Thread by @cyb3rcuck, i haven't done a thread in a while, and don't get it [...]

i haven't done a thread in a while, and don't get it twisted, i think capitalism should fall. but for the chuds who insist on re-opening: here is the economic case for staying shut down.

SO- there's a pandemic and the world economy is in shambles. the whole world is in lockdown, including your beloved country (blech). maybe you lost your job and can't put food on the table. Your reaction is going to be to say "let's re-open!" - here's why not to do that.

first: things cost money. we've already spent money. a lot of it. the fed pumped unprecedented amounts into the stock market at the first signs of collapse. that sucked shit and didn't do anything. basically, it ate the money and pooped it out like fiber. filling, but worthless.

but even if we hadn't, we have to assume that people, generally - let's say 50%, are going to self-quarantine. they're going to shift their buying habits to avoid people. they're going to do what they can to avoid getting sick. basically, the economy is trashed either way.

here's what will NOT help, but what many propose: we try as fast as possible to get back to business as usual. we pretend nothing will happen or has happened, and we just try to get the economy back to good standing. basically, we want money lines go up.

but that's a bad idea.

first, i shouldn't have to explain this, but if you reopen things, more people will get sick. that's a moot point if you think coronavirus is a hoax, but my roommate has it, so if you think coronavirus is a hoax, go fuck yourself.

so let's assume it's real, because fucking duh.

so more people get sick. woopsie daisy. now that things are reopened, people are going to their places of business every day, doing small exchanges, going back to the old American life of a million meaningless nothings every day. beautiful, right? except the curve didn't flatten.

so it should be no surprise that in most states that are reopening, there was a sudden spike in coronavirus cases, because fucking duh.

so now you have people going back to work or doing small exchanges. this means that we're doing two things:

1) we're forcing poor people back to work, and let's be honest, a lot of the push to reopen is based on emotional manipulation trickled down by executives whose money line go down through media playing on the public fear of scarcity and starvation - rationally founded fears.

i mean, let's be honest. if you have own and rent 5+ properties, you can probably afford to stay home. you can push the work off to contractors and the like. if you are white collar, you probably have a telecommuting option, or at the least, health benefits.

poor folks can't work from home. the people who run our society and all those little businesses we're forcing to reopen can't stay home. shit, in a lot of urban centers, they don't even have cars, so we're herding them onto public transit in close proximity to dozens of others.

so if a poor person catches covid, and they're one of the unlucky few to develop a critical condition - which because a lot less of a "few" and a lot more of a "many" on your 35th birthday - they don't have health insurance. they're left with crippling debt. etc. etc.

2) boomers. oldies. gullible goldies. they're particularly at risk. if your grandma lives at home and your son goes out partying for the weekend and comes back after catching covid and isn't symptomatic, and granny catches it from him, statistically, granny WILL die.

and often, elderly health insurance isn't that great either. many elderly people are on public care that has funding constantly cut by demons in Congress, and i use that general term because a party term isn't sufficient considering the sadistic way both parties cut safety nets

so these two populations start getting a lot more of the disease. what happens to hospitals? they fill up. they start taking out loans to build additional infrastructure. think "you must construct additional pylons" but for geriatrics with debilitating dry coughs

a lot of people don't consider that the healthcare costs don't just go away. these costs will trickle down onto the general populace for years after covid is either treatable or has a mainstream vaccine. you don't just undo billions in loans when the disease goes bye-bye.

the only way to prepare for that? NOT letting people get sick today.

but hey, let's continue to imagine the hellworld where capitalism doesn't collapse by 2023. we have injected trillions into stimulus packages and stock market adrenaline syringes. who pays?

well, we do. and i have to be fucking grim about it, but people who are dead can't pay taxes. covid is the perfect example of something that affects an entire society, and taking an atomistic view of it helps nobody and in fact hurts everyone.

so what's the smart thing to do? the smart thing is to:

- have a STRICT LOCKDOWN
- MONTHLY stimulus checks
- NATIONWIDE rent/mortgage freeze
- GUARANTEED food stipend with FREE delivery in urban areas

this seems like a big investment, but here's the thing:

the long-term productivity cost and life cost of letting a significant amount of our labor force pass away - or develop serious long-term lung problems, as has been demonstrated in some COVID survivors who beat serious/critical condition indicators - is still less [...]

than the short-term cost of treating this disease like it actually fucking exists.

additionally, in 1 body, the virus replicates innumerable times, and every replication presents a potential for serious mutation. the more people who get infect, the likelier a serious mutation is

covid is here. we can't wishful think it or its effects away, and no amount of grit and Law of Attraction

dudebroing can make it NOT exist when it does. it already has had a lasting impact on our economy that won't go away. we have to react accordingly and not just play pretend

look, i hate capitalism, and i'm perfectly happy to let 25% of our population die and the system crumble of its own accord as The Prophecy (das kapital v. 1-4) Foretold

but also i think that's fucked up, and an unfair way to win this fight. capitalism loses eventually.

but as a socialist, i really don't wanna win on a mass grave. so let's be smart. let's push for a rational and intelligent response to this that recognizes that we have the productive capacity and nobody has to beg to work in spite of a fucking pandemic just to eat or have a roof

anyway, to close this thread, just remember: covid is here. it's real. only nerds want to reopen. only nerds think capitalism has the capacity to respond to crises like this. arrivederci, friends

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