Printing money to address short-term needs will lead to inflation and dampen any potential economic recovery
The financial consequences of COVID-19 and the shutdown of economies are difficult to evaluate. But some of those consequences have begun to appear and could hinder economic recovery. Inflation is one of these harmful consequences. In the United States, consumer prices jumped 4.2 per cent in the 12 months through to April, up from 2.6…
The pandemic is making scapegoats of those that only yesterday we called fellow citizens and neighbours
American writer Lance Morrow recently identified our current moment as the golden age of stupidity. No evidence exists that the author of America: A Rediscovery and Second Drafts of History was peeping across the border watching the 2021 Canadian federal election when he made the claim. That’s probably a good thing. Morrow's language might have…
Blood transfusions from people who recovered from the disease didn’t help patients improve
Giving severely ill COVID-19 patients a blood transfusion from donors who have already recovered from the virus did not help them improve. In some cases, according to a major Canadian-led clinical trial reporting results in Nature Medicine, it made them sicker. “Convalescent plasma had been found to boost immunity in patients infected with some other viral…
Rather than subsist on government aid, Air Canada should urge officials to ease travel restrictions
A year and a half into the COVID-19 pandemic, the only thing keeping Air Canada alive is the federal government bailouts. They’re delaying the inevitable and sensible way out: cutting travel restrictions, encouraging tourism by ensuring effective containment and encouraging vaccination. In April, the government granted the firm another $5.9-billion loan to keep it afloat…
The public system, on the other hand, failed in its response to Covid-19
As Ontario’s public schools struggle to accommodate students in a new school year amid what could be a fourth wave of COVID-19, what can the provincial government learn from the last 17 months? For starters, the government needs to accept that huge, industrial-scale schools (typical in the public system) are pretty weak at responding to…
Extroverts find a way to connect whereas introverts are less adept at maintaining their fewer connections
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, many assumed introverts had an advantage over extroverts in surviving isolation because they prefer to be alone. “This couldn’t be a better situation for introverts who have long found the world to be too much with them,” wrote Joanne Kaufman in a New York Times article called “Loving the Lockdown.” Another…
Perspectives gained during pandemic could improve ongoing communication to support students
The COVID-19 pandemic caused major upheaval, sending students home to remote learning and leaving teachers and parents scrambling to adapt. But it also created the opportunity for a deeper appreciation of their respective roles and challenges, according to a study led by a University of Alberta researcher. “It afforded everyone the chance to understand what others were…
Bureaucracy was a significant obstacle to effective action
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken countries, governments and people by surprise. Most of us weren’t prepared to face this crisis. Most Western countries initially refused to panic and wanted to manage the situation like other illnesses such as the flu. But the outbreaks in hospitals and other medical facilities in most countries led to true…
Spoiler alert: everyone’s going to be OK
If you’re the parent or caregiver of a toddler or preschooler, you might be wondering how the past 16 months of relative isolation has affected them. For many kids, the pandemic shut down their opportunities to interact with peers and increased their screen time. It has also disrupted family routines, increased anxiety among many caregivers…
Easing restrictions will be hard on those who have lost loved ones to COVID-19, says researcher
As pandemic restrictions have eased in the past few months, many of those who have lost a loved one to COVID-19 are experiencing the pain all over again, University of Alberta researcher Donna Wilson believes. “We are seeing delayed grieving a great deal more because of COVID,” said Wilson, a professor with the U of…