Christmas Eve, way down under!

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2020

Aussies combat the plague: Are you kidding? Today being Christmas Eve, we're suspending our current reports, which are too negative for such a day. We plan to finish on Saturday.

In their place, we offer a quick look at The Practices of Christmas Eve Present as being performed Down Under. 

Lindsay Knaak-Stuart is an American, but she married an Aussie. In an essay for the Washington Post, she describes the hoops she and her children had to jump through when they fled the plague by joining her husband Down There.

According to Knaak-Stuart, the Aussies don't play! Here's a sample of the way the Aussies are fighting the virus:

KNAAK-STUART (12/22/20): Getting to Australia wasn’t easy. There were many months of waiting for my partner visa to come through, canceled and rescheduled flights and, finally, a mandatory government hotel quarantine upon landing...

Seventy-two hours before flying to Australia, we were required to answer questions about our health and dietary restrictions. This info would be used to plan our quarantine stay—a “privilege” for which our family of four would pay $3,800. After the 22-hour trip from NYC to Sydney—thankfully on a flight with only 36 passengers, due to weekly passenger arrival caps—we landed like hot-spot covid celebrities, ushered in by local police to start a process with the vibes of an episode of “Homeland.”

We were first directed through a series of health and border checkpoints, then were greeted at baggage claim by additional police and members of the Australian Defense Force. They had been waiting for us, and so had the bus that was going to take us to our undisclosed quarantine location. Families were on one bus, couples and singles on another. We snaked through Sydney, our police motorcade leading the way, and finally arrived at a nondescript full-service hotel/apartments where we would be locked for 14 days and would later emerge a few pounds heavier but feeling a lot more hopeful. It was clear Australia was taking things seriously; the guards placed outside our door reinforced that message.

It was all an impressive display of high-level coordination among federal, state and local governments. We got tested on Day 2 and on Day 10. We received three meals a day, designed to be well balanced and nutritious, although they seemed to have missed the memo on taste and variety. A team of on-site doctors, nurses and psychologists called us daily to check in on our health and mental state, and when on Day 8 our 6-year-old son started struggling with it all, we received advice from the psychologist on how to help him...

Knaak-Stuart continues from there. She isn't exactly trying to make a point, and so we will:

This column made us think of a recent conversation we had with a close relative who lives in Ireland. Along the way, he stated his view of why the Covid death rate has been so high in Belgium, western Europe's overall "sick man" during the bulk of this year's pandemic.

We'll save his offhand guess about Belgium's struggle for another time. For today, we'll offer this:

Knaak-Stuart describes a massive national effort to combat the virus. In the part of the essay we've posted, she even describes "high-level coordination among federal, state and local governments." Just try to imagine that!

Knaak-Stuart describes a full-blown national effort. Her description of that nationwide effort stands in stark contrast with the jumble of approaches and non-approaches which have been taken Up Here. 

Up Here, we've seen no such thing, and this may help explain the numbers. At present, a few of the numbers actually look like this:

Covid deaths per day, per million population
Week ending December 21:
United States: 8.1
Germany: 7.8
European Union: 7.6
United Kingdom: 7.3
Australia: Less than 0.1

Amazingly, Germany's daily death rate almost equals our own at this point. Down Under, the death rate is so low that it can barely be expressed in numbers.

For what it's worth, here are a few other numbers. It seems that Belgium, at long last, has gotten things a bit more under control:

Covid deaths per day, per million population
Week ending December 21:

Slovenia: 22.0 
Bulgaria: 17.9
Belgium: 5.9
Canada: 3.0

At present, Slovenia and Bulgaria are Europe's "sick men." Canada's death rate is well less than half our own, but it's still at least thirty times the size of Australia's.

How has Australia been able to do this? As we've noted in the past, our upper-end news orgs have shown little interest in addressing such obvious questions. Up Here, statistics are extremely hard, and information is boring.

Can those Aussie numbers really be real? Does Knaak-Stuart's essay start to explain Australia's very low numbers?

Also, what enables certain nations to function on a nationwide basis? Very much in passing, our relative offered his idea. We may go there next week.

We offer one last Christmas Eve thought. Wouldn't this be the perfect year to subscribe to The Dublin Review?


24 comments:

  1. "Getting to Australia wasn’t easy."

    How racist of 'em Aussies, eh?

    "How has Australia been able to do this?"

    We don't know, but perhaps by reporting real COVID deaths without adding victims of heart attacks and car accidents?

    "Also, what enables certain nations to function on a nationwide basis?"

    A couple of things come to mind, dear Bob: smaller population size, and, obviously, not having the liberal-hitlerian cult in charge of important national, state, and local institutions...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "The White Australia policy encapsulated a set of historical policies that aimed to forbid people of non-European ethnic origin, especially Asians (primarily Chinese) and Pacific Islanders, from immigrating to Australia, starting in 1901. Governments progressively dismantled such policies between 1949 and 1973."

      Delete
    2. God, you remain an idiot. Death statistics for COVID do not misrepresent car accidents. That myth has been debunked. You could look it up, but that would involve effort and an interest in being educated. You would make a great Sidney Powell expert witness.

      Delete
  2. "As we've noted in the past, our upper-end news orgs have shown little interest in addressing such obvious questions. Up Here, statistics are extremely hard, and information is boring."

    The answer to the question of how Australia has managed to keep its death rate so low is not contained in statistics, which Somerby always claims are "hard." It is contained in the words used to describe their policies and procedures and the coordination of effort to keep everyone safe, from the new arrivals to the existing population. Words, not statistics, words.

    It takes words, not numbers, to say that the USA has had no policy whatsoever about containing the virus. It is que sera sera here and the losers be damned. That what happens when a sociopath is put in charge of the government. While Somerby bleats about how hard statistics are.

    ReplyDelete
  3. "We'll save his offhand guess about Belgium's struggle for another time."

    Then why mention it at all? This is obvious filler, which is odd given that Somerby is not being paid by the word...or is he?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Apparently Somerby is now embedding ads in his essays:

      "We offer one last Christmas Eve thought. Wouldn't this be the perfect year to subscribe to The Dublin Review?"

      The link leads to their subscription page.

      Delete
  4. "Can those Aussie numbers really be real?"

    Riverdaughter (at Confluence blog) asks the same question about Florida's numbers. She suspects they and several other states are under-reporting their cases.

    As for Australia, it is much easier to control a pandemic when there are a limited number of entry points to the country. Australia is an island that can only be reached by boat or airplane. That means that they can be waiting at landing and can secure compliance or deny entry. Hawaii has used a similar approach, with some success (less than Australia's because they have not used the military to compel quarantine). Imagine if Los Angeles tried to use that approach. It has five airports and two shipping ports plus numerous freeways in and out of the city, with people going back and forth across county lines daily. How could you begin to secure such a place without military-style checkpoints on major roads and walls to prevent evasion via side streets.

    Somerby's musings make him sound like a simpleton. Australia is equivalent to the castles of the middle ages who pulled up their drawbridge and prevent the plague by avoiding all contact with the outside. That works great as long as you haven't walled the plague in with you and have enough food and water to withstand the siege.

    Questioning the validity of Australia's numbers is apparently all Somerby knows how to do, since the numbers are all he seems to care about. I'll bet that when Somerby sits musing under his pear tree, he is only counting the leaves on the tree, incapable of any other thought beyond the quantitative enumeration of cases and calculation of death rates.

    And it is Christmas Eve. There are so many other things he might have written about today.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How did China control COVID-19? How did Vietnam do it? How did South Korea do it?

      Delete
    2. Here is an explanation of what China did:

      https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(20)30800-8/fulltext

      Delete

    3. LOTTO, lottery,jackpot.
      Hello all my viewers, I am very happy for sharing this great testimonies,The best thing that has ever happened in my life is how I win the lottery euro million mega jackpot. I am a Woman who believe that one day I will win the lottery. finally my dreams came through when I email believelovespelltemple@gmail.com and tell him I need the lottery numbers. I have spend so much money on ticket just to make sure I win. But I never know that winning was so easy until the day I meant the spell caster online which so many people has talked about that he is very great in casting lottery spell, . so I decide to give it a try.I contacted this great Dr Believe and he did a spell and he gave me the winning lottery numbers. But believe me when the draws were out I was among winners. I win 30,000 million Dollar. Dr Believe truly you are the best, all thanks to you forever











      LOTTO, lottery,jackpot.
      Hello all my viewers, I am very happy for sharing this great testimonies,The best thing that has ever happened in my life is how I win the lottery euro million mega jackpot. I am a Woman who believe that one day I will win the lottery. finally my dreams came through when I email believelovespelltemple@gmail.com and tell him I need the lottery numbers. I have spend so much money on ticket just to make sure I win. But I never know that winning was so easy until the day I meant the spell caster online which so many people has talked about that he is very great in casting lottery spell, . so I decide to give it a try.I contacted this great Dr Believe and he did a spell and he gave me the winning lottery numbers. But believe me when the draws were out I was among winners. I win 30,000 million Dollar. Dr Believe truly you are the best, all thanks to you forever

      Delete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. “our upper-end news orgs have shown little interest in addressing such obvious questions. “

    It’s pleasing, and a whole lot easier, for Somerby to stick to his script. Here is a sample of items about how other countries dealt with the pandemic. These are just a few from the Washington Post. Many others exist in other major publications:

    “What sets apart countries that successfully handled the pandemic?” 9/17/2020

    “East African nations can teach Americans how to fight a pandemic” 5/1/2020

    “When it comes to coronavirus response, superpowers may need to study smaller nations”5/16/2020

    “Transcript: Coronavirus: The Global Response” 4/29/2020

    “Hong Kong learned from SARS. Can the United States learn from Hong Kong?” 3/12/2020

    “Other countries are winning against the virus. We are quitting.” 5/8/2020

    “The fight against Ebola in Liberia offers valuable lessons for beating Covid-19.” 3/3/2020

    “Africa’s Coronavirus caseload has remained relatively low. Experts say the explanation is complicated.” 12/11/2020

    And here is a sample of their coverage specifically about Australia:

    “Australia largely beat the virus. But it left thousands of its people stranded abroad.” 12/10/2020

    “Australia has almost eliminated the coronavirus - by putting faith in science.” 11/5/2020

    “Island Australia on track to be Covid-free by Christmas.” 10/1/2020

    “Republicans can take a lesson from Australia’s conservatives on Covid-19” 10/6/2020

    “Asia Today: Australia’s Victoria hits 3 weeks without virus.” 11/19/2020

    “Melbourne Coronavirus: ‘Dictator’ Daniel Andrews enforced drastic lockdown in Australia” 9/15/2020

    And that’s not to mention the article he quotes from today.

    The press is a remarkably easy target for anyone with a grievance or an agenda, and there’s plenty to critique. But that isn’t license for this joke of a post.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wished you had linked these.

      Delete
    2. Copy and paste them into the Google search line.

      Delete
    3. How many people to do you read each article? Tens of thousands, maybe a hundred thousand? If you asked a hundred people in the US how Australia has handled COVID-19, how many would know any of this?

      Delete
    4. WAPO won’t let you open them without a subscription.

      Delete
  7. Trump is golfing on Christmas Eve, while the White House lies and says he is working.

    ReplyDelete
  8. We offer the widest scopes of services related to escorts, but, more importantly, we help them to find the best call girls, without encountering any hassles and hardships. Thus, the act of hiring the Independent Mahipalpur Escorts turns into a matter of fun and utmost enjoyment for our clients.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Delhi escorts services are welcome to you to the site of Mayur Vihar Escorts who is living in Delhi. She offers sensible and genuine specialist organization for individuals in Delhi conveying with a decision of the best and experience Delhi call girls. She offers world-class escort service in Mayur Vihar Delhi.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hello everyone. I want to share my amazing experience with the great spell caster Dr.Ogudugu my husband was cheating on me and when I found out we had a fight which lead him filling for a divorce I cried and fell sick when I was searching about love quotes online I saw people talking about Dr.Ogudugu and his great work whose case was similar to mine they left his contact info I contacted Dr.Ogudugu and he told me not to worry that after 24 hours he will cancel the divorce and my husband will be back to me after I did everything he asked me to do to my greatest surprise the next day evening it was my husband he knelt down begging me to accept him back, thank you once again Dr.Ogudugu you are indeed a blessing to me he can also help you. Contact Dr.Ogudugu through his email address on: greatogudugu@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Getting your lover or your ex back has been made more easy by this powerful spell caster called Dr Odion. I am Rose by name and i am from canada, the only reason why i am on this site is to thank this powerful spell caster called DR. Odion and you can improve your relationship success by contacting him through these details (wisdomspiritualtemple@gmail.com Or call +2348136482342) This powerful spell caster did me a huge favor by helping me get my lover back to me within the speed of light and since then my relationship has been perfect.

    any problem of yours.He is specialized in the following:

    (1)Spell for protection from danger
    (2)Spell for magic
    (3)Spell for same sex love
    (4)Spell for healing
    (5)Spell for invisibility
    (6)Spell for riches and fame
    (7)Spell to get a good job
    (8)Spell for strong love and relationship
    (9)Spell to bring your ex back
    (10)speII for Lottery
    This man has great powers and is incredibly generous.You can contact him on
    (wisdomspiritualtemple@gmail.com)

    ReplyDelete
  12. It is a very hard situation when playing the lottery and never won, or keep winning low fund not up to 100 bucks, i have been a victim of such a tough life, the biggest fund i have ever won was 100 bucks, and i have been playing lottery for almost 12 years now, things suddenly change the moment i came across a secret online, a testimony of a spell caster called DR EMU, who help people in any type of lottery numbers, i was not easily convinced, but i decided to give try, now i am a proud lottery winner with the help of DR EMU, i won $1,000.0000.00 and i am making this known to every one out there who have been trying all day to win the lottery, believe me this is the only way to win the lottery. contact him via email: Emutemple@gmail.com call or whats app +2347012841542 Website: http://emutemple.website2.me/

    ReplyDelete

  13. LOTTO, lottery,jackpot.
    Hello all my viewers, I am very happy for sharing this great testimonies,The best thing that has ever happened in my life is how I win the lottery euro million mega jackpot. I am a Woman who believe that one day I will win the lottery. finally my dreams came through when I email believelovespelltemple@gmail.com and tell him I need the lottery numbers. I have spend so much money on ticket just to make sure I win. But I never know that winning was so easy until the day I meant the spell caster online which so many people has talked about that he is very great in casting lottery spell, . so I decide to give it a try.I contacted this great Dr Believe and he did a spell and he gave me the winning lottery numbers. But believe me when the draws were out I was among winners. I win 30,000 million Dollar. Dr Believe truly you are the best, all thanks to you forever

    ReplyDelete
  14. If I can write like you, I will be very happy, but where is my luck, in fact people like you are a beautiful example for the world. You have written this comment very beautifully, I am very glad that I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Clothing
    Bussiness Dropshipping
    establish good relationship
    Gurgaon VIP Girl
    Gurugram Party Girl
    Gurgaon Dating Girl
    VIP Girl Gurgaon
    health tips for students
    Health tips family

    ReplyDelete