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This is just not correct. Governments are acting on this throughout the world. Don't conflate governments with politicians. For well-functioning states, state a

This is just not correct. Governments are acting on this throughout the world. Don't conflate governments with politicians. For well-functioning states, state agencies are dealing with this through well-established protocols that don't need political clearence. This means that the countries where politicians are the most visible and calling for action could very well be the ones that have prepared the least.

dx034 7y ago
Exactly. In many countries it's down to the city or county to act and federal government can only take over as last resort. We're not there yet. Not all cities are equipped equally and it's frustrating that they don't have a common policy but they all seem to act. For them that's also the first time they are confronted with a pandemic and there's a lot at stake. Under these circumstances, I'm actually somewhat surprised how quickly certain policies are enacted around the globe. A week ago, banning large public events was a novelty, now they're basically banned in most of Europe and parts of the US. The quarantine in Italy seemed extreme a week ago, now several countries are heading towards the same measures. In democracies, curtailing peoples' rights is always tricky, it's the first time I've seen bureaucrats take away individual rights daily without backtracking on decisions.
Veedrac 7y ago
This is even more obvious when you consider what the economically-optimal thing to do would be: Shut down nonessential travel to other countries and enact quarantine protocols for essential travel between countries, before you have community transmission. Then test heavily, for cheap. Trump shut down travel just as doing so became pointless, the USA is barely testing people, and the CDC is resisting drive-through test centres because they are (actual quote) “trying to maintain the relationship between individuals and their healthcare providers.”

dx034 7y ago

Exactly. In many countries it's down to the city or county to act and federal government can only take over as last resort. We're not there yet. Not all cities are equipped equally and it's frustrating that they don't have a common policy but they all seem to act. For them that's also the first time they are confronted with a pandemic and there's a lot at stake. Under these circumstances, I'm actually somewhat surprised how quickly certain policies are enacted around the globe. A week ago, banning large public events was a novelty, now they're basically banned in most of Europe and parts of the US. The quarantine in Italy seemed extreme a week ago, now several countries are heading towards the same measures. In democracies, curtailing peoples' rights is always tricky, it's the first time I've seen bureaucrats take away individual rights daily without backtracking on decisions.

Veedrac 7y ago

This is even more obvious when you consider what the economically-optimal thing to do would be: Shut down nonessential travel to other countries and enact quarantine protocols for essential travel between countries, before you have community transmission. Then test heavily, for cheap. Trump shut down travel just as doing so became pointless, the USA is barely testing people, and the CDC is resisting drive-through test centres because they are (actual quote) “trying to maintain the relationship between individuals and their healthcare providers.”