I hate the new blogger but I might have some good covid news, alternatively titled "The Wisdom of Barbers," even more alternatively titled "T is for Trump," with some bad news predicted at the end

We've been awash in a sea of conflicting covid-19 information since the beginning of the crisis.  I think I've found some good news amid this morass of confusion.

Our adaptive immune systems primarily involve two types of cells: B cells and T cells.  It appears that T cells are more predominant when it comes to beating covid-19.  You can read about it here.

In July 2020, a group of European scientists published an article in Nature describing how they tested a bunch of people who never had coivd-19 and found that about 35% of them had a T cell response.  They attribute this to exposure to other coronaviruses.  This means that about 35% of the population might have some preexisting immunity to covid-19.  That's good news! 

I learned about this from a friend who is probably the smartest guy I know (sorry Dave).  He also posits that about 2% of the population of NJ already tested positive, which means that about 20% of NJ had the virus (the CDC says the true infection rate is about 10 times higher than reported).

Taken together, about 55% of the people in NJ should have some sort of immune response to the virus so we're close to the level needed for herd immunity.  That's good news too!

This conclusion is further validated by my barber.  I subscribe to a theory I call The Wisdom of Barbers.  Barbers spend the day shooting the shit with men of all ages, ethnicities, races, backgrounds, and socioeconomic status.  As a result they gather in an insanely broad range of views on whatever topic the feel like discussing and they can often crystallize that information into a prediction about the future.  My old barber ran a presidential election poll for over 20 years and it was always right.

Anyway, I got a haircut the other day at my local barbershop, an uncle-and-nephew team who may or may not take your action on NFL games.  My friend who told me about the European study also gets his hair cut there, so I asked the nephew if my friend told him about it too.  The nephew said "No, but I read a paper published through the NIH and it says the number could be as high as 50%."  I found the article in Science and he's right.  This is more good news!

All of that said, my friend an my barber are both conservatives.  My friend hates Trump but he's also a bit of a Blue Lives Matter guy (stuff like "If he had just listened to the police he wouldn't have gotten shot."). My barber voted for Trump and I'm pretty sure he will do so again (he's a Ben Shapiro fan).  The fact that they and no one other than zdaughter's speech therapist (who may be kinda Trumpy too) talks about this makes me wonder if it's a right wing talking point.

I suspect it's both.  For once, Republicans are speaking the truth and the virus will soon run its course, turning into nothing more than a relatively routine but life-threatening infection like measles.  I predict this will happen around mid-October.

Why then?  Because that's two weeks before the election.  Of course this is when the virus will clear up.  My old barber with the straw poll once told me "If you're ever at the race track and you see Bill Clinton, bet like he does.  That lucky bastard could bet on a three-legged horse and still win."  This is true--his shitty shenanigans never resulted in any real penalties and he's even allowed to speak publicly despite #MeToo.  Trump is the same guy, a bizzarro Cill Clinton.  Of course our T cells will save his lucky ass right in time to get reelected.

I eagerly await the FDA's approval of Trump brand T cells, yours for only $500 a dose or free when you buys a one year membership to any Trump brand golf club.