Coronavirus Matters, the Stock Market Doesn't, and Thinking It Does May Literally Kill Us

[BeckyDem]

( Our country is very sick )


Jon Schwarz

March 6 2020, 12:38 p.m.

If you’ve been spending any time online or watching cable TV, you’ve gotten the message that humanity now faces two grave threats — a novel coronavirus and the crashing stock market — of roughly equal importance.

Yesterday CNBC’s Rick Santelli went further, staking out the position that stocks losing value is actually more terrifying than millions of deaths. “Maybe we’d be just better off if we gave it to everybody,” Santelli sagely explained. That way, lots of people would expire quickly, thereby removing the uncertainty that’s been plaguing investors.

It’s easy to criticize Santelli, but he was just taking the logic of America’s obsession with the stock market a few steps further than normal. For decades, whenever we’ve faced a choice between the reality of human beings and little numbers on a screen, we’ve always gone with the little numbers.

https://theintercept.com/2020/03/06/coronavirus-covid-19-stock-market-economy/

[berni_mccoy]

1. The stock market *does* matter

It just shouldn't matter more than people's lives.

Think about people who are about to retire or just retired based on the value of their 401k accounts.

[frazzled]

7. 1/3 of the American workforce has a 401k retirement fund

That's around 55 million people. For younger people, this won't matter. It's the long term that counts. For those workers who are nearing retirement, it's pretty important.

As is the general effect of the virus on the entire economic structure to every American.

[Hoyt]

2. Agree, it doesn't matter. But a lot of poor people are going to get hurt by virus and slowdown.

[BeckyDem]

4. Our government must be prepared to help people with relaxing loan payments for a period of time.

Same for rents, we have to do the right thing. Trump should be impeached for saying it was a hoax. It is insane how he gets away with dangerous tactics disguised as mere political discourse.

[ace3csusm]

3. Get Ready For National Emergency!!!Elections Canceled until we get this under control

If Dumpy's numbers drop it will be his next move...

[llmart]

5. Have we forgotten the infamous words of that other great intellectual?

After the 9/11 attacks, Dubya's first concern, after finishing his children's book of course, was to tell people to "go shopping".

It's always about money with these people.

[BeckyDem]

6. Every time!

[Initech]

8. Austin cancelling South By Southwest is going to be an economic DISASTER.

There's no other way to describe it. It was the right short term move to make, but in the long run this is going to have disastrous economic consequences for Austin.