As we fight the pandemic up here, it’s actually a lot worse in Latin America. This is from a report in the New York Times:
Coronavirus has infected more than three million people and killed about 160,000 in Latin America, according to official figures, making the region one of the worst-hit by the pandemic.
And experts and statistical analyses indicate that the real toll is far higher, concealed by limited testing and medical resources, and by some governments’ resistance to publicly acknowledging the scope of the crisis.
So people are getting creative, hoping that they can find the solution.
Beyond the health issues, COVID-19 has blown up very fragile healthcare systems and shutting down economies has devastated employers.
Let me loosely translate what a man from down there said on a weekend TV report: My country’s hospitals are full and everyone is scared because businesses can’t stay closed too much longer.
So people are hoping for a natural solution or the magic potion that cures the ailment.
In Brazil, according to the article, people are taking ivermectin, or something that people take to treat intestinal worms. Apparently, one politician is taking it and it is having a positive effect. Over in Peru, they want to try it, but the WHO and our FDA are warning people against it because it is intended for farm animals and not humans.
Where is all of this going to end? I don’t know, but people who can’t work because the businesses are closed or can’t get treatment because the hospitals are overwhelmed are bound to get desperate. It looks like many in the Third World are at that breaking point.
What are the geopolitical consequences of desperate populations? It can’t be good.
