Blogs

More people will work from home.  Companies, especially those with younger employees, are going to need to make this an option.  They can’t use the excuse that it’s not possible anymore; many have seen it work quite efficiently once the kinks were ironed out.   This element of flexible will be expected, moving forward.
There are definitely benefits to the climate with more people staying home.   Images show carbon emissions are greatly reduced during this down time. Maybe it’s time to really encourage the use of mass transportation to help reduce emissions.  It would be necessary to add incentives or utilize techniques to keep the transportation systems clean and more sanitary.   Large metropolitan areas are like ghost towns these days; perhaps city planners should use this time to consider closing some roads to cars altogether and designate them for pedestrians and cyclists to boost public safety.  Since we are living in times of very low interest rates, entrepreneurs can step up to finance such projects, or to boost the wind, solar, and renewable energy systems.  Now is definitely the time to take action and move in the direction of green living.  
Rural vs Urban living?  Will this pandemic, and the risk of similar outbreaks, alter people’s thinking about living in a large city?  Will those in some rural communities worry more about the quality or lack of medical care available in sparsely populated areas? It will be interesting to see if there is a shift in populations after this subsides.
Quality Family Time is Evident.  For the first time in many years, I’ve witnessed families spending quality time together.  Seeing families with kids of all ages biking, playing tennis, walking and fishing together has been a wonderful bonus to these dark times.   When we return to some kind of normalcy, I hope we all realize the value of this time and make a concerted effort to keep it going.  Perhaps like couples who schedule a ‘date night’, families need to schedule time every week for a group activity – no friends allowed.  (Note:  I realize it’s also been a very difficult time for families shrouded with issues of abuse and addictions, but that’s a topic for another day.)
Some Kind of Universal Healthcare is Needed.  This pandemic has certainly shown us the inequity of our healthcare system.  Employer-based healthcare isn’t the answer and now more than ever we need to make a change. Even prior to this, there were too many people working multiple jobs with no healthcare,  and self-employed people without benefits. In a country with this much wealth, no American should be an accident or illness away from bankruptcy or financial ruin. This must be a priority in the upcoming election.