The response to COVID-19 will probably go down in history as one of the greatest mass panics and hysterias of all time. It’s a hysteria like the Y2K panic, but with much worse consequences than Y2K had. Government officials are forcing most people to stay at home to avoid the virus, but they risk creating another Great Depression, if not worse.
People also die when they don’t have a job and can’t afford to feed and take care of their families. National, state and city governments should stop the lock-downs and allow people to go back to work, unless they belong to one of the categories that are at high risk of dying from the disease. Those at high risk should just isolate themselves at home for a few weeks. The spread of the disease will be over in a few weeks, when the population develops a certain herd immunity. That would be when about 50% of the population has been exposed to the disease. After herd immunity is built up the high-risk people can also come out of isolation. The quicker the low-risk people are exposed and this happens the better.
Roger Ogden
San Diego, CA
