This endless comparison between "this year" and "last year" seems both meaningless and ripe for headlines when comparing in-pandemic with out-pandemic years.
I get it. 2020 and 2021 messed up just about every statistic ever. In 2021 we get articles about massive rate hikes, in 2022 we get more articles about massive rate falls.
2020 was like an earthquake. Such a massive disruption will have second, third, fourth order effects for a while. But measuring "earth shaking has dropped by 90% since 5 minutes ago" isn't really information of any use.
On the other hand "all buildings are restored to pre-earthquake levels, please carry on as normal" is both highly useful, and won't make it to the front page.
This endless comparison between "this year" and "last year" seems both meaningless and ripe for headlines when comparing in-pandemic with out-pandemic years.
I get it. 2020 and 2021 messed up just about every statistic ever. In 2021 we get articles about massive rate hikes, in 2022 we get more articles about massive rate falls.
2020 was like an earthquake. Such a massive disruption will have second, third, fourth order effects for a while. But measuring "earth shaking has dropped by 90% since 5 minutes ago" isn't really information of any use.
On the other hand "all buildings are restored to pre-earthquake levels, please carry on as normal" is both highly useful, and won't make it to the front page.