Linked List: March 12, 2020

Thursday, 12 March 2020

There Goes Disney World, Too 

Like I wrote this afternoon, inevitable. Statement from Disney:

In an abundance of caution and in the best interest of our guests and employees, we are proceeding with the closure of our theme parks at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disneyland Paris Resort, beginning at the close of business on Sunday, March 15, through the end of the month.

Disney Cruise Line will suspend all new departures beginning Saturday, March 14, through the end of the month.

The Walt Disney Company will pay its cast members during that closure period.

I keep posting about sports and theme parks not because they’re important in the grand scheme of things, but because these closures and cancellations show how serious this has gotten, and how seriously we should all take it.

New York Mandates Restaurants to Reduce Capacity by 50 Percent 

I think actions like this are the right thing to do, but this is just crushing to the restaurant industry. Most restaurants, even successful ones, operate on close margins. You just can’t take away half the seatings and make the nut — because rents aren’t getting cut in half.

The Extraordinary Decisions Facing Italian Doctors 

Yascha Mounk, writing for The Atlantic:

Two weeks ago, Italy had 322 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. At that point, doctors in the country’s hospitals could lavish significant attention on each stricken patient.

One week ago, Italy had 2,502 cases of the virus, which causes the disease known as COVID-19. At that point, doctors in the country’s hospitals could still perform the most lifesaving functions by artificially ventilating patients who experienced acute breathing difficulties.

Today, Italy has 10,149 cases of the coronavirus. There are now simply too many patients for each one of them to receive adequate care. Doctors and nurses are unable to tend to everybody. They lack machines to ventilate all those gasping for air.

This is why preventative measures, even if they only slow the spread, are so essential. We’re all in this together.

NCAA Tournaments Canceled Over Coronavirus 

ESPN:

The NCAA has called off its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments as part of a complete cancellation of all remaining spring and winter championships.

“This decision is based on the evolving COVID-19 public health threat, our ability to ensure the events do not contribute to spread of the pandemic, and the impracticality of hosting such events at any time during this academic year given ongoing decisions by other entities,” the NCAA said in a statement Thursday. […]

The men’s basketball tournament has been played every year since 1939, when Oregon won the championship in Evanston, Illinois. It has grown through the years, both in size and stature. The three-week tournament generates almost a billion dollars in revenue each year for the NCAA and its hundreds of member universities and colleges.

Just a few days ago they announced plans to hold the games in empty arenas. Things are escalating so fast it’s hard to keep up today. And while basketball is getting most of the attention, they’ve preemptively canceled the baseball and softball tournaments (along with other sports) that weren’t scheduled until June.

Disneyland Closes 

Hayley Miller, reporting for the Huffington Post:

Disneyland in Anaheim, California, is shutting down beginning Saturday and continuing throughout the month as the ongoing coronavirus pandemic persists, Disney Parks announced Thursday afternoon.

The decision was made “in the best interest of our guests and employees,” the company said in a statement after California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) issued an executive order in response to the public health crisis. Newsom removed the waiting period for unemployment and disability benefits for state residents who lose work as a result of the outbreak, and he gave the state the power to commandeer hotels and other facilities for patient treatment.

Disney World, in Orlando, remains open, but that seems untenable. Disney’s parks are a real bellwether for how serious this is getting. They only close for extraordinary events:

Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., about 30 miles from Los Angeles, has been tied to various outbreaks of measles in recent years, and one outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, but those issues have appeared to not affect visitation. Disney World has only closed during hurricanes and after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

As of Saturday, 6 of Disney’s 12 parks around the world will be closed.