3 ms·

I think this is doom and gloom reporting. Yes these businesses may be closed "permanently", but others will eventually rise in their places. It'll take more tha

by sabujp 6y ago

I think this is doom and gloom reporting. Yes these businesses may be closed "permanently", but others will eventually rise in their places. It'll take more than a year but it will happen. The great depression lasted for 4 (or 10 years depending on who you ask). I think we're much better equipped now financially and scientifically to deal with the pandemic (e.g. fast time to market for vaccines). Now it's just a matter of govt mobilizing.

commandlinefan 6y ago
> It'll take more than a year but it will happen You don't think that's gloomy?
- sabujp 6y ago
  again, ask people who lived through the depression what gloomy really is.
  - doyouevensunbro 6y ago
    Are there a lot of Great Depression survivors on HN? Here’s hoping they chime in.
    - sabujp 6y ago
      ok, famines, wars, refugee crises, etc
- dfxm12 6y ago
  I don't. A small business only has a 50/50 shot of surviving 5 years when there isn't a global pandemic. Since 2011, more businesses have been opening than closing each year [0]. This is worse than normal, but there's a lot of room between that and "gloomy". https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/Frequently-Asked-Questions-Small-Business-2018.pdf https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/Frequently-...
munificent 6y ago
> Yes these businesses may be closed "permanently", but others will eventually rise in their places. Economically and in the aggregate yes. A few years from now, if you want to get a burrito or a bagel, you'll be able to. If the goal of society is to ensure reliable access to relatively interchangeable goods, the current policies support that. Personally, though, I believe our societal aspirations should be a little higher. Each of these independent restaurants are owned by and employ real people and going out of business is an irrevocable chapter in the narrative of their life. That's a chapter that didn't have to happen for many if the federal government had made different choices. Likewise, these restaurants are real, tangible parts of the history and fabric of a place. Seattle without Pike Place Market is not the same Seattle. New Orleans without Cafe du Monde is not quite New Orleans. When that history is destroyed, it is gone forever. And when a culture destroys their connection to their past, I think they lose some of their ability to invest in the future.

by sabujp 6y ago

commandlinefan 6y ago

> It'll take more than a year but it will happen You don't think that's gloomy?

sabujp 6y ago
again, ask people who lived through the depression what gloomy really is.
- doyouevensunbro 6y ago
  Are there a lot of Great Depression survivors on HN? Here’s hoping they chime in.
  - sabujp 6y ago
    ok, famines, wars, refugee crises, etc
dfxm12 6y ago
I don't. A small business only has a 50/50 shot of surviving 5 years when there isn't a global pandemic. Since 2011, more businesses have been opening than closing each year [0]. This is worse than normal, but there's a lot of room between that and "gloomy". https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/Frequently-Asked-Questions-Small-Business-2018.pdf https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/Frequently-...

munificent 6y ago

> Yes these businesses may be closed "permanently", but others will eventually rise in their places. Economically and in the aggregate yes. A few years from now, if you want to get a burrito or a bagel, you'll be able to. If the goal of society is to ensure reliable access to relatively interchangeable goods, the current policies support that. Personally, though, I believe our societal aspirations should be a little higher. Each of these independent restaurants are owned by and employ real people and going out of business is an irrevocable chapter in the narrative of their life. That's a chapter that didn't have to happen for many if the federal government had made different choices. Likewise, these restaurants are real, tangible parts of the history and fabric of a place. Seattle without Pike Place Market is not the same Seattle. New Orleans without Cafe du Monde is not quite New Orleans. When that history is destroyed, it is gone forever. And when a culture destroys their connection to their past, I think they lose some of their ability to invest in the future.