COVID-19 - How worried are you?

[NAOS]

Medicine isn’t an entirely rational process anywhere in the world, and that’s to its credit. Medicine treats a body, and a body is composed of explicitly non-rational dimensions.

Examples of when rationality ran amok: the radical mastectomy and the peak of high-dose chemotherapy. Both of these processes made complete sense in terms of their deductive reason. It was only after an arduous and repetitive cycle of long-term studies that these procedures were disarmed.

And it wasn’t a more rational process that stepped in for them.

 

[Rubashov]

Its gonna put a lot of people under the hammer, mate of mine is probably gonna lose his business, he's put his whole life savings into it.

 

[sahlensguy]

10

The economic effects are probably going to hit deep and long. I suspect my tour company will close it's doors. The summer season is on the brink. So many small businesses in the travel industry won't make it. It will take a long time to ramp back up with many vasualtica along the way. I'm not sure what I'll do next.

The effects on health will most likely be devastating as well. The overwhelmed health care system will cause much undue misery to all who need care for anything as simple as a broken bone.

Billionaires will profit off the calamities.

No panic though.

After it all though, humanity will rise again. We'll be a more appreciative people and not so entitled. The greatest generation rose from the great depression. I suspect we'll see another great generation rise from this, or at least a better one than who we are now.

 

[babe]

Its gonna put a lot of people under the hammer, mate of mine is probably gonna lose his business, he's put his whole life savings into it.

The only way this will be true for anyone, any business, is if there no reserve of assets/preparations that can last three months without going bankrupt.

 

[checkbookdoc]

I wanted an option that says:
Not worried at all, but it's going to cause a lot of damage that will take a long time to fix.

I think this is the appropriate response. Recognizing there will be significant impacts, especially economic, but that none of it is reason to panic or be concerned. The world, country, and society are going to be fine. Doubt it has as much of an impact as 2008, and everything worked out after that.

 

[babe]

The worst possible response is the centralized government response.

This is something anyone can solve for themselves, like a short-term illness which it is. Yes, everyone shutting down for two months at the same time is huge. Having government order it, and try to pay for it, is nonsense. Crazy nonsense. The most damaging possible response.

Believing there were a hundred thousand deaths in China's seriously-affected areas, and government enforced shutdowns everywhere, soldiers on the street with orders to shoot to kill....Believing Iran has had a hundred thousand deaths and they're digging mass graves.... is only possible if the severity of the virus when it seats itself in the lungs is way worse than the common flu, damaging the lung tissues or alveoli destructively and doing permanent damage if the victim survives at all. This is gonna leave a lot of disabled "survivors".

This kind of reality exists in places with a lot of population, poor living conditions, marginal economics to begin with, with no reserve capacities available for people to last two months, which is most of the world. Also very inadequate medical infrastructure, few respiration assistance devices, few home-care oxygen tank services, few IC units, few masks or filters or respirators.

In the US, urban centers, homeless camps, "sanctuary cities", and Indian Reservations are likely going to be disproportionately affected. Rural folks, smaller cities with some distance from urban communities typically have more food storage/production ability, more isolation, more self-quarantine values which still allow a person to go out to the garden or get some bottled fruit from the root cellar, etc. etc.

Still, every measure to shut down spread right now will pay huge dividends.... lots of carrier-persons sitting still for a few weeks..... means the spread will be slowed enough that those who get the virus and are affected can be cared for, or even that it will be stopped about here.

Four weeks of this, and if our deep-state Dumptrumpster bureaucrats in the CDC can be gotten around and test kits manufactured by private labs.... so that we are not blocked by the damned Democrat hacks in our bureaucracy from getting the tests..... in a few weeks we will be having enough testing being done we can make informed decisions about what activities we can individually resume.

I take the view that we should assume the worst, and take whatever action we can.... individually first.... I won't even bleat if the gov does stuff that helps. Just do everything we can, that we know of.

I have a nephew who is out there building and selling home ventilation devices to sanitize the home air, circulation disinfectants...… He's in the HVAC trade to begin with, and just having an idea of what can be done with that, he's gonna do some damn good business and save lives.

 

[babe]

I wanted an option that says:
Not worried at all, but it's going to cause a lot of damage that will take a long time to fix.

I think this is the appropriate response. Recognizing there will be significant impacts, especially economic, but that none of it is reason to panic or be concerned. The world, country, and society are going to be fine. Doubt it has as much of an impact as 2008, and everything worked out after that.

I wanted the option that says I don't know a damned thing, but I'm gonna do everything I can imagine to make damned sure it's not all that bad.

 

[Keefe]

The only way this will be true for anyone, any business, is if there no reserve of assets/preparations that can last three months without going bankrupt.

This is so far from the ****ing truth. For one, it could last longer than three months. I think it will. In addition, even if the business can withstand three months or even five months, the economy in general will be so devastated (jobs lost, larger debt due to lost jobs and medical bills, foreclosed homes, etc.) that consumers won't spend like they had. That'll hurt and even destroy many of the businesses that barely survived what seemed like the worst.

 

[sahlensguy]

This is so far from the ****ing truth. For one, it could last longer than three months. I think it will. In addition, even if the business can withstand three months or even five months, the economy in general will be so devastated (jobs lost, larger debt due to lost jobs and medical bills, foreclosed homes, etc.) that consumers won't spend like they had. That'll hurt and even destroy many of the businesses that barely survived what seemed like the worst.

Babe thinks there is an on/off switch for this?

It won't happen that way. Several sectors of the economy will be damaged with inflation for everyone, lack of wages for many and great redistribution of wealth to the upper class. This most likely won't be business as usual in a couple of months. I sure do wish it so though.

 

[candrew]

Is it too late to bring back the "Yang Gang"?

I see Mitt is proposing $1000 to every adult.

 

[Keefe]

Is it too late to bring back the "Yang Gang"?

I see Mitt is proposing $1000 to every adult.

Yep. I think Bush gave $600 per adult and $300 per child iirc. That was right before the recession hit.

I see no reason they can't give $800-1,000 per adult and a little more per child. I wouldn't do it yet though. I'd probably wait 4-5 weeks.

 

[babe]

This is so far from the ****ing truth. For one, it could last longer than three months. I think it will. In addition, even if the business can withstand three months or even five months, the economy in general will be so devastated (jobs lost, larger debt due to lost jobs and medical bills, foreclosed homes, etc.) that consumers won't spend like they had. That'll hurt and even destroy many of the businesses that barely survived what seemed like the worst.

you're a socialist, right.

you know nothing.

Most human illnesses are personal events at root, meaning personal actions determine the result. Even stuff like communicable disease. You take care of yourself and you can in many ways avoid be affected.. If you know how it is spread, you directly decide to avoid it. Sure, there are things that don't fit this model, but CoViD-19 does.

Most of the panic is unnecessary, and detrimental overall to the public good. But reduction of travel is wise, avoiding all avoidable travel is wise and helpful, until we get some information on the extent and location of individuals who are potential carriers. And until we put protective technology in place where public access is important.

The corona virus as a class is airborne, spreading via respiratory aerosol, small water droplets in the air we breathe out.... then in. Social distancing is a very good defense, not absolute. Sanitary measures like handwashing, and disinfecting heavy-use areas like bathrooms, or handrails and grocery carts,.... also very effective. Workplace environments can be addressed technologically by emplacing ozone-generation/electric charge generators in the building airstream.

I'm sorta guessing you might work in a hospital or care center. OK, for what we have now in place your panic is justified.

But our socialist politicians are gonna spend pjublic funds just replacing income for folks, not fixing HVAC systems in hospitals and care centers, so that is just damn stupid, and you're gonna make things every bit as bad as you imagine with that kind of stupidity. But's it's your own damn fault, not the disease.

If we did the right things, we could be ramping up activity and returning to work in a month. Maybe two. In practical terms we could begin in month and slowiy build up across several months, and be back to normal then.

 

[Keefe]

I'm a Socialist lmfao!!!!! Nope, try again dimwit.

 

[Rubashov]

The only way this will be true for anyone, any business, is if there no reserve of assets/preparations that can last three months without going bankrupt.

Yeah they're a relatively new business made it through that difficult first 12 months, everything trending up, now this.

 

[magic]

Probably too early to ask, especially on this forum, but from a purely economic point of view, what is worse:
1. Letting 1.5 million to 6.5 million old people (and at risk people) die and letting the economy continue as usual
2. Doing what we're doing now (i.e. quarantine, making businesses suffer, letting the stock mark tank) to save the old

 

[babe]

Probably too early to ask, especially on this forum, but from a purely economic point of view, what is worse:
1. Letting 1.5 million to 6.5 million old people (and at risk people) die and letting the economy continue as usual
2. Doing what we're doing now (i.e. quarantine, making businesses suffer, letting the stock mark tank) to save the old

Letting is just run the course would mean...…. nobody really knows...… this is a new thing, specifically. Thinning the herd could be seen in some positive light, but hey, we're not really that crazy about good management.

The economy would not "continue as usual" because people's behaviors and priorities would still change, even if not directed by top-down management.

being human means caring, and trying to do stuff to make things better. It includes loving babies, teenagers, old folks, the disabled.... even deplorables. My worst criticism of some political activist types with brave new world visions is that they lose a part of their humanity in their zealotry for some ideal.

people have to matter more than ideologies.... or economies.

 

[babe]

Yeah they're a relatively new business made it through that difficult first 12 months, everything trending up, now this.

you're right. But if we live, we get to try again.

 

[Keefe]

Probably too early to ask, especially on this forum, but from a purely economic point of view, what is worse:
1. Letting 1.5 million to 6.5 million old people (and at risk people) die and letting the economy continue as usual
2. Doing what we're doing now (i.e. quarantine, making businesses suffer, letting the stock mark tank) to save the old

2 definitely.

 

[Red]

After considering the British study, which is influencing both the British and American governments, and the summary of that study published by the Post today( I posted this in the original coronavirus thread), I changed from 8 to 9, and maybe I'll recognize a 10 eventually...

 

[Keefe]

I really wish I had bought more fresh fruit and frozen it.