Long Live Federalism!

A Corona blog eight weeks in a row? Isn't that too much? Let my readers be my judges.

The Situation in Germany

Number of new coronavirus infections on a given day

Last Wednesday, Angela Merkel held a teleconference with Germany's governors to discuss further openings, given the observed decline in coronavirus infections. While the incidence per 100,000 inhabitants ranges from 335 in Bavaria to only 44 in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the governors would like to reopen social activities in their Länder (states) and, within their authority, at different speeds according to disease incidence.

Long live federalism, but if something goes "Corona" in one state, now its Landeschef (governor) is to blame.

 

The development of new coronavirus infections averaged over a week.

"We can say today that the first phase of the pandemic is behind us," the chancellor said, but she iterated, "We have to be aware that we are still at the beginning of the pandemic and that we will have to deal with this virus for a long time." And she added, "The new openings are a bold step."

While Merkel would have liked to march in step with Germany's governors, there is now a defined framework within which the states agreed to proceed with their opening strategies.

A hygienic measure executed in an exemplary manner: 
Professor Wieler is coughing in the crook of his arm 
during the RKI press conference last Monday.

This was agreed upon: While observing strict hygienic rules, all shops are allowed to open. Sports, training, and recreational sports in the open air without physical contact may resume. However, approval for large events should be delayed. This means that public festivals, major spectator sporting events, village and street festivals, concerts, marksmen's fairs, and funfairs will remain prohibited. In particular, the Bundesliga (professional soccer) will be played in empty stadiums, i.e., so-called ghost matches without fans. This will remain so until at least August 31. 

Daycare centers and public schools, which operate under state authority, will open hesitantly to begin with. They will work with small groups and possibly not fully open after the summer holidays. Too little is known about children as coronavirus carriers and transmitters, and then there are these disturbing reports about serious and strange illnesses in kids infected with SARS-CoV-2.

All children currently homeschooled will see a classroom before the summer holidays. Daycare centers will start taking children next week, focusing on families most in need. Residents in nursing and care homes can receive visits only from one designated person.

The Magic 50

Finally, the chancellor and the governors agreed on an emergency brake. Should the rate of infections in a district or district-free city exceed an Obergrenze (upper limit) of 50 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants, averaged over seven days, restrictive measures will be reinstated, or even local lockdowns will be imposed.

"If something happens locally, we won't wait until it has spread through the whole republic, but we will act locally," Merkel said.

 

This built-in emergency brake of 50 had to be pulled in three regions before the weekend: The number of new infections surpassed critical levels in the district of Greiz in eastern Thuringia (74.4), the community of Coesfeld in North Rhine-Westphalia (76.4), and the district of Steinburg in Schleswig-Holstein (62.4).

 

The first mention of the village Lederhose in the Greiz district appears in a Latin document dated October 18, 1287, but the settlement of Slavic people is older. The name has nothing to do with leather pants but originates from the Slavic name Ludorad. Ludoraz is the place where Ludorad dwelt.

All recent COVID-19 outbreaks are confined within their districts. In the first case, it is a nursing home (again!), while the two others are Fleischfabriken (meatpacking plants) that were promptly closed. The Bulgarian and Romanian workers are under quarantine.

According to Green Party whip, the Bavarian Anton Hofreiter (Court Rider), "The increased incidence of Corona infections among slaughterhouse employees in North Rhine-Westphalia is a clear indication of the abuses in this industry." He continued grumbling, "Corona reveals the untenable conditions in some slaughterhouses. Even before the crisis, it was known how bad hygiene is in many companies. This is also due to the deplorable housing and working conditions - from poor equipment to exploitative working hours."

Waiting for the Second Wave

In the press conference of the Robert-Koch Institute last Thursday, Professor Schaade warned, "A second wave is expected. Although the situation in Germany is currently under control, with declining Covid-19 incidence rates, we cannot rule out a new spread, e.g., from outside. We must remain vigilant."

However, Germany's test capacity reached 964,000 tests per week, of which only 317,000 were used last week, with just 3.8% positive. Besides, there is no national shortage of ICU beds.

We also may hope that the much-feared second wave will be less devastating because doctors have learned how to treat COVID-19 patients.

There Is No Glory in Prevention

©BZ

An anti-vaxxer (Impfgegner) is protesting alongside others in a strange alliance. Those few right- or left-wingers, constitution defenders, freedom fighters, 5G opponents, and crackpots had no problem keeping their distance in front of Freiburg's town hall. The anti-vaxxer's message was poorly presented. The man will be charged with showing a Nazi symbol.

The opponents of the extended lockdown argue, "It is about to ruin our social, cultural, and economic life, so we must get out of it as quickly as possible. COVID-19 is no more dangerous to the population than influenza if certain risk groups and people over 65 years of age are specifically protected against infection."

This comparison is deceptive, for contrary to the Coronavirus, there is a basic immunity to influenza in the world population. While a new pandemic like the Spanish flu is extremely unlikely, we still know next to nothing about the new Coronavirus.

The opponents continue, "Elderly, sick, and otherwise high-risk people must wear special masks and observe distance rules, as must geriatric nurses and hospital staff. All others must practice 'Smart Distancing': Simple masks, distance in public transport, and when shopping."

Virus News

It is becoming apparent that the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 requires a virus load as presented by billowing aerosols in enclosed premises during long carnival sessions, in singing beer halls, and in poorly ventilated polling stations (wasn't it cold in Wisconsin on election day?).

The Heinsberg investigation clearly shows that people with severe symptoms of Covid-19 had been sitting particularly close together, talking and singing loudly, thus releasing many droplets into the air through which the virus is transmitted.

Consequently, Lithuanian officials are closing streets to allow restaurants and bars to offer extended outdoor-only service.

Lufthansa Too Big to Fail?

While passenger traffic on U.S. airlines is down 95 percent compared to the same period last year, it is down to less than 1 % for Germany's Lufthansa.

The difference is explained by the fact that, in the United States, the bulk of air traffic is domestic, whereas Lufthansa made money from its worldwide connections.

 

Grounded in Frankfurt ©Der Spiegel

The pandemic shook the airline. It grounded 700 of its 763 aircraft and parked many that were no longer needed on the third runway at Frankfurt's International Airport.

© AP

Instead of kerosene, Lufthansa now burns about one million euros per hour. The proud German crane is mothballed. 

The future of Lufthansa oscillates between bankruptcy and a government bailout using taxpayers' money. The airline's new flotilla needs downsizing, but who around the globe will buy even well-maintained planes?

Dystopic Cruises

Kreuzfahrten have become extremely popular in Germany in recent years. They exude international flair via "alcohol-impregnated" people of numerous nationalities mingling on their way to exotic places.

It turned out that cruises were ideal breeding grounds for spatially contained outbreaks of Corona. Ships were desperately trying to reach any port to land their passengers. Who would like to live through such a nightmare again?

Here is the translation of a paragraph from the daily blog Elbvertiefung by the weekly Die Zeit: "How the cruise industry is doing in Corona times can be studied by looking at water faucets. There are thousands of faucets installed on every ship: in cabins, kitchens, and sports clubs. There are more than 400 cruise ships worldwide, most of which now bob up and down without guests, resulting in more than one million unused faucets. Like the ships, the faucets are built to be used constantly; otherwise, Legionella bacteria may thrive in the pipes. That is why workers now have to turn the faucets on and off. Ship after ship. Cabin by cabin. Week after week. Until Corona is over. Until the borders open again. Until guests are allowed on board again. Until things return to how they were when the cruise boom seemed like a fairy tale."

While the famous Meyer shipyard in Papenburg "fears" that no more cruise ships will be ordered for a long time, the Flensburg-based shipbuilder FSG has filed for insolvency.

That's Science or Virologists Quarrel

is not a quarrel but a scientific disputation frequently misinterpreted by laypersons, "This morning, Professor X said this, but in the afternoon, Professor Y told us that." This only means that research on coronavirus is in progress, and the statement "We don't know" would frequently be appropriate in discussions among experts.

Currently, public criticism against scientists is growing. People demand clear recommendations, even though many research projects on the Coronavirus are far from complete.

If the experts revise their opinions as new studies yield further knowledge, people don't understand and freak out: "None of the virologists have a clue!" Even the mood of reasonable people will shift from rational to emotional.

Freiburg

The plague was a permanent guest in Europe, in Italy as recently as 1945, becoming "virulent" at times.

Wikipedia states, "The Black Death most likely originated in Central Asia or East Asia, from where it traveled along the Silk Road, reaching Crimea by 1347. From there, it was most likely carried by fleas living on the black rats that traveled on Genoese merchant ships ..."

 

Dr. Beak of Rome in his protective equipment
(©Alte Volkstrachten.de)

Doctors attributed the Black Death to harmful vapors and protected themselves accordingly. Nowadays, we know that Yersinia pestis is a bacterium transmitted to humans and other mammals by carrier fleas.

 

©Münsterbauverein

The Münsterbauverein published the picture of a medieval gargoyle at the Minster church wearing a Mundabdeckung (mouth cover). Such half-protection, frequently seen on Freiburg's streets, was useless then due to the plague's infectious nature. It is futile now, too, because SARS-CoV-2 predominantly settles in the nasal mucosa.

 

Although people of the Middle Ages were more religious than the enlightened citizens of the 21st century, they did not invoke God to be exempted from wearing masks.

 

Before	After

On the lighter side. Here is my haircut on Tuesday. Do you see any difference?

CERN

As the traffic light illustrates, I am happy to see my former employer resuming work.

Fridays for Future Revisited

Behind a rainwater downspout, a forgotten cardboard sign with a cryptic message written by young people, "We do not learn for a ruined future."

Are they addressing the coronavirus pandemic or the changing climate? Do they learn at all in homeschooling?

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