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Psion said: well yeah, but that's nothing political at all... that's just how viruses work in general. it's nothing to do with secret biological warfare genetically modified superviruses.
it's just that once in a while, a virus wins the genetic lottery and gets lucky and gets that special combo of just the right speed of infection rate, long incubation period, lots of people with no symptoms but still can spread, and a method of infection that is highly successful. and a kill rate that isn't too high. ebola is an example of a kill rate that is extremely deadly, but also makes it somewhat ineffective for spreading - too high and fast a kill rate and a virus tends to kill its victims before they can spread the virus further, though the fact that it spreads extremely easily via body fluids helps counter this, part of the reason its still around.
an example of a deadly super virus thats effective is the black plague - in that case it was spread via fleas, effective because people were terrible at hygiene back then. the fleas cared not about the black plague, but those bitten by the fleas did. in that case a high death rate didn't matter, because the carriers of the disease were immune. in this case, the carriers (us) are not, so a super high death rate would be counterproductive, but a slightly high death rate (worse than the flu) isn't.
masks are highly effective in this case, simply because the coronavirus is spread via aerosols. the virus hitches a ride in the moisture we exhale from our mouth and nose, especially when talking, and the masks basically absorb this, catching the virus clumps along with it. (best not to touch this virus laden area though if possible.) this is why you keep several feet away from other people, and why the spread is fairly low risk outdoors (but NOT no risk. low risk.) yes, a cloth masks won't filter out a tiny virus particle, but it can catch a droplet of moisture, and that's the important part - the viruses are riding in those moisture droplets, not dry air. since around a quarter of people can be carriers of the virus without showing symthoms, its important to wear a mask, not for your own protection, but to protect others - you might be sick with the virus without realizing it. it's simply a precaution to avoid infecting others, just in case you are one of those lucky people who aren't suffering in a ventilator.
other useful things to help limit the spread of the virus are being the only one in your family doing the grocery shopping, and planning out your meals - don't go to your grocery store to buy one godsbedamned orange. no, nor two oranges. (talking from personal experience as a cashier. -_-; ) buy for weeks worth of groceries if possible, to limit exposure to other shoppers, months if your ambitious. as an added bonus, it's less mask wearing time! planning meals ahead of time can also mean less food waste, and thus, less wasted money, time, and gas. (and money.)
obviously, using sanitizer if possible for high contact areas, yada yada - don't bother wiping all your groceries down though. instead, quarantine them if you're that worried. viruses only can survive a couple days on most surfaces at most, hours on some surfaces like metal (especially copper and copper alloys). set groceries aside you won't be eating for days in an their own area for a couple days and leave em, then you'll know they're safe to handle. no muss no fuss. also, viruses are weak to soap and water - they're genetic material covered in a lipid package (fat), and as everyone knows, soap > fat. 20 seconds of suds and any virus is dead, regardless if the soap is antibacterial or just plain old dove. antibacterial soaps are needed for bacteria only, because bacteria are tricksy beasts with special defenses against mere dove.
 
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