I think it is stupid to try to distinguish between "essential" and non-essential" work or activity. We should be distinguishing between those whom are vulnerable to death from COVID and those whom are far less vulnerable. According to data that I read, normal annual mortality worldwide is about 7.7 deaths per 1,000. For 7.8 billion people, that's about 60 million deaths annually worldwide. In the US, we project 8.3 deaths per 1,000 or about 2.74 million deaths annually (330 million people). I'd like to know how COVID has actually increased the overall rate of death. I don't believe the numbers that are counted for COVID at this point in time. I'm hearing direct evidence that death certificates are falsely listing COVID for patients whom are old and dying from causes that have nothing to do with COVID. It's a financial system that causes hospitals to play a dishonest game. Even in NYC, the rate of hospitalization was grossly over-estimated. Virtually all of the extra beds that were delivered by FEMA went unused. The ship COMFORT left because it was empty.
Let's see some real statistics about normal mortality and the increases that have supposedly been caused by COVID. I have no doubt that COVID is causing increased mortality and I have no doubt that people are suffering from COVID. My doubts lie in the reporting of it and the actual rate of death. We're all going to die someday, and those of us whom are 65 or older are closer to death and we are going to die far more readily from health complications. COVID isn't changing that reality. It shouldn't mean that we have to stop living. As for herd immunity. How long will it take for 80% of the world population to be exposed? We can slow COVID down, by all means and I'm in favor of precautions that protect the most vulnerable, but we aren't going to shut our lives down. We can slow COVID down to buy time for vaccines or therapeutic developments that decrease the mortality rate. It's time to get busy living or get busy dying as the saying goes. I choose living with some reasonable risk.