mebanedeac
Well-known member
I'm not defending DR or Mebane on this, because I don't think we're all that close to reopening, but regardless of who is making the decision and when it gets made, there is always going to be an economic component to this decision. At some point, cities and states are going to start telling people they can leave their home again and some number of people are going to get sick and die as a consequence. There is no scenario where we wait until the risk is 0.0% before we start letting people leave their homes. There is a certain amount of risk that comes with living and enjoying our lives, and we all know and accept that. Its the same reason we don't have a nationwide 20 mph speed limit even though it would save a ton of lives.
Well said.
I am not advocating reopening the country without a significant reduction in the danger. Of course I do not value the economy over lives. However, I am simply stating a fact. I feel for the people living from pay check to pay check whose jobs have been brought to an abrupt halt. I feel also for small businesses that have to fight for a place in the market and may not survive this protracted loss of business. I'm sure all of us feel the same (at least I hope so). There are many casualties to this virus. And the decision to reopen is not likely to be so clear that everyone will agree. Furthermore, there may be some who would like to reduce common wealth to the point that more and more people must depend on the government for basic needs. Not all the laws are altruistic.