Tom Hanks has Coronavirus

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Vader
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Is this the end of the world?
Dr.Franklin
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Oh my.
oromagi
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@Vader
Is this the end of the world?

Nope.

Recall that when the Black Death killed 30-60% of Europe, the value of labor skyrocketed.  So many serfs were running away to become well-paid tradesmen and artisans in the cities that the landowning nobles had to switch to cash rent.  Before the plague, the value of a farmer was roughly stuck at whatever surplus a farmer could produce.  Now fewer farmers with far more land produced far more surplus- enough to feed their families, pay the rents, and still have money left over to save and invest.  The increased demand in good and services rekindled an European economy that had essentially been stagnated since Diocletian's Edictum de Pretiis Rerum Venalium.  The economy re-diversified- artists and writers could go into business for themselves instead of working for the Church.  The  Renaissance was a direct result of the Black Death.

This particular plague has a death rate somewhere between 1/10th and 1/50th of the Bubonic plague.  Better, this plague seems to target the old and leave the young in good shape.  In an era when the largest share of money in history is locked up in the coffers of a tiny percentage of very over-wealthy old men, a minor mass die off that increases the value of the laborer and releases a big chunk of idle cash back into the economy is likely to improve our society's overall prosperity. 

Worst case scenario in the US is the death of 2-4 million people, 80-90% past the age of retirement.  It's a cold calculation but far from the end of the world, this particular coronavirus is probably a net plus for humanity's prospects.


Vader
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@oromagi
obviously isn’t “end of the world.” But just a strong hyperbole
TheDredPriateRoberts
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@Vader
naw he's got the best healthcare money can buy.
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
Not all the money in the world can save you but true faith can.