Crisis? What Crisis?  (Also the title of a great Supertramp album by the way)

I have said it in a previous post. This Coronavirus scare is worse than the virus itself. How could the authorities have let it come to this? If this gets any worse (the hysteria that is, not the virus spread) it will make all this climate change alarm stuff look like almost sensible.

Travel plans…

Airlines are half-heartedly addressing the ‘problem’. Some are cutting some certain routes completely – for the time being. Airlines like Qatar who can afford to are not flying to certain destinations in Asia. Others are cutting prices. I am sure those not frightened off by the media hysteria will have a cheap holiday.

Even suitcase sales are being affected. You can now get a great deal on a decent set of luggage. Look at this picture from a shopping mall in Sydney I took the other day. Basically everything is almost half price.

It reminds me of that massive mad cow disease hysteria in the UK back in the mid 1990s. For me it meant great cuts of steak for next to nothing as the supermarkets could not sell them. I would have put a lot of weight on if I wasn’t training most days. As it was, with all that extra protein I was literally as fit as the butcher’s dog.

Toilet Roll Raid… 

The great toilet roll raid of 2020 continues apace. It is now widespread and well documented by the media but now even our local Woolworths supermarket has been hit. This is a photo of the toilet roll shelves this weekend.  It would not surprise me if they have just stopped stocking the shelves to avoid any trouble with mentally insane customers. Yeah it must be that eh? I must have a quiet word with the manager tomorrow…

Sports means money…

Next weekend the first Formula One race of the season is due to take place not too far from here in Melbourne. I read in a newspaper that the Ferrari team may not be allowed into the country from Italy – as Italy is the most infected place in Europe (if you believe the media). If that happens it is said that the race will not go ahead. So now we get to the crux. If big money sporting events are being cancelled will the truth out? Not even the truth (as such) but just an injection of common sense. I doubt anyone really knows the ‘truth’ about this latest global scare. 

My take on it is this…

The Olympic Games in Japan are fast approaching. This is an area of the world supposedly carrying the most risk. How many airlines are booked up with competitors and tourists for this sporting festival? And will they all be allowed to return to their own countries afterwards?

Therefore one of two things has to happen:
1. The Olympics goes ahead meaning the “threat” is declared to be as good as over by the world’s governments. They will come clean and tell us that it was never really as bad as they thought (as has happened many times before of course). In which case what have they been hiding these past few weeks? Makes you wonder eh?

Alternatively…
2. The Olympics are cancelled – an unprecedented move – which will be the catalyst to a little more than panic buying toilet rolls! Anything is then possible as the stability of the general public reaction cannot be underestimated.

Or maybe….

I suppose there is a 3rd option. The Olympics does not even need officially cancelling as everyone contracts the virus and basically we all get it. In that case – as bad as it sounds – there is really no point worrying about it is there? That one is already out of our control as the world’s leaders have done virtually nothing to contain the spread have they? So it’s just a case of wait and see.

Carry on regardless…. Or as they used to say in the War (2nd world one that is); Keep Calm and Carry On.

Oh and maybe you should try and pulp any old newspapers or magazines.