Depressing thoughts on Pandemic
General hope/view is that this will be 2 - 4 month thing. That we all lock down & it will pass. But that is very bubbled view of what is going on
Because right now the 1st wave of cases & the reaction to it is mostly from well to do perspective
General hope/view is that this will be 2 - 4 month thing. That we all lock down & it will pass. But that is very bubbled view of what is going on
Because right now the 1st wave of cases & the reaction to it is mostly from well to do perspective
The initial spread outside of geographical epicenter has been via global travelers & in global conferences & such
It has yet to fully & really hit (outside of China & neighbors), poorer less connected countries & the poorer residents in wealthier countries. That sadly can& #39;t last
It has yet to fully & really hit (outside of China & neighbors), poorer less connected countries & the poorer residents in wealthier countries. That sadly can& #39;t last
In both cases they have a lot less resources (money, time) to do what we here on twitter can do, like shelter in place & stop doing anything. We (rich countries & rich people) can spend to make sheltering in place possible
Bankers can go to their country home & buy a deep freeze
Bankers can go to their country home & buy a deep freeze
The poor & working poor in US can& #39;t shelter in place. Some don& #39;t have a place. Some can& #39;t spend 3 months in a tiny apartment with X family members. Can& #39;t go without work, don& #39;t have the space to store food, etc
Homeless community, in particular, is gonna get absolutely crushed
Homeless community, in particular, is gonna get absolutely crushed
Same is true at national level. South Africa, Indonesia, Bolivia, Bangladesh, don& #39;t have resources to fight this. They can& #39;t print money like US, Europe, & Japan can
Go to Kampungs of Jakarta. They can& #39;t socially distance. It is physically impossible. And sanitation?
Go to Kampungs of Jakarta. They can& #39;t socially distance. It is physically impossible. And sanitation?
When the wave hits those countries. What then? And it certainly will.
Now most of those countries have much better public health policies & infrastructures than most people think. Often better than US & they have dealt with stuff like this before
But they can only do so much
Now most of those countries have much better public health policies & infrastructures than most people think. Often better than US & they have dealt with stuff like this before
But they can only do so much
Beyond the awful moral consequences of this -- so many killed and dead. I worry that there is the simply reality that this isn& #39;t going away after all us wealthy people emerge from our countries homes in 3 months
By then it will be in the Kampungs of Jakarta & in LAs skid row
By then it will be in the Kampungs of Jakarta & in LAs skid row
Then next worry will be it coming back from those poor communities & countries
Which we wealthy will surely try to stop via global travel restrictions & nasty stigma & state actions against the poor residents in our own countries who can& #39;t go to luxury homes to sit for 3 months
Which we wealthy will surely try to stop via global travel restrictions & nasty stigma & state actions against the poor residents in our own countries who can& #39;t go to luxury homes to sit for 3 months
Simple put it is a luxury to be able to hole up in your house with supplies for 3 months. The poor canât do that (lack of resources, need to work, dysfunction, etc) & then after awhile they simply won& #39;t do it
It is also a luxury to live in a country that can just print money
It is also a luxury to live in a country that can just print money
What also gonna face a big backlash against needed social distancing that is much much harder for many to do
You can embrace the quarantine if you have big home with lots of deep freezers, supportive family, a bank account that can hold you over
But if you don& #39;t? Much harder
You can embrace the quarantine if you have big home with lots of deep freezers, supportive family, a bank account that can hold you over
But if you don& #39;t? Much harder
Everyone needs something to make them feel ok in a crisis as survival/coping mechanism
We wealthy feel ok by quarantining & yelling at those who don& #39;t. I get that. It is smart science!
But many poor can& #39;t do that & need to feel ok by saying this is silly & I gotta fucking work
We wealthy feel ok by quarantining & yelling at those who don& #39;t. I get that. It is smart science!
But many poor can& #39;t do that & need to feel ok by saying this is silly & I gotta fucking work
To end. This is gonna be with us for awhile, unless there is a medical breakthrough. It is gonna cause a lot of deaths & destruction, mostly in poorer communities & countries
I hope I am very wrong. I hope by stepping outside my area of expertise I am getting this very wrong
I hope I am very wrong. I hope by stepping outside my area of expertise I am getting this very wrong
Uh-oh. This is not good at all. On many levels https://twitter.com/mrochabrun/status/1247984914009595908?s=20">https://twitter.com/mrochabru...