I’d wager the people leading the discussion on how to handle the situation were from the Bay Area.
Besides, it was actually central IL/borderline NE IL where I encountered this phenomenon. Champaign TV and radio is chock full of Covid stuff. At least compared to what I am used to.
I spoke to two friends in Champaign today. I asked if there was much chatter about COVID in the community. Both said no; people have moved on.
One mentioned that there were news reports in September 2023 about rising COVID rates across East Central Illinois, but not at the same levels as previous years. There were also reports in August about the rollout of the latest COVID vaccines.
In November, the local health department reported that seasonal respiratory illnesses were on the rise, with medical professionals recommending that people get vaccinated ahead of the Thanksgiving Holiday. My friends have seen a few people (usually one or two) in the grocery stores and pharmacies wearing masks (mostly seniors), but nothing out of the ordinary. They also haven’t seen any recent news reports on hospitalizations.
I can respect MN’s interest in finding the origin of COVID, though we disagree about the best method for doing that. However, you’ve been gaslighting us on COVID since the beginning of the pandemic. You’re not fooling anybody here.