Long term changes from the pandemic?? (1 Viewer)

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    GMRfellowtraveller

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    do you anticipate any long term changes in this country?
    for the most part, i'm not sure we've responded to crisis moments very well - 9/11 did not have a lasting change (we're still fighting a war against people who did not attack us); Katrina? i still can't tell if the response to Katrina is a net positive; there have been a number of infrastructural disasters, but i don't think we've committed to overhauling failing infrastructure; we certainly learned precious few lessons from the banking collapse...
    so i don't really foresee us learning any sort of lesson here

    HOWEVER, i do think there is any opportunity for significant changes
    Healthcare is the obvious one - no need to dig too deep on that one'
    Universal Basic Income - i think the upcoming month will show the benefit of UBI - 10,000s of families needing to scramble/adapt with out of school kids and the big hurt that's coming for the gig economy (and the fact that the bipartisan virus bill only covers about 20% of workers for sick leave) and the other 'law of unintended consequences' we're about to discover would be eased tremendously by a UBI
    IF we had a UBI, businesses could be a bit more flexible/redundant in their staffing practices - flexible 4 day work weeks would make it easier for families to adapt/respond to crises

    i could forsee big accelerations to the work from home economy and LOTS more delivery services

    thoughts?
     
    There will be long term changes for sure, but it is almost impossible to predict really. How bad is it going to get, and how are we going to react. Is the I’ll was even going to be the most significant problem of this period of time, or will it lead to even more serious problems like economic depression or war?

    I do think our consumption habits at least in the west are going to change with respect to how disposable income is spent.

    I think we will place more value on having things we need produced as locally as possible so that we are willing to pay 30 dollars a month for basic generic drugs that are made in Toledo instead of 5 a month for lisinopril made in China.

    We will probably still buy our electronics from over there, but I bet we decide it’s worth a little extra money to be able to surge domestic production of certain medical devices is the situation calls for it.
     
    I'm reading about South Korea and how they had drive through testing sites all over the place, that can give test results in 10 minutes. They are able to do 10,000 tests a day.

    The South Korean healthcare system is run by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and is free to all citizens at the point of delivery. The system is funded by a compulsory National Health Insurance Scheme that covers 97% of the population. Foreign nationals living in South Korea enjoy the same access to universal healthcare as the local people.
     
    I'm sure this will cause our healthcare system to implode. What emerges, I'm not so sure about.
     
    Some changes we may see:

    Conservatives will see that Medicare for all may not be such a bad idea.

    Liberals may see that home schooling and more secure borders are not such a bad idea.
     
    This is a fascinating topic.. given our track record, id say we continue as usual. However it can only help push the narrative (that so many are against) that we can improve our nation drastically. This article was particularly interesting to me:

    America is a Sham - Slate
     
    Some changes we may see:

    Conservatives will see that Medicare for all may not be such a bad idea.

    Liberals may see that home schooling and more secure borders are not such a bad idea.

    I disagree about border security.

    This didn’t spread through illegal immigration.

    Unless you mean people will support limiting all normal travel in and out of the country, but it would have to end up being apocalyptic for us to have that type of reaction.
     
    Last edited:
    This is a fascinating topic.. given our track record, id say we continue as usual. However it can only help push the narrative (that so many are against) that we can improve our nation drastically. This article was particularly interesting to me:

    America is a Sham - Slate

    See that is the problem though, we should have discussions on what needs to change, but an article coming out and just saying America is a sham just makes people react poorly.

    If you want to debate and discuss a topic, you don't start it off saying they are stupid and doing it all wrong. That article title is what is wrong with our divisive political nature right now.
     
    Some changes we may see:

    Conservatives will see that Medicare for all may not be such a bad idea.

    Liberals may see that home schooling and more secure borders are not such a bad idea.

    There are liberals against home schooling?

    As far as border security, there's a false equivalency many on the right make (similar to the guns issue) that because liberals want better immigration policy and don't see a border wall as anything more than a figurehead, that they are for "open borders".
     
    There are liberals against home schooling?
    at 2 different significant moments
    - when desegregation had the unintended consequence of white flight and rules of what high schoolers needed to graduate were all of a sudden relaxed
    - when the moral majority fanned the flames of the liberal take over and conservative state govts found ways to fund religious based home schooling
     
    See that is the problem though, we should have discussions on what needs to change, but an article coming out and just saying America is a sham just makes people react poorly.

    Its all in the perspective. I see America as a sham in many ways as the article says. That doesn't mean I don't also see it as wildly successful, with amazing people and amazing potential. Its not "all or none". Im American, and take no offense to these varying perspectives because situationally, our country has been everything from genocidal to leader of the free world and most successful country on Earth.


    If you want to debate and discuss a topic, you don't start it off saying they are stupid and doing it all wrong. That article title is what is wrong with our divisive political nature right now.

    Id encourage you to read the article. Americans shouldn't expect every perspective to be sugarcoated for them. I think that's part of the problem with the concept of American exceptionalism today and why we get agitated at others for bringing up America's flaws.

    I bring up its faults because I love this country, it's people and want us to do better. Lets never assume those with similar views want otherwise.
     
    Liberals may see that home schooling and more secure borders are not such a bad idea.

    sure, as long as religious slant is removed from home schooling. More god less evolution is a poor way of "educating" children.
    More secure borders, sure. As long as they don't waste $$$ on a stupid fence that doesn't stop anything.
    Oh except
     
    Some changes we may see:

    Conservatives will see that Medicare for all may not be such a bad idea.

    Liberals may see that home schooling and more secure borders are not such a bad idea.
    i could see a compromise where borders remain open (libs win) but there are agreed upon triggers that restrict flow at bordes, ports and airports

    if the workplace becomes more flexible (work from home, 4 days/week or some other flexible scheduling) then education would follow suit (3-4 days of school and more classes on line)
     
    Telecommuting

    Thats one of the big changes I could see coming from this if this is a prolonged pandemic in the US(If things get really bad that’s when I see things like UBI/UHC/Labor Rights really breaking through partisan lines).

    For instance, we spent much of Thurs/Fri drilling down who can actually work from home efficiently Throughout the various projects we have going around the country, planning to roll out company-wide telecommuting policies for all projects with some case-by-case adjustments tomorrow morning. While it‘s long been a sense I have had, and my experience, companies have been hesitant to truly take the plunge and break up the traditional workplace structure. Even when it comes to positions that can fairly clearly and obviously be done either by home or through remote location hubs. Even in industries where not relocating people could save a lot of money and create competitive advantages.

    I could see, if it is long-lasting enough, to have a longer term shift in the way a lot of industries and individual companies structure their organizations.
     
    Telecommuting

    Thats one of the big changes I could see coming from this if this is a prolonged pandemic in the US(If things get really bad that’s when I see things like UBI/UHC/Labor Rights really breaking through partisan lines).

    For instance, we spent much of Thurs/Fri drilling down who can actually work from home efficiently Throughout the various projects we have going around the country, planning to roll out company-wide telecommuting policies for all projects with some case-by-case adjustments tomorrow morning. While it‘s long been a sense I have had, and my experience, companies have been hesitant to truly take the plunge and break up the traditional workplace structure. Even when it comes to positions that can fairly clearly and obviously be done either by home or through remote location hubs. Even in industries where not relocating people could save a lot of money and create competitive advantages.

    I could see, if it is long-lasting enough, to have a longer term shift in the way a lot of industries and individual companies structure their organizations.
    And if most people are chill about it, the transition could be fairly seamless
    But it seems most workers think companies are ***** and companies think most workers are cheats
    If there remains an adversarial relationship (with govt almost always taking the business’s side), the transition will stay at a trickle’s pace
    But again with a UBI businesses could focus on paying workers for jobs done and not time spent doing jobs
     

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