Given the transmissibility of the delta variant “, and since only ~5% of the population is currently fully vaccinated, “Australia” is taking no chances! Approximately 12 million people (~50% of the population) is now is some form of lockdown…
Under the circumstances, this is an important step to keep the virus under control until vaccination rates increase; the vaccination issues in Australia are mainly the result of vaccine hesitancy; many people are unwilling to take the chance of blood clots associated with the available vaccine; the messaging from different “authority “sources is confusing people. The fact is that by objective measures, there are better and worse vaccines and people know which one is what.
Although lockdowns are necessary, they have had serious consequences both visible and invisible. Visibly, a stroll through some popular streets in Melbourne, and a cursory “head count”, highlights the devastating effects on many small businesses; in one popular spot ~30% of storefronts are empty, most with a “for lease sign”. Further, the mental health impacts associated with lockdowns, both from business and “social isolation” perspectives have been discussed very widely. It is devastating situation for many people, but lockdowns are necessary from a public health perspective.
Another observation is the rising costs of pretty much everything! Again, a cursory Google search confirms that it is not my imagination – this is exactly what we don’t need! Apart from everything, used car prices have surges to an all-time high; some claiming up to 35%! Apparently, this is due to a new car shortage caused by the pandemic. Anyway, I’ll stop writing about “economics” because I really have no idea … but all I know is my paying for stuff, and it’s annoying!
For now, over 3 billion vaccine doses have been administered worldwide and over 10% of the population has been fully vaccinated. This is a remarkable feat, but “if possible”, we have to be quicker all round – we already have dangerous variants and we don’t want to wait too long before an “escape” variant potentially emerges rendering the current vaccines ineffective.
In places like Australia where only small fractions of the population has been vaccinated, lockdowns remain an important measure to avoid a public health disaster.
Until next time …