THE DAWN OF DELTA

THE DAWN OF DELTA

Delta Dawn, what’s that flower you have on 
Could it be a faded rose from days gone by?

–Song lyrics

Just when you thought the COVID pandemic had run its course, the delta variant has raised its ugly head, especially among those unvaccinated.  It is mega-times more transmissible and has become the predominate strain in America.  Oh boy.

In my former home state of Missouri, the virus is surging in the Southwest part of the state around Springfield.  Hospitals have run out of ICU beds and are putting out calls to traveling nurses and PTs to come and help.  The problem is spreading up to the Kansas City area as well.  Nevertheless, Missourians have one of the lowest rates of vaccinations in the country.  The governor is holding onto the belief that shots are and individual responsibility, and that government can’t, or shouldn’t, mandate them.  Notwithstanding their previous positions, however, conservatives and right wing elected officials and commentators are now encouraging people to get shots. Even some FOX news pundits are now saying they believe in science.  Since when, and why now?

More Missouri news:  The people in the last election voted to expand health care coverage through Medicaid in the state by a large majority.  However, the Republican governor and legislature tried to block the will of the people by refusing to fund it.  Now the Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that government officials cannot block the will of the people and must fund the match that will draw down federal Medicaid dollars.  This means that about 270,000 Missourians will get health care coverage that currently don’t have any.  So Trumpians put that in your pipe and smoke it.  Apparently, elections have consequences.

Back to the dawn of delta.  There are now two Americas:  vaccinated and unvaccinated.  The pandemic is hitting unvaccinated the hardest, with close to 100% of the deaths among this group.   It is flowering among those who are vaccine resistant, a faded rose.  Some social media sites continue to promote conspiracy theories.  All I know is that there are a certain percentage of people who will not let scientific facts interfere with their opinions.  In the meantime, the cesspool of the unvaccinated will be a breeding ground for delta and other variants while the rest of us hunker down and try to avoid infection.