W hv bn tld rpitidli ɖt ɖ YC wz unpriperd fr ɖs pandemic. Ɖs z untru. Ɖ YC wz priperd, bt ɖen it dīpriperd. Last yir, ɖ Globl Hlʈs’kṛti Indx ranct ɖs neśn secnd in ɖ wrld fr pandemicredinis, ẃl ɖ YS wz frst. Brōdli spīcñ, in bʈ neśnz ɖ nesṣri sistmz wr in ples. Ǎr guvnmnts ćouz nt t yz ɖm.

Ɖ clîṃt moḍlr Jemz Ann hz yzd hiz aṇliticl meʈ̇dz t śo ẃt wd hv hapnd f ɖ YC guvnmnt hd impozd its locdǎn a wīc rlịr. Startñ it on 16 Marć, rɖr ɖn 23 Marć, hiz moḍlñ sjsts, wd bî nǎ hv sevd arnd 30,000 lîvz, rdysñ ɖ ret v ilnis n deʈ fṛm c’roṇvîṛs rufli bî a factr v fîv.

Bt īvn 16 Marć wd hv bn xtrordnṛli lêt. W nǎ nǒ ɖt guvnmntministrz wr tld on 11 Febrri ɖt ɖ vîṛs cd b caṭstrofic, n dsîsiv ax́n wz rjntli rqîrd. Instd, Boris Jonsn tld s t woś ǎr handz n “g abt ǎr norml dêli lîvz”.

Hd ɖ guvnmnt actd in Febrri, w cn haẓd a ges abt ẃt ɖ rzult wd hv bn, az ɖ wrld hz cnductd a clir cntrold xperimnt: weyñ Sǎʈ C’rīa, Tîwan n Ny Zīḷnd agnst ɖ YC, ɖ YS n Bṛzil. Sǎʈ C’rīa dd evrʈñ ɖ YC guvnmnt cd hv dn, bt rfyzd t implimnt. Its deʈ tol so far: 263. It stl hz an oceźnl clustr v infx́n, ẃć it promtli cntenz. Bî contrast, ɖ intîr YC z nǎ a clustr v infx́n.

Ẃl uɖr cuntriz îɖr clozd ɖer bordrz or qoṛntīnd ol arîvlz, in ɖ ʈri munʈs btwn ɖ imrjns v ɖ vîṛs n ɖ YC’z locdǎn, 18 miłn ppl arîvd on ɖz śorz, v hūm onli 273 wr qoṛntīnd. Īvn aftr ɖ locdǎn wz anǎnst, 95,000 ppl entrd ɖ YC wɖt adiśnl rstrix́nz. In fact, on 13 Marć, ɖ YC std dǎn īvn its ǒn gîdns, ẃć hd jntli rqstd travlrz fṛm Iṭli n Ćîna t slf-îṣlet. Ɖs dsiźn, tecn az uɖr neśnz wr stepñ p ɖer cntrolz, sīmz baf̣lñ.

Similrli, on 12 Marć, Jonsn abandnd bʈ cntenmnt n neśnwîd tstñ n tracñ. A wīc lêtr, ɖ steṭs v ɖ pandemic wz lowrd, ẃć mnt ɖt ɖ guvnmnt cd rdys ɖ standd v prsnl pṛtctiv iqipmnt rqîrd in hospitlz, n cd śift infx́s peśnts intu non-speṣ́list cer. Agn, ɖr wz no medicl or sạntific justif̣ceśn fr ɖs dsiźn.

X’sîz Sigṇs, a pandemicsiḿleśn cnductd in 2016, faund ɖt ɖ impact in cerhomz wd b caṭstrofic unls ny meźrz wr pt in ples. Ɖ guvnmnt insists ɖt it hīdd ɖ fîndñz v ɖs x’sîz n ćenjd its aproć acordñli. F ɖs z c’rect, bî alawñ untstd peśnts t b śiftd fṛm hospitlz t cerhomz, ẃl felñ t pṛvîd ɖ xtra s’port n iqipmnt ɖ homz nīdd n alawñ ejnsiwrcrz t muv frīli wɖn n btwn ɖm, it nwñli brīćt its ǒn proṭcolz. Tnz v ʈǎzndz v hîli vulnṛbl ppl wr xpozd t infx́n.

In uɖr wrdz, nn v ɖz r fełrz v nolij or cpaṣti. Ɖe r dīpreṗreśnz, conśs dsiźnz nt t act. Ɖe start t bcm xplicbl onli ẃn w rec̣gnîz ẃt ɖe hv in comn: a rfyzl t fruntlod ɖ costs. Ɖs rfyzl z comn in cuntriz huz guvnmnts feṭśîz ẃt w cōl “ɖ marcit”: ɖ yf̣mizm w yz fr ɖ pǎr v muni.

Jonsn’z guvnmnt, lîc ɖt v Doṇld Trump n Jair Bolsonaro, repriznts a ptiklr cnd v ic̣nomic inṭrest. Fr yirz poḷtiśnz v ɖer strîp hv bn in conflict wɖ ppl hu pform ysfl srṿsz: nrsz, tīćrz, cerwrcrz n ɖ uɖr lo-peid ppl hu cīp ǎr lîvz ticñ, huz atmts t orġnîz n s’kr betr pe n cndiśnz r dīṃnîzd bî ministrz n in ɖ mīdia.

Ɖs p’liticl conflict z olwz fòt on bhaf v ɖ sem grūp: ɖoz hu xtract wlʈ. Ɖ wor agnst ytiḷti z nesṣri f y wont t prîṿtîz public srṿsz, grantñ lūcṛtiv mnoṗliz or fîrseilz v public asets t frendz in ɖ prîṿt sectr. It’s nesṣri f y wont t hold dǎn public-sectr pe n ɖ minimm wej, cutñ taxz n bílz fr ɖ sem fundrz n lobiists. It z nesṣri f corṗreśnz r t b alaud t ǎtsors n ofśor ɖer wrcforsz, n wlʈi ppl cn ofśor ɖer incm n asets.

Ɖ inṭrests v wlʈxtractrz r, bî def̣niśn, śort trm. Ɖe dvrt muni ɖt mt uɖ̇wz hv bn yzd fr invstmnt intu diṿdendz n śer bîbacs. Ɖe dump costs ɖt corṗreśnz śd ljitṃtli ber on t ssayti in jenṛl, in ɖ form v p’luśn (ɖ car n rod lobiz) or public-hlʈ dzastrz (soft drincs n juncfūd pṛdysrz). Ɖe sîfn muni ǎt v an enṭprîz or a neśn az qcli az poṣbl, bfr ɖ tax oʈoṛtiz, reğletrz or lejsletrz cać p.

Yirz v xpirịns hv śoun ɖt it z mć ćīpr t mc p’liticl dneśnz, implô lobiists n invst in public rleśnz ɖn t ćenj lūcṛtiv bt harmfl cmrśl poḷsiz. Wrcñ ʈru ɖ biłnerpres n p’liticl sistmz ɖt r hîli vulnṛbl t capćr bî muni, in ɖ YC, YS n Bṛzil ɖe hv hlpt enśur ɖt caṿlir n reclis ppl r ilectd. Ɖer ćozn repriznttivz hv an olmst instñtiv avrśn t invstmnt, t cariyñ a cost tde ɖt cd b dfŕd, dleid or dumt on smwn els.

It’s nt ɖt eni v ɖz inṭrests – ẃɖr ɖ Dêli Meil or ɖ YS ôlcumṗniz – wont c’roṇvîṛs t spred. It’s ɖt ɖ aproć ɖt hz pruvd so dzastṛs in adresñ ɖ pandemic hz bn hîli ifctiv, fṛm ɖ lobiists’ pônt v vy, ẃn aplaid t uɖr iśuz: dleyñ n fṛstretñ ax́n t privnt clîṃt brecdǎn; p’luśn; ɖ obiṣticrîsis; iniqoḷti; un’forḍbl rent; n ɖ mni uɖr plegz spred bî corpṛt n biłner pǎr.

Ʈancs in larj part t ɖer inflụns, w hv guvnmnts ɖt fel t pṛtct ɖ public inṭrest, bî dzîn. Ɖs z ɖ tunl. Ɖs z ẃ ɖ exits r clozd. Ɖs z ẃ w wl strugl t imrj.