Irrational optimism in the time of COVID-19
Irrational optimism in the time of COVID-19 As I write this, the COVID-19 epidemic has taken a firm hold in many countries around the world. Now, one of the critical elements for containing the epidemic or delaying its peak, is the commonsense protection measures that individuals take. But for individuals to wholeheartedly adopt these measures, they will need to believe that the threat posed by this virus is real. Thankfully, many people do understand this. The German Chancellor realizes that given what we know at this stage, two-thirds of the population is likely to be infected. Many ordinary folks do too (Dude! We’re all getting it. Geography irrelevant. Pandemic). And many others have reacted disproportionately. This piece is not intended to cause more anxiety to the general reader, but is mainly addressed to a recalcitrant group of people, constituting perhaps about 20% of the population, some of them in influential positions. Less than uniform adoption of self-prot...