55k/yr is also much higher than the actual average number of flu fatalities per year, which is closer to 35k even if you include the preliminary stats from the last 2 years (which captures the particularly bad flu year we had in the '17-18 season).

On the other hand, you can't discount the fact that 20-60K Americans die of the flu each year after we developed a vaccine due to its propensity to mutate. The vaccine is only 10-60% effective depending on the year, while early signs are pointing to COVID not mutating in the same way so a single vaccine (or single infection) may be enough to protect you -- potentially for a very long time.

Taking into account the lack of all immunity to and lack of vaccine for COVID to date, and just how much more virulent COVID is (therefore front loading the disease burden) in the full course of time the flu is almost certainly going to take a much, much larger toll.

It's killed 600,000 people per year, each and every year you've been alive worldwide. So far, COVID is at 1/3 of a year's worth of flu deaths -- let alone a lifetimes -- and are approaching 25%+ of the population of some high profile cities infected. Once it gets to 70% or so, it's most likely going to burn itself out due to herd immunity.

Why are you moving the goalposts? We're discussing US mortality figures, and in the US we have good stats on this, and they average out to ~36k fatalities annually.

I'm not moving any goalposts, goalposts remain in tact. And I'm using the same source: both numbers come from the CDC. So for your reading pleasure:

"It's killed 20-60K people per year, each and every year you've been alive in the US. So far, COVID is at about a year's worth of a bad flu deaths in the US -- let alone a lifetimes -- and are approaching 25%+ of the population of some high profile cities infected. Once it gets to 70% or so, it's most likely going to burn itself out due to herd immunity."