Folks, the Cleveland County School Board announced at 5:00 PM Sunday, during an Emergency Meeting, that they were closed for education business beginning Monday Morning for an unknown length of time. All CCS will be doing for now is providing drive-in takeout meals at 23 Schools for all persons 18 years old and younger for the duration of the Shutdown. Superintendent Stephen Fisher stated Governor Roy Cooper made him do it because of the Coronaviruas epidemic. After the meeting I asked Dr. Fisher how many confirmed cases of Coronavires there was in Cleveland County? Fisher was unusually hostile, saying that was not any of his or my business. I polled as many school board members as I could catch up with and asked the same question. School Board members Shearra Miller, Richard Hooker, Dena Green, Danny Blanton and Roger Harris all confirmed that they were not aware of one single case of Coronavirus in Cleveland County at the present time.
For those wanting more details, You are advised to go to the Cleveland County Schools Website for information. As plans seem to be changing minute by minute, that is all I will say. Or you can read the Shelby Star’s “Report in Pictures” to see if you can make any sense out of that. I can’t
Now, let’s look at the situation while we still have some sense!!!
Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a new mutation of the Coronavirus organism. According to the Center for Disease Control, there are now seven varieties of Coronavirus that affect humans. Some not so serious and some are serious. COVID-19 is the most serious, as of now, because it is new and has no vaccine.
COVID-19 first appeared in China several months ago and killed at an alarming rate. Lessons learned from China is the alarming death rate was in large part caused by the new disease not being properly diagnosed and people going to the hospital with advanced cases and the doctors not knowing how to treat the new disease.
The large kill rate set off panics everywhere in China and around the world. The disease spread fast too.
But, as the Chinese doctors zeroed in on what was happening, urged victims with certain symptoms to report for treatment quickly, the death rate in China dropped like a rock. Even as Chinese Healthcare facilities were initially overwhelmed. People with high fever could be identified and quarantined mor isolated to slow the progress of the highly contagious COVID-19 disease.
More evaluation in China and now elsewhere shows that, of all of the deaths, nobody under 30 years of age died or suffered life-threatening symptoms from the coronavirus. And school age kids almost seemed immune from the disease although they could possibly be carriers of the disease. Not so for older people. 60 plus and the COVID-19 had the worst effects. After 60, the threat of death increased significantly. As with the Flu, pneumonia and other illnesses. Strokes, heart attacks, pancreatic cancer and such. Smoking-lung cancer and the list goes on.
So, why close schools when school children are not much affected by a bout of coronavirus???
POLITICS have gotten involved and the Democrats in America almost immediately blamed President Trump. For everything. When Trumped blocked immigration of Chinese early on, the Democrats called Trump a racist and Xenophobic. Let’s not forget that when Trump wanted to build a wall to secured our borders, all the vile names President Trump was called. And more. Not, Trump is blamed for letting the coronavirus come into the US when the Democrats were fighting for open borders. This would be a hoot if the chaos going on now was less serious.
But the name calling is close to laughable compared with the rest of what is going on. The economy, based on Wall Street antics appears to be collapsing. But, considering that Wall Street makes just as much when stocks go down as when they go up, and the large scandals from Wall Street over the years, it is just as likely that the stock market is being manipulated for large profits on a falling market as not. And then make more money when the stock market rebounds. Fast or slow.
Now, consider what is happening closer to home. Not Washington State, not Wall Street, not Washington DC, not Raleigh, not Charlotte, not Gastonia either. but right here in Cleveland County. And, just like the whole of West Virginia; we have not one confirmed case of the COVID-19 coronavirus. So, even though our Democrat Governor and Democrat controlled School Board shut down Cleveland County Schools anyway, we actually have a little bit of time to think about all that is going on around us-here in Cleveland County.
Life Expectancy in Cleveland County: 74.8 years. In US: 79 years
• Since I am 73, I have around 21 MONTHS left on my life expectancy. But I have already lost four years for living in Cleveland County. Soon, I will be living on borrowed time. Coronavirus or not.
• According to the Shelby Star’s recent article about increasing crime rates in Shelby and the death rates due to coronavirus in my age group, I am probably more likely to be killed by traffic accidents, the flu, and violent crime than for the coronavirus.
• If YOU are 30 or below, you have virtually no chance of dying because of the coronavirus. And YOU are more likely to die of old age, traffic accidents, the flu and violent crimes. Just like me.
• If YOU are between 30 and 73, YOU too are more likely to be killed by old age, traffic accidents, the flu and violent crimes than the Coronavirus. Just like me.