Ask HN: Why is everyone I talk to in the real world so unperturbed by Covid-19?

It seems like most people I chat with on a day-to-day basis blithely brush off the risks or worry associated with coronavirus. I myself am not the alarmist or prepper type, but what I see in the real world (big metro city with multiple cases confiremed nearby) is starkly different from the attitude I see espoused here and on twitter, which is that we may be in for a black swan event that could get worse before it gets better.

I hear a lot of "it's just the flu...", "it's just the media"... etc.

What accounts for this difference, and who is more in touch with reality? It is the case that I don't work in tech any more, so maybe tech-centric communities err more on the "expect the worst" side. But that begs the question of why?

I don't know about the people you're talking about, but I've been accused of insufficient concern about it myself. I don't agree with that accusation.

I am not panicking or obsessing about it, though, and I think people perceive that as being unconcerned. But it's not. I take it seriously, and engage in reasonable protective behaviors, but I am not afraid. Why? In part because there is little reason for me to be actively afraid (yet), and in part because fear is unhelpful and counterproductive.

Could this be a "black swan" event? Sure, it could. But we're not there yet, and losing sleep over it won't change the likelihood of it becoming that.

That said, what I see coming out of the US government, and particularly Trump's statements, make it much more difficult to remain calm.

81% of cases are mild. Most (younger) people are unlikely to develop severe or critical symptoms. However, it affects people more the older they are, and people should still be wary of the virus and practice safe hygiene - wash hands regularly with soap, use hand sanitiser, don't touch your face, sneeze and cough into a tissue or your upper arm, and isolate yourself at home if you're sick. Asymptomatic people can still carry the virus and pass it onto people who can be severely affected.

So people are unperturbed because it's unlikely to be serious for them, but they should worry about the effect it will have on the population at large.

Would it help?

Rudolf Abel, Bridge of Spies (2015)

How is getting perturbed going to help?