Wuhan Virus Watch: Pandemic Lockdown Creates Economic ‘Free Fall’ in California

Wuhan Virus Watch: Pandemic Lockdown Creates Economic ‘Free Fall’ in California

Yesterday’s update featured the young and rich fleeing the lockdown-hit metropolis of New York City, leaving it to the cannibal rats.

Today’s update will start with a look at the dire economic conditions on the West Coat, which is the direct result of the continued lockdown.

…California was the first state to shut down to counter the coronavirus and has avoided the staggeringly high infection and death rates suffered in the Northeast. But the debilitating financial costs are mounting every day. California has an estimated unemployment rate above 20 percent, according to Mr. Newsom — far higher than the 14.7 percent national rate and similar to the estimated rate for New York State, where the virus has hit the hardest.

In Los Angeles, with movie productions shut down, theme parks padlocked and hotels empty, things are even worse: The jobless rate has reached 24 percent, roughly equal to the peak unemployment of the Great Depression, in 1933.

“Economic free fall,” is how Tom Steyer, the former presidential candidate, described it. He is heading the state’s economic recovery task force, a group of business leaders, labor activists, economists and former governors who have begun meeting to plot a way out.

California faces a daunting budget deficit of $54 billion, which could force painful cuts to schools, social programs, health care and road building. And the state was the first to borrow from the federal government to finance its $13 billion in unemployment claims….

The New York Times piece takes an in-depth look at the lockdown’s impact on tourism, the wine industry, and strawberry production. The conclusion is that the pandemic will reshape the state’s economy.

“The world has just fundamentally shifted,” said Rick J. Caruso, a real estate developer in Los Angeles, who sits on Mr. Newsom’s task force. “Consumer habits, how we live our lives — there will be fundamental shifts.”

He believes it will be a long time before employment levels bounce back, adding, “I think businesses are going to hire back far fewer people than they let go.”

At least we don’t have cannibal rats: Ours are merely infected with typhus.

Top Norwegian health official: We could have controlled coronavirus without a lockdown

Norway is also rethinking the coronavirus response choices it made.

A top health official in Norway said the country could have brought the coronavirus outbreak under control without a lockdown and urged the country not to lock down if a second wave hits.

“Our assessment now … is that we could possibly have achieved the same effects and avoided some of the unfortunate impacts by not locking down but by instead keeping open but with infection control measures,” said Camilla Stoltenberg, the head of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, according to the Local Norway.

The agency determined that the virus reproduction rate had fallen to as low as 1.1 even before the country locked down on March 12, which suggests to her that extreme measures like closing schools were not necessary.

“The scientific backing was not good enough,” Stoltenberg said about the decision to close schools.

Stoltenberg added that the reaction to a potential second wave of the virus should not be as strict.

I suspect Americans will fight any attempt for another lockdown if there is the dreaded “second wave.”

Dr. Anthony Fauci says a second wave of coronavirus is ‘not inevitable’

It’s a good thing, then, that a second wave may not happen.

A second wave of the coronavirus outbreak in the United States “could happen” but is “not inevitable,” White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday.

The U.S. can prevent another wave of Covid-19 as long as states reopen “correctly,” Fauci said Wednesday morning in an interview on CNN. “Don’t start leapfrogging over the recommendations of some of the guidelines because that’s really tempting fate and asking for trouble.”

Disney World plans to reopen in July

Florida continues to steadily reopen.

Disney World is slated begin reopening in July, with theme parks around the U.S. seeking to welcome back visitors as states begin to lift coronavirus restrictions.

The Orlando reopening will be phased, senior vice president of operations Jim McPhee said during a presentation to an economic recovery task force, USA Today reported Wednesday.

Magic Kingdom — the most attended park — and Animal Kingdom will reopen their gates on July 11, with Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios opening for business on July 15. The massive resort system has been closed since March 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

It is not yet known when the California-based Disneyland will be back open for business.

Los Angeles officials looking to crack down on coronavirus mask, glove littering

Los Angeles bureaucrats are truly inspired when creating new ways to harass the populace.

Los Angeles officials fed up with locals tossing their unwanted masks and gloves on the ground during the coronavirus outbreak are asking the city’s Bureau of Sanitation and Attorney’s Office to find new ways to crack down on offenders, ranging from increased penalties to expanded enforcement, a report says.

“This littering is not only disrespectful of others, it is dangerous to others, especially the workers who end up cleaning up the contaminated items,” Councilman Bob Blumenfield was quoted by City News Service as saying.

“So during this pandemic, I think it makes good sense that we enhance the penalties and we make a strong statement that it is unacceptable to throw your gloves and masks willy-nilly on the ground,” he added.

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