[tom_mellior]

> The fear of death due to infection by a pandemic is new. The need for PPE and lack thereof is new.

Very specifically, yes. A bit more generally, it's not different from a pattern of conditions like "heat so extreme it required the regular posting of ambulances to take away workers who passed out, strenuous workloads in that heat, and first-person reports of summary terminations for health conditions such as breast cancer".

> Jumping on someone doing a principled thing at personal cost for "not doing it sooner" is so cynical.

I don't agree that doing one good thing undoes bad things that went before, and that it absolves one from criticism.