Resist The Authoritarian Response To The Coronavirus

[Devout Centrist]

I think it's important to note that China's response to this crisis was a total and complete failure.

They deliberately covered up evidence of a new and highly dangerous disease from the eyes of the rest of the world, bullying and silencing anyone who questioned Beijing's narrative. They ignored the warning signs for weeks, they failed to adequately prepare, and they pressured the WHO into accepting their side of the story.

This is the authoritarian response to a pandemic. It results in maximum misery, disinformation, and death.

The blood will be on the hands of the CCP for this catastrophe. Our own administrators should not seek to mirror the way China dealt with this crisis, although I fear some already have emulated their response.

That being said, this is an extraordinary situation. This is no time to chill at a bar or restaurant. You will endanger yourself, you will endanger others, and you will make this crisis worse.

[Devout Centrist]

I think it's important to note that China's response to this crisis was a total and complete failure.

This is to put it mildly, ridiculous. Their initial response was disastrous but once they took up the necessary measures, they have managed to curtail the infection.

Irrelevant. Beijing dithered for days and chose to cover up community transmission as long as they could. Had the global community known about this sooner, this virus could have been contained more effectively and at a lower cost.

If you want to see total and complete failure, see Italy. Or much of Europe for that matter

So like what Wuhan looked like for much of January and February? I don't think 67,000 cases and over 3,000 deaths can be called a success.

The authoritarian response - total lockdown; tracking down and containment of all persons in contact with the infected - is the only one that works. The reason this pandemic happened is that it was not implemented soon enough.

Protocols like social distancing, closing shops, and quarantines are not inherently authoritarian. What is authoritarian is shooting people who disobey quarantine orders (like some have proposed here!), clamping down on free movement and reliable information, and cordoning off cities from the rest of the world. All hallmarks of China's response to this panic, save for the first one...I hope.

This is the stark face of ideological purity -  ignore the only method that works, because the ideological enemy has used it. But of course you're free to emulate the European response, with its attendant infection rates.

While it is true that nations like Italy did not take action fast enough to prevent a public health emergency, their response is starting to yield fruit. New infections are plateauing one week after the start of their quarantine and the number of new deaths may be beginning to fall.

So why are you then opposed to measures which would prevent this danger? Not all people are responsible, this is why there are laws to keep them in line. And extraordinary circumstances require extraordinary measures.

This is an extraordinary situation, sure, but we should not run roughshod over the Constitution or legal protections put in place to protect civil liberties. There are already legal provisions for situations that require quarantines.

[Devout Centrist]

This really seems like a case where the symptoms (fear, economic depression, societal shutdown) are worse than the disease (99% survival rate).

That death rate's gonna be a lot higher if our healthcare system gets overwhelmed. Better to take these measures now rather than end up like Iran.