There’s a difference between panic and extreme but strategic actions
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Are our governments and citizens panicking in the face of the Coronavirus threat? That depends on your definition of panic. In this article we use Greek mythology and toilet paper to explore this question.
I don’t like taking naps. I’m cranky when I wake up from one, but I’ve got nothing on the Greek god Pan. He was the god of shepherds and pastures.
The Greeks believed that he wandered peacefully through the woods, playing his pipe. But God forbid - pun intended - someone would accidentally wake him from his noontime nap. He would give a loud shout that caused animals to stampede.
I think you know where I’m going with this. Today’s article is not about ancient Greece but the year 2020. You see, Pan inspired Greek authors to use the word panikos to convey the idea of “sudden fear”. This became the root of the English word “panic".
Panikos indicates the feeling of intense fear that is sudden and often attributed to the presence of a god. In our case it’s the presence of a new, highly contagious virus spreading at a rate of 33% per day.
The world has woken up to the Coronavirus threat. But are our governments and citizens panicking? Officially, panic is fear “so strong it dominates or prevents reason and logical thinking”.
In my view governments that enforce strict social distancing LONG BEFORE their healthcare system is overwhelmed are not panicking. They are in fact being strategic.
Someone who buys 10,000 rolls of toilet paper? Yeah, that’s panic.
The Greeks believed that he wandered peacefully through the woods, playing his pipe. But God forbid - pun intended - someone would accidentally wake him from his noontime nap. He would give a loud shout that caused animals to stampede.
I think you know where I’m going with this. Today’s article is not about ancient Greece but the year 2020. You see, Pan inspired Greek authors to use the word panikos to convey the idea of “sudden fear”. This became the root of the English word “panic".
Panikos indicates the feeling of intense fear that is sudden and often attributed to the presence of a god. In our case it’s the presence of a new, highly contagious virus spreading at a rate of 33% per day.
The world has woken up to the Coronavirus threat. But are our governments and citizens panicking? Officially, panic is fear “so strong it dominates or prevents reason and logical thinking”.
In my view governments that enforce strict social distancing LONG BEFORE their healthcare system is overwhelmed are not panicking. They are in fact being strategic.
Someone who buys 10,000 rolls of toilet paper? Yeah, that’s panic.