COVID is the flu. It's the greatest hoax ever. And those behind the hoax know how the mind works, so they know how to instill the fear in people to make the virus real.
Everyone who gets the flu or a cold now says they had COVID, either because they actually got tested, or they just want to wear it as a badge of honor. And of course, because they hear how bad it is, their minds make it out to be WAY worse than ever. But in reality, it's just the flu. And if nobody ever knew about COVID, they'd tell people "I had a bad case of the flu". Nobody would have given a shit either.