How we live under the Covid virus

should have an effect on how successfully we can handle it. 

I am not a scientist and I could be completely wrong about this but a sort of logic tells me that if you don't live very close to other people then the virus might be easier to contain - if certain measures are taken and rules adhered to.

I raised this with someone on Facebook yesterday. (We do talk about more than what people have for breakfast over there.)

My thoughts run along these lines. The population of Downunder is spread out around the coastline. Most people own a car and might travel a considerable distance to work. Many people live in single dwellings surrounded by a "garden" or in duplexes with at least pocket sized front and back gardens. It is not true of everyone but, for now, it is true of the majority. We have some "high rise" residential buildings but not nearly as many as there are in some parts of the world.

The UK is, for the most part, crowded, too crowded. A lot of people live in cities. They live in flats and terrace housing and other places, often high rise places, where they are very close together. They can't "get out" easily. They use more public transport than people here. By no means everyone has a garden. "Allotments" are still very sought after. A space to do some gardening is very important to many people but it isn't there outside the back door.

The USA is a mix of the two. There are many places where housing is very similar to Downunder. Then there are the cities where some people live in "apartments" of varying sizes and under varying conditions. So some people live closer together than others. The number of green spaces varies greatly. I don't know whether any state has the equivalent of allotments or our community gardens. I imagine there must be a few somewhere.  Americans have a long standing love affair with the car but there are still people in cities who don't have one and have to rely on public transport.

Health care in Downunder is the responsibility of each state, albeit with some federal funding. The states do work together up to a point and they have to work with the federal government over funding. A similar situation exists in the UK. England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all have their own health responsibilities. I still have my NHS number (and the card) and it would be activated if I went to the UK and needed medical attention because there are certain reciprocal arrangements between the UK and Downunder.  In the USA health care is, as I understand it, largely the responsibility of the states too but any similarities probably end there.

Now why am I saying all this. I am saying it because I think it is impossible to really compare what is happening with respect to the virus. Having said that I also believe that the USA is not doing nearly as well as the UK or Downunder in containing it.  I know there have been some serious (and sometimes justified) criticisms of the way the situation has been handled here as well as in the UK and Western Europe.  We need to remember that governments have never faced anything like this before. It can't be compared with "the Spanish 'flu" or "the SARS virus".  As well as the health issues there are economic issues. Trying to contain the pandemic and keep the economy going is an enormous challenge for all governments.

I shouldn't criticise any other country's government but I have to wonder at the USA. I am surprised there wasn't at least a brief lock down and orders issued about mask wearing - with the provision of masks for those unable to afford them.  Those two things alone might have helped. The first would have had an economic impact of course and the second would have cost something but by not doing those things the cost has been far higher. The UK has been distracted by Brexit or the virus has been distracting Brexit but, whatever my friends there might think of their leaders (and their opinions vary greatly) there have been much greater attempts to contain the spread there than in the USA.

There are things we should have done here. Yes, we had a lock down and that certainly helped in this state.  Our "hotel quarantine" program for returned overseas travellers was not well handled. It led to deaths because people who worked in it did not obey the rules. They weren't sufficiently well trained. That a state government has managed to survive this and still might win the next election puzzles me. But it seems to me the biggest problem here is now going to be complacency.  I had to go to the doctor yesterday. I've had telehealth appointments until now but, after twelve months, the law states my doctor needs to actually see me. Middle Cat had told me what to expect but... the situation had changed again. The waiting room is back - albeit with a fraction of the usual seating. And nobody, apart from me, walked in wearing a mask. The staff weren't wearing masks. The doctor actually told me to take mine off.

I am not sure about all this. It's confusing. I don't like being a confused cat. Isn't how we live day-to-day a weapon against the virus?