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Concerned and vigilant?  Yes.  Panicked?  No way!

DON'T PANIC!



coronavirus
It is said that despite its many glaring (and occasionally fatal) inaccuracies, the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy itself has outsold the Encyclopedia Galactica because it is slightly cheaper, and because it has the words ‘DON'T PANIC' in large, friendly letters on the cover. Douglas Adams "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy”
Due to the fact that some people who catch the coronavirus (COVID-19) show either slight or no symptoms of being ill, it should come as no surprise to anyone that a coronavirus pandemic is in the works.  It could not be otherwise IMO.  Note that failure to take these carriers into account is one reason for the relatively high estimates of the COVID-19 death-rate.
Keep in mind that the word "pandemic” is not synonymous with "apocalypse.”  In 2009 we had the H1N1 pandemic, and in 1968 there was the H3N2 pandemic.  In other words, s—t happens.  Sometimes these pandemics are very nasty indeed (such as the 1918 pandemic), but oft times they simply result in a marginal increase in the death rate of a typical flu season.
COVID-19 has been linked to more than 3,000 deaths around the world, with symptoms including fever, cough, and difficulty breathing, but the vast majority of the cases are mild. Some people who have contracted the disease may not even display symptoms, though they are able to pass it on to others.  [Italics added] -- Ryan McDonald, Kevin Cody, Mark McDermott and David Mendez "The Novel Coronavirus is coming, be prepared….
I would advise taking it for granted that cases of the coronavirus will be very widespread, and proceed from there.  Flu preventive measures, including washing your hands frequently, and not picking your nose or otherwise placing your hands on your face should be practiced.  Although the various types of coronavirus are not flus per se, their symptoms are generally very flu-like. According to the CDC there are seven different strains of coronavirus (it was first identified in the mid-1960s).  It is the COVID-19 variety that concerns us at the moment.  Chinese scientists have purportedly identified two strains of COVID-19.  So how dangerous is it?

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That depends.  Some folks apparently catch it and show no symptoms (asymptomatic carriers) -- don't even know they have it.  And it runs the gamut from there to being fatal.  In general, COVID-19 appears to be similar to flus in this regard. I would guesstimate that most people who catch COVID-19 will experience what amounts to the effects of a mild to bad cold, although some will undoubtedly need to be hospitalized – same as with the flu. I was hospitalized with the flu and pneumonia a couple of years ago, and my stepdad came very close to dying from the flu in 2010, so I take the flu quite seriously indeed.  Nonetheless, I don't see any reason to panic over the spread of COVID-19.  Concerned and vigilant?  Yes.  Panicked?  No way.
Dr. Drew Pinsky, M.D., said the liberal media are "over-reacting" to coronavirus, do not know how to report on it, and have created a "hysteria." The "press needs to shut up…." --Michael W. Chapman "Dr. Drew on Coronavirus: Hysterical ‘Press Needs to Shut Up….'”


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Jim ONeill -- Bio and Archives

Born June 4, 1951 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Served in the U.S. Navy from 1970-1974 in both UDT-21 (Underwater Demolition Team) and SEAL Team Two.  Worked as a commercial diver in the waters off of Scotland, India, and the United States.  Worked overseas in the Merchant Marines.  While attending the University of South Florida as a journalism student in 1998 was presented with the “Carol Burnett/University of Hawaii AEJMC Research in Journalism Ethics Award,” 1st place undergraduate division.  (The annual contest was set up by Carol Burnett with money she won from successfully suing a national newspaper for libel).  Awarded US Army, US Navy, South African, and Russian jump wings.  Graduate of NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School, 1970).  Member of Mensa, China Post #1, and lifetime member of the NRA and UDT/SEAL Association.


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