Social distancing is actually an ancient idea. Let's learn from history. From its wiki: "Social distancing measures date back to at least the
fifth century BCE. The Bible contains one of the earliest known references to the practice in the
Book of Leviticus 13:46: 'And the leper in whom the plague is...he shall dwell alone; [outside] the camp shall his habitation be.'"
Social distancing was a big deal in the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-9. We should learn from it and not repeat the same mistakes. Again, from the wiki:
"In modern times, social distancing measures have been successfully implemented in several previous epidemics.
In St. Louis, shortly after the first cases of
influenza were detected in the city during the
1918 flu pandemic,
authorities implemented school closures, bans on public gatherings and other social distancing interventions. The case fatality rates in St. Louis were much less than in Philadelphia, which despite having cases of influenza, allowed a mass parade to continue and did not introduce social distancing until more than two weeks after its first cases."
"During the
influenza pandemic of 1918, Philadelphia saw its first cases of influenza on 17 September. The city continued with its planned parade and gathering of more than 200000 people and over the subsequent three days, the city's 31 hospitals became fully occupied. Over one week, 4500 people died. Social distancing measures were introduced on 3 October, on the orders of
St. Louis physician
Max C. Starkloff, more than two weeks after the first case. Unlike Philadelphia,
St. Louis experienced its first cases of influenza on 5 October and the city took two days to implement several social distancing measures, including closing schools, theatres, and other places where people get together. It banned public gatherings, including funerals. The actions slowed the spread of influenza in St. Louis and a spike in cases and deaths, as had happened in Philadelphia, did not occur. The final death rate in St. Louis increased following a second wave of cases, but remained overall less than in other cities. Bootsma and
Ferguson analyzed social distancing interventions in sixteen U.S. cities during the 1918 epidemic and found that
time-limited interventions reduced total mortality only moderately (perhaps 10–30%), and that the impact was often very limited because the interventions were introduced too late and lifted too early. It was observed that several cities experienced a second epidemic peak after social distancing controls were lifted, because susceptible individuals who had been protected were now exposed."
"Passenger without mask being refused boarding of a streetcar (Seattle, Washington, 1918):"
en.wikipedia.org
www.cnbc.com
