More than 1,000 people each day are dying in the U.S. from the coronavirus. 

Countries in Southeast Asia are doing much better:  Taiwan, which is next to China, has had seven deaths.  South Korea, with 51 million people, has had a total of
310 deaths. Hong Kong has had a total of 81 deaths.  Germany, with strong leadership and a nonprofit health system, has had
9,352 deaths. Italy, with a haphazard approach to the virus, has had 35,000 deaths.

The countries mentioned in Asia have free tests for anyone that wants the COVID-19 test. They get the results in three hours with a
95 percent accuracy and it the test is positive the person is isolated and people they came in contact with identified. 

President Trump thought the pandemic was fake news until he heard it on Fox News and even today the federal government does not have a national pandemic plan.

Countries in Southeast Asia had pandemic plans from the 2003 SARS virus so when they heard rumors that a new virus was on the loose in China, they put the pandemic plans in effect. Today their schools are open and their businesses are operating almost back to normal.

President Trump subscribes to the neoconservative view that government is no good and corporations can do everything better than the government. When neocons hire people for government they hire people from corporations that are biased, favoring corporations. Drug companies see the pandemic as a fabulous money-making opportunity.

Conservative Republicans today are promoting corporatism: Government of corporations, by corporations and for corporations. Corporations and the U.S. government are promoting vaccines because that is where the money is.  There have been effective treatments developed.  

As a public service I have put some effective treatments on my website, www.porttownsendthinktank.org.

Wear a mask, practice social distancing and listen to the health department.

James Fritz
PORT TOWNSEND