There appears to be another virus in China that produces catastrophic damage to lungs. Second link.
Some folks are reading a lot into the possibility of this being Covid: Act II and I want to discuss a very tiny sliver of that possibility.
Some of the more inflammatory folks are already discussing the possibility of Martial Law being declared in the United States. Personally, I think that for that to happen several low to moderately-low probability events would have to align. That said, it is still a possibility.
The range of the details of how Martial Law might be implemented is astronomical but there are a few thoughts I want to toss out there.
Each person's situation will be unique. Each person, each family will have to find their own sweet-spot in how they adapt.
One translation of the Bible reads "Avoid even the appearance of impropriety". That is very, very good advice. Dogs chase people who run. They bark at people who walk funny. Don't run. Don't walk funny.
One major fork in the implementation involves the possible delegation of powers to non-military. If it remains purely military, then there are only enough resources to batten down (maybe) the D.C. Beltway, NYC and one west-coast metropolitan area. Very few soldiers are "peace-keepers" and their skill-sets don't bend in that direction.
If they delegate it gets a whole lot uglier. Some of the people who volunteer to enforce Martial Law will not be motivated by their pure hearts. If I can offer one piece of advice, avoid showy displays of wealth as envy is already at toxic levels.
The predators pick their victims from the fringes of the flock. They pick the weakest because they are the easiest to pull down. They pick the rams because they are proud and fat and the slowest runners.
The second piece of advice I offer is to start considering everything you commit to electronic communication. Every email. Every post on social media. Every blog essay. Words that you consider hyperbole or rhetorical invective or were written after a couple of glasses of wine will come back to haunt you.
The third piece of advice is a painful one. We are rarely betrayed by strangers. We are betrayed by the people we trust: By family members, by friends, by trusted co-workers.
You will even be handed over by parents,
brothers, relatives, and friends,
and they will put some of you to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.
By your perseverance you will secure your lives. Luke Chapter 21
You don't have to make it easy for them.
As a believer I will not deny Him. But I do not need to casually share exact details of activities that MIGHT be considered suspicious.
Some will say that there is no point in exercising "trade-craft". They might say "The Feds can collect every credit card record you ever made. There is no way you can hide that you purchased 100 1X fired .380 ACP brass in 2014."
I do not dispute that point.
The point that I am attempting to make is that if Martial Law is declared and if authority is widely delegated, ordinary citizens will be living in an environment in which threats loom from multiple axis. Action from any one of those axis can get you dead.
The Feds are unlikely to give a flying Freddie about 100 .380 ACP cases but a local with a grudge against you might see that as sufficient basis to settle a grudge against you.
To repeat the wisdom of W.E.B. Griffen, "If you cannot be perfect then the next-best option is to be invisible."