BruceVC

You raise some valid criticism that we have seen in many sectors before the virus in the last 100 years where economic data has been recorded , yes there are examples where the private sector has been involved in price hiking and general bad business practice but this isnt a rule, normal or acceptable But the majority of private sector companies have to make a profit so the real question is what is reasonable margin? In the financial sector and IT services industry where I work its generally 10-15 % but government tenders you make less like 3-5 % because of the size of the tenders and length of the tender which is anything from 3-5 years before tender renewal So there isnt a general rule that everyone follows and also remember the more margin or profit a company makes the more taxes they should pay which benefits society and all citizens But as far as the virus is concerned it is completely unacceptable to hike prices in this time of crisis, in South Africa our National Consumer Commission has identified and prosecuted several businesses who have hiked prices so I assume in your country a similar government institution needs to do the same ...so no argument from me around this appalling greed we may see https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2020-03-26-butchery-owner-arrested-for-price-hiking-during-covid-19-outbreak/

End of the day old school socialism, like Cuba and Venezuela tried to do, ( no point even discussing if Communism is viable) doesn't lead to any real way to address economic equality apart from the other egregious flaws the numerous government decisions these countries made The Scandinavian countries as mentioned are not " old school socialism " because you have a vibrant private sector that contributes primarily to GDP and has to be profitable but you have very strong public institutions that offer services like healthcare and education for free. And generally people are very happy in these counties and its a good system but it requires a high tax rate, high employment but more important the average citizen has to buy into the system and support government in the sense you can absolutely take advantage of all the great, " free " government stuff but then you will work and contribute towards the tax base and support others who will utilize those public services who come after you Most countries citizens just dont really have that mindset of " lets support government " once we have benefited from effective public sector institutions that make our lives better South Africa is a classic example of this, many citizens ( and especially our dysfunctional unions ) keep expecting government to pay for everything, provide all solutions but arent really prepared to contribute back to the system. Many of these people would rather attack and malign the private sector and especially the financial sector and accuse them of " being greedy and only interested in profit at the cost of everything else "

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-russia-cases-idUSKCN21X0TE I see Russia has also horrendously mishandled the virus and its impact, I did find it strange they were sending doctors to Italy when they should have been addressing the virus in there own country The crisis in Russia is going to be exacerbated as it looks like they have only in the last 10 days acknowledged or realized how it has impacted there own country...and we know with this virus 1 days of lackluster response is like ignoring spread for a week. I hope they are able to address this quickly or effectively in the interests of there own well being. I dont like or respect Putin but this is not about our political views but rather our own humanity and how all countries will emerge from this pandemic

For example China was telling the W.H.O and the world in early January there was no evidence the virus could transfer from human to human...yeah great world superpower China https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/who-haunted-by-january-tweet-saying-china-found-no-human-transmission-of-coronavirus/ar-BB11nU34 https://dailycaller.com/2020/03/18/flashback-who-china-coronavirus-contagious/

Why would anyone want China to be the worlds only superpower? This virus has revealed many things to us....key amongst them is how far China is from ever being the worlds most influential and effective superpower

We having an HBO special on our local DSTV channel and Im watching Banshee again, its such a brutal but brilliant series ...one of my all time favorite

https://bhekisisa.org/opinion/2020-04-10-coronavirus-covid19-lockdown-south-africa-mental-health-why-you-feel-tired/ Guys here is an excellent article explaining why despite having less to do while in lockdown you may be feeling more fatigued than normal

Trump is seriously considering opening the USA on the 1 May....as much as I wish this was realistic I cannot see how this would be prudent If you look at how China has addressed this spread effectively you will see how much hard work they have had to do and they still arent open for business. Of course no country has the approach that China has due to numerous factors including how badly the virus impacted China and how China has not shared the true nature of the virus impact but you can see still the overall strategy For example they are using hundreds of thousands, I just watched this on CNN, of newly appointed people to purely track contact tracing....." hundreds of thousands of people " just for effective contract tracing. That number of people just for contact tracing boggles my mind and I have to hope this is due to the population size and how many potential people are effected Has anyone considered what would be effective strategy once your country decides to end its quarantine? I know we all just trying to currently ensure we end new infections and people survive but the whole " country coming back online " strategy is at the back of my mind and what that practically means?

Yes I would assume that as well, you guys are talking about normal formal jobs and informal jobs would offer little healthcare options

Thanks for sharing guys, the reason is my brother thinks everyone retrenched now has no access to healthcare but this will differ from person to person as some people may have access through different plans. Last question, if most of these jobs lost would be informal sector like restaurants would informal sector people normally pay for additional healthcare and would a restaurant even offer medical aid ? So I assume it would depend on the persons wages\salaries ?

Okay interesting, so if you lose your job due to the virus like now what happens to your healthcare savings and what happens if you need to use a hospital ?

Oh, I have a question for USA members. One of my bothers told me that the majority of medical aid options are provided for people from the company the person works for so if the person leaves the company he loses the medical aid options ?

You are making some prudent decisions, well played. You have good investments , do you make these decisions by yourself or do you use a financial adviser ?

Im sure I will be getting it because of people I contacted who now one guy has it but Im waiting for symptoms because SA is utterly under resourced so I dont want to use any tests. Its strange for us because we always see details from Spain and Italy and its also depressing because we know how these countries love the social functions and yet people now ensure they keep inside You can get the virus but 40 % of people dont develop symptoms so hopefully that is what we get if we get it. Finally one of the documentaries is about the medical staff working in Spain and again its quite emotional but also I am very proud of how many people just go out every day and they work with the sick.....they real heroes You not alone in your situation and we are thinking of you guys , many places are 2 weeks behind so keep safe and there will be a better day for all of us.....I am starting to already commit to things I use to sometimes cancel because I was hangover or lazy.....like hikes and meals with families and friends. I feel lazy not going out

I am sorry I didnt mention this earlier but I have seen how badly hit Spain has been, I downloaded the video with all the people clapping the medics as they went to work....I found video to be both inspirational and haunting. Spain has been featured on CNN but its been bad news around the fatality rate What is the status and how is your family holding up ?

Im not sure your assessment of the USA banks is accurate at all, its important everyone understands what is working in the USA and what can sustain potentially 3-4 months of economic shutdown. After 2008 GB you take time to move into gold as a potential less risk investment and that is considered a prudent strategy so whatever you may think is a good idea now please read my point below as it is relevant to why someone like you is actually what we are concerned about ...we dont want you to panic and try to move your investment because this can seriously economic recovery considering the reality of the USA economy You must wait enough 1 week before doing anything, you must realize people are looking at the economic data as if its the reality. Its not, this is all about the artificial shutdown and this is due to that. Its not your normal economic contraction so any analysis on the problem needs to realize this I was confronted by a sobering report around exactly this happening where the real risk to USA recovery is caused by panic decisions which when people do the same can lead to real crisis

Gorthfuscious dont believe this for a second....the economic crisis is not about a structural problem but rather a direct consequence of the virus and the global economy shutting down That economist should be fired immediately, he is adding to the confusion and general uncertainty and this contradicts what he should be doing. Capitalism is not going away because its not the problem....now you need to suggest what system should replace it

Im also working from home but Im only doing about 4-6 hours per day due to certain logistical constraints and resources I'll post the questions later as Im busy at the moment and we can respond to each other when there is time

Gorthfuscious we need to discuss this view in detail, I really have time since the lock-down to engage in these types of debates some would call frivolous but I find interesting as I learn what motivates different people and how they see the world Are you prepared to answer some questions around this view you have ....I love injurai choice of words " myopic apathy ".....classic statement

It is funny but you seldom joke on the " serious " topics so I assumed it was your real opinion But I wouldnt quit your day job with aspirations of becoming a comedian You know I have been told by most of my girlfriends I have a terrible sense of humor, one or 2 of them have even accused my sense of humor of being " sick " ....I think my sense of humor is great. Its just misunderstood by many

Yeah I hear you guys, I remember there was this time where he seemed to be this political maverick and he made a lot of sense to me on certain issues....but now

I have no time or respect for the illogical ramblings of Ron Paul.....his own son has got Corona, what more evidence does he need to accept people like Fauci know exactly what they talking about ? What has actually happened to Ron Paul...he never use to be so conspiratorial and uninformed?

Before I move onto my next single player game I have been playing some RDR2 online, its early days and Im enjoying it so far Has anyone played it before and what is your view on RDR2 online? I see some missions you need to do it with other players and so far my biggest complaint is I dont always find other players online to help me complete the missions

I see Putin has been exposed to the virus through a doctor he was shaking hands with who now has Corona, Putin is under self-quarantine https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-putin-doctor-idUSKBN21I1Z1

Im pleasantly surprised how Russia is helping other countries....since the USSR collapsed humanitarian assistance to other countries is not there normal way, they also sent medical staff to Italy https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-russia-italy-idUSKBN219081