It’s not a simple either/or on either side

I have a hunch that two things are true that aren’t being kept in mind as the country argues about how to proceed in the next few weeks.

1. Those who are prioritizing “flattening the curve” and bringing the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus to a halt are not also secretly hoping to destroy the economy and use it as an excuse to install some sort of tyrannical rule. If there are some, they are the tiny minority. The main idea is to protect lives and prevent unnecessary deaths.
2. Those who are prioritizing loosening restrictions to enable businesses to reopen are not callous ghouls who don’t care if a few million Americans die as long as they can make a profit in the stock market. If there are some, they are the tiny minority. The main idea is to protect lives and prevent unnecessary harm to people’s livelihoods.

I believe we can do two things at once, in this case both limit unnecessary deaths and limit unnecessary harm to people’s livelihoods. It’s a complex problem we are likely to miss in both directions in the next several weeks. However, those who plant a flag at one end of the spectrum and accuse any who disagree, or even suggest another possibility, of being evil are making it very difficult for the country to move forward at all.