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Comment by jimmy2020 | Hacker News Reader

jimmy2020

Nine deaths in June led to military deployment. How many deaths from depression, overdose or another mental health problem happened in June and will happen due to lockdown hysteria. And why not put more resources into vaccination rather than enforce lockdown by military.

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The country literally cannot get vaccines fast enough to roll out to the population. Astra Zenica, which Australia has millions of extra doses of, has only been recommended for use in over 60s due to blood clotting risks. We do not have enough alternative vaccines (Pfizer) to put into the arms of those under 60.

While I can understand that in comparison to the rest of the world, Australia has faired comparably well, we are poised on a knife edge between harsh and costly restrictions that save lives and just "letting it rip", and seeing the same brutal results that occurred in the US, India and the UK (among other places).

Without more of the population vaccinated, we don't have any other options.

I know you're asking a rhetorical question, but the answer to your question is: none (and in some places like Victoria, suicides were down compared to 2019).

https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/health/distress-levels-up-d...

U.S. drug overdose deaths rise 30% to record during pandemic

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-drug-overdose-deaths-ris...

How does that apply to Australia?

Why do think Australia is exception when it comes to mental health?

US drug overdose deaths were such a huge outlier before COVID, that people were talking of an opiate pandemic. As usual it's America that's the exception.

A statement about US drug deaths says nothing about what happened in Australia.

Sure, but that's a different country to the one that the article is talking about. That country has a different safety net, a different strategy for managing the virus, and a different set of vaccines available to it.

Australia shouldn't give up on its strategy of COVID eradication just because American drug overdoses are up.

Is there a good explanation for why? It seems so unbelievable that the number hasn't gone up that I would assume an error somewhere.

The depression and suicides don't happen during the crisis but afterwards.

That's not the point.

We've gone months without any community covid cases and suddenly there's a break out.

The point in military involvement is to to make sure the lockdown we run is actually effective and doesn't drag on for months while we finally push vaccination rates up

> The point in military involvement is

There's no point of military involvement whatsoever. This is just to expand the government power over the civil society and they doing it through the military. If you are worried as government about covid cases, well start with the vaccine. Buy more or do more to distribute the shots. But enforce lockdown and then send the military? This is so disturbing.

The point of the military involvement is that the normal police don't have enough resources to properly handle what they need to do. The military won't be arresting anyone in Australia, they don't have the power too.

The government has done a poor job of handing both the outbreaks and vaccination, but I don't think this has anything to do with expanding government powers, I believe they are up shit creek without a paddle and need all the help they can get.

In NL, the suicide stats are basically flat.

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