The epidemic continues to ravage the U.S. government calls on people to be vaccinated
The number of deaths exceeded 700,000
□ Wang Yi
According to statistics on the new crown epidemic released by Johns Hopkins University in the United States on October 1, the cumulative number of deaths from the new crown in the United States has exceeded 700,000, reaching 700,258, which accounts for about 14% of the world‘s 5 million deaths.
New crown death toll is extremely high
As a result of the highly contagious Delta mutant virus, the number of deaths from the new crown in the United States increased from 600,000 to 700,000, in only three and a half months. According to US media reports, the number of “700,000” not only exceeds the total number of deaths in World War I, World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War, but also exceeds the number of people who died in the 1918 flu in the United States.
According to statistics at the time, the pandemic caused 675,000 deaths in Americans, but the American population was only one-third of the current population. As far as the fatality rate is concerned, it may be said that the pandemic is more deadly, but there was no vaccine or antibiotics at the time. The fight against the epidemic could only rely on isolation, maintenance of hygiene, use of disinfectants, and restrictions on crowd gathering.
Faced with the new crown epidemic, the United States, which is the world‘s richest, most developed, most advanced medical technology, richest in medical resources, and has stocked up to several times the dose of new crown vaccines required by its population, is watching the death of 700,000 lives. Incredible.
The US media compares the death toll of the new crown with the pandemic a hundred years ago, which is inherently heavy and cruel. Moreover, the ABC said that the 700,000 deaths from new coronary pneumonia in the United States are an “American tragedy.”
John Brownstein, an epidemiologist at Boston Children’s Hospital, said that this is a tragic and completely avoidable milestone. “We have the knowledge and tools to prevent this from happening, but unfortunately there are political factors, lack of urgency, and The distrust of science has led us to this point.”
At present, the fourth wave of the epidemic in the United States is still raging, with data on newly confirmed cases, hospitalized cases and deaths repeatedly setting records. The shocking figure of 700,000 is probably far from the end. The forecasting model of the University of Washington predicts that the number of new infections will rise again in the fall. There will be about 90,000 deaths from the new crown virus before January 1 next year, bringing the total number of new crown deaths to 788,000 by then.
Hold memorial activities in many places
In the National Mall in the center of Washington, D.C., about 700,000 small white flags are planted on the lawn to commemorate the people who died of the new crown.
According to the Associated Press and other media reports, on the evening of October 5, local time, the Washington National Cathedral rang 700 bells to mourn the 700,000 Americans who died due to the new crown epidemic. According to the report, the bell sounded at 5 o’clock in the afternoon of the same day, once every 1,000 victims, the bell sounded for about 70 minutes. Commemorative activities were held in many places in Washington at the same time.
In the past two weeks, from the landmark obelisk in the center of Washington, the capital of the United States, to the World War II Memorial, about 20 lawns the size of football fields have been decorated into a sea of small white flags. Each small white flag represents an American who lost his life as a result of the new crown.
This is a special exhibition designed by Maryland visual artist Susanna Brennan Furstenberg to commemorate the deaths of the new crown in the United States. It is titled “In America: Remember”, which aims to further arouse Americans’ great harm to the new crown pandemic. know.
According to Susanna, she and her husband, Doug Furstenberg, began to plan the exhibition in the National Mall in detail when the epidemic in the United States eased in late spring and early summer. “At that time we lost 100 to 150 people every day. So she predicted that by the end of the exhibition, the cumulative number of deaths from the new crown in the United States will be between 610,000 and 620,000.” Doug said.
However, before the start of the exhibition, Susanna was forced to purchase additional white flags twice. Doug said, “In a country like the United States, more than 700,000 people died from the new crown. And because of the vaccine, many deaths could have been avoided.”
Jonathan Reiner, a professor of medicine at George Washington University, said that since almost all Americans can get vaccinated, there have been 200,000 deaths. These deaths are unnecessary. “The information people really need to receive is to get vaccinated.”
Vaccination is slow
According to news from the Russian Satellite News Agency on October 3, US President Biden issued a statement when the cumulative number of deaths from the new crown epidemic in the United States exceeded 700,000, calling on the public to be vaccinated.
A statement published on the White House website stated, “In order to heal the pain, we must remember that when our country mourns the death of 700,000 Americans at the painful milestone of the new crown epidemic, we must not be numb to the grief. On this day and every day, we Remember everyone lost in this pandemic”.
Biden then called on the American people to get the new crown vaccine. “If you haven’t vaccinated yet, please get the vaccine. It can help us overcome the new crown epidemic.”
However, due to the political antagonism between the two parties and social divisions in the United States, the politicization of anti-epidemic measures such as vaccination and wearing masks has not been eased with Trump’s resignation. Instead, it has intensified in some southern states, and “vaccine skepticism” has become rampant and serious. Affected the speed of vaccination in the United States.
Various measures formulated by epidemic prevention agencies and infectious disease experts have either been delayed or shelved, even if their implementation is greatly compromised. According to U.S. media reports, Republican lawmakers in at least 26 U.S. states have weakened the power of local health officials to respond to the epidemic in order to meet the demands of some voters.
According to statistics, the vast majority of deaths have not been vaccinated, which makes many medical staff feel sad. Kim Farley, a professor at the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that the new coronary pneumonia is now “an epidemic of people who have not been vaccinated,” because the deaths of the vast majority of patients can be avoided.
A report from the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in September pointed out that the risk of death due to the epidemic if not vaccinated is 10 times that of those who have been vaccinated.
Against the backdrop of extreme antagonisms between American parties, highly polarized politics, and severely torn society, epidemic prevention science has lost to partisan politics, and epidemic prevention needs have lost to political calculations. Such a serious epidemic has never received the attention it deserves. Not surprising.
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