Barbara Benfield Blog

It does not take a rocket scientist to understand if a country shuts down socially and economically there will be major repercussions. To understand how Covid has affected the economy, we must first define economics. “Economics is a social science that focuses on the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services, and analyzes the choices that individuals, businesses, governments, and nations make to allocate resources.”[1] Covid-19 and the decisions surrounding it have placed America in a new and depressed economic situation.

One can hardly discuss the impact of Covid-19 on America without, briefly, discussing the impact of Covid across the world. Globalization has brought about an interconnection amongst the nations. Because of globalization, goods and services are traded across continents, and Covid has impacted not only travel between continents but also between states in this nation. Due to the constraints on transporting goods and services, American citizens have struggled and are still struggling to get basic needs met. Mike Adams, a Texas-based food scientist recently told Epoch Times, “With food production issues, supply chain problems, a slow economic recovery from the pandemic, and the cascading effects of an overseas conflict, it seems rather clear that shortages, disruptions, and price hikes are here to stay.”[2] 

Expert Jim Blanco, an examiner for the Federal Government, having rendered 8,000 opinions domestically and abroad, states, “the U.S. economy will not return to inflation levels seen before the COIVD-19 pandemic.”[3] In other words, there is a new price index that is here to stay. While the average consumer is waiting for prices to get back to where they were before COVID 2019, this economist is predicting it will not happen. The headlines all over the world reflect the effect of COVID-19 on the economy. Here are a few headlines from Epoch Times, a newspaper that has roots in China but journalists were killed or cast out as they spoke against unethical government practices: 1/25/22 – “COVID Pandemic Crippling India’s Tourism Industry,” 1/27/22 – “Bank Economist Criticizes Quebec’s COVID Measures as They East at GDP,” 1/20/22 – “The Coming Economic Pandemic Will Be Worse Than COVID.”[4] There is no denying that COVID has drastically impacted the economic situation the world over. In seeing how COVID has affected the American economy, consider the thread of production and how it came to the front door of some middle-class Americans and small business owners.

Due to the inability to go about the normal course of doing business, not only were businesses being shut down and people out of work but also goods that were produced were being halted from getting where they needed to go, thus slowing or stopping production from one end of the spectrum to the other. The cost of delivering products directly impacts consumer prices. Consider these statements from Pacific Globalgroup, a tech company in the packaging field, and UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development),

When the Ever Given megaship blocked traffic in the Suez Canal for almost a week in March, it triggered a new surge in container spot freight rates, which had finally started to settle from the all-time highs reached during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shipping rates are a major component of trade costs, so the new hike poses an additional challenge to the world economy as it struggles to recover from the worst global crisis since the Great Depression.

“The Ever Given incident reminded the world just how much we rely on shipping,” said Jan Hoffmann, head of UNCTAD’s trade and logistics branch. “About 80% of the goods we consume are carried by ships, but we easily forget this.” Container rates have a particular impact on global trade since almost all manufactured goods – including clothes, medicines, and processed food products – are shipped in containers.

“The ripples will hit most consumers,” Mr. Hoffmann said. “Many businesses won’t be able to bear the brunt of the higher rates and will pass them on to their customers (emphasis mine).[5]

UNCTAD explains why container rate freights have surged, “The underlying causes are complex and include changing trade patterns and imbalances, capacity management by carriers at the beginning of the crisis and ongoing COVID-19-related delays in transport connection points, such as ports (emphasis mine).”[6]

The new law in the state of California rendering independent truckers to be employees adds to the already fragile economy. According to Michael Clifford who works for a trucking company in Utah but spends much of his time making deliveries in California, regarding “the new law [that] requires independent truck owner-operators—some 70,000 strong throughout the Golden State—be classified as employees, with few exemptions,” Clifford says, “The way the new law is written, he said, AB 5 likely will do more harm than good to the state’s trucking industry in the future.”[7] According to The Poynter Institute, “The shipping pileup at California’s ports is part of a worldwide supply chain crisis largely exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and a lack of supplies, equipment and workers, not the state’s rules and regulations on the trucking industry.”[8] Given these scenarios, what is Covid’s impact on the American economy?

One measure of economic stability is the GDP. GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is, “a comprehensive measure of the U.S. economy and its growth. It measures industry’s performance and their contributions to the GDP.”[9]  Another definition is:

A measure of the value of the total production in a country, usually in a given year. Gross domestic product is calculated by adding together total consumer spending, total government spending, total business spending, and the value of net exports. GDP is considered one of the leading indicators of the health of a nation’s economy. GDP growth is considered desirable and represents the fact that businesses are producing and that consumers and the government are buying. It is often used as a way to measure a country’s standard of living.[10]

Mark Zandi, WSJ (Wall Street Journal) Economic Strategist, downgraded first quarter U.S. GDP to 2.2% from 5.2%. That is almost a 60% decline. That is no small matter. In the above examples, because of COVID, production was shut down in almost every area of business, and prices have spiked. This has caused discombobulation, disorientation, disenchantment, and disconnect. Americans are trying to figure out what to do next. Thank goodness, Americans are resilient. While it is true that inflation can rise, and production can slow in any number of situations, this author is speaking specifically about the events of the COVID-19 pandemic and its direct impact on the American economy.

Some say the shutdowns were necessary to save lives and that is more important than being concerned about an economy that is slowing down. While this writer is all about saving lives, is it possible there could have been a different path that could have saved more lives and also saved the economy from a recession? What if we could have saved lives and kept the economy intact by utilizing existing and economical treatments that have been proven effective, and allowed doctors to be doctors? Take Dr. Paul Marik, Sentara’s top ICU doctor and one of the world’s leading critical care physicians, and how he was fired for speaking about the efficacy of Ivermectin for critical patients:

EINPresswire.com/ — While their top ICU doctor was arguing his case against Sentara Healthcare System before a Virginia court on Thursday, November 18 (case #CL21013852), the hospital crafted a plan to suspend him. Paul Marik, MD, one of the world’s leading critical care physicians and the Director of the ICU at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, part of Sentara Healthcare, was in a Virginia courtroom fighting to treat critically ill COVID-19 patients while his employer was placing a letter notifying him of suspension of hospital privileges on his desk in his hospital office.[11]

 There are thousands of reports showing the safety of this drug. A panel of physicians and scientists formed the FLCCC Alliance and have made these reports public. On December 20, 2020, one of many press releases states, “FLCCC Alliance issues one-page summary of clinical trials showing large magnitude improvements in COVID-19 patients treated with Ivermectin.”[12]  According to an article from Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit whose mission is to end childhood health epidemics states that another doctor, Mary Bowden,  with 40 years’ experience in emergency medicine, was fired for treating patients with Ivermectin yet had a recovery success rate of over 99.97%. Children’s Health Defense reports:

Dr. Bowden began recommending ivermectin to treat COVID-19 in early 2020. She treated more than 3,900 patients for COVID-19, with a success rate of over 99.97%. She said the FDA’s actions regarding ivermectin, specifically its directives to stop using the drug to treat COVID-19, harmed Bowden’s ability to practice medicine and treat patients. Bowden’s employer, Houston Methodist Hospital, last year forced her to resign by suspending her privileges for spreading “COVID misinformation.”[13]

By choosing to respond to Covid differently, could the nation’s leaders have been able to save the economy, and the trust of the people, rather than creating separation and confusion? According to reports on natural immunity, separating people from one another causes the body’s capacity for natural immunity to decline and can cause viruses to spread more rapidly.[14] If COVID patients were treated with the known methods that were also economical, rather than firing doctors who had been successfully treating their patients against COVID, lives could have been saved and the economy could have remained stable.[15]

The Operation Warp Speed in which solutions to COVID were promulgated has created an untrusting and divided nation. Notwithstanding there are other factors at work to divide, COVID has certainly contributed to that problem.  The decision to shut down businesses, take away effective treatment, and separate people will continue to affect the economy, and people and businesses will continue to struggle to survive, emotionally and financially. The American economy, as a whole, will continue to struggle due to the COVID outbreak. Perhaps a different route could have been to give the American citizens enough credit to stay home when they are sick, let natural immunity run its course, allow doctors to be doctors, provide an effective medicinal protocol that is affordable, and continue to let the country run. Perhaps this paper would have a different, and positive, statement concerning how COVID has affected the American economy.

Bibliography

Alexander, Paul. “150 Research Studies Affirm Naturally Acquired Immunity to COVID-19.” February 19, 2022. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/evidence-on-natural-immunity-versus-covid-19-vaccine-induced-immunity_4244570.html.

Balmakov, Roman, and Zachary Stieber. “The Epoch Times – Truth & Tradition. Fact Based. Unbiased. Accurate News.” Accessed August 9, 2022. http://www.theepochtimes.com/.

Children’s Health Defense Team. “Doctors Sue FDA, Allege Crusade against Ivermectin ‘Unlawfully Interfered’ with Their Ability to Treat Patients.” June 8, 2022. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/doctors-sue-fda-allege-crusade-against-ivermectin-unlawfully-interfered-with-their-ability-to-treat-patients_4521267.html?utm_source=ai&utm_medium=search.

FLCCC Alliance. “Summary of the Evidence for Ivermectin in COVID – Front Line Covid-19 …” Summary of the Evidence for Ivermectin in COVID-19, September 19, 2021. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://covid19criticalcare.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Summary-of-the-Evidence-for-Ivermectin-in-COVID.pdf.

“GDP .” The Free Dictionary. Farlex. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/GDP.

“GDP: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).” GDP | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), December 8, 2021. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.bea.gov/data/gdp.

Hayes, Adam. “What Is Economics?” Investopedia. Investopedia, July 18, 2022. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/economics.asp.

Kamen, Joyce. “Hospital Retaliates by Suspending Top ICU Dr. for Lawsuit He Filed to Use Safe & Effective Treatments on COVID Patients.” EIN Presswire. EIN Presswire, November 23, 2021. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.einpresswire.com/article/556913814/hospital-retaliates-by-suspending-top-icu-dr-for-lawsuit-he-filed-to-use-safe-effective-treatments-on-covid-patients.

Putterman, Samantha. “Politifact – California’s Trucking Regulations May Have Had an Impact on Port Backups, but There’s More to It.” @politifact, October 19, 2021. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/oct/19/facebook-posts/californias-trucking-regulations-may-have-had-impa/#sources.

Roberts, Katabella. “US Economy Never Going Back to Pre-COVID Low-Inflation State, Expert Warns.” August 2, 2022. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/us-economy-never-going-back-to-pre-covid-low-inflation-state-expert-warns_4637318.html.

Stein, Allan. “California Truckers Impacted by New Law Warn ‘Prices Are Going to Go through the Roof’.” www. August 7, 2022. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/california-truckers-impacted-by-new-law-warn-prices-are-going-to-go-through-the-roof_4644356.html.

Stein, Allan. “Doomsday ‘Preppers’ Warn of Hard Times Ahead as Preparedness Goes Mainstream.” April 6, 2022. Accessed August 9, 2022 https://www.theepochtimes.com/doomsday-preppers-warn-of-hard-times-ahead-as-preparedness-goes-mainstream_4377157.html.

UNCTAD. “Shipping during COVID-19: Why Container Freight Rates Have Surged.” UNCTAD, April 23, 2021. Accessed August 9, 2022. https://unctad.org/news/shipping-during-covid-19-why-container-freight-rates-have-surged.

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[1] Adam Hayes, “What Is Economics?,” Investopedia, July 18, 2022, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/economics.asp.

[2] Allan Stein, “Doomsday ‘Preppers’ Warn of Hard Times Ahead as Preparedness Goes Mainstream,” April 6, 2022, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/doomsday-preppers-warn-of-hard-times-ahead-as-preparedness-goes-mainstream_4377157.html.

[3] Katabella Roberts, “US Economy Never Going Back to Pre-COVID Low-Inflation State, Expert Warns,” August 2, 2022, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/us-economy-never-going-back-to-pre-covid-low-inflation-state-expert-warns_4637318.html.

[4] Roman Balmakov and Zachary Stieber, “The Epoch Times – Truth & Tradition. Fact Based. Unbiased. Accurate News,” accessed August 9, 2022, http://www.theepochtimes.com/.

[5] UNCTAD, “Shipping during COVID-19: Why Container Freight Rates Have Surged,” April 23, 2021, accessed August 9, 2022. https://unctad.org/news/shipping-during-covid-19-why-container-freight-rates-have-surged.

[6] Ibid

[7] Stein, Allan. “California Truckers Impacted by New Law Warn ‘Prices Are Going to Go through the Roof’.” August 7, 2022, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/california-truckers-impacted-by-new-law-warn-prices-are-going-to-go-through-the-roof_4644356.html.

[8] Samantha Putterman, “Politifact – California’s Trucking Regulations May Have Had an Impact on Port Backups, but There’s More to It,” @politifact, October 19, 2021, accessed August 9, 2022, https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/oct/19/facebook-posts/californias-trucking-regulations-may-have-had-impa/#sources.

[9] “GDP: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA),” GDP | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), December 8, 2021, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.bea.gov/data/gdp.

[10] “GDP ,” The Free Dictionary (Farlex), accessed August 9, 2022, https://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/GDP.

[11] Joyce Kamen, “Hospital Retaliates by Suspending Top ICU Dr. for Lawsuit He Filed to Use Safe & Effective Treatments on COVID Patients,” EIN Presswire. November 23, 2021, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.einpresswire.com/article/556913814/hospital-retaliates-by-suspending-top-icu-dr-for-lawsuit-he-filed-to-use-safe-effective-treatments-on-covid-patients.

[12] FLCCC Alliance, “Summary of the Evidence for Ivermectin in COVID – Front Line Covid-19 …,” Summary of the Evidence for Ivermectin in COVID-19, September 19, 2021, accessed August 9, 2022. https://covid19criticalcare.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Summary-of-the-Evidence-for-Ivermectin-in-COVID.pdf.

[13] Children’s Health Defense Team, “Doctors Sue FDA, Allege Crusade against Ivermectin ‘Unlawfully Interfered’ with Their Ability to Treat Patients,” June 8, 2022, accessed August 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/doctors-sue-fda-allege-crusade-against-ivermectin-unlawfully-interfered-with-their-ability-to-treat-patients_4521267.html?utm_source=ai&utm_medium=search.

[14] Paul Alexander, “150 Research Studies Affirm Naturally Acquired Immunity to COVID-19,” February 19, 2022, accessed August 9, 2022, https://www.theepochtimes.com/evidence-on-natural-immunity-versus-covid-19-vaccine-induced-immunity_4244570.html.

[15] Children’s Health Defense Team, “Doctors Sue FDA, Allege Crusade against Ivermectin ‘Unlawfully Interfered’ with Their Ability to Treat Patients,” June 8, 2022, accessed 9, 2022. https://www.theepochtimes.com/doctors-sue-fda-allege-crusade-against-ivermectin-unlawfully-interfered-with-their-ability-to-treat-patients_4521267.html?utm_source=ai&utm_medium=search.