Nolte: More COVID-19 Testing Means More Infections, Means More Fake News

A nurse holds a swab at a drive-up coronavirus testing station at Harborview Medical Cente
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren

The most useless metric in America today is “new coronavirus cases.” Nevertheless, the fake news media are using this useless metric to spread panic, intimidate states into keeping us locked down, and destroy the economy in the hopes that destruction will also damage President Trump’s reelection chances.

“Daily Coronavirus-Case Count Surges” screams Thursday’s Wall Street Journal headline. The sub-headline adds this: “New confirmed infections on Wednesday topped 92,700, the most since April 24 and the fourth-highest daily total ever.”

Here’s just a taste of what else we’re seeing, and this doesn’t include the hysteria on cable news:

A personal favorite:

Within the context of how it’s being reported, all of this represents an absolutely meaningless statistic being spread by a fake news media determined to terrify and intimidate you…

Here’s the truth…

The primary reasons we are seeing such a huge spike in reported cases is because the United States is performing millions — literally, millions — of tests. Per capita, according to the White House, we are testing more than any other country by far. We have also tested more total people than the rest of the world combined, and we are testing more people every day.

So, obviously… The more we test, the more reported cases we find, and since a large number of those with the coronavirus don’t require hospitalization (many hardly feel sick), this number has nothing to do with anything that matters as far as the country reopening, and reopening our country is exactly what the fear-peddlers in the media wish to prevent.

The media make it sound like these “new cases” are massive new outbreaks when they’re not.

And how do we know they’re not? How do we know this massive testing program is skewing reality? Because the number that matters within the context of reopening is the number of “new hospitalizations.” And we are not seeing spikes in “new hospitalizations.”

We are not seeing headlines about “increases” or “spikes” in hospitalizations because those numbers are either leveling out or decreasing.

California. New York. Florida. Michigan. You can look up each state on your own here.

That’s not to say the infection numbers are not important in other ways. Testing for the number of infections is important when it comes to containing a new outbreak. Testing will tell us when the coronavirus first hit, how close we are to herd immunity (which is probably our only real hope of returning to full normal), and most importantly, testing will tell us what the true death rate of the virus is.

One thing the media don’t want you to know is how low America’s per capita death rate is when compared to comparable countries.

Another thing the media won’t tell you is that, without a vaccine, it makes no scientific or moral sense not to reopen right now. Waiting a week or two weeks or two months in no safer than opening today when there’s no cure.

The virus is still out there. The health system is in no danger of being overrun. The curve has been bent, probably for good, so panic and fake news are the only things to justify keeping us at home.

Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.