My big issue with how people compare the 1918 flu pandemic and COVID is the compression of time. The 1918 pandemic rebounded for over a decade infecting communities. The changes people laud (like improved ventilation and public health) came after several decades of concerted effort. There were hoards of vaccine and plague deniers in 1918 and some of them (Harding in the USA) rose to power due to it.
I am not saying comparison isnt apt. Just saying the 1918 pandemic had decades of known impact