State of the Pandemic

The media is back in panic mode with the advent of the Omicron variant, but preliminary information from doctors who have actually treated it is that it follows the typical pattern of viral evolution and is less pernicious than the original. The Delta variant is clearly part of that pattern, in that deaths from the virus are less common with that variant than with the original. At this point in California:

1.2% of people who become ill from the virus die from it. That sounds a bit dire, but it turns out that one is very unlikely to become ill.

3.0% of people who are tested for the virus test positive.

That means that 0.036% (less than 4 of 10,000) who are tested will die.

0.04% per year, (4 of 10,000) is the percentage of California's population who will suffer death from the virus. Per year.

Are we over-reacting?

Weirdness

The San Diego Union Tribune is raving about trolley ridership taking "a jump" (increasing) after the new Blue Line extension was opened on Sunday. Why would it not? At the time this astonishing news was first published the new extension had been open for all of one day, and MTS offered free rides on the extension for that day, which was a Sunday.

I can't wait to see what the numbers will be on a weekday, when they are charging regular fares to ride the new extension.

San Diego Crazy

San Diego has its own form of crazy. Some of it is the California influence, but we have our own individual touch that we add to it.

 

A young woman just went past my window jogging with her dog. It is, as is usual for this time of year, a gray, cool morning. So she was wearing a down-filled parka, zipped up, with the hood up and tied around her face. She was also wearing short shorts and flip flops.