Security & In-

In Oz a new 4 sqm. social distancing protocol announced for indoor gatherings. Earlier in the morning the thought had run to the saviour that the quarter acre block might prove down there for those still in possession. Food security had to be also as good as anywhere. (Sing on the other hand was one of the most dense urban agglomerations on the planet and reassurances on sufficient supplies must be doubted longer term.) Prior to lunch an hour and half was wasted on the phone and online attempting to contact Qantas regarding the booked ticket for early next month. You wouldn’t have wanted to be an American for the last three years at least, and now especially. CAL has just been placed in lockdown and in Washington the commander-in-chief has only now reluctantly, and belatedly, changed his previous tune of downplaying the whole crisis. In SOCAL our Scottie has queued four hours in order to purchase a gun, any sort on the shelves had to do after what seems to have been a run on those stores too. In the heat here the eateries still function more or less as normal, with the improvement that directives regarding leaving tissues and regurgitated food on the table tops seems to have been accepted. A large communal prayer gathering was reported in the Straits Times in Bangladesh, in an open field in Raipur town, police estimating 10k and organisers 25k. in attendance. It is especially hard for traditional communities when collective prayer and gathering is denied. In Saudi the authorities might be able to enforce the measure; here in SG certainly. Thailand possibly and China of course. Most definitely it would not be the case in neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia. India was similarly very unlikely on either side of the communal divide, as demonstrated by the recent viral cow urine drinking display. Could you count on the social fabric in the States holding with the level of gun-ownership, opioid and alcohol use, the degradation of the health care system and all the rest over there? If global unity had been needed before for our shared problems, certainly the time has arrived now for joint action and cooperation. Some of the heads of government present the greatest obstacle.