It's not about the economy vs. the pandemic.

Had western citizens just taken some simple precautions, the transmission would be much lower:

1. Wear a mask in public.

2. Minimize social gatherings. If necessary, wear a mask.

3. Hand washing.

4. Social distancing.

Had all this been done with a 75% compliance, those graphs would be much flatter.

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New Zealand has the advantage of little high-density housing and with geograhaphical isolation.

South Korea and Singapare have the advantage of citizens culturally attuned to obeying government directives.

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If this Covid is capable of developing new strains, there will be no wiping it out. And it seems that we don't develop long-term immunity. So Covid will be a fact of life.

Good business for vaccine companies.