From Knut Wittkowski's latest broadcast

Lee: If the lockdown didn’t happen, do you think the hospitals would have been fuller of COVID-19 patients?

Knut Wittkowski: No. There’s no indication that, that would have made any difference.

Lee: Why do you think governments made this choice?

Knut Wittkowski: Because they’re scared because what they had seen in Italy, was that many people died. And initially it wasn’t quite obvious that those was who died were people who were very old, with many comorbidities in nursing homes that were not well managed. And so, it appeared that this would be a flu that is more dangerous than other flus, much more dangerous, and in the meantime, we have learned it is not. Yes, it’s more dangerous for those who are older and have several comorbidities, but otherwise, especially for the younger, for the healthy, for the children, it seems actually to be milder than most other flus have been in the recent past.


.....Lee: You’re not of the opinion that the reason the lockdowns are being extended and extended is to wait upon a vaccine?

Knut Wittkowski: That is not feasible. We cannot keep the lockdown going for a year or something like that. Not even knowing whether a vaccine could ever be developed because vaccines against flus are not that effective in the first place, and sometimes it’s impossible the development. And we have seen with corona viruses the vaccines that we make, make the situation worse. And so, to wait for a vaccine is plain stupid. It’s unnecessary.

The interview is here. I first blogged about Knut Wittkowski because I thought what he said was interesting. Now I think he has been largely proven right by Sweden. On the other hand, I don't think the many deaths in Lombardy are wholly explained by deaths in mismanaged care homes. Eight priests died of the virus in Bergamo.