Editorial: Managing the pandemic without self-deception

Most people hoped that over time - and given scientific progress, vaccines, and medicines that are being developed - the pandemic would be checked and become an endemic seasonal disease like the flu.

Yet, a series of factors and conditions, in Greece and around the world, dashed those hopes.

Vaccination was not massive, as conditions all over the planet mandated, and the wide circle of conspiracy theorists and vaccine deniers did not permit the full vaccination of citizens even in developed Western countries.

Hence, almost everywhere there was room for mutations of the virus to flower and the cycle of the pandemic was extended.

The Delta variant proved to be very transmissible and able to penetrate even vaccinated populations, as immunity from vaccines receded over time, exposing especially elderly people and vulnerable groups with underlying medical conditions to new dangers.

Europe in particular has a surge in the pandemic as winter approaches and projections are ominous.

The case of the new, threatening mutation of the virus that was detected in Botswana and is currently being studied by the WHO is characteristic.

The Omicron variant found fertile ground to evolve and grow in a country that is insufficiently vaccinated and in people who are immunosuppressed or suffer from severe chronic illnesses.

The resulting concerns are such that there was global alarm and stock markets everywhere plunged on Friday.

Consequently, two years after the appearance of COVID-19, the virus remains active and threatening. The number of infections is growing. Hospitals are exceedingly burdened and the number of deaths is growing, shaking the trust of citizens in the health system and official health policies.

The common...