# Severe bush fire on the New York Stock Exchange



## Berthold (Mar 12, 2020)

What is going on in Your country?


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## KyushuCalanthe (Mar 12, 2020)

People are drinking at bars, eating ramen and walking the streets.


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## orchid527 (Mar 12, 2020)

Locally, I see absolutely no change. I was out and about all day long at various stores and it was business as usual. The news on the TV is a different story. I honestly don't know if it will turn out like the Y2K fiasco, or if in a few months we will all know someone who has died. I do believe the panic will end up causing some serious financial damage. Mike


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## Berthold (Mar 13, 2020)

orchid527 said:


> Locally, I see absolutely no change. I was out and about all day long at various stores and it was business as usual. The news on the TV is a different story. I honestly don't know if it will turn out like the Y2K fiasco, or if in a few months we will all know someone who has died. I do believe the panic will end up causing some serious financial damage. Mike



You have to expect about 200 million infected people in the USA in future. But don't worry, only 1 million will die by that.


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## orchid527 (Mar 13, 2020)

Berthold said:


> You have to expect about 200 million infected people in the USA in future. But don't worry, only 1 million will die by that.


If that many become infected, it will be more than 1 million. There are more than 35 million people in the US age 70 and older, and you have all of the people with compromised immune systems in the other age groups. The death rate for these people will be more than 3%. They will overload the healthcare system just like everywhere else. The really sad part of this will be watching the media profit from the broadcast of the daily deaths, and the way the political parties will use this as a weapon in the elections. I wish these turds could be the first to go. Mike


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## Berthold (Mar 13, 2020)

Mike, for You I expect about 0.5% all over the population of the USA. But orchid lovers will not have a better chance than politicians or other forum Members.
I hope You have children, so that Your family will not be extinguished, in case of..


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## Ray (Mar 13, 2020)

The stock market is more about perception than fact.

While there is a real concern that manufacturing and commerce will be slowed by the impact of the virus response, people panicking are the true issue affecting stocks.

A good deal of my retirement money is in the market, but much of it is in annuities that guarantee me income and have a minimum cash and death benefit value that cannot be reduced, no matter what the portfolio may do. I'm hoping to "no go anywhere", so I'm waiting it out without much concern.

(I really do hope many of the politicians get COVID-19 in a bad way, though.)


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## southernbelle (Mar 14, 2020)

orchid527 said:


> Locally, I see absolutely no change. I was out and about all day long at various stores and it was business as usual. The news on the TV is a different story. I honestly don't know if it will turn out like the Y2K fiasco, or if in a few months we will all know someone who has died. I do believe the panic will end up causing some serious financial damage. Mike


Not sure where you live, but in VA store shelves (even of perishables) are empty. People are freaking out. I believe unnecessarily, regarding average needs. The shortages are caused by people hoarding, thinking food won’t be available. Toilet paper (because someone posted online it’s made in China!!), any disinfectant, hand sanitizer, wipes (because people are buying it by the case) . Yes, the virus is spreading, however we are (in my opinion) seeing the worst of humanity coming out, fueled by the press. If everyone got what they truly need (or if stores restricted purchases to 1-2 of each item) there would not be a problem. There would be enough for everyone. Whatever happened to “doing unto others as you would have them do unto you”. I’m so discouraged by the selfishness I see right now. The world is not coming to an end, let’s keep perspective. H1N1 (swine flu) was many times worse than this and none of this happened in the supply chain. The press didn’t fuel hysteria then. What have we become?!?!? Forgive me for venting, but... my opinion for what it’s worth.


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## MaxC (Mar 14, 2020)

southernbelle said:


> Not sure where you live, but in VA store shelves (even of perishables) are empty. People are freaking out. I believe unnecessarily, regarding average needs. The shortages are caused by people hoarding, thinking food won’t be available. Toilet paper (because someone posted online it’s made in China!!), any disinfectant, hand sanitizer, wipes (because people are buying it by the case) . Yes, the virus is spreading, however we are (in my opinion) seeing the worst of humanity coming out, fueled by the press. If everyone got what they truly need (or if stores restricted purchases to 1-2 of each item) there would not be a problem. There would be enough for everyone. Whatever happened to “doing unto others as you would have them do unto you”. I’m so discouraged by the selfishness I see right now. The world is not coming to an end, let’s keep perspective. H1N1 (swine flu) was many times worse than this and none of this happened in the supply chain. The press didn’t fuel hysteria then. What have we become?!?!? Forgive me for venting, but... my opinion for what it’s worth.



You are not wrong to feel that way.

I live in NYC and there are certain things that are completely normal (people out and about, only a handful of people wearing surgical masks) and somethings that are very strange (eerily quiet subway, long lines at some ATMs). This is a chance for us to come together, not just as a nation but the whole planet. This is a chance to try and get things right in 2020 because there is sure to be something worse down the line (nuclear incident, severe climate change, biological disaster, extraterrestrial impact). Somewhere along the line "news" became entertainment and not journalism, not just politics but everything has to be sensational. Feeds directly into the frenzy. I have heard so many rumors in the last few days, "they will shutdown Manhattan, they are going to stop the subway, etc." The irony is we have access to more information than ever before but so much of it is just wrong or false information. It was as though someone flipped a switch and put people into a state.

My hope is that 2021 is better than 2020 and we learn some important lessons for the future.

The best thing we can do is stay calm and clear headed and do what we can to help those that need help.


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## southernbelle (Mar 15, 2020)

MaxC said:


> You are not wrong to feel that way.
> 
> I live in NYC and there are certain things that are completely normal (people out and about, only a handful of people wearing surgical masks) and somethings that are very strange (eerily quiet subway, long lines at some ATMs). This is a chance for us to come together, not just as a nation but the whole planet. This is a chance to try and get things right in 2020 because there is sure to be something worse down the line (nuclear incident, severe climate change, biological disaster, extraterrestrial impact). Somewhere along the line "news" became entertainment and not journalism, not just politics but everything has to be sensational. Feeds directly into the frenzy. I have heard so many rumors in the last few days, "they will shutdown Manhattan, they are going to stop the subway, etc." The irony is we have access to more information than ever before but so much of it is just wrong or false information. It was as though someone flipped a switch and put people into a state.
> 
> ...


Thanks, and Amen!!


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## Ray (Mar 16, 2020)

Adding to Max's sentiments: The LAST thing we need right now is "social distancing". Yes, keep extra _physical distance_ between yourself and others, but use whatever means you have at your disposal - forums, Facebook, Twitter, email, texting and phone calls, etc. - to keep in touch with others, especially folks isolated from their normal activities.

Emotion and state-of-mind play huge roles in health. Help everyone you know keep theirs "up".


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## TropiCool (Mar 16, 2020)

Ray said:


> Adding to Max's sentiments: The LAST thing we need right now is "social distancing". Yes, keep extra _physical distance_ between yourself and others, but use whatever means you have at your disposal - forums, Facebook, Twitter, email, texting and phone calls, etc. - to keep in touch with others, especially folks isolated from their normal activities.
> 
> Emotion and state-of-mind play huge roles in health. Help everyone you know keep theirs "up".


Good job revising the language used. Totally right, we should be doubling down with our sociability while physically avoiding spreading contagion. Times like this are good for remembering how much we need each other.


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## Berthold (Mar 16, 2020)

KyushuCalanthe said:


> People are drinking at bars, eating ramen and walking the streets.


Is life still on the same way?


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## NYEric (Mar 16, 2020)

The closer to highly populated urban centers the worse Issues I've seen. Walmart near NYC was devoid of 99% of goods, further away more was available. Streets and businesses were almost empty in NYC where I live. In contradiction to our President's statements this is going to give our country a September 11, 2001 result.


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## KyushuCalanthe (Mar 16, 2020)

Berthold said:


> Is life still on the same way?



I don't know, my mouth just went into "lockdown".


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## orchid527 (Mar 19, 2020)

I live in a rural area and the nearest community is a small town of about 12K where the primary grocery store is a Walmart. I had to go out yesterday to pick up prescriptions, fresh produce and some paper goods. All were in stock and people were taking only what they need. It seems like common sense is prevailing over panic.

For those of us in the US, we may be receiving checks from the government in the weeks ahead. The intention of this money is to soften the blow for the many who have no savings and no longer have incomes. We all like free money, but I suspect for most of us, $1000 isn't going to make any difference in our lives. If this is the case, I ask you to consider donating this money to a local food bank. A little empathy may be appropriate in these times. Mike


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## Ray (Mar 19, 2020)

I doubt I’ll see a dime...

It is a good way for Trump to buy votes, though.


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## orchid527 (Mar 19, 2020)

Ray said:


> I doubt I’ll see a dime...
> 
> It is a good way for Trump to buy votes, though.



I have zero respect for Trump as a leader or a person, but even I am not so cynical as to believe that he is doing this to buy votes. It seems to be the general consensus of economists that action is required now. It may be that the government does not send out checks, but instead just bolsters unemployment programs. That would make more sense to me, but I rarely see the federal government do things in a timely or competent manner. Mike


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## xiphius (Mar 19, 2020)

Yeah, VA is pretty intense right now. It is definitely not "business as usual" here. Traffic in Charlottesville is the lowest I've ever seen it and the sidewalks are almost completely empty. In fact, the other day on my way into work, I only saw one other person out and about. They saw me on the sidewalk, gave me a funny look, and then then crossed the street to avoid me. It all feels quite post-apocalyptic. At work, "mandatory telecommuting" has been instituted except in cases where it is "absolutely essential." I'm actually at work right now, because I needed to finish up an experiment that I had already started before they sent out the notice. It is very dead, all of the offices are closed and locked, none of the administrative offices are open. Shelves at all of the local stores are empty of most non-perishable food items, cleaning supplies, and toilet paper (I haven't seen toilet paper in any store in well over a week). Libraries, gyms, etc are all closed for at least the next two weeks. And all restaurants are either closed or takeout/delivery only.

I personally think it is a bit of an overreaction. Even in the countries with the most severe lockdowns, most households are still allowed to send out a person to buy food and other essential items. So there really isn't any call to be hoarding toilet paper like it's the end of civilization as we know it . Definitely going to wreak havoc on the economy (it already is). That part is not unique to the US though. Let's hope that not too many small businesses are forced to close down because of this.

Everyone stay positive and stay healthy.


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## xiphius (Mar 19, 2020)

orchid527 said:


> We all like free money, but I suspect for most of us, $1000 isn't going to make any difference in our lives.



Yeah... the real problem right now is in larger cities where a lot of people have lost their livelihoods (even temporarily) as a result of closures or by being forced to stay home. Yet, they still have rent, and bills, and other expenses that are piling up in the background. $1000 is nice, but doesn't go very far in that regard, all things considered.


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## Berthold (Mar 19, 2020)

I wish all 200 million American citizens and especially all forum visitors a tolerable course of the infection.
The first after infection recovered people in China started producing toilet paper and sent it to Germany.


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