| This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a Universal Orlando ride of Bloomberg Opinion's opinions. Sign up here. Today's Agenda  Welcome to C World. Photographer: MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP/Getty Images In the Company of (Fewer) Strangers One thing that unites most Americans today is a shared yearning for everything to just get back to normal al-freaking-ready. Unfortunately, we're now also painfully aware that "normal" depended on ignoring just how much it involved swapping germs with strangers. "Say it, don't spray it" is no longer just a gibe at spit-talkers but a matter of life and death. We're learning what it means to live in constant, mortal awareness of this fact as we begin resuming normal-ish activities, for better or worse. The theme park Universal Orlando, home of such fun stuff as the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and Jurassic Park, just released plans for reopening next month. They sound very not-fun, writes Tara Lachapelle. Everyone will have to wear masks (in Orlando, in the summer) and stay far apart from each other, even on rides. "A trip that's supposed to provide a fun escape from reality may instead be a reminder of it," Tara writes. You have to imagine there will be rebellions, forcing poor park employees to play enforcer to sweaty, angry tourists. It might help if the president of the United States would set an example by wearing a mask publicly, but he keeps refusing — even though it would probably help him politically, writes Jonathan Bernstein. Restaurant dining is another formerly fun activity that will now be super weird, with restaurants struggling to keep enough distance between diners and staff. And how much space is enough or too much? wonders Therese Raphael. The gold standard in the U.S. and some other countries right now is two meters, or six feet, but others have different standards. How quickly will we test the limits, and how weird will that make us feel while we're trying to enjoy our Chili's Crispy Cheddar Bites? But restaurants that survive lockdowns may end up in better shape than other businesses. People gotta eat, after all, and the charm of home cooking wears off quickly. Already shaky industries in the old normal will face extinction, writes Noah Smith. Movie theaters, brick-and-mortar retail and colleges are high on the list of places we might avoid in the age when "I wanted the news, not the weather," are fighting words. Further Social-Distancing Reading: How Much Do You Really Love That Home Office? It also seems as if working from home will be another inevitable feature of the new normal. Offices are particularly intimate, disgusting germ vectors, as Sarah Green Carmichael has written. Some big tech companies, including Facebook and Twitter, have already announced they'll make WFH a permanent feature. But not all of them have, and with good reason, writes Tae Kim. We don't know all the drawbacks of the practice yet. And sometimes seeing people in real life, germs and all, is still preferable to the fuzzy, glitchy version of them you see in Zoom screens. Similarly, we can't be sure everybody is going to rush to the suburbs for the long haul, as they seem to be doing now. Yes, there are more home offices available in the 'burbs, and yards in which to exercise. But commutes will still be terrible, as will the restaurant options. Humans have lived in cities for centuries, writes Lionel Laurent, because they have huge advantages, which will become apparent again after the virus is defeated. Cold War Watch: South China Sea Edition The Trump administration today repeatedly threatened retaliation against China for tightening its grip on Hong Kong. Tensions between the two are rising just when the world needs them to get along. The global economy's parents are fighting while the house is on fire, raising the risks of a deeper downturn, writes Mohamed El-Erian. It's not just Hong Kong; tensions between the superpowers are rising all over the South China Sea, warns James Stavridis. He urges the administration to find allies to help brush back China's ambitions there, while also looking for ways to cool temperatures. China has its own pandemic-fueled economic problems, which caused it to finally drop its tired tradition of setting an annual growth target. This must come as a relief to Beijing, writes Dan Moss. Still, the whole region is struggling to come back to life, dependent as it is on global trade, Dan writes in a second column. A new Cold War won't help. Further China Reading: China's recovery will boost metals prices, especially if it's green-tinted. — Clara Ferreira Marques Telltale Charts Oil traders are jazzed about production cuts, but end demand is still dead in the water, as empty Memorial Day highways will make painfully clear, Liam Denning writes.  Ransomware attacks are depressingly widespread, though most victims manage to restore their data without paying ransom, writes Ben Schott.  Further Reading One company with a promising coronavirus vaccine candidate has shares you can't buy. — Matt Levine The U.S. was right to leave the Open Skies Treaty, seeing as how Russia was violating it. — Eli Lake NASA should make sure it doesn't bring viruses back from Mars and other missions. We have enough already. — Adam Minter ICYMI Trump demanded that states open houses of worship. Another study links hydroxychloroquine to deaths and heart trouble. The Smith & Wollensky secret to cooking steak at home. Kickers Employers are rethinking open office plans. Where do eels come from? Bumblebees trick plants into flowering. The 100 best TV shows and movies on Netflix right now. Or you could read a book. Note: BOT will be off on Monday. Enjoy responsibly. Please send books and complaints to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. Sign up here and follow us on Twitter and Facebook. | 
Sitaram Panchal died of cancer at 54 New Delhi: After Inder Kumar’s sudden death, Bollywood industry got another shock this mornin...
Post a Comment