[throwaway237683]

Not sure if it is folly for me to try and answer here (no idea if my reply is going to be visible). Thank you for trying to listen anyway.

There is no need to look for malice when there are simpler explanations. No, I do not think Newsom and Cuomo were actively trying to hurt their states' economies; what I said is that they are using the present crisis to advance their political goals _disregarding_ economic fallout. And you are telling it exactly: they are already seen as "taking charge of the situation" while the federal government was "doing nothing". I've seen Newsom being called the savior of the state (nation is the next step, yes) in press and here on HN. Contrast that with what WA state governor was/is doing - I don't even know his name!

I wouldn't try to make projections regarding chances for winning elections; something tells me though that severe unemployment and budget shortfalls are going to be blamed on someone else like federal government failing to provide relief, etc etc. There are all kinds of ways to spin the situation, I would leave that to professionals. There is going to be plenty of them hurting for work.

I live in California, in a smaller rural community way outside Bay Area. It hurts looking at the devastation this lockdown causes: boarded restaurant windows, closed businesses. It hurts listening to the local pediatrics calling us twice a day begging to schedule a virtual check-up "appointment" for kids basically so that they could bill our insurance and get paid _something_. It hurts when I stop by a grocery store and register clerk is happy just to see someone shopping so he could keep his job a little longer. I still have my cushy IT job but I don't have many illusions about keeping it for long if this goes on.

And all this carnage is for what? The latest numbers on Wikipedia state 128,000 deaths worldwide; you know, that's not very impressive for a zombie apocalypse. 760 people died in California so far. In mid-March we were told that California is 10 days behind Italy, and it's going to be hell in here soon. A month later, where is it?

Now take this "roadmap" that Newsom published yesterday. Literally the first bullet point talks about total Big Brother style tracing and monitoring as _necessity_ to even _think_ about lifting restrictions. You sincerely want me to believe all this is done for the sake of us plebe Joes?

[Jommi]

I think again you are misunderstanding some severe things. Daily cases are flatlining now yes, but what happens if we open things up again? Why do you think we won't go down an expontential growth track just like before the lockdown?

You're literally saying "hey its not that bad, look at how good the numbers are while we are all staying home! Oh btw, can we stop staying at home?" Do you not see the inconsistency there?

[throwaway237683]

> I think again you are misunderstanding some severe things.

No doubt that I am misunderstanding some things. A lot of things, more likely. Severe? That depends.

If you look at the numbers, they never did fit in the narrative pushed on us. Yes this virus is not just like flu, it is way more dangerous for specific cohorts of at-risk people. Key here is: for specific cohorts. Not for everybody. Why is everybody's life being crippled right now to save the few? Why cannot we quarantine people at risk instead of everybody? There is a wide spectrum of possible options between doing nothing and keeping everybody under house arrest.

Have you ever been laid off in the middle of an economic collapse? I still have my job but I don't think I'm going to keep it for long. And when the day comes I'll have to choose between paying ~$2,500 a month to keep my existing health insurance coverage in the middle of a pandemic, or keeping food on the table. No social healthcare here.

No, it's not about numbers looking good while we're enjoying our stay at home. It's about trying to weigh the risks and being rational instead of "saving lives at all costs". The costs are already staggering beyond belief.