COVID19 Update - Day 39

US Tests: 3,690,482
US Cases: 720,747
US Deaths: 34,139
Worldwide Cases: 2,310,572
Worldwide Deaths: 159,510

Trump's disciples are following their dear leader in responding to the crisis in the stupidest manner possible.  Organized by right-wing talk radio hosts, hundreds of yahoos in red hats are ignoring social distancing and basic safety protocols (like wearing masks) to hold protests at various state capitols:

“You have to do what’s best for your business,” added Mr. Hoffman, who said a rally would take place at the State Capitol on Friday. “You have to do what’s best for your employees and your customers. You have to do what’s best for your livelihood, for your families.”

For some conservative protesters, the rallies are about more than reopening state economies. They are an outlet to express their anger, which is in some cases fueled by conspiracy theories.

Owen Shroyer, a host of a show on Infowars, the far-right website founded by the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, is organizing a rally in Austin, Texas, on Saturday. He told his audience this week that he had no fears of either getting arrested or of getting infected with the coronavirus, the spread of which he claimed was a scheme by the Chinese Communist Party and the “Deep State” to destroy the economy and undermine the Trump presidency.

This is yet another manifestation of the magical thinking (if it can be called thinking) which is the hallmark of Trump and his movement.

It's understandable that people want life to return to normal, which is true no matter your politics.  But the Cult of Trump is confusing cause and effect.  We all want the crisis to end, so we can go back to work.  The trumpists seem to believe that going back to work will end the crisis, which is nonsense.

Not only will it lead to additional infections, hospitalizations, and deaths --- thus prolonging the crisis --- but even if all of these folks went 'back to work' tomorrow, it would do nothing to help them financially.  Business owners wouldn't generate enough revenue to be profitable, which means they wouldn't be able to rehire laid off employees, because almost no one would patronize those businesses, because most people aren't willing to risk their own lives or those of their families by pretending the pandemic doesn't exist.

So not only are these protests dangerous to the people participating in them, they are actually counterproductive.  Which is sort of the whole trumpist movement in a nutshell.

Back in the real world, Paul Krugman gives a brief explanation of how Republicans are about to cause far more long-term damage to the economy than is necessary, simply because of their anti-government dogma:

Everyone, and I mean everyone, knows what is really happening: McConnell is trying to get more money for businesses while continuing to shortchange state and local governments. After all, “starve the beast” — forcing governments to cut services by depriving them of resources — has been Republican strategy for decades. This is just more of the same.

This reality leaves Democrats with no choice except to stand firm while they still have leverage. Bear in mind that McConnell could have the money he wants tomorrow if he were willing to meet them halfway. So far, however, he isn’t. Oh, and Trump personally has ruled out aid for the Postal Service.

At a basic level, then, anti-government ideologues are preventing us from responding adequately to the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression. Their obstructionism will cause vast suffering, as crucial public services are curtailed. It will also compound the economic damage.

This is a critical moment in our country's history, one for which Republican dogma is uniquely unsuited.

It's time for them to go away permanently.

LATE UPDATE: Too stupid to be believed.  The state of Florida, which has suffered the 9th-most deaths from the virus, has reopened its public beaches.

Let's see how long it takes them to lead the nation in deaths.