Photo Credit: Tom Cole
As President Trump pushes to re-open the country, health experts warn the move will have dire consequences.
A New York Times-led panel of health experts say live events will be one of the last sectors to re-open. When asked if the economy must be restarted step-by-by step, Zeke Emanuel, a bioethicist, confirmed the plan.
Experts think work sites that allow physical distancing may be able to come online sooner. But concerts and other live events are off the table for the rest of 2020. “Larger gatherings – conferences, concert, sporting events – when people say they’re going to reschedule this conference or graduation event for October 2020, I have no idea how they think that’s a plausible possibility,” Emanuel says. “I think those things will be the last to return. Realistically we’re talking fall 2021 at the earliest.”
Emmanuel says restaurants and bars may be able to open sooner with restrictions in place. These comments bring into question whether postponed events like Coachella are going to be outright canceled in 2020. Even Bonnaroo postponed its mid-July concert to September – but is that realistic? Experts don’t seem to think so.
Without more testing for COVID-19, entire sectors of the economy may have to remain closed. That includes live events, concerts, and any other large gatherings.
Emmanuel continues, “If in June we’re in the same place we are today – we can’t get testing, we can’t do contact tracing, we haven’t put that infrastructure in place – then you are not opening up in June.”
So many live events have postponed until ‘later this year’ with no specific dates. Those organizers may be forced to cancel their 2020 live events outright. Perhaps Justin Bieber had the right idea when he withdrew his entire 45-date Changes tour for 2020. Now, it looks like organizers and venue owners are facing a scary ‘wait and see’ approach that could be as long as 18 months.
The massive overreaction to a mild threat continues. The world has gone mad in its hysterical response. This is now a political issue with power-hungry government tyrants forcing unfounded restrictions and collapsing the economy.
Stop the quarantine now.
There is no hysteria happening, except those people bulk buying toilet paper. Hunkering down and avoiding a virtually unknown virus is called safety first. While I agree that the economy is hurting, there would be no economy if this situation weren’t addressed with caution and moderation because more people would be dying. You can’t say this is just a common cold or flu. The signs are there – stacked bodies inside and outside hospitals, overwhelmed emergency rooms, the daily total of people acquiring the disease and those passing from it, and more. And these are numbers based upon very limited (less than 1%) testing nationwide. This is a very different scenario that anyone living has ever seen before and it is wise to not jump back into what was normal. You can, of course, go against the recommendations and local/state government orders, but you put not only yourself at risk, but others. We’ll get there. It will just take time.
Hysteria. The flu kills many more each year and is more deadly. Why didn’t you scream like chicken little then?
This is ridiculous how many lemmings bought into the state-controlled hysteria. This MUST stop and we MUST get back to work.
Your response is not only incorrect, it is illogical. This isn’t about lemmings or hysteria. This is about facts. The economy will come back, but we cannot make the dead rise again.
BTW, it is time for civil disobedience. The government has purposefully targeted religion and have turned to Marshall Law to silence opposition speech. These are dangerous times for freedom.
I don’t think you’re playing with a full deck. You are advocating for civil disobedience? That’s a very general statement with no real reasoning behind it. As for religion, there are many ways to practice religion and worship that don’t require large congregations of people in one place during a pandemic. There has been no silencing as you suggest. It is about public safety. When was the last time a church paid taxes? Oh yeah, they don’t. They want their cake and to eat it, too. Conflict of interest – huge
B.S. Christians were targeted yet liquor stores remain open. The government GROSSLY overstated CV stats to gain power.
Again, why were you not freaking out when the flu killed more in 2018?
This is insane, and you are a sheeple. There will be riots soon if politicians continue this madness. Reopen now.
Angelito got it wrong again. Liquor stores provide food and drink – hence, essential. These services and products cannot be provided virtually. They also pay taxes. Churches have the ability to keep practicing virtually. Your position is weak, at best.
The 2018 flu did not spread like today’s virus. It also did not have the same symptoms. By your theory, we should continue business as usual, let this spread as it will, then deal with it when it gets worse. Why not put the current preventative measure in place to not have to deal with future issues which could be much worse for the economy, health, etc.? You got it all backward.
Sheeple? Cmon. When you use terms like this, it undermines any possibility of someone taking you seriously. Present your case. Back up your claims. Be rational. You’re not. Any madness or hysteria is coming from you and people like you.