Time to play outside!

When I was about 3, whenever my dog had to be let out, my mom said the dog was "playing outside." I didn't know yet that the dog was relieving himself instead of just playing.

As humans, we don't have to shit outdoors, but we really should be spending more time outside.

I regularly check the coronavirus numbers, and I've noticed something very interesting. The number of new cases in most states is cratering. But there's some notable exceptions in the South and Southwest.

Why?

I don't think there's any government statement on this, but there's some very clear evidence on what's going on. The states with the most new cases are ones with very hot weather right now where people are cooping up in air conditioned buildings. It's just like how the states with the most cases in April were the ones where people were congregating in buildings with heat.

Other people have noted this, and there's no way it's just a coincidence. I did see a study out of Japan that said coronavirus is 18.7 times as likely to spread indoors as outdoors, but there's very little government messaging built around this. In fact, many states are still suggesting that people stay at home (even though rigid orders to this effect have mostly withered).

Instead of "stay at home" orders, why not "stay outside" orders? The recent Black Lives Matter protests didn't spread coronavirus - and they were all outdoors.

Meanwhile, the number of new deaths is tumbling in every part of the country. Nationwide, the 7-day rolling average has fallen from 1,071 per day to 618 in only 20 days. Some governors have said that the new cases in their states are mostly young adults who gather at indoor bars. The fact that so few young adults die of coronavirus is borne out by the rapidly declining death numbers.

Our society needs some friendly messaging urging folks to be outside as much as possible. People need to have their fun, so why not have fun outdoors? If we're serious about stamping out coronavirus, this should be the clear message.