Wreckonomics Goes Viral?

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 8 elaborates the discussion of distorted knowledge environments by exploring how far the “wreckonomics” model applies beyond highly militaristic interventions. The case is the COVID-19 response and what can be learned from both its lockdown and “laissez-faire” incarnations. While often (understandably) treated as opposites, the chapter finds that these two extremes both exhibited “wreckonomic” tendencies, albeit to different degrees at different times. In looking at the intersection of COVID-19 responses and the much-maligned “culture wars,” it emphasizes that a key disadvantage in the various belligerent framings around COVID-19 is that they have narrowed the space for debate and dissent.