In the new documentary, Birx gives Gupta her gut-wrenching answer when asked how much of an impact it would have made if the US had paused earlier and followed through with the safety measures that were proven to slow the spread.

"I look at it this way. The first time we have an excuse," Birx says. "There were about a hundred thousand deaths that came from that original surge. All of the rest of them, in my mind, could have been mitigated or decreased substantially."
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That's the cost of our botched response to this virus. Four hundred thousand people dead, who could be at home now with their families. They died alone, without the touch of a loved one to ease their passage. They got loaded into refrigerated trucks because there were too many for morgues. They were left literally to rot in a couple of cases by funeral directors who could not keep up with the number of people dying, only being found when the stench and liquid from putrefaction alerted outsiders. They were buried alone, with survivors unable to receive the comfort of their worship. We bitched about wearing masks, about a violation of our freedoms, armed mobs took over statehouses. Fights on airplanes. Stupid reactions such as signs that said you could not wear a mask while inside a store. Asians were and are being targeted by bigots. We promoted quack cures, listened to the My Pillow guy talk about ingesting oleander - a poison - or our own President talk about cleaning our lungs with bleach and introducing UV light inside our bodies to kill the virus. Briefings to keep the public up to date became petulant combat sessions held by a leader who was simply not interested in the problem. Scientists were harassed and death threats made. Local public health officials quit or had to have police protection. Our disease experts were overruled by politicians looking for personal gain.

Fifty years from now, when all this has had the benefit of time and retrospection, there will be only one conclusion:

WE LOST OUR ****ING MINDS!!

And four hundred thousand men, women and children paid the price.