...

"So often I had heard Americans say they wanted their country to be run like a business. In fact, this was one of the most common arguments advanced in favor of Donald Trump. The outcome of that reasoning is already plain. People who have money can stay safe at home, streaming television shows and perfecting their baking skills, while those on limited incomes have to work and risk infection, or stay home and fear eviction. The expectation that elected representatives would make decisions based on the common good, as Rousseau had imagined, seems almost quaint. Instead, private interest appears to be the main driving force behind reopening plans, a sign that the social bond has withered."

LARB: Not in this Together, August 10, 2020