A Coronavirus Analogy Worth Considering
By Jim Bauer
@porwest (112717)
United States
March 14, 2020 12:37pm CST
There is panic in the streets!
Speaking of panic. Here is a little analogy based on two words I have heard applied to the reaction to the Coronavirus.
"Caution" and "recklessness."
You can be TOO cautious or TOO reckless with regard to the virus.
You have two cars on the highway. One is driving at 45 miles per hour, being cautious to the EXTREME. The other is driving at 95 miles per hour being reckless to the extreme.
BOTH cars are MAJOR dangers to the other motorists on the road, and certainly both are MAJOR dangers to their own safety.
BOTH cars are more likely to cause a crash on the highway than the guy staying the course and cautiously driving the speed limit. The cars on the highway with the least potential to run into a problem are those who are following the regular flow of the traffic and being very aware and cautious about what is in front of them.
You can be overly cautious and hurt others in the process, and you can be overly reckless in the process as well and hurt others.
9 people like this
10 responses
@MommyOfEli2013 (89474)
• Rupert, Idaho
15 Mar 20
I agree with that 100%. I am somewhere in the middle I'd say...I am concerned, but I am not panicking.
1 person likes this
@porwest (112717)
• United States
15 Mar 20
Nothing wrong with being concerned. I am concerned too. But yep...not in the panic camp on this one. Based on the numbers and historical data I don't think this virus is really all that different than many others that came before it. The media sure isn't playing it that way, though.
1 person likes this
@MommyOfEli2013 (89474)
• Rupert, Idaho
16 Mar 20
@porwest Wish more saw it like we do....but sadly that is not the case! The media is not helping one bit, are they!?
1 person likes this
@porwest (112717)
• United States
17 Mar 20
@MommyOfEli2013 Nope. What the media is doing I actually think MAY be borderline criminal. Really no different than shouting fire in a theater.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
14 Mar 20
I think the biggest problem right now is that we can't really trust what is coming out of Washington. We get conflicting reports. We also don't have enough tests. People are either going to be overly cautious, or not at all. It's the not at all that I find are going to be the most dangerous for this situation.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
14 Mar 20
@porwest I do agree with you that the way it's being portrayed is leaning to the panic.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
14 Mar 20
@porwest They seem to be stressing the fact that we don't have enough test kits, nor do they seem to think we have enough beds in hospitals if the numbers go up. I feel like they've repeated those two facts over and over again.
1 person likes this
@porwest (112717)
• United States
14 Mar 20
@ScribbledAdNauseum It has a LOT to do with it. If the media was being responsible, they would be making comparisons to not only PAST occurrences of such things such as H1N1, or SARS, AND the flu, to keep things into a much needed perspective.
They would also be pointing out that warmer weather USUALLY ends these things, and would be stressing that while numbers go up, summer might just END it.
1 person likes this
@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
14 Mar 20
I loved the analogy that is being drawn. Guess we need to act sensible and not panic. Follow the norms and advisory.
1 person likes this
@porwest (112717)
• United States
14 Mar 20
@sharon6345 Because the media doesn't want you to know the truth. This is a MUCH better story for them right before an election than to tell you how good the economy is doing. Just saying. 
@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
17 Mar 20
@porwest It's more threatening in terms of spread. It's mortality is less than that of flu. But for sure the virus can thrive out of body on surfaces for longer hours and so makes it more wide spreading and contagious than flu.
1 person likes this
@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
17 Mar 20
@sharon6345 it's better to stay safe. Yes seasonal flu claims a huge number of life each year. This virus has less mortality than flu. But definitely it's spreading faster and it can stay out of body for quite some time.
@1creekgirl (44560)
• United States
14 Mar 20
That's a good way to say what we should do. We're in the middle, not being crazy buying out everything in the grocery store, but also not believing that this a pandemic. We've stocked up on non-perishable things to avoid as many trips to walmart as we can until this virus season is over.
@LindaOHio (222288)
• United States
14 Mar 20
Since we are in the "elderly" and health-compromised group (my husband anyway), we will be cautious. BUT we are going to Red Lobster on Monday and are not worried about it...but then there aren't any cases in our county so far.
