...‘Masks’ cont’d from pg 6 At the beginning of June, Fresno County had 35 deaths. And, Fresno County has 1 million residents. COVID-19 doesn’t sound too bad when you think of it that way, eh, math major? 0.0035% mortality rate. But, the problem is that that’s the wrong way to look at it. Here’s a better way: take the total deaths (35) and divide it by the total number of documented, confirmed COVID-19 cases in Fresno County, which happens to be 1,743 (by the time you read this, this number is likely to have already gone up). So, then, the death rate is 2%, right? Still, that’s not too horrific, I suppose. But we are missing something here. Of the 1,743 total confirmed cases, we know that 542 fully recovered, a 31% recovery rate. But what about the other 1,166? These are the cases that are ‘still active’ with no confirmed outcomes yet (they haven’t recovered, and they haven’t died to date). In a worst-case scenario, all of these confirmed 1,166 succumb to COVID-19. That would be a total death count of 1,201 (assuming no more confirmed cases or additional deaths). This would put the death rate at 69% - the worst-case scenario. Now, of course, this is unlikely, thank God - and hopefully, all of the current 1,166 active cases recover soon. This would be our best-case scenario, 2%. But, just as it is unlikely for all 1,166 to die by COVID-19, it is also unlikely they will all recover - right? Looking at past European data, which are weeks ahead of us in terms of infection onset, we see in France a death rate between 15-20% (depending on the data source). And so let’s estimate that 20% of Fresno’s active 1,166 unfortunately die. That would be 234 more deceased, for a total of 269 dead. And that would then put the death rate at 15% (assuming no more confirmed cases or additional deaths) in Fresno County. So, forget about a 2% COVID-19 death rate - the exact number will be much higher when the dust settles, sadly. Now, do you see why it’s crucial for you to wear a face mask? At the beginning of June across the U.S., we’ve had 104,383 COVID-19 deaths. And, according to some sources, we have had about 600,000 recovered COVID-19 survivors. We have 1,790,191 in total cases. This means we have about 1,085,808 active, open cases with no outcomes yet. And if we estimate a 15% mortality (again, since we’ve seen this average death rate in other countries that had their onset of infection weeks ahead of us) of these inconclusive cases, that would be about 162,872 additional deaths (assuming no more confirmed cases or additional deaths) - a total of 267,255 deaths - again, about a 15% mortality rate - not the low 5.8% figure that anti-maskers like to point to (and they even say that that number
is artificially inflated! Well, tell that to those grieving who suddenly saw their seemingly healthy loved ones become deathly ill and die within just a few days or weeks!) Dr. Duc C. Vong, a passionate and popular medical educator who teaches COVID-19 science in a YouTube series, doesn’t sugarcoat it: “You have to know the outcomes to understand the death rate…The correct death rate - the actual death rate if you come down with COVID-19 - the actual death rate is between 18-24%.” Vong started his YouTube talks for his patients with multiple comorbidities, which would lead to adverse COVID-19 outcomes, aka death. In no time, Dr. Vong’s ‘classroom’ and his unique style has become a YouTube favorite. Forget about a ‘Fake Plandemic’ conspiracy - the numbers are serious. So, the first lesson in Masks for Dummies: make sure that whatever kind of mask you have, that it covers up 1) your nose and 2) your mouth, pressed against your face so that there are no air gaps around your cheeks. The idea is for every breath to come in and out of your mask - NOT through your nose sticking out above your mask or by your mouth scooping up air from the opening below your mask. Find a mask that feels comfortable, breathable, and that does these two things above. Anything is better than nothing. Let’s take bandanas as an example - if worn tightly, the nose and mouth are covered well, which is good. But, unless the bottom portion of the bandana is tied against your face or somehow tucked into your shirt, there will be a huge air gap below the chin. The gap means your bandana-mask won’t capture all of your inhaling and exhaling. Your breaths will come from below and from the sides instead of through your mask - which is supposed to act as your air filter against breathing coronavirus in and out. The trick might be first to put on any mediocre face mask that at least covers your mouth and your chin and then cover that with the bandana. Doing this will give you better coverage for both your nose and mouth. Thinking outside the box like this and using whatever you have to protect yourself, your family, and your community is critical during this pandemic. To slow the spread of COVID-19 - and to protect yourself - you need to wear a mask that fully covers your nostrils and mouth. It’s important because if you don’t wear it right - like an unclipped seatbelt, what’s the point of even wearing it at all? If your nose and mouth aren’t covered, you’re doing it wrong. Simple as that. Masks for Dummies can be a little hard, but with a bit of practice, you’ll get it - guaranteed. Tune in next month when I’ll talk about the best kinds of masks, what they’re made of and how you can make your own. Stay safe out there... | FRESNOFLYER.COM |
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