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Comment by clouddrover | Hacker News Reader

So Musk has gone from saying the "coronavirus panic is dumb" (https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1236029449042198528) to now making ventilators.

Going from zero to manufacturing medical grade equipment is non-trivial. Even once you have the equipment there are going to be staffing shortages in hospitals. Patients on ventilators need to be constantly monitored. You don't just plug them in and leave them.

Musk's downplaying of the seriousness of COVID-19 hasn't helped anyone.

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I had not seen this quote before. Reading what you said; my initial thought was on the emphasis, the panic IS dumb. So, I clicked in and verified that he actually had said exactly those words and read the next 2-3 responses. I felt that, yeah, he is referring to the panic. It's something I've repeatedly said the last two weeks: Personally, I am not afraid of the virus. I am afraid of people's response. I say this as one of the unfortunate bastards with a condition that puts me in a risk group. I am also no fan of Musk, per-se (well, not more than you would have admiration for any person that are able to accomplish things).

Whether he's capable of making a difference around ventilators in the short term -- let's just say I am as skeptical as the next guy. Likewise, I should probably have read the entirety of the Twitter thread before replying.

In a memo to employees Musk said, "The risk of death from C19 is vastly less than the risk of death from driving your car home":

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/elon-musk-space...

Italy's deaths from coronavirus have already exceeded their annual deaths from car accidents:

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-r...

Without the work that hospitals are doing and without the measures to limit exposure the death rate would be even higher.

Musk's perspective on COVID-19 is ignorant and frankly stupid.

yeah but hang on... if you add to that factor that 70-90+ age brackets... how does that then add up?

That tweet really didn't age well.

Is this going to be another Thai cave submarine episode?

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