[jkingsbery]

I don't think it's fair to criticize all governments (or forms of government) equally.

In our town (New Jersey, USA), several parents decided to keep their kids home from school as the virus spread nearby, even as the school stayed open. Evidently (https://www.nytimes.com/video/world/asia/100000006970549/cor...) in other forms of government, the government itself controls what information is available (and the ability of citizens to make prudential judgments).

That doesn't mean this virus is "China's fault." As you say, all governments demonstrated some form of incompetence (usually starting with the assumption it can't be that bad). There is here an interesting contrast in how two systems respond to incompetence. Since surely how we disseminate information is important to the response to the virus, it seems fair to point out how one system disproportionately impedes how that happens.