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In July, we recorded the largest monthly increase in new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infections since the beginning of the pandemic. In early August, the Ministry of Health reported the highest daily number of new cases – 843. Already 20 million people have been infected worldwide. A journalist of the weekly “Sieci” referred to the subject of the COVID-19 pandemic. The cover of the latest issue is controversial and aroused a wave of comments, also among doctors and scientists.
- The cover of the weekly magazine “Sieci” attracts with the question: “Is this a false pandemic?”. Inside there is an article by Maciej Pawlicki “The Second Wave of Hysteria”
- The journalist wrote, inter alia, that «95 percent COVID is a fake »
- The article is widely commented on by the media, doctors, scientists and politicians
- Researchers from the Polish Academy of Sciences emphasize that there are no scientific grounds to deny the existence of the coronavirus. Minister Szumowski says directly about the author of the cover: “If someone sees such conspiracies, you should think about your mental health”
“Is this a false pandemic?”
The question that appeared on the cover of the weekly “Sieci” is not a new one. The more we know about the COVID-19 pandemic and the longer it lasts, the more theories about its falsehood emerge. Under almost every article about the coronavirus, you can read comments that the pandemic does not exist, that it is a government invention or a way to forcibly vaccinate everyone.
By August 10, over 20 million cases of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection had been reported worldwide. More than 750 people have died from COVID-19 and complications caused by the disease (Recall: Death from the coronavirus. How is the cause of death determined?). In Poland, the number of infections has exceeded 50 and the number of deaths has exceeded 1,8. In July, we recorded the highest monthly increase in new infections in our country. It is the beginning of August and a record has been broken (which will probably be broken) – 843 infections.
Asking the question “is the pandemic false?” seems controversial in the context of this data. This question is an announcement of the article entitled “Second phase of hysteria” written by Maciej Pawlicki.
Based on graphs showing the number of COVID-19 deaths in recent months in Italy, Germany, Great Britain, France, Spain and Sweden, Pawlicki concludes that instead of a second wave of the pandemic, there has been a second wave of hysteria, “which part of the media, some politicians and numerous pharmaceutical lobbyists are trying to unleash again ».
He also points out that journalists use the terms “number of infections” and “number of sick people” interchangeably, as if they meant the same thing. «It has been known for several months that the number of” infected “is directly proportional to the number of tests performed. In other words – the more tests we perform, the more infections we find »writes Pawlicki. He also adds that “it is impossible to go through acute respiratory system inflammation asymptomatically. So 95 percent. ‘getting sick’ with COVID is a fake ».
The Ministry of Health, in its daily announcements, which we provide you on a regular basis, provides the daily number of new infections with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. It also gives the number of deaths. However, it does not provide statistics on symptomatic or asymptomatic transmission of the infection. It is estimated that up to 80 percent. those who are infected may not have symptoms of infection. Does that mean there’s nothing to be afraid of? Not completely. Asymptomatic, those infected continue to infect and pose a threat to those around them.
“The more tests we do, the more infections we find” – writes Pawlicki. President Donald Trump recently spoke in a similar vein, who even said that he would instruct his subordinates to perform fewer tests (See: Trump confirms that he ordered slower tests to reduce the number of new coronavirus cases). When controlling epidemics, it is not the number of tests performed alone that is important (although the more tested the society, the better), but the percentage of positive test results in the total number of tests. However, these data also need to be properly interpreted.
– In order to draw any conclusions from such data, one would still need to know who is subjected to these tests. If these are only people who have already been admitted to the hospital with suspected SARS-CoV2 infection or are already in a serious condition, then it is obvious that the percentage of positive tests will be much higher – said in an interview with concrete24.pl virologist from the University of Oxford Emilia Skirmuntt .
In Poland, people with the so-called coronavirus outbreaks, therefore the percentage of positive tests is higher. And this means nothing more or less, only that there are still a lot of people in Poland who are infected with the coronavirus.
The entire article is available online, in a paid subscription.
The COVID-19 team at the Polish Academy of Sciences addressed the issue of denying the existence of the pandemic. In a statement issued on Friday (7.08/XNUMX), the researchers wrote that “Widespread negation of significant health risks, especially in the context of the observed disregard for the use of methods of protection against infection, may significantly contribute to a further increase in the number of cases and its serious consequences”. The researchers also stressed that there is no scientific evidence whatsoever to deny the virus’s existence, pathogenicity and the effects of infection.
Maciej Duszczyk, Vice-Rector for Research at the University of Warsaw, also referred to the question that appeared on the cover of “Sieci”. In a Twitter post, he expressed outrage at “innuendo and questioning of scientific facts.”
Health Minister Łukasz Szumowski also spoke about the cover of the “Sieci” weekly in Polish Radio: – I have the impression that someone is writing a fantasy book here. (…) It is a bit offensive to the memory of, for example, over 1800 people who died. Let me remind you that in the flu season, the flu is not so brutal. When someone sees such conspiracies, you should rethink your mental health.
It is also worth quoting the words lek. Łukasz Durajski, who tried to explain the principle of thinking about a pandemic:
– People in Poland think this way: my family is healthy and that’s it. She is healthy and will always be. This virus does not concern us – says Durajski. – Besides, we do not see the scale of the epidemic tangibly. We don’t see the disease, we don’t see the virus. Until someone close to me dies, why should I worry about it? I meet people who ask me: “Doctor, does he believe in this virus at all?” I always reply then: “I don’t have to believe, I saw these patients!”
Check the current epidemic situation in Poland:
- New SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infections. Current map
- 843: new infected record. «We are at war with the coronavirus. During the war, no one thinks about having a grand wedding celebration »
- Nobody noticed the suspicious number of tests in the province. Świętokrzyskie? We’ve been asking about them for several weeks