Opening Economy Irresponsible, Cannot 'Ignore That Pile Of Bodies Over In The Corner,' Bill Gates Criticizes Trump

Microsoft Inc. MSFT co-founder Bill Gates has issued a sharp admonishment to those who suggest reopening the economy amid the global coronavirus pandemic.

'Rarin’ To Go By Easter'

Although Gates did not name names, President Donald Trump has floated suggestions he may relax some social distancing guidelines to kickstart the economy. In a town hall event hosted by Fox News, Trump remarked, “It’s such an important day for other reasons, but I’d love to make it an important day for this. I would love to have the country opened up, and rarin’ to go by Easter.”

Trump is advocating a middle ground where the healthy return to work, while the more vulnerable stay at home. According to Vox, the president has said he would make a decision on reopening the economy at the end of the month.

States such as New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and California are imposing measures that limit the movement of people. There have been 46,481 coronavirus cases in the United States at press time.

Keep Going To Restaurants, Ignore Piles Of Bodies

Commenting in an interview Tuesday on TED, Gates took a dim view of suggestions that a “middle ground” existed, according to Vox. “There really is no middle ground, and it’s very tough to say to people, ‘Hey, keep going to restaurants, go buy new houses, ignore that pile of bodies over in the corner. We want you to keep spending because there’s maybe a politician who thinks GDP growth is all that counts.” Gates also castigated individuals who suggest that we can “have the best of both worlds.”

Economy Can Be Brought Back To Life, Not People

Gates recognizes the economic impact of the pandemic, saying, “The economic effect of this is really dramatic. Nothing like this has ever happened to the economy in our lifetimes,” but to Gates, lives matter more, “But bringing the economy back ... that’s more of a reversible thing than bringing people back to life. So we’re going to take the pain in the economic dimension — huge pain — in order to minimize the pain in the diseases-and-death dimension.”

Six Weeks But Need To Toughen It Out

Gates expressed optimism that social distancing may only last six weeks, but asserted, “we have no choice.” Regarding social distancing, he remarked, “The sooner you do it in a tough way, the sooner you can undo it and go back to normal.”

Photo Credit: Public domain photo via Wikimedia.