Wuhan, China, 1990
I was just talking with a friend who has a close friend who will likely go out of business because of all of the event closures. This person has a company that re-sells tickets for events. My sister and her husband run a bed and breakfast. This–not the virus, but the response to it, including the president's unilateral ban on incoming flights from Europe–could very well destroy their business. And there are thousands more stories like that.
In Taiwan, or in Hong Kong, people who lose their jobs, or whose businesses fold, are able to quickly start up a new business - even street-selling, which is mostly illegal here. There ought to be a booming business on the streets EVERYWHERE in the US, of people with little stands selling masks and hand sanitizers. Among other things.
But there's not. Ask yourself why. I bet a whole box of latex-free gloves that that's exactly what's happening in Taiwan right now, and in many Chinese cities. HK too, I hope, although they were starting to crack down on street vendors even 20 years ago.
Meanwhile, here in the US, I get a notice from Nextdoor.com that they won't be allowing any posts about items for sale that might be useful in avoiding/combatting Covid-19.
That's American "community-spiritedness" for you - doing everything it possibly can to make things worse, and patting itself on the back for being socially responsible.
This ignorance, and the regulatory state we live under, is going to hurt a lot more people than the virus will.