Just some historical perspective and a few words of optimism. In the 14th century approximately 1/3 of Europe's population was wiped out through multiple plague epidemics. Antibiotics that readily prevent death from this bacterial species (mostly thought to be bubonic plague caused by Yersinia pestis) became available, unfortunately only about 500 years later.
We now have literally 100s, perhaps 1000s of scientific and medical teams working on therapies (anti-virals mostly) and vaccines. One or more of these groups is bound to be lucky enough and smart enough to come up with something that dramatically alters the situation we have today and in the future. Hopefully the world's leaders will learn from this experience to invest appropriately in the scientific and medical research community so we do not lack for resources when the next challenge occurs. And it will come.
Polio and COVID-19 are very different diseases, as many of you may know. In particular, polio ravaged children, not the mostly immune adults, and led to death by inches. Some patients died quickly but many were paralyzed and died slowly over the coming years, almost none surviving to ripe old age. Mark Boyce describes this sad state of affairs well above.
This new coronavirus kills mostly older (>60 years of age) individuals, and mostly those with a history of previous lung, heart and similar diseases, morbid obesity, or with a history of smoking, vaping or other exposure to lung toxins. A minority of the population and mostly the very old for obvious reasons given the mentioned characteristics. In our local area, fully 50% of the patients who have died are over 80. Many are already severely disabled, cognitively impaired individuals in nursing facilities already near the end of their natural lives. The coronavirus accelerated what was inevitable in many instances. Not to be lacking in compassion, and as someone who is in the higher risk groups, I'd prefer facing this than having small children face polio. Small consolation, I know, but worth at least considering.
This is different, but not actually worse than in the years before the 1950s when many vaccines and antibiotics finally became available. The mortality rate for simple streptococcal infections in women who had just given birth or older patients prior to the advent of penicillin was probably 10 times that for coronavirus in 2020. What is different here is this is new (not something we lived with for tens of thousands of years) and sudden. Still nasty, but not the end of civilization as we know it with some certainty. Lots of pain and suffering, but the vast bulk of humanity will get through this frightened and economically poorer, but otherwise well. My sympathies to those who have lost loved ones, suffered personally or are experiencing economic or emotional hardship. I'm certainly not tolerating this reality well in any way, shape or form and I'm fairly privileged.
Godspeed. Stay safe and sane.
