Originally Posted by
mr brightside
TPTB like it when things like this spiral out of control because it gives them an idea of what people are going to do, and allows them to plan for real emergencies like a biological weapons attack. They'll steadily ramp up the measures and let the media go mad with it. The data from supply chains is particularly useful, as it can be used to predict how fast most things will take to run out. Supermarkets don't rent more warehouse space than they need, and don't hold more stock than they have to either; which is why, according to my friend on the sausage counter at Waitrose, they've sold about 6mths worth of pasta in 2wks and won't have any more for ages because the entire chain is dry all the way from Otley to Italy.
I'm so very glad the FRA are just keeping calm and carrying on, it was about time someone decided to just batten down the hatches and keep going. The potential country-wide economic impact of getting in a flap about it all is wildly unpredictable. Small businesses in particular who have no capacity to absorb losses will suffer terribly if we keep buying into this idea that we're all in mortal danger. The media are simply capitalising on it by filling their outlets with outrage porn.