| Comment | The big thing to bear in mind about Japan/Korea/China/Taiwan/HK is that they've effectively been in Covid-prevention mode since SARS and bird flu. These countries are used to dealing with outbreaks of airborne infections, and a huge proportion of people wear facemasks as a matter of course. They were ready for this in a way the west wasn't, and furthermore have a much stronger tendency towards authoritarianism, which is very helpful when dealing with outbreaks.
The China stats are entirely believable for a country which has near-totalitarian power and minimal human rights, because they have the capability to take preventative steps we cannot, with a population that is inherently compliant with state edicts. You don't fuck about with house parties if your neighbour is a member of the CCP and you're in a surveillance state. |
|---|