I highly recommend that you all look for some books on the Spanish flu pandemic. There are several, and any one will do.
I've read two, one nonfiction, one a fictional historical novel that appears to be historically accurate. We were still in the middle of WWI, when the press was muzzled and prevented from reporting on the disease outbreak. Military recruits were dying of flu in boot camp. So many people were dying that funeral homes could not handle all the dead; hence, burials in mass graves. President Wilson was preoccupied with the war, and dealing with the pandemic was left to localities. Those that imposed strict quarantine, social distancing, and mask wearing requirements had more success at keeping the spread of disease to a minimum than those that did little to nothing.
A parade in Philadelphia was followed by a spike in new cases days later.
And people did indeed rebel against constraints imposed on them by authorities.
i found the parallels between then and now downright eerie.
i also found it reassuring to realize that this too shall pass. Eventually, this outbreak will die down. Until then, this elderly diabetic will live carefully to minimize my risks. I’m fortunate that my husband and I are retired and have each other for company, and a steady retirement income. I order my groceries online for delivery and my hobby And volunteer groups are meeting via Zoom. The one place I go to is the gym, where they are downright obsessive about disinfecting everything. My personal trainer wipes down every piece of equipment that I’ve touched with a disinfecting wipe. I decided that going to the gym was worth it to keep my strength up.