You’re right, it’s not at all cynical. If you think about it, it’s just planning and preparation 101.
What do you do when you’re planning the food for a dinner event? You overbuy so you don’t run out, right? When you’re getting ready to go on a trip, do you underestimate how much to pack? No way, that would make no sense.
The same goes when you’re leading a nation, especially during the very infancy of a global pandemic. You don’t lowball anything. You over prepare because one cannot possibly predict exactly how things will actually turn out, and the last thing you want is to be caught with your pants down. If that happens, the nation loses. I guarantee that every halfway decent leader has been carrying this thought with them since this whole thing first started. None desire the consequences of a failed response. (btw, this explains a lot of the theatrics we’ve been seeing from some of the states)
Regarding the models, consider for a second why we have them in the first place. They’re not just for us to watch, like a special gage that tells us when we can expect to get back to things again. They also happen to be a primary resource for the safety of all state govts, hospitals, responders, to understand the threat and plan effectively. not to mention, it’s also for we the people so that we can make more informed decisions in hopes of preserving our own life, liberty and happiness. With that in mind, does anyone really want to lowball that number? Of course not. That would be irresponsible and borderline criminal. Expect the worst, hope for the best.
I don’t even need to know if the models are accurate or not. Trump will overestimate either way, as he should. I mean, nobody looks at Italy and thinks, “Boy it’s a really good thing they didn’t overestimate how many ventilators they needed... that would’ve looked suspiciously self-serving.”
You’re right, it’s not at all cynical. If you think about it, it’s just planning and preparation 101.
What do you do when you’re planning the food for a dinner event? You overbuy so you don’t run out, right? When you’re getting ready to go on a trip, do you underestimate how much to pack? No way, that would make no sense.
The same goes when you’re leading a nation, especially during the very infancy of a global pandemic. You don’t lowball anything. You over prepare because one cannot possibly predict exactly how things will actually turn out, and the last thing you want is to be caught with your pants down. If that happens, the nation loses. I guarantee that every halfway decent leader has been carrying this thought with them since this whole thing first started. None desire the consequences of a failed response. (btw, this explains a lot of the theatrics we’ve been seeing from some of the states)
Regarding the models, consider for a second why we have them in the first place. They’re not just for us to watch, like a special gage that tells us when we can expect to get back to things again. They also happen to be a primary resource for the safety of all state govts, hospitals, responders, to understand the threat and plan effectively. not to mention, it’s also for we the people so that we can make more informed decisions in hopes of preserving our own life, liberty and happiness. With that in mind, does anyone really want to lowball that number? Of course not. That would be irresponsible and borderline criminal. Expect the worst, hope for the best.
I don’t even need to know if the models are accurate or not. Trump will overestimate either way, as he should. I mean, nobody looks at Italy and thinks, “Boy it’s a really good thing they didn’t overestimate how many ventilators they needed... that would’ve looked suspiciously self-serving.”
Or we could just be fucking honest and deal with reality. Overestimating comes with its own set of issues.