This scenario may sound a little strange at first because of the amount of fear going around, but hear me out and I think you’ll see what I’m getting at despite the somewhat hyperbolic title.
For now, it looks like the coming week will be the week that American cities effectively “shut down” due to actions taken to avoid the spread of the coronavirus. Schools, movie theaters, bars, and restaurant in several states look to close in the coming week. However, Americans are a different breed of people and our culture is much different than in countries already impacted by the virus or already on shutdown.
Because of that cultural difference, I think Americans are going to react differently if this pandemic ultimately fizzles out in America. What I mean is that if people don’t start seeing dead bodies in the streets, they are going to get angry. I know that sounds a little morbid and hyperbolic at first, but it points to a real question that we are about to face if all this fear over the coronavirus never materializes.
Think about other diseases. Everyone here knows of someone directly or indirectly who has had the flu, diabetes, cancer, or heart disease. I think for the most part, nobody knows anybody or has any friends or family that knows anybody who has the coronavirus. Of course, that should be case statistically speaking as such a small number of cases are confirmed here in America.
But at the same time, people are being forced from their jobs, many are being laid off. People are hoarding basic items like water and their families are scared. If we go for two weeks of shutdown and Americans don’t start hearing about friends and family who know someone who has this, they will be relieved at first, but then they’ll be angry. If after two weeks we are all just sitting in our houses drinking bottled water and eating frozen dinners, people will start wondering if we all got duped and who was behind it, and what was the motivation.
I understand that if the cases stay relatively low in America, the government will simply say that their measures to lock down the country are what stopped the spread, and that may be partially true. But people are going to start rightfully asking questions as to the origin of this virus and whether or not it was used to cause harm to the American economy.
The reason for the questions is that such extreme measures were taken. Fortunes were lost, as were paychecks for millions of people. People are going to wonder if they were sold on a pandemic that was never really there.
I’m not saying there is no coronvirus, so I want to be clear on that. But what I am saying is that if it doesn’t materialize here in America, we may not just breathe a sigh of relief that we dodged a bullet. Instead Americans are going to suspect that we got played. Were we played by China in an operation to tank our economy? That’s very possible as Trump was no doubt hurting them in the trade war, and after all, it is a type of warfare.
At this point we just don’t’ know. And for the sake of my fellow Americans, I hope I’m right on this. I hope the body count doesn’t explode and the cases stay small, as that would be a good outcome no matter what the implications. Nobody wants to see Americans sick or dying. But how will Americans react when they start facing the real questions as to how all this got started an how it was sold to us?
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