The U.S. has in the past been fortunate to have had the right leaders in place at key crises. George Washington to lead us through the Revolutionary War. Abraham Lincoln to lead us through the carnage of the Civil War. Franklin Roosevelt to lead us out of the Great Depression ("The only thing we have have to fear is fear itself") and to victory in World War II.
Unfortunately, we seem to have run out of leadership luck. The local food movement will likely get a shot in the arm, and with that, perhaps an improvement in the diets of many. Family togetherness could improve with the reduction in travel and the increased time hunkering down. And the climate crisis could ease, with a major slowdown in economic activity.
Otherwise, how will our future lives be different when this ends? Right now, our hopes for salvation seem to ride on development of a vaccine sometime in the next year or two. That's a strange kind of salvation, when it's not clear a reliable vaccine is even possible (they don't work too well for the flu).
I fear that when the dust clears, things will be much different, and with exceptions, not in a very good way. Economic depression. Political tyranny. Less global cooperation. It's difficult to be optimistic when preparation and leadership failed so completely thus far. In the meantime, we sit in limbo.
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