ONLY THE ABC COULD SAY THE ECONOMY DOESN'T COUNT IN THIS CRISIS
This is the economics editor of a state-funded ABC that will not lose a single job from the shutdowns: "People around the world are dying alone Stop talking about the economy. We live in a community not an economy... And learn a lesson from Italy Choose love over hate." There are actually two things wrong in that tweet, apart from the punctuation.
This is the economics editor of a state-funded ABC that will not lose a single job from the shutdowns:
People around the world are dying alone Stop talking about the economy. We live in a community not an economy. Go knock on your neighbour's door & ask if they need help Look after eachother
— Emma Alberici (@albericie) March 25, 2020
And learn a lesson from Italy Choose love over hate
Stay inside. Only go out if you must
There are actually two things wrong about that tweet, apart from the punctuation..
First, when we talk about the economy we are in fact talking about the community - how people provide for themselves and their families so that they do not go without what they need and want. It's about things like the pay a parent takes home to feed their families. It's about things like the money a government gets to pay for hospitals and doctors.
Second, we must learn from Italy? And that lesson is to choose love over hate?
Let's ignore the fact that Italians are just as capable as anyone of showing hate. Just ask the woman with a mob outside her front door after the Mayor of Naples accused her of bringing the virus south.
Choose love? Love did not stop thousands of Italians from dying, compared to just 18 here (so far).
Now, if it had a better economy - one that could pay for a truly first-class health system - then maybe fewer would have died.
And if we keep spending as we're doing now - rather than switch a new model of isolating the infectious and the vulnerable, while letting the rest go back to work - we will cripple the economy so badly that we won't have the money for the very best health care that will save more lives later.
It's the economy, stupid, as Bill Clinton said. It's the thing that keeps us from want.