Letter to the Editor: A Problem of Trust

At this writing – Friday, Feb. 28 – the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down more than 4,000 points for the week, more than 13 percent. This is due to fear associated with the coronavirus; there is no question about that.

Some 35 percent of our population believes soundly in Trump, but the other 65 percent? Some maybe, but many – maybe most – do not. I suggest the stock market correction is fed in large part by the 65 percent who do not believe solidly in Trump. 

Is he lying about the virus? Who knows, but we know he lies about almost anything. Is he accepting politically distasteful advice from career health officials? Not likely, because he prides himself on knowing everything and trusting his instincts. Has he appointed the best people in health-care positions or simply Trump loyalists? We all know his preference for loyalists.

Regardless of what Trump should be credited for that he has accomplished, we now have a solid demonstration of how the public reacts to Trump in a threatened crisis. God forbid that we have a real crisis – a material outbreak of coronavirus on our shores, a serious action between North and South Korea, Iran blockading oil-tanker traffic.

Trump may be able to handle a crisis, but clearly many of the 65 percent question that. And that in itself is a serious problem. Trust and respect are seriously lacking.

Jim Riead

Egg Harbor, Wisconsin