I’m tired of seeing scoreboard style comparisons everywhere as some sort of gotcha. Any scientific analysis worth its salt will look into the values to start explaining the numbers and put it all into context.

For instance, can we explain where Sweden’s deaths occurred? Large care homes (100+ residents) that were ill prepared? Are they expected to have a large amount or average amount of excess deaths at the end of 2020? Why is it tracking average and why are some lockdown heavy countries tracking much higher (because lack of health care due to shutdowns?) What even represents a covid death or case?

What makes presenting a list of numbers a “gotcha”? It’s a better starting point for discussion than a random unsupported assertion. I would interpret a complaint about introducing numbers and measurement as evidence that the complainant has a weak position that can’t stand objective scrutiny. Numbers aren’t everything, but they’re definitely a something...

> For instance, can we explain where Sweden’s deaths occurred? Large care homes (100+ residents) that were ill prepared?

A large problem in Sweden is that many of the staff in care homes do not speak Swedish or don't speak/read it well. This has led to the instructions on how and when to use PPE not being followed or not being followed well which led to a large number of infections in care homes [1]. Since people in care homes tend to be part of high-risk groups for severe COVID-19 this had led to a large number of deaths which could have been prevented. I stated this in the original message ('Apart from some bad mistakes in the beginning where the infection was allowed to spread in care facilities').

[1] https://www.sydsvenskan.se/2020-07-10/svag-svenska-kan-ha-pa...