It's even worse than it appears.
Little Outliner v1.8.11 is out, with sorting. #
We need a TARP-level response to the virus.#
This morning I heard a segment on NPR about the SXSW cancellation. Interviewed the mayor. They talked about protecting Austin, but missed the bigger picture. An event like SXSW could be a hub that distributes the virus to the communities that visitors return to. #
A simple idea. We need testing of the Covid-19 virus. More testing is better -- and sooner. The US government isn't moving fast enough. Maybe Amazon, Google, Facebook, Apple could get together to help us get tested, and then help scientists learn as much about where we're at as soon as possible. We need a Manhattan project, and it seems the capabilities of the tech industry would be well-applied here. #
I found this in one of the closets in my house. The previous owners must've left it. Precious!#
  • These ideas are going to seem horribly naive in a few days probably, but based on lots of reading and listening this is what I think. #
    • Until there is massive testing we can't know where the virus is. Assuming it's everywhere is better than assuming it's nowhere.#
    • Shelter in place. Self-quarantine. #
    • The reason to self-quarantine is two-fold. 1. To minimize the chance that you get the virus and 2. to slow its transmission. It uses our bodies to get to other bodies. If we don't have it, we can't transmit it. If we do, if we don't move around we can't transmit it. #
    • Only go out to get food and other supplies, and to work if you can. That's an ideal of course, not achievable in most countries, esp not the US, which doesn't have health care for all, or paid sick leave, or for that matter a functioning government. #
    • Hope that essential services can be maintained, electric, water, the supply chain for food, health care. Expect lots of outages. Hope is really all we have at this point when it comes to maintaining our way of life. #
    • If the government can't implement massive testing, we have to do it. We'll need excellent data management functions so we can do all kinds of queries on the data, to determine what comes next. #
    • I have to say this, we should get Trump out of the loop of this, he's much more lethal than the virus. The government that comes after Trump, hopefully very soon, must implement a TARP-like program to vastly expand health care funding and funneling money to people who can't go to work because they have the virus, to help slow transmission. Also to parents who have to stay home to take care of kids who aren't going to school. #
    • The rate cut by the Fed was insane btw, if we get out of this, we're going to need the ability to drop interest rates to stimulate the economy (experience from Katrina, a stopped economy is slow to restart). The rate cut can't do anything to stimulate an economy that is coming to a halt for non-market reasons. If people have more money in their pocket (they won't but if they did) they aren't going to go to Walmart to buy a new fridge and risk getting a virus that might kill them. #

© 1994-2020 Dave Winer.

Last update: Saturday March 7, 2020; 6:18 PM EST.

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