COVID cases rise as Florida attempts reopening

June 6th, marked the 4th consecutive day of 1,000 or more positive coronavirus diagnoses in Florida. That's about two weeks from Memorial Day, and that's the turnaround time we should expect from the time of infection to the positive diagnosis.

One June 16th, we hit a new record: 2783 cases confirmed in a single day.

While we did manage to "bend the curve" we never did stamp the virus out. All of the efforts we put in from March to June merely stabilized the rate of spread. Without those actions, the number of new cases per day would continue to grow until approximately 60 to 70% of the population has been infected.

So why are we declaring victory? The risk today is just as real as it was in March when we tried to bend that curve flatter.

Frankly, the economy (and maybe the fragile American psyche) just can't handle that much effort for someone else's benefit. This impatience and self-centered attitude has been multiplied by incompetent leadership that has not been able to leverage our efforts at a higher level with things like:

• Case tracing
• Quarantine
• Masks
• Avoiding indoor spaces

So don't get too excited about the economy and world going back to normal. We still have work to do before we can declare victory - and the people in charge show no interest in getting started, so we're going to be here for a while.