Joe Malchow
The Wall Street Journal this morning includes an article by T.J. Rodgers, the retired founder and CEO of Cypress Semiconductors, with the provocative title, “Do Lockdowns Save Lives? In Most Places, the Data Say No.” Rodgers mentions in the first paragraph that much of the statistical work behind his article was done by our own Joe Malchow, who is Power Line’s Wizard of Oz behind the curtain who keeps up the tech side of the site.
I’ve been wanting an excuse to do a podcast with Joe for the longest time, and so here it is. In addition to going through the statistical evidence we have already that the total lockdown in most states doesn’t bear a lot of relation to the infection outcomes, we also talk about Sweden’s choice of an intermediate path, with only light shutdowns and quarantines, and with results that are better than many hard hit U.S. states and European countries, and worse than some others. If trends continue and Sweden remains in the middle of the statistical distribution, it will be a massive reproach to the total and prolonged shutdowns that are crippling our economy, and may come to be seen as the single most costly economic mistake in American history.
And finally, as a fellow inmate of Krazifornia, we look at how the state is likely to bungle its economic recovery. All you need to know is that our sainted Gov. Newsom has appointed Tom Steyer to head the committee to make plans. You can expect it to include solar powered suppositories.
You know what to do now: listen here or download from our hosts at Ricochet, or from your favorite podcast platform.
Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.