Category Archives: Corona Virus
Dismal Science of Ending the Shutdown
It’s a dismal science for the governors of Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina as they re-open their states for business. And public health officials aren’t excited about the prospect. Here’s Dr. Fauci:
“We are scientists, physicians, public health officials. We’re not economists,” he said on CNN’s “New Day.” “We’re sensitive to the idea that the economy could suffer, but it was patently obvious looking at the data, that at the end of the day if we try to push back prematurely, not only would we lose lives, but it probably would even hurt the economy.”
Kevin Liptack, CNN
Dismal Science
So, how much is a life worth? Economists have a plan for that:
Economists use the Value of Statistical Life. It measures the value placed on changes that increase likelihood of death, not the value on a human life to avoid death. “It’s used in court cases when assigning damages,” Camerer said. I could make a highway a little safer at a very high cost. This is one reason economics is called the dismal science.
Quentin Fottrell, MarketWatch
Oil Has a Negative Attitude
Now even oil has a negative attitude. The price of West Texas Crude went negative yesterday. Nobody wants to buy the stuff. So producers were theoretically willing to pay you $37.63 at one point to take a barrel off their hands.
That was the price on a May contract which expires today. So if you have a tanker parked somewhere, now’s the time. The price on June contracts and later should move back up to positive territory.
Pippa Stevens at CNBC explains why.
Meanwhile, negative interest rates could be on the way to a bank near you. Thanks to negative rates in Europe and Japan, savers pay institutions there to store their money for them.
And, if you’re feeling nostalgic, here’s a cartoon in memory of high gas prices.
World Health Organization and China Relationship
The World Health Organization and China seem to have an unhealthy relationship.
That is to say, it’s sort of like a pirate to parrot relationship. China speaks and the WHO repeats:
The most notorious example came in the form of a single tweet from the WHO account on January 14: “Preliminary investigations conducted by the Chinese authorities have found no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the novel #coronavirus.” That same day, the Wuhan Health Commission’s public bulletindeclared, “We have not found proof for human-to-human transmission.”
Kathy Gilsinan, The Atlantic
World Health Organization and China
President Trump also has “kissing up” issues with China. For instance, on Jan 24 he had this to say:
“China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well. In particular, on behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi!”
Politico
Still he did restrict travel from China 5 days later – with the usual Trumpian embellishment that he did it over the objection of experts. After all, it’s not like he’s putting his name on stimulus checks. Oh wait, he is.
Anyway, last week he suspended U.S. funding for the WHO.
Bernie Quits Before Drug Companies Find a Cure
Bernie quit just as things were finally going his way. Thanks to Covid-19 the government is spending like crazy, we have fee health care and fracking is dead. So he’s dropped out of the race.
Smart move. Drug companies big and small are working on treatments and vaccines. And before you know it, we’ll right back where we started.
Authoritarian Itch Gets Scratched During Pandemic
If you have an authoritarian itch, the Covid-19 pandemic provides a great opportunity to scratch it.
Andrew McCarthy and David Harsanyi write in National Review about authoritarian overreach.
A father in Colorado was briefly handcuffed for playing t-ball with his 6-year old daughter. Meanwhile, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer shut down the sale of fruit and vegetables at garden stores. And NYC Mayor de Blasio threatened to seize churches.
Shutting down church services was a big theme:
Two days before Easter, Louisville, Ky., mayor Greg Fischer attempted to unilaterally ban drive-in church services for the most holy day in Christianity.
David Harsanyi
But U.S. District Judge Justin Walker overruled the mayor. And maybe the judge was scratching that itch himself when he claimed, “On Holy Thursday, an American mayor criminalized the communal celebration of Easter.”
But, it’s still best to be king. As President Trump says:
When somebody’s the president of the United States, the authority is total.
