OT: What would covid-19 be like without the internet?

[Stylizer1]

What if this happened 25 years ago when the internet was in it's infancy?

Click to read more...

 

[Senscore]

Something more like 1919 imagine.

Although Blockbuster video would take over the earth.

 

[Adele Dazeem]

If it magically disappeared now? It would be mayhem.

If it[the internet] never existed, then not too bad, actually probably healthier.

 

[Beech]

stylizer..I have tracked this big time. I have done the math to a point where I feel 100% confident in it. Covid is real and is as deadly as they feared.

The UK as one of the better examples, experienced between 1.5 and 1.8% death rate in January and February. All of this, against the background of warnings and lock-downs and so on. If you are over the age of 60 or have morbidity issues, you have hidden like a rabbit being hunted by a fox. Less the internet and rapidly accessible information, the infection numbers and thus death numbers would have been 1919 like. A full 3% of society. Meaning in Canada, we would have by this time about 500,000 deaths (we are ~ 1/2 of the way of the 2 1/2 year total duration) ...we have 25,000. 1/20th. In fact, at times the death rate was closer to about 3.2-3.4%. And could have been in a nightmare scenario as high as 3.5-3.6%. At 3.6%, Canada could have lost 1.4 million people. We have ~ 5.7 million people older than 65 and those younger but with morbidity issues. This thing went at them at ~ 20%-22%. Luckily all the efforts meant that only about 100,000 of that high risk group got it. which should still leave us concerned, 5.6 million could still get it.

The internet prevented governments from hiding numbers, from lying and from having this thing be 20 times worse.

If the conspiracy theorist want something to focus in on..focus in on why the bleep the vaccine is dragging along and why are governments pushing delivery times back. If things goes any slower, a third wave will almost inevitably outpace the vaccination program.

 

[FunkySeeFunkyDoo]

What if this happened 25 years ago when the internet was in it's infancy?

I think there's two separate considerations here:
1) what if this happened 25 years ago
2) what if the Internet was in it's infancy or didn't exist when this happens

The distinction is important because the world was different 25 years ago in ways beyond just the non-existence of the Internet. Specifically, international travel was much less than today AND vaccine technology was far behind what it is today. These two things are important for obvious reasons.

If I had to speculate, I'd say that because of there being much less international travel, the virus would have been contained in a few geographic regions and we wouldn't have seen it become a worldwide pandemic.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

baby boom.... 2.0

 

[milkbag]

There would be alot less hoax and anti-vax stuff. It would still exist sure, but it'd be alot easier to tell them they're being unreasonable in person when they don't have an echo chamber validating their insane beliefs in the palms of their hands.

 

[FolignoQuantumLeap]

Radio and cable would be very popular.

 

[bicboi64]

Was talking to my gf about this. I'd be fine to just wait and get my vaccine because my day to day entertainment doens't rely on the internet (music, video games, reading, taking my dog on long arse walks). She said she'd be screwed cuz she lives off Youtube and can't imagine a world without the web. Being able to do my medical stuff via phone also helps

 

[SPF6ty9]

I'd be curious about the mental health toll it would take on people. At least the internet gives us something to do, we'd be so bored if this happened a few decades ago.

Also have to wonder if the visibility of the pandemic in today's day and age also had an effect on the strategy taken (maybe lesser lockdown policies would have been enacted back then).

I still think it's kind of crazy that 100 years later we're going to be stuck with Covid much longer than the Spanish Flu was a thing. That's definitely a function of many things, including the characteristics of the virus and globalization. But clearly the world was caught with their pants down on this one.

 

[Stylizer1]

There would be alot less hoax and anti-vax stuff. It would still exist sure, but it'd be alot easier to tell them they're being unreasonable in person when they don't have an echo chamber validating their insane beliefs in the palms of their hands.

would the government/media be able to exaggerate the problem more though?

 

[SensFactor]

Crime would be rampant. Including increased public intoxication.

 

[Adrianopolous]

There would be alot less hoax and anti-vax stuff. It would still exist sure, but it'd be alot easier to tell them they're being unreasonable in person when they don't have an echo chamber validating their insane beliefs in the palms of their hands.

I read somewhere that there's only like 6 or so accounts that are responsible for the vast majority of the anti vax messaging on the Internet. Not sure how this was uncovered to be honest but it says alot.

 

[DaveMatthew]

I'd be curious about the mental health toll it would take on people. At least the internet gives us something to do, we'd be so bored if this happened a few decades ago.

Also have to wonder if the visibility of the pandemic in today's day and age also had an effect on the strategy taken (maybe lesser lockdown policies would have been enacted back then).

I still think it's kind of crazy that 100 years later we're going to be stuck with Covid much longer than the Spanish Flu was a thing. That's definitely a function of many things, including the characteristics of the virus and globalization. But clearly the world was caught with their pants down on this one.

Without the internet (or without today's internet speeds) we never would have locked anything down.

Technology has made this a very convenient pandemic for large swaths of the population, especially the already affluent who are able to influence most policy decisions. They've been able to work from home, their investments have increased in value, their expenses have gone down, and they've been able to order all their essentials on Amazon. They're able to comfortably binge Netflix and shame "COVIDidiots" all the while ignoring that someone has to physically go to work at a warehouse for minimum wage, put their family at risk, so they can get dish soap and toilet paper delivered to their door every two weeks.

If you're a white collar worker who already owns a home with dedicated office space and have an investment account, COVID has been a boon for you.

And in full transparency, I'm one of the people who's benefited. It's why I try to hold off on judging people who need the economy to re-open, since they're often in a very different situation. Often times, the mindset is "the economy shouldn't take precedence... so long as I'm still doing well..."

 

[milkbag]

would the government/media be able to exaggerate the problem more though?

More than just through the TV? Sure, I guess.