WuFlu Revisited

I'm not the kind of guy who sees the benefit of throwing water on a drowned man. No point in recovering ground once covered. But, hey, I'm essentially trapped in my home office with nothing better to do. I'm becoming a bit cranky over this WuFlu lockdown. The longer it drags on, the less in favor of it I become – and, I wasn't a true believer to begin with.

I think 50 years from now when history takes an objective look at this pandemic, it will be referred to as the Great Toilet-Paper Famine of 2020. Every textbook for sociology, economics and political science will frame this virus and our over-the-top reaction to it as the killer of the most robust economy in a generation. Is “killer” too harsh a characterization? I guess we'll see, but consider this....

In what we now call the Great Recession that began in 2008, basically, one element of the economy took a dump: the housing market. I won't go into the whys of how so many bad loans were made, but the easy-mortgage market created a false demand for housing that drove values far beyond fair market. When the defaults began pouring in, the housing market collapsed, taking a huge chunk of financial institutions and the stock market with it. Getting the economy booming required nearly a decade.

Look around today. Following recommendations from the Feds, state and local governments have shuttered any and every business deemed nonessential, cutting across a wide swath of the economy. Most of those not closed are operating under some sort of duress. Sixteen million workers are sitting on their duffs at home hoping the unemployment checks begin soon. Who knows how many small businesses will never reopen their doors?

Although I have little regard for “experts,” some have lined up to predict the unemployment rate will reach 15 percent before this is all over. That rate averaged less than 10 percent at the height of the Great Recession in 2009. You do the math.

Even as someone in the higher-risk pool, none of this makes any real sense to me. I still don't know anyone who knows anyone who is sick from this. Our (U.S.) experts have admitted to inflating the death numbers. Even at that, I don't know anyone who knows anyone who knows anyone, well, you get the picture, whose death was attributed to the WuFlu.

There is still no clear picture on how many have been infected because in some people the symptoms are very light and others don't even exhibit symptoms. Hell, half of us could already have had it and don't even know it. The first reported case in China was in mid-November, but that wasn't patient zero. Reportedly, the Chinese can't find patient zero and have no real clue how long the virus was spreading through China before the first case was reported.

We know we can't believe the virus numbers coming out of China. The hysterical media in this country are claiming reported U.S. virus deaths now surpass China's. “Reported” being the key word in that headline. Knowing how the virus spread in this country, is it reasonable to think fewer people died there, when China didn't even know what it was dealing with in October and November? If you do, I have some beachfront property in Iowa I'd like to unload on you.

(Here's a math problem for you to ponder: How is it that Beijing, China, with 21.5 million people sitting 700 miles from Wuhan, only reports 8 WuFlu deaths? Shanghai with more than 24 million people lying 500 miles from Wuhan only reports 6 deaths? And, New York City with its measly 2.4 million people that is 7,500 miles from Wuhan reports more than 5,500 WuFlu deaths? Let's see, carry the one.... Really, how is that even possible? Hmmm.....)

My point in all of this is, it has become clear that the early models for this pandemic are wrong. Remember the 2.2 million U.S. death-toll prediction? Do you know how many are being treated on the hospital ship sent to New York City? Zip, zero, zilch. Nary a one. What about those desperately needed ventilators Gov Andrew Cuomo continues to whine about? New York still has a stockpile of thousands of unused ventilators.

And, allow me to drift into the political for a paragraph. Isn't Andrew Cuomo the chief executive of New York? I've got that correct, right? If I ever had the misfortune of being elected governor of New York, knowing that the numero uno target of every aspiring great-infidel-hating terrorist is New York City, I think I would ensure warehouses outside of the city are filled to the brim with ventilators, gas masks, medical supplies, hospital tents, hazmat suits, bags of rice, and so on and so forth. The fact that New York was caught as flat footed as every other state, is the fault of, wait for it, Andrew Cuomo. I get why Lincoln, Nebraska or Minot, North Dakota wouldn't be prepared, but there's no excuse for New York to not have stockpiles of stuff in case of a terrorist attack, biochemical or otherwise. Cuomo can point the finger at Trump, but in fact, making sure New York is prepared is Cuomo's job.

So, here we are heading into month No. 2 of the Great Toilet Paper Famine of 2020. It's time to climb out of our bunkers, stretch our legs and get back to work. Anyone who is still worried can stay hunkered down at home. Otherwise, head out, buy some Schweppes Tonic Water and zinc tablets, and let's get things rolling again.