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Not a Single Car Was Sold in Shanghai Last Month (bloomberg.com) 77

Posted by msmash from the closer-look dept.
For evidence of just how tight Shanghai's lockdown has been, consider this: not a single car was sold in the city last month. From a report: The majority of the city's 25 million residents were mostly confined to their homes or residential compounds in April as part of a sweeping lockdown to stamp out the nation's worst Covid outbreak since the virus emerged in Wuhan more than two years ago. Almost all dealerships in the city were closed during the month, the Shanghai Automobile Sales Association said in a statement Monday, when it highlighted the zero sales figure. In April last year, 26,311 vehicles were sold in the city, according to the association, which represents about 300 companies.
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Not a Single Car Was Sold in Shanghai Last Month More

Not a Single Car Was Sold in Shanghai Last Month

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  • Rename cars to covid... (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    ... and they'll have reached their zero covid goal and can pat themselves on the back.

  • Weird (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Ol Olsoc ( 1175323 ) on Monday May 16, 2022 @10:10AM (#62539036)
    Chinese seem to be using a human adapted version of their flu approach in animals Flue happens, kill everything. In people it's just total isolation.

    I've been hearing this zero Covid stuff in multiple places lately.

    Ain't gonna happen, and this total lockdown stuff in China is just cruel, not tom mention wrecking their economy. Covid is endemic now. It's also competing with other flu now and is in the noise - at least where I am. You get your immunizations and you get out in the world. Wear a mask if you are really concerned at this point. But sorry China - you are not going to be successful in eliminating it, just like you haven't been in slaughtering huge number of animals.

    • I've been hearing this zero Covid stuff in multiple places lately.

      It's called "FUD campaingn"

      • I've been hearing this zero Covid stuff in multiple places lately.

        It's called "FUD campaingn"

        Some of those folks don't have much else than fear I guess. Certainly no knowledge of how this stuff works. That's why I like to goad them with the fact that bubonic plague is still with us. Fun to watch them blanch.

        But unless we are going to pointlessly end civilization around the world, we're going to have to accept that risk at the same level as 2018 is acceptable.

    • I really think this is a legit example of how a government with too much power can have trouble dealing with it. I actually think they are well-meaning. But if you have the power, then sacrificing lives for money is a conscious choice, and who will make it? In a less authoritarian system there is no real centralized authority so those uncomfortable tradeoffs are allowed to be ignored and just fall between the cracks. We complain about this, but I suppose it can provide a pressure relief valve.

      • I actually think they are well-meaning.

        I think they were initially, but past a certain point, it's about not losing face.

        • I actually think they are well-meaning.

          I think they were initially, but past a certain point, it's about not losing face.

          I think you are both correct.

          Here is the question I always ask. "Is the attempt to eradicate Covid 19 worth destroying your economy or country?" It really isn't even a hypothetical question any more, because that is what is happening there right now. https://finance.yahoo.com/news... [yahoo.com] https://abcnews.go.com/Health/... [go.com] There is a lot more, with varying degrees of prediction, but one thing is for certain - if the impossible goal of total eradication is pursued, it has to happen, because you can't eradicate

    • Gotta keep those uppity peasants in line somehow.

      • Gotta keep those uppity peasants in line somehow.

        I feel badly for them, Even if their subjugation is something they decided to accept.

    • Covid-19 is a respiratory illness like the flu, but isn't the flu. Present strains of the human flu virus are mutations of the virus that caused the 1918 influenza pandemic. Whether through a third party mammal or directly from poultry, the flu is widely acknowledged to have originated in birds.

      • Covid-19 is a respiratory illness like the flu, but isn't the flu. Present strains of the human flu virus are mutations of the virus that caused the 1918 influenza pandemic. Whether through a third party mammal or directly from poultry, the flu is widely acknowledged to have originated in birds.

        I think you could be missing the point. The specific point is that the yearly flu strain du jour is killing more than Covid 19 in my area. So it looks a little difficult to call it covid 19 a pandemic without calling bog standard flu a pandemic. So endemic fits.

        • Yes, I think I misread your post. My bad.

          • Yes, I think I misread your post. My bad.

            No problem. Our local television station was giving daily updates, and ended up stopping it, because it went to less than one a day. . Maybe 2 or 3 a week.

            In the area, there are dozens or more people that die every week, and flu and pneumonia developing from flu kills a lot of elderly people in poor health. Really doesn't matter the strain.

            So it was getting kind of awkward.

            This isn't to diminish the problem of the pandemic. But We have to separate the reality from the fear. That certainly doesn'

            • I was at an athletic event recently - around 70K people. Some wore masks, most didn't. The results? Roughly nothing. Most all were vaccinated. But it wasn't a spreader event. I say roughly nothing because some people can get it and be asymptomatic. But no sicknesses, Anyhow, I don't care if people wear masks, if they do, it's cool by me If a person is unvaccinated, and don't have a good reason to be, then if they Darwin themselves, I can't get too worried.

              With a caveat. Anyone refusing to wear a mask in my home shop is going to stay outside. Because they aren't getting in. Different matter, but an actual ongoing health issue.

              I'm still avoiding crowds, indoors or outdoors. Quite easy for me since I don't like crowds in the first place. Never saw the point of queuing to sharing foul-smelling rest rooms with tens or hundreds of people. I'm also not much of a restaurant eater and shop with a shopping list, things I've been doing since well before the pandemic.

              • I was at an athletic event recently - around 70K people. Some wore masks, most didn't. The results? Roughly nothing. Most all were vaccinated. But it wasn't a spreader event. I say roughly nothing because some people can get it and be asymptomatic. But no sicknesses, Anyhow, I don't care if people wear masks, if they do, it's cool by me If a person is unvaccinated, and don't have a good reason to be, then if they Darwin themselves, I can't get too worried.

                With a caveat. Anyone refusing to wear a mask in my home shop is going to stay outside. Because they aren't getting in. Different matter, but an actual ongoing health issue.

                I'm still avoiding crowds, indoors or outdoors. Quite easy for me since I don't like crowds in the first place. Never saw the point of queuing to sharing foul-smelling rest rooms with tens or hundreds of people. I'm also not much of a restaurant eater and shop with a shopping list, things I've been doing since well before the pandemic.

                Well, okay, but you do know you are an outlier, right?

    • Re:Weird (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Deal In One ( 6459326 ) on Monday May 16, 2022 @04:54PM (#62540502)

      Zero covid can't work anymore.

      Simply cos people will get infected from hidden reservoirs (did you know covid 19 can infect cats, dogs, and many other animals, including lions etc in a zoo? - not sure if it can spread back to humans again, but you never know), and travelling. Either they become a "hermit kingdom" with zero travel allowed for basically forever, for any reason, or they allow travelling.

      Once you get travelling, there will always a chance that an infected person can pass thru the borders, undetected, even with all the quarantine measures.

      I think it's now a political question there, with leadership investing alot of resources and effort on zero covid publicly, they can't reverse that without "losing face". Especially with the twice a decade National Congress is going to be held later this year. And Xi Jinping is trying to get things fixed so that he does not have to step down after 2 terms (as has happened with the pass few leaders in China).

      If Xi admits his zero covid plan is wrong, it may have issues with him holding on power beyond end of the year. So I figure once that National Congress happens, and Xi has solidified his hold on power, there may be some changes implemented to zero covid.

    • I've been hearing this zero Covid stuff in multiple places lately.

      Zero COVID in places where it was used correctly wasn't an end goal, but rather an in-between state until other measures came into effect. For good examples of this take a look at Australia and New Zealand. They had a zero COVID policy in effect until a specific vaccination target was reached, and then the answer was "ok boys let er rip".

      Result: A country with a population of 26million, has 7million people infected (a higher case rate than the USA, nearly 100% of which came from the past 5 months), and yet

      • There are no significant animal reservoirs of Covid. Just human to human of the virus adapted in the Wuhan labs.

        The reason lock downs no longer work is that the Delta and Omicron variants are so incredibly infectious.

        Australia had little trouble controlling the initial variants, which is why there were so few deaths. But when Delta hit Melbourne, Victoria in mid 2021, it just could not be controled despite a very oppressive lock down. Fortunately, vaccines then became available and elimination was no lon

        • There are no significant animal reservoirs of Covid. Just human to human of the virus adapted in the Wuhan labs.

          The reason lock downs no longer work is that the Delta and Omicron variants are so incredibly infectious.

          Australia had little trouble controlling the initial variants, which is why there were so few deaths. But when Delta hit Melbourne, Victoria in mid 2021, it just could not be controled despite a very oppressive lock down. Fortunately, vaccines then became available and elimination was no longer necessary.

          And have we not reached the stage where those who refuse to get vaccinated should be left to whatever fate they have personally chosen?

          We must understand that people who would rather use anti-parasitics or drink their own urine because of 5G magentization or microchip fear might not be terribly missed if they Darwin themselves.

          In other words, do we allow the unfixably stupid to rule the rest of us? I have gone long past any sympathy for them - all we can do at this stage is protect those who cannot va

  • And the problem is ? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by RockDoctor ( 15477 ) on Monday May 16, 2022 @10:15AM (#62539048) Journal
    This doesn't particularly even need 20-odd million people to be locked down. Just ... 300 companies, say 20 people per company (front-of-house and beancounting) a few thousand. 10k would be more than enough.

    Cities are generally trying to avoid the problems of private-use vehicles in any case - you need to find somewhere for them to park during the 90%-plus of the time that they're not being driven (for electric cars, the 50%-odd of the time when they need to be on charge ; you need to waste space on roads for them to move along. Dreadful things. Public transport networks and a modicum of taxis are far more efficient. Any city not bombed flat and rebuilt in the last century is going to welcome the demise of the private vehicle.

    • Cities are generally trying to avoid the problems of private-use vehicles in any case - you need to find somewhere for them to park during the 90%-plus of the time that they're not being driven (for electric cars, the 50%-odd of the time when they need to be on charge ; you need to waste space on roads for them to move along. Dreadful things. Public transport networks and a modicum of taxis are far more efficient. Any city not bombed flat and rebuilt in the last century is going to welcome the demise of the

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by vux984 ( 928602 )

        Oh i dunno... I look at moving out to the country all the time; the peace and quiet, distance to neighbors, space to do things is pretty appealing. If you give me a good electrical connection, and a fast internet and I can work remotely no problem. I already work from home.

        But I'm not sold. No major shows, sporting events. Extremely limited shopping in every category - from food&groceries, to jeans, to parts to toys. Sure you can order online, but its not the same, and you aren't getting fresh salmon or

    • Public transport networks and a modicum of taxis are far more efficient. Any city not bombed flat and rebuilt in the last century is going to welcome the demise of the private vehicle.

      Yeah, you have fun with that.

      I'd never want to live in a dense urban setting where you are stacked on each other like rats.

      I don't care for sharing walls with people.

      And I prefer to be able to drive door-to-door on my schedule, or take an uber when drinking is to be involved.

      Thankfully, at least in the US, we're large eno

  • Just like call centers throwing job descriptions at you "Remote Till Covid." I guess that means remote indefinitely now.

  • So once China has completely eliminated COVID in China what happens next?

    They shutdown the border and no one can come across without a full test and 14 day quarantine?
    They need to test every piece of frozen food?

    https://nypost.com/2020/12/07/... [nypost.com]

    Or they could just get COVID, acquire immunity and move on.

    • Re:What's the game plan? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by phantomfive ( 622387 ) on Monday May 16, 2022 @11:25AM (#62539368) Journal

      So once China has completely eliminated COVID in China what happens next?

      That's the problem. If they could lock down for a couple months and be done with it, then it would absolutely be worth it. They've shown they can lockdown and reduce the COVID counts to near zero.

      But it doesn't work. There are too many reservoirs, animal and human. Eventually, everyone will be exposed to covid, one way or another.

      • is a lot worse than they're letting on. e.g. it can't handle the load.

        Remember that if the healthcare system collapses you've suddenly got mortality rates equal to hospitalization rates, which last I heard was around 20%.

        If even half of that start dying you'll have mass panic. That's more than likely what they're afraid of. China runs a private healthcare system similar in a lot of ways to the American model, but China is a full on Kleptocracy, so they've probably got things like half the medical su

        • Remember that if the healthcare system collapses you've suddenly got mortality rates equal to hospitalization rates, which last I heard was around 20%.

          That's definitely a good point (in my area it's about 2%-5% hospitalized, although we're heavily vaccinated).

          Oh, and if the system does collapse,

          There are lots of reports that people in the CCP have been wanting to end the zero-covid policy, but Xi insists on continuing it. It's his policy now, so if there's widespread anger it will be targeted at him and his people.

          • Like I mentioned in another comment above :

            I think it's now a political question there, with leadership investing alot of resources and effort on zero covid publicly, they can't reverse that without "losing face". Especially with the twice a decade National Congress is going to be held later this year. And Xi Jinping is trying to get things fixed so that he does not have to step down after 2 terms (as has happened with the pass few leaders in China).

            If Xi admits his zero covid plan is wrong, it may have iss

        • Besides that is the reportedly lower levels of protection offered by the homegrown vaccines against the more recent Covid-19 strains, particularly Omicron and its sub-variants. Perhaps because of a kind of Chinese exceptionalism, the PRC has refused to allow the administration of more effective foreign vaccines.

    • Can you get your covid origin stories straight?

      Was it Fauci and his evil gain of function research?
      Was it a bat from a wet market?
      Was it a lab leak?
      Was it from frozen food?

      1 million people already tried for covid immunity and lost.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by GlennC ( 96879 )

        1 million people in the United States already tried for covid immunity and lost.

        FTFY

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Anonymous Coward

        It was most likely a lab leak from a lab conducting gain of function research. Said research was funded, somewhat indirectly, by Fauci, to sidestep US restrictions.

        Anyone who has looked into this at all has to accept this as the most likely scenario based on Occam's Razor alone.

        NIH, via EcoHealth, did in fact fund gain of function research on bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

        Covid 19 contains features not present in bat coronaviruses but that make it almost perfectly adapted to infect hu

        • Before you saw it mentioned on Fox, how many times have you uttered the phrase "gain of function"? Do you even know what it means without googling?

          • Re: (Score:1)

            by NFN_NLN ( 633283 )

            > Do you even know what it means without googling?

            1. Virus no hurt human.
            2. Change
            3. Virus hurt human.

            Archie, this may be complicated to you, but even a child can understand.

  • for "Not a single fuck was given that day."

  • If you read the comments from Americans, zero-covid won't work, right? What China is doing is simply crippling themselves with a policy that cannot work, right?

    Then why is Americans so focused on trying to get China to stop its zero-covid policy? Isn't China the main strategic competitor of the US? When your competitor is doing something stupid, shouldn't you encourage them to continue?

    What are you guys worrying about? Let China cripple itself so America can become great again! Right?

  • In a city of 25 million, cars aren't a solution.
  • I feel with the people in Shanghai. Since now there are medicines and treatments for COVID, this 'outbreak' as tough as it is, does not warrant the complete chokehold on the city as it's been implemented. Simply exercise caution, use masks when needed, get treatment when necessary, this spike will be over like the rest of the spikes were. Now apparently the government allows pre-authorized people/families who have private cars to leave. I would not be surprised if most of them would not head back to Shangha

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