weeks after that to have serious complications - notably pneumonia. I am susceptible to pneumonia - in the hospital twice this past year - in both cases I was cured with antibiotics - one case was caused by Strep.

The really bad news is that if you get pneumonia from a virus, antibiotics will not work. Anti-virals may work however - or they may not. Your own immune system is crucial. And no one has been exposed before so no one has antibodies when first exposed - that is one of the reasons this pandemic is so dangerous.

From:

One chart shows 10 countries' current coronavirus death rates, based on known cases and deaths. Italy's is highest: nearly 10%.

Italy has the greatest number of deaths related to COVID-19 — more than China — and also the highest death rate: 9.5%.

www.businessinsider.com

The global death rate is stated to be 4.4% . If accurate that would end up twice as bad as the Spanish Influenza. I doubt that - but either way, this is nothing to sneeze at (pun intended).

I don't agree.
The worst is Italy, and it has a 4.4%.
The average is more like 1.7%, and Germany only has a 0.4% death rate so far.
The death rate of 1918 was much higher, with estimated 675,000 people in the United States dying, out of a total US population of only 103 million.
That is closer to a death rate of 20% for those that got it.

 

[Asclepias]

The virus kills a LOT of people 65 and older, and those with other chronic health issues. Italy has the oldest population on the planet. Over 23% are over the age of 65 that's why their death rate is so high. Plus they are a highly communal culture, multi-generational families living in homes, large social gatherings.

So our choice is treat this as a common cold and go on with our lives while we infect the elderly and sick and let them die, or try to avoid that.

You should review the article. Older people with serious serious health issues have been dying from the complications of the common cold since the dawn of man. Only a politician is dumb enough to think this can be prevented.

It isn't Covid-19 that is killing them (see article). It is lung cancer, heart disease, pneumonia, etc.

Have you had the virus or know anyone personally that had it? If not you wouldnt even be asking this question. I have family in the medical field and they all say they have never seen anything like it.

Indeed. This strain of Corona virus is as contagious as the Spanish Influenza of 1918 when 20 million people died in just 4 months worldwide (only the small island of St. Helena was spared). But Corona Virus is not a variety of influenza virus. It is quite different.

And most importantly to us humans - no one has immunity before being exposed. We have to develop immunity in our immune system fast enough before the virus spirals out of control in our bodies like it is spiraling out of control on planet earth. For us elderly with pre-existing conditions this virus could be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back - i.e. death - the last straw.

We cannot stop Covid 19 at this time, but there are ways to slow it down and minimizing the threat will only make matters worse.

Did you all know that some scientists think this virus was caused by the destruction of the environment - as are other diseases? In this case via bats btw.

I have thought of that myself. I know plants release a chemical that attracts wasps when there are too many caterpillars eating its leaves. This could be the planets way of ridding the earth of humans.

 

[Rigby5]

The virus kills a LOT of people 65 and older, and those with other chronic health issues. Italy has the oldest population on the planet. Over 23% are over the age of 65 that's why their death rate is so high. Plus they are a highly communal culture, multi-generational families living in homes, large social gatherings.

So our choice is treat this as a common cold and go on with our lives while we infect the elderly and sick and let them die, or try to avoid that.

You start off correct, but then say we should all quarantine in order to protect the elderly, and that makes no sense.
When you want to protect a small % of the population, you quarantine them away from the threat, not quarantine everyone else, which clearly can never work.

And is 4.4 % what you consider a small percentage? The Biblical answer is quarantine which is also the correct scientific answer.

4% of 8 billion people is 320 million people btw. That's allot of dead bodies not to touch! 1% would be better - that would only be 80 million people in 4 months - which is the time the Spanish Influenza killed roughly <2% of the world's population back then - i.e. 20 million dead bodies.

So what would be the age limit - anyone over 50? That would help for sure. But there would still be deaths. Ultimately you would need all health care workers to be teenagers!

The real answer in the United States is to "flatten the curve." Otherwise there won't be enough surviving health care workers to care for the sick!

Me personally - I hope for the best but expect the worst.

It's not that modern science cannot stop the pandemic - they can't.

It's much worse than that in this immoral world.

Totally and completely wrong and a misunderstanding.

Flattening the curve by a quarantine does NOT at all reduce the number of cases or deaths.
All that does is SLOW it down.
The purpose of that is just to reduce hospital over crowding, by spacing the event out over a greater amount of time.
This not something that can be prevented by quarantine.
All you can do it put it off a little.

And you have the Spanish flu all wrong.
The only reason why it only killed 2% of the population is because most of the population had enough resistance so they did not get it. Of those who did get it, the mortality rate was over 20%, compared to the 2% of the COVID-19.
The Spanish flu was over 10 times as deadly.

 

[Rigby5]

The virus kills a LOT of people 65 and older, and those with other chronic health issues. Italy has the oldest population on the planet. Over 23% are over the age of 65 that's why their death rate is so high. Plus they are a highly communal culture, multi-generational families living in homes, large social gatherings.

So our choice is treat this as a common cold and go on with our lives while we infect the elderly and sick and let them die, or try to avoid that.

You should review the article. Older people with serious serious health issues have been dying from the complications of the common cold since the dawn of man. Only a politician is dumb enough to think this can be prevented.

It isn't Covid-19 that is killing them (see article). It is lung cancer, heart disease, pneumonia, etc.

Have you had the virus or know anyone personally that had it? If not you wouldnt even be asking this question. I have family in the medical field and they all say they have never seen anything like it.

Indeed. This strain of Corona virus is as contagious as the Spanish Influenza of 1918 when 20 million people died in just 4 months worldwide (only the small island of St. Helena was spared). But Corona Virus is not a variety of influenza virus. It is quite different.

And most importantly to us humans - no one has immunity before being exposed. We have to develop immunity in our immune system fast enough before the virus spirals out of control in our bodies like it is spiraling out of control on planet earth. For us elderly with pre-existing conditions this virus could be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back - i.e. death - the last straw.

We cannot stop Covid 19 at this time, but there are ways to slow it down and minimizing the threat will only make matters worse.

Did you all know that some scientists think this virus was caused by the destruction of the environment - as are other diseases? In this case via bats btw.

I have thought of that myself. I know plants release a chemical that attracts wasps when there are too many caterpillars eating its leaves. This could be the planets way of ridding the earth of humans.

That is not possible.
Nature has no idea what we are doing or that we even exist.
WE are who are causing pandemics, by over crowding, traveling too much, and increasing the viral gene pool in a way that makes ever more deadly pandemics inevitable.
But we could easily change.
Just reduce population densities and cut out all unnecessary transporation.

 

[the other mike]

"Just because I'm Asian, doesn't mean I have coronavirus !"

 

[progressive hunter]

Is the coronavirus pandemic nothing more than the common cold caused by a new and contagious virus called Covid-19? Of course, most will think the question is moronic, but lets look at the facts and simple math.

Italy, China, and Spain do not factor in on this analysis because we know nothing about what happened there, what their health systems are like, or their care for the elderly. For those responding, every other nation on Earth is open game. However, I will concentrate on the United States for one very simple reason. It is where I and most folks here live.

A major concern for Americans is whether the cure is worst than the disease. The politicians from the Trump White House to the various governors of the various states have effectively shut down what used to be the most successful economy the world has ever seen. Millions have or will lose their jobs, and the politicians in Washington want to add two trillion dollars to our enormous National Debt thinking the federal government can substitute welfare for our once great economy. It can't.

Millions of Americans have lost billions of dollars in retirement savings and investments. It is a permanent loss.

The possibility exists that the loss of jobs, savings and investments (homes?) will cause the murder and suicide rate to go up, exceeding the death toll of the virus. The politicians and Trump's medical team are not helping with their dire warnings that are designed to scare the daylights out of us. Dire warnings two weeks ago that the sky will fall in two weeks didn't happen. So, we are getting a new batch of dire warnings from the politicians and medical experts now. It seems that all the bad things that will befall us will happen sometime in the future. At any rate, that is what Governor Cuomo is telling us.

All that is perfectly logical. The politicians have to justify the shutting down of our economy!

In prior years the highly contagious rhinovirus was the main cause of the common cold. In the winter months millions of Americans fell victim to the common cold. Hardest hit were the elderly with preexisting conditions such as lung or heart disease, pneumonia, and various other assorted afflictions. Over the course of the winter thousands of the oldest generation died because of complications of the common cold.

It has been suggested that Cofid-19 is simply a new contagious virus for the common cold. Some are impressed with numbers, like 41,342. That is the number of cases of the coronavirus in the U.S. That .01% of 327 million, the population of the U.S.

Another number that impresses people is 498. As of today that is the number of people who have died in the U.S. That is .0002% of the population. A person has a better chance of winning the lottery than dying of Covid-19. For a three month total in a population of 327 million, that number is low compared to other years of the common cold.

For those who contract the disease "80% get what feels like a bad cold and recover at home." COVID-19: What we know so far about the 2019 novel coronavirus - UChicago Medicine

Many did not even know they had the virus.

For this the politicians have destroyed our economy and the savings accounts of Americans? That makes no sense. But when did politicians ever make sense?

The Trump government never gives us a breakdown on the ages of those who have died. Probably because it would damage the message of doom they prefer. After all, Trump is a war President.

However, there is this from Business Insider, "80% of deaths associated with COVID-19 were among adults aged ≥65 years with the highest percentage of severe outcomes among persons aged ≥85 years." 80% of US coronavirus deaths have been among people 65 and older, a new CDC report says — here's what it reveals about the US cases

If you are reading this and you are younger than 85, you have an outside chance of surviving this pandemic.

you are trully one dumb skank,,,

 

[Norman]

"Just because I'm Asian, doesn't mean I have coronavirus !"
View attachment 315325

Not all Asians are Chinese indeed.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Trump is a very sick man. He suffers from paranoia and extreme narcissism. He feels that all of the nation's issues concern him and him alone, never mind that, in this case, hundreds of Americans are dying and thousands are becoming sick.

The Hill reports, "President Trump on Wednesday accused the media of pushing to keep restrictions in place to limit the spread of the coronavirus — measures supported by most public health experts — in an effort to hamper the economy and harm his reelection chances."

Trump did this via an earlier tweet, and a reporter called him on it in the press conference today concerning the coronavirus pandemic. He accused the reporter of wanting him to lose the election and writing fake news. He was an extremely embarrassing moment.

This was after he talked about how he personally persuaded members of NATO to pony up for more dues. Trump has been discredited for this lie several times, but he really believes it. The increased payments are a consequence of an agreement sign during the Obama administration.

Later Trump talked about his "beautiful" new 164 miles of wall along our southern border. He mentioned invaders have to go around it, thus adding to their travel time and inconvenience.

All this during a Covid-19 press conference. Unbelievable!

Trump dominates these press conferences, and, as indicated, contributes little to the conversation unless you count patting himself on the back and creating fantasies about the time frame of Americans returning to work.

Trump doesn't know that he is simply proving to a national television audience how truly incompetent he is. No doubt those standing next to him are embarrassed, and infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci has had to correct the President several times. Trump doesn't even know his hand is being slapped for providing false hope to the American people. Dr. Anthony Fauci weighs in on Donald Trump's Easter timeline - CNN Video

 

[the other mike]

edited

 

[the other mike]

Trump is a very sick man. He suffers from paranoia and extreme narcissism. He feels that all of the nation's issues concern him and him alone, never mind that, in this case, hundreds of Americans are dying and thousands are becoming sick.

The Hill reports, "President Trump on Wednesday accused the media of pushing to keep restrictions in place to limit the spread of the coronavirus — measures supported by most public health experts — in an effort to hamper the economy and harm his reelection chances."

Trump did this via an earlier tweet, and a reporter called him on it in the press conference today concerning the coronavirus pandemic. He accused the reporter of wanting him to lose the election and writing fake news. He was an extremely embarrassing moment.

This was after he talked about how he personally persuaded members of NATO to pony up for more dues. Trump has been discredited for this lie several times, but he really believes it. The increased payments are a consequence of an agreement sign during the Obama administration.

Later Trump talked about his "beautiful" new 164 miles of wall along our southern border. He mentioned invaders have to go around it, thus adding to their travel time and inconvenience.

All this during a Covid-19 press conference. Unbelievable!

Trump dominates these press conferences, and, as indicated, contributes little to the conversation unless you count patting himself on the back and creating fantasies about the time frame of Americans returning to work.

Trump doesn't know that he is simply proving to a national television audience how truly incompetent he is. No doubt those standing next to him are embarrassed, and infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci has had to correct the President several times. Trump doesn't even know his hand is being slapped for providing false hope to the American people. Dr. Anthony Fauci weighs in on Donald Trump's Easter timeline - CNN Video

Trump is slightly narcissistic, but everyone pretty much knows that, and we know he tends to ramble off topic at times, but do you honestly believe Obama with his eloquent Harvard vocabulary would be doing a better job facing this Chinese virus, or Hillary for that matter ?

 

[Contumacious]

It is getting harder and harder to find out information on the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S.

This is the question I have been asking Google for over two weeks. "How many people have died in the united states as a result of the coronavirus?"

In the past I got exactly what I wanted. During the past few days that has not been true. This link shows the question I asked moments ago and the results.

how many people have died in the united states as a result of the coronavirus - Google Search

Please note that the first page of results fails to answer my question and most of the responses are two to seven days old.

Is the government hiding information from the public? We know they won't give an age breakdown or health conditions of those who have died. The White House Covid-19 team avoids mentioning the death toll because it is so low.

Unfortunately, it is very difficult to ascertain how many individuals have ACTUALLY FACTUALLY MEDICALLY died as a direct result of coronavirus - too many individuals who are conflicted by interest and therefore want to exaggerate :

1- The CDC is bent out of shape because DJT reduced its budget , also it is in bed with Big Pharma - so it is looking for a government grant to develop a new vaccine and then will charge us gazillions of dollars to administer it - the scarier Americans are the more they are willing to pay for the the UNNECESSARY AND DANGEROUS vaccine

2- The Demo Rats, Lamestream Media and Deep State - those anti Trumpers will do everything in their power to stain DJT's reputation by blaming him for those deaths

Please note that the states which have declared medical Martial Law - NY, Illinois. NJ. California - are Democrat strongholds - Cuomo is using Covid-19 to launch his presidential campaign and appears daily on Lamesstream media to attack DJT

Sad

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Trump is a very sick man. He suffers from paranoia and extreme narcissism. He feels that all of the nation's issues concern him and him alone, never mind that, in this case, hundreds of Americans are dying and thousands are becoming sick.

Trump put on another numbing performance today dominating a press conference dealing with a viral pandemic while his health experts stood by in silence. To give credence to the performance, the doctors were allowed a few minutes to talk about the health crisis.

However, 90% of the conference dealt with Trump campaigning for reelection. There was a great deal of hyperbole, and we learned that tremendous is one of Trump's favorite words, and that everything is "very good." I must give credit where credit is due. Trump is a great politician. He can talk and talk and never say anything, and he rarely commits to anything. He likes having it both ways. He will say one thing in one sentence, and take it all back in the next sentence. He wants to scale back social distancing in some parts of the economy. Then again, he doesn't really, and he will listen to the experts. In his mind this is "tremendous" brilliance.