Kerby Anderson

Many states in this country are headed toward economic lockdowns because of rising numbers of coronavirus cases. Stephen Moore warns against “The return of lockdown lunacy” by looking at the economic cost of them. You might remember a previous commentary that I wrote a month ago based on the book, The Price of Panic. The authors looked at the cost/benefit and concluded that there was virtually no medical benefit, while there was an enormous social and economic cost. Stephen Moore raises even greater concerns about lockdowns being proposed that would close down schools, churches, businesses, restaurants, and office buildings. One ominous comment in this op-ed was the revelation that some of the economic advisors to Joe Biden believe that a national lockdown needs to be implemented quickly. They are also convinced that the last national lockdown in the spring wasn’t very effective because it wasn’t “stringent” enough. The impact of such draconian controls will be even greater than what we saw months ago. Stephen Moore estimates such a lockdown would bankrupt thousands of small businesses and destroy millions of jobs. Every week of shutdown could lead to about $250 billion in lost output. That would mean a loss of $2 trillion in two months. And that does not even add the emotional cost of loneliness and isolation along with increased suicides, drug overdoses, and domestic abuse. Other countries and even some states have used a better strategy of focusing protection on seniors and vulnerable medical populations. After all, these groups account for more than 90 percent of the deaths and severe coronavirus medical problems. We know so much more than when we promoted the lockdowns months ago. It is time to apply what we have learned.