In an attempt to seemingly quell a potential panic, White House adviser Larry Kudlow reported by way of TheHill.com that Americans should “stay at work” and not panic.
Kudlow in an interview with CNBC on Friday said he will “argue” the new virus has been “contained” in the U.S., repeating the assertion he made last week as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was warning that the new virus could soon severely disrupt everyday life.
“We don’t actually know what the magnitude of the virus is going to be, although frankly, so far, it looks relatively contained,” Kudlow told CNBC on Friday. “The vast majority of Americans are not at risk of this virus.”
Kudlow also said “America should stay at work,” arguing that the private sector is “going to solve this disease” and again reiterating, “I will still argue to you that this is contained. It can’t be airtight, but … in a relative sense, relative to our population, relative to ordinary flus … I think it is relatively contained.” (source)
Now I am also not saying to panic.
What I am saying is that something is wrong here, because while the hype is real, the focus on “stay at work” is telling too.
Right now, the economy is going through a lot of problems because of the hype about this thing. There are many reasons why the hype may have been generated, but it is not as important as the effects of what is happening.
The problems wills seriously manifest between June and September, due to shipping lanes.
This is when things WILL get ugly.
However, in spite of the hype, the government NEEDS people at work, even if they are sick, to keep social stability.
Governments around the world have been abridging work, shutting down jobs, and even closing school for whole countries, such as Japan, because of this.
The US cannot have this. It would be disastrous.
That is why he is saying this, because something is wrong, and that regardless of how this virus got out, the fact is the government needs the social machines to keep running for the economy.
But how long can they keep them turning if this thing continues to spread?
We will certainly find out later this year…