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Woodstock Occurred in the Middle of a Pandemic that killed 100,000 Americans - There Were No Shutdowns, No Government Legislation, No Bailouts

Posted by freedomforall 3 years, 7 months ago to Politics
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"Lifespan in the US in those days was 70 whereas it is 78 today. Population was 200 million as compared with 328 million today. It was also a healthier population with low obesity. If it would be possible to extrapolate the death data based on population and demographics, we might be looking at a quarter million deaths today from this virus. So in terms of lethality, it was as deadly and scary as COVID-19 if not more so, though we shall have to wait to see.

“In 1968/69,” says Nathaniel L. Moir in National Interest, “the H3N2 pandemic killed more individuals in the U.S. than the combined total number of American fatalities during both the Vietnam and Korean Wars.”

And this happened in the lifetimes of every American over 52 years of age.

I was 5 years old and have no memory of this at all. My mother vaguely remembers being careful and washing surfaces, and encouraging her mom and dad to be careful. Otherwise, it’s mostly forgotten today. Why is that?

Nothing was closed by force. Schools mostly stayed open. Businesses did too. You could go to the movies. You could go to bars and restaurants. John Fund has a friend who reports having attended a Grateful Dead concert. In fact, people have no memory or awareness that the famous Woodstock concert of August 1969 – planned in January during the worse period of death – actually occurred during a deadly American flu pandemic that only peaked globally six months later. There was no thought given to the virus which, like ours today, was dangerous mainly for a non-concert-going demographic."

All Comments

  • Posted by $ 25n56il4 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Had the flu 4 more times (once while my x2 was in Viet Nam for the 2nd time0. They wanted to bring him home and I said, 'Don't you dare, he only has 5-1/2 months left on this third tour of duty.
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  • Posted by mccannon01 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I think it would be a hoot having Trump over for dinner. Biden is just plain creepy and can stay out on the lawn - hopefully in the snow.
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  • Posted by mccannon01 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    My story is a bit odd, but here it is: In the summer of '69 I graduated from HS out of the 11th grade (never had a senior year) at the age of 17. I remember Woodstock well, but can't remember a thing about any pandemic.

    I went to my dad (RIP), who was an end of WWII marine, and asked for his blessing for me to join the Marine Corps as he had done. He surprised me by suddenly poking me painfully in the chest - as only he could do - and shouted, "BOY YOU'RE A GODDAMNED FOOL! YOU DON'T KNOW SHIT!". Then he stepped back, crossed his arms, stared me in the eyes and very calmly said, "Wait until you're 18, then decide and do as you wish." Well, I went to work and the following March I turned 18, signed up for the draft and waited to get called. Thoughts of joining the Corps were eclipsed by the ladies, motorcycles, beer, and rock 'n roll - didn't do drugs. I pulled a 341 in Nixon's lottery and fate never destined me for the military (side note: My older brother pulled a 365).
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  • Posted by term2 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    This election is driving me nuts. I will be happy when its OVER. If trump wins, and repubs get both houses of congress, we get 4 years of repreive from our government. If trump wins and dems get both houses, we get s couple of months until he gets impeached and we get the 4 years of pence (not too bad). If Trump wins and repubs keep senate but lose house, we have another impeachment that wont go anywhere. If repubs keep house but lose senate, I think that eliminates the impeachment thing, but would eliminate confirming Barrett to SCOTUS if she doesnt make it before January..
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  • Posted by term2 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I was going to depart to Canada if they called for me. I wasnt going to some god forsaken rice paddy to satisfy our government's crazy war. As it was, they stopped the draft just before my number came up to report for "duty".
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  • Posted by $ allosaur 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Inspired by a movie title six times worse shortly after the flick came out, I once wrote on this board that I was "Two Years A Slave." Recall lots of Marine enlistees doing 4 years having bad attitudes back then--especially those back from Nam. That "Thank you for your service" nicety came along way after that nasty undeclared war. The only time I had no choice to wear a uniform home when on leave (everyone's civilian stuff got shipped home from Parris Island), I got sneered at in the Atlanta airport. At least no hippy girls were throwing doggie poo at me.
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  • Posted by freedomforall 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    As you said, it wasn't politicized and those 116k deaths were from the virus not from a dozen or more co-morbidities - counted as COVID to get more federal money. That flu could well have been more dangerous than COVID19 even though the number who died was arguably lower.
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  • Posted by term2 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    we are getting incomplete information designed to prolong the shutdown. I really wonder if after Nov4, things with coronavirus magically inprove a lot
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  • Posted by freedomforall 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I got through it on luck; I drew a high number in the draft lottery. My business partner was in AF in Viet Nam servicing jet fighters. His hearing is only good to about 5kHz as a result. Most people can hear 13kHz to 20kHz on the high frequency side, so he has lost about 2 octaves of high frequencies. At that he was lucky that was his only injury.
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  • Posted by freedomforall 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That must be true. Most states are not making an effort to account for recoveries accurately. Not to say that they are accurately counting ANYTHING.
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  • Posted by lrshultis 3 years, 6 months ago
    I was 17 when the Asian flu of 1957-1958 hit and kill about 116000 Americans. There was no panic because it was not politicized. The population was 180 million which would give about
    328/180*116000=211377 deaths with today's population.
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  • Posted by term2 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I am happy I didnt have to go through the draft nonsense. The draft is unconstitutionally mandates slavery, pure and simple.
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  • Posted by GaryL 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Growing up in a small village outside of Monticello, NY the drugs had not yet arrived here in 1968-69. Being 17 and dorky getting girls was just a dream. I was already signed up for the USN as soon as I graduated so that summer was my breakout. You didn't miss anything at the festival IMHO because it really was quite the disaster overall. Rain, wet, mud, no food or water, massive crowds of the strangest people I had ever encountered and basically pretty miserable. We walked back home after the second day and it took the county better than 3 weeks to get all the abandoned cars off the roads. My dad missed 4 days of work because every road was a parking lot and they just left their cars and walked the last 15 or so miles. Virus, what Virus???
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  • Posted by freedomforall 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I did a protest vote (Libertarian) last time when I was sure it didn't matter in my state. This time it probably matters.
    Still looking at sailing craft and overseas property in case.
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  • Posted by DrZarkov99 3 years, 6 months ago
    I have an iron constitution, so my bout with the Hong Kong flu lasted less than 72 hours, and was no more obnoxious than a mild cold, but it was devastating to many others around me, taking them out of work for a couple of weeks. I suspect we will discover that there are many who've experienced the COVID virus with little effect, compared to the very few who've had life threatening experiences.
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  • Posted by $ Thoritsu 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Agreed. One of them may be wasting their vote, like me, attempting to move the needle in a state that hasn't voted R since Regan.
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  • Posted by freedomforall 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    During Woodstock, I was busy working at a summer job before my HS senior year. The warehouse guys only talked about getting girls, getting high, or getting drafted. The latter was the worry then, not any virus. I don't recall anyone that I knew being sick with it, but it was 51 years ago and the virus wasn't of any importance to us then. I was more concerned with getting A's so I could get into a good college. I was a pretty naive guy. ;^)
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  • Posted by GaryL 3 years, 6 months ago
    April of 1969 me and my brother and sister all had the flu. Mom was a nurse for the town doctor and brought it home to all of us. We did have two young kids in town die from it but to be honest they were rather sickly children to begin with. Brother and I got over it in just a few days and sister took a bit longer. Neither mom or dad got it and none of my adult aunts or uncles either, just the kids mostly. The Woodstock festival was just 15 minutes up the road from me and I don't recall any such pandemic ever even mentioned while I was there. Lots of sick kids but almost all from bad drugs, heavy partying or nasty weather and other crappy conditions. My school never closed except for feet of snow and I would venture a guess if there was another woodstock today even close to the size of the 1969 festival there would be bodies stacked like cord wood from opioid overdoses and fentynal.
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  • Posted by $ Thoritsu 3 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Precisely!

    But unfortunately many people look at the decision as "Which one would I rather have over for dinner" and "Who is nice" ("nice" being a cursory facade).

    The choice is clear, but some months ago a drawn out argument ensued right here, with pin heads deriding Trump as if there were a real option who was "perfect". I'm still waiting for these ivory tower dingbats to re emerge, and admit how spiteful and wrong they were, but I doubt their strength of character.
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  • Posted by Ben_C 3 years, 6 months ago
    I had the Hong Kong Flu (H3N2) during the last weeks of my professional training in December of 1968. I took my state board exams to become licensed in Michigan with the flu. It was a two day exam multiple choice test with an oral component as well. I would answer a few questions, blow my nose, cough up some mucous, then answer a few more questions - then repeat. The oral part was brief - the examiner declared "you look like you don't feel well." I squeaked out "yes, I feel like crap." He gave me an easy question and I left to resume the multiple choice part. Bottom line: no shut downs, no panic in the streets, no political BS. Life continued on and it was ok. I passed the exam and entered the real world Jan 2nd, 1969 having recovered from the flu and never looked looked back.
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