Coronavirus - The Reaction

"It's the end of the world as we know it.
And I feel fine....."
                                              - R.E.M.


Let me just jump right into to it.....When I first heard of the Corona virus, I misinterpreted it as the Carnivorous virus. My thoughts ran wild with images of a flesh-eating disease that would propel us into some type of zombie apocalypse. My fears were eased when I confirmed that it was actually the coronavirus. While still to be taken seriously, naming the virus after a light Mexican beer seems just a little more comforting.

With the global pandemic of the coronavirus (aka COVID-19) now in full motion, Americans are scrambling to figure out how to best protect and prepare themselves for the uncertain. Grocery stores are seeing their shelves ravaged by hoards of panicked shoppers. The fear of contracting the coronavirus seems to have taken a backseat to the fear of running out of toilet paper. I don't quite understand this one. From everything that I've gathered, the virus will produce flu-like symptoms (fever, cough, etc). How are people confusing this with an epidemic of explosive diarrhea?

So, the question on everyone's mind is....How bad is this virus? The reality of it is that we really don't know. The best case is that it's an over-hyped media blitz and a relatively small number of people will actually be affected. Worst case is....well, let's don't go there just yet. The bottom line is that until we get the testing ramped up, we are really just speculating.

To date, roughly 156,000 worldwide cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed, with roughly half of that number coming from China. The encouraging news is that roughly half of the overall affected people have already recovered.

In the US, approximately 3000 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed. The death count currently stands around 40*. While these numbers will inevitably climb, they still have an extremely long way to go before they rival the H1N1 (aka Swine Flu) virus from just a few years in which over 12.000 American deaths occurred. **

When you compare this current crisis to the reaction we had to H1N1, it's understandable to question the motives. While we have to protect our citizens, are we over-reacting as a country? I am not a big conspiracy theorist, but it is indeed an election year. And who was the politician that once said, "Never let a good crisis go to waste"? The political implications can not be denied. With this being said, I really wish that both parties could set aside their political differences in times like this and put the American people first. There will plenty of mud-slinging opportunities later.

So, as more schools and business continue to close, we have to figure out how to trudge through this. I would tell everyone to relax and watch your favorite sporting event. But they are all being cancelled as well. I am really bummed about March Madness being cancelled. I was looking forward to seeing the Maryland Terps make a deep run in the tournament. But we'll to have to wait until next year.

And what about the wild ride on Wall Street last week? I have been trading and investing for 25+ years and I have never seen anything like the recent swings in the market. A record decline today followed by a record gain tomorrow. I have spoken to a lot of people of the past week about this. All that I can say is invest wisely. If you're playing the general market, only invest what you an afford to lose. If you truly believe in a particular stock, look to add to your position on any huge market sell-off.  If you've got 10+ years until retirement, you are going to be fine. The market has always rebounded. If you are retired or are about to retire, you should have your money in secure funds that are minimally affected by any huge market decline. These are just common sense rules of investing.

With all of the uncertainty that still lies ahead, just remember this: We are all in this together and we will get through it. We have some of the best doctors and researchers in the world that are working feverishly to find a solution.

So for now, take the necessary precautions to protect yourself and others but don't buy into all of the doomsday hype. America is still strong and resilient. We will prevail...

kw

* https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

** https://www.cnn.com/2013/08/23/health/h1n1-u-s-fast-facts/index.html