The US situation.

[Orangeblossom78]

Finding this difficult to understand. They now have more cases than China and Italy, but Trump is on about loosening restrictions and opening up areas?

I don't understand any thoughts? It seems he is thinking they have done more testing which is the reason for the numbers. www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-52056586

This is a defining moment for the USA. Unlike any other developed western economy, there's no adequate social policy safety net and no public healthcare. All those aircraft carriers and stealth bombers are a fat lot of use now.

maybe some Americans will buy into the economy over lives theory.

It will depend on whose lives, won't it?

I don't know if they've yet had major outbreaks in prisons - disproportionately full of poor black men. I don't think we need to spell out how some sections of the US population will react to that.

Couldn't agree more Mockerswithnoknockers

To be clear my DM hates Trump (as do most in NYC which is probably why Trump doesn't care!) but we see Cuomo over here (and she loves him) through a different filter from the reality : hi is angry, sure, but there really aren't many restrictions being put on movement. Cuomo wants a curfew, she says , which I can't see being of any use.

My DBIL is in Alabama and STILL thinks it's a democrat plot!

Yes, Errol. If it's all happening in cities far away from where they live, people will feel distanced from it all. It's a bit like some of the posters on MN who think lockdown is not worth the economic cost but don't answer if you ask what will happen if one of their loved-ones dies.

This is a defining moment for the USA. Unlike any other developed western economy, there's no adequate social policy safety net and no public healthcare. All those aircraft carriers and stealth bombers are a fat lot of use now

Exactly. We here have never been more grateful for our NHS. As are other countries in Europe. It's not a perfect system, it's creaking with over use but it's there and it gives you hope you can be helped. There must be a lot of extremely terrified people over in the US at the moment.

Trump is a cock.

The problem with the US is that it's basically like fifty different countries doing their own thing so there is no consistency. Even within a state different counties are implementing different rules whether that's social isolating or shelter in place.

Different states, or even counties, doing different things isn't necessarily a bad thing - what works for one area may not for another. The US is large and not homogeneous.

In these circumstances with the president they've got it's a good thing there are governors with local responsibility and power, surely.

Well so far Trumpy's getting a 60% approval rating for his handling the crisis.

Going to be interesting how this plays when the Red States start getting it.

@ByAppointmentTo

You have hit the nail on the head. When you think of America, you need to think Europe-sized terms. Trump is deluded and it's going to be bad but the people who can make a real difference will be at state level.

I also think there is an element of "oh it's happening over there, so it does not apply to me'. That would explain the approval rating - remember how the infection rate was flying in Italy whilst Johnson's advice was to wash hands and sing "Happy Birthday'?

America does not have a monopoly on idiots.

I wonder if the medical insurance companies will start putting pressure on Trump? They can't be too happy at having claims multiplied totally unnecessarily because Trump won't order adequate precautions.

The BBC had an interview with an American yesterday who made the point that when people there lose their jobs, they lose their healthcare plans at the end of the month. So next week. That's a huge number of uninsured people when you add in families. Even if cv doesn't get them there will be millions of people who struggle to get treatment for other illnesses who will be bankrupted, have long term implications through lack of treatment or die prematurely. Even if the public healthcare system would help them that's a big influx of people to cope with even without cv.

How likely is it to spread outside of the cities do we think? Are there any restrictions on internal travel at the moment?

What needs to happen for the Americans to stop supporting Trump? Do they not care about their own lives (I'm not even mentioning anyone else's lives, like their parents, for instance)?

Genuine question, any Americans on here who could explain this?

I guess the other thing is America has high levels of obesity and possibly, diabetes which will not help things. they are not renowned for their health outcomes.

I have a family of Democrats largely but my DH's DBro is very very right wing.

They support Trump because he stands in opposition for all they despise (despite his wife being Mexican!) : abortion , welfare, Black rights, labour rights. Many Americans can't see beyond guns and the Death Penalty. They feel Trump, as a wealthy man, protects the economy, and Christianity (even though I don't think he ahs a shred of religion in him). There is a deep rooted suspicion of socialism in most of the US.

It's not always Trump per se : it's a version of Republicanism. They see anything else as anti-American.

The Democrats need someone charismatic to unseat Trump, unfortunately.

Thanks Piggywaspushed. Isn't it still astonishing that they don't put their own lives above that though. One will not care about guns, immigration or death penalty if one's dead.

Do the Democrats have anyone charismatic at all? If many people die in the US, do you think the support for Trump might collapse?

The alternative option is Trump might get ill himself and who knows what would happen then.

Trump didn’t put most restrictions in, the state governors did. In The blue states (ones most affected), his popularity is lower than ever. A lot of the trump states aren’t affected too much at the moment. I’m in mass and we have been in lockdown for 2 weeks and yesterday we’re told that there is no school until May. When we first went into lockdown, I kept messaging my friends in the IUK asking why Boris wasn’t taking it seriously (he seemed to following trumps lead even though it’s the states that decide restrictions) and they were still really blasé about it all. Trump says what the red states want to hear but isn’t necessarily what’s happy.

Have a look at the New York governor, Cuomo, on YouTube and it will give a better idea of the seriousness states most affected are taking it, much more so than Boris.

Well... now BoJo has got it, maybe things will be ramped up

The situation in the States is terrifying. I reckon it is going to escalate very quickly and many more will die there than anywhere. The Americans may revel in their freedom but it is going to prove deadly.

I don't think the democrats do have an alternative to Trump. that might more usefully come from within the Republican party.

Obama was really a one off in the current US political set up.

As I was typing my earlier post, the news about BoJo came out. How creepy, maybe Trump is next indeed. Karma has it for those being blasé about people's lives.

A lot of state governors are putting their own measures in place which is why there are different rules depending on the state so thankfully not all as deluded as Trump

Each state will have its own way of dealing with the crises, you wouldn’t put a place like Wyoming with the same set of restrictions like NYC, it just wouldn’t be appropriate.

Besides. You’ll note that they say new cases, not deaths. It’s because of mass testing. Even France has more deaths than USA at the moment. It’s actually hard to make a comparison with confirmed cases because each country will have its own testing protocols. Death rate, sadly, is likely the best indicator (unless there’s fiddling with the stats as has been rumoured in places)

I'm worried about my stepmother, she's 81 this year and the only parent as such that I have left. She's on long island about 30 miles from Manhattan, going to call her tonight and make sure she is ok. We haven't always seen eye to eye on things but she thinks Trump is a total idiot. We started talking to each other at my niece's wedding about 6 years ago after 20 years of silence following the death of my father and we've grown really close since. I love her very much and I'm worried, what with the d**khead being in charge (in charge, that's a laugh, he couldn't run a business without going bust).