The MSM (mainstream media) are still all over Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, because of the rising case numbers in our province. The media members and everyone in North America need to know that the case numbers are very impressively low compared with nearly every other jurisdiction in North America. Look at and compare the numbers and graphs for the various provinces and US states using the data from Worldometer (Ontario data are shown in brown in each graph; the other jurisdictions' data are shown in very faint, pale grey and are generally unlabelled). Here's a comparison of Ontario with New York, California, North Carolina, and South Carolina:
In case you think I've stacked the deck, here are are two other comparisons. The next one is with Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Iowa, and Illinois. The data for Ontario are exactly the same as in the graph above, but the scale had to be expanded because those states have had so many infections. Ontario looks downright healthy in comparison.
And here's another comparison, this time with states and provinces that have low infection rates (Maine, Vermont, and Nova Scotia) and also have very low population densities:
Nova Scotia is shown in blue because it stood out as having notably fewer cases because it was part of a Maritimes bubble that strictly limited migration to and from the area.
Note the past tense. Unfortunately, the data from Worldometer are not right up to date (about 2-3 weeks delayed). Recently the Maritime bubble has burst a bit, and case numbers in those provinces are creeping upward.
The comparison with other Canadian provinces is also generally favourable to Doug Ford. All the others for which data are provided by Worldometer have leapt ahead of Ontario in daily new infections/100K over the past few weeks -- substantially so in some cases:
I have recently spoken with some hospital workers. It seems that infection numbers have been rising in some hospitals in Southwestern Ontario because staff members were required to take breaks and eat lunches in small, confined spaces... duh. No masks are possible while eating, and no distancing is possible in the small, confined, enclosed break rooms in most hospitals; it's not surprising that cases spread in those settings. Apparently some hospital administrators have figured out that they have acres of conference and auditorium space available these days in their hospitals, and they have now (finally) loosened up and made those spaces available for lunches and breaks.
From what I see (casual empiricism), it looks as if distancing is a real problem. It's difficult and inconvenient to distance when you live (or maybe work) in a high-rise and must ride elevators with other people who may or may not be as careful one might wish. It's difficult and inconvenient to distance when you must ride elevators and eat lunch and take breaks in small, confined spaces at work. If my take is right, it'll be distancing that will be important during the transition and until a vaccine is widely available. And that distancing has to include making it possible for front-line workers to distance as well.
Meanwhile,
- We're back to avoiding eating in restaurants (take-out and delivery for us). and
- Don't blame the conditions in Ontario on Doug Ford. Ontario has, overall, done a very good job.