That article you linked is the sort of thing that makes me gnash my teeth. And it’s not at all unusual in the way it’s written. My beefs are as follows: there’s no attempt to compare to other viral illnesses that can increase the risk of stroke in young people (see the link in my post above). The whole thing mentions other symptoms like the incidence of heart arrythmias in ICU COVID patients, but doesn’t compare them to the incidence of heart arrythmias in ICU patients in general. There is no context into which to put the numbers.

The article refers to a study this:

A study in 15 medical centres over three weeks found 40 per cent of LVO admissions were in COVID-19 patients under 50 – the average age for the severe stroke is 74.

That’s a startling number. But there is no link to the study. I’ve been unable to find it, although I assume it exists. Why no link?

More:

One of the medics behind the latest US study, Dr Thomas Oxley, said that over the last 12 months, the Mount Sinai Hospital had treated just an average of 0.73 LVO patients under the age of 50.

That’s fewer than two people a month, stark contrast to the five they have treated in the last two weeks.

The neurosurgeon said all five patients were in their 30s and 40s, and either had mild or no symptoms of the infection.

And even though that gives some numbers, the numbers are inadequate to tell us what is really happening.

For example, during those 12 months, were there spikes in the cases that resembled the current spike? There was a average of 2 a month, but was that just an average? Plus, COVID has been going on for quite some time now. Is this 10 in 2 weeks spike typical? Has that been happening right along? Or is it just the past 2 weeks?

The reporter doesn’t even seem curious about such things.

To compare Sweden with Michigan seems bizarre to me because they are so very unalike in so many ways. Just to take one example, the black population of Sweden is very small, whereas the black population of Michigan is large. We know that for a number of reasons (probably mostly a high number of pre-existing conditions that increase vulnerability), black people are dying in higher percentages from COVID-19 than white people.

And that’s just one difference, but it’s a difference that could make a big difference.

The better comparison is of Sweden with Norway. You can see that the Swedish death rate per million is 225, whereas in Norway it’s 38. In Michigan it’s 342.

The population density of Sweden is 64 people per square mile, and for Michigan it’s 177 per square mile. You can see the difficulty here with any attempt to compare Sweden and Michigan.

No, no, and no.

The definition of “unique”:

Definition of unique

1 : being the only one : sole

2. a. being without a like or equal : unequaled

b : distinctively characteristic

c : able to be distinguished from all others of its class or type

3. unusual

Note these usage examples at the link, for definition #3:

–a very unique ball-point pen
–we were fairly unique

A virus has many many characteristics. How “unique” it actually is depends either on its being unusual and/or different in a great number of characteristics, or utterly unique in one very important characteristic.

Of course something can be “more unique.”

If one thing is 1:1,000 and another is 1:100 the first is more unique than the second.

Officials Have Inflated COVID-19 Death Count

Pennsylvania has had to remove hundreds of coronavirus deaths from its official death count [last] week, following questions of accuracy and highlighted discrepancies by area coroners.

The PA health department decided to include “probable” coronavirus deaths, or an assumed COVID-19-related death without testing for the virus, to their death tolls, dating back days and even weeks ago. …

Health Secretary Rachel Levine, who decided to include “probable deaths” in the department’s total count, acknowledged to the Philadelphia Inquirer that such deaths may change over time.

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As noted by The Daily Wire last week, New York City is also including untested patients into their COVID-19 death totals: “New York City added a huge number of deaths to the total number of deaths caused by the coronavirus after deciding to include over 3,700 victims who had not tested positive for the virus but were presumed to have the virus because of their symptoms and medical history.”

Earlier this month, White House coronavirus task force leader Dr. Deborah Birx explained that COVID-19 deaths in the United States have “very liberal” recording guidance, noting that anyone who tests positive for the virus and dies would be included in their numbers of coronavirus deaths.

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i guess he will be upset not enough are dying to make his idea right..

Northam (D) shared the “blueprint” to reopen Virginia on Friday, dubbed the “Forward Virginia Blueprint,” which outlines a phased approach to reopening the state…

Phase One involves the reopening of certain businesses deemed “nonessential,” requiring them to comply with stringent safety guidelines. …

State Health Commissioner Norman Oliver claimed the first phase could span two years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/View_of_the_World_from_9th_Avenue

I think someone already quoted it here, and I forget which pundit originally stated it (and I forget the actual state and blight used in the example), but to paraphrase:

If there were a corn borne pestilence infecting 20% of the good folks in Iowa, and killing 5% of those infected, do you think for one minute anyone in New York would tolerate shuttering Broadway, or Tavern on the Green, or MoMA? Or would they have a single complaint if the NYPD put cars at the heads of the tunnels and bridges to turn back vehicles with Iowa plates, or shut down all incoming flights from Iowa at Kennedy and LaGuardia?