No restrictive measures under the White House tree, but 500 million free tests made available to American households which will request them on the Internet, thousands of new test and vaccination sites, and military reinforcement, allocated to hospitals, a thousand caregivers from the ranks of the army. “I know you are tired, frustrated, we all want this to end, whispered Joe Biden. But we’re still in it, and it’s a critical moment. Except that we also have more tools than ever before. We are ready. We will overcome this. We can do it, together. ” While the number of diagnosed cases is on an exponential slope under the effect of an omicron variant that has become dominant (to 73%, and up to 90% in some states) in less than a month, Biden spoke on Tuesday to its citizens to announce these few new provisions on the eve of the holidays and above all to chant once again a refrain of which he himself seems tired: that salvation from the virus lies in vaccination. Yet, and this is the main source of presidential frustration, nearly two in five Americans still have not received any injection.
Even Trump
Thus, the annoyance was palpable, to still have to hammer, at the address of the tens of millions of those administered still reluctant or lagging behind for the third dose, that “The choice of those who do not get vaccinated does not put them alone in danger, but affects other people, loved ones, relatives, friends, and this choice can make the difference between life and death” or increase the risk “That new variants are formed”. To overcome reluctance, sometimes fueled by commerce “immoral” of “Providers of lies” and false information, Biden noted that even his predecessor and opponent Donald Trump had admitted two days ago to have benefited from a booster shot – “And this is perhaps one of the few things that we agree on”.
Himself case-contact of a White House employee since a flight aboard Air Force One on Friday (but tested twice negative since), the president however hammered that no return to the appalling situation of the early days pandemic was not possible. “Are we back to March 2020? The answer is absolutely no. […] We all have reason to be worried about omicron, but not to panic. We are prepared, we know more [sur le virus], we just need to stay focused. ” He also wanted to reassure the Americans about to meet for the holidays, since they were vaccinated and cautious. He finally recalled that a favorable court decision on appeal (pending a ruling by the Supreme Court) had just allowed the implementation in the coming weeks of his decree imposing on workers structures of more than 100 employees. ” be vaccinated or regularly tested. A rule which he assures us that it is there for “Ensure that no businesses or schools are closed any longer”, and especially not to interfere, “Control your lives but save them!”
Joys and germs
However, the omicron wave, with an ascent as sudden as it is violent (and which it is now established that it began in the United States before its identification by South African scientists), is exerting a growing hold on the daily lives of people. Americans, causing for several days a cascade of cancellations of sporting events, concerts and shows, from Broadway to the NFL (the very popular American football league), and manifested until Congress where two eminent Democratic senators, duly vaccinated (Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker) tested positive on Sunday, as did the Governor of Minnesota and his family on Tuesday.
Beyond the very firm policy of encouraging vaccination, the absence of a binding framework at the country level to oppose the wave is fueling glaring disparities. We can thus pass in barely two hours of flight, from a historically republican state like Kentucky, where one might believe that the virus does not exist (despite thousands of cases diagnosed each day locally), to the very considerate New York City, where the vaccination pass is systematically requested (as well as an identity document) wherever you eat or drink, while the masks, required indoors, reappear spontaneously and strikingly even in the streets. While many large cities, including in the same state of New York, are very far from having adopted such strict rules, we also see a lot of self-regulation of places at risk: bars, restaurants, party places. or culture, which close on their own or choose to limit their activity to take-out. With an adult vaccination rate of nearly 90%, New York has certainly given itself the means to reconnect in many ways with the joys and germs exchanged from life before. But the horror sown by the first wave has also left traces, traumas and painfully learned lessons, which stand out whenever the virus threatens again.