Do your part

We have seen a lot of well-meaning but bad advice floating around the Internet in recent days urging us to get out and support local businesses or to somehow go shopping to support the economy.

We appreciate the intentions behind these messages. But right now, if you are healthy and unless your work is critical to public health and safety, there is one thing you can do to contribute: Stay home.

The coming crisis will only be abated if Americans at large don’t go out, don’t make unessential trips and don’t gather in groups. Those activities will prolong the crisis and potentially upend our health-care system.

For those of us fortunate enough to have jobs that permit us to work remotely, this should be relatively straightforward. That’s not to say it will be easy. We understand that, for many, children are also home, and many tasks will be tougher than they would be in normal times. But these aren’t normal times. So for those who can work from home, do so. If you are a boss and have the choice to shut down the office or authorize working remotely, do it.

For those who find themselves unexpectedly out of the office, don’t use this time as an extended spring break. This isn’t an opportunity to take the kids to the arcade or set up play dates. It’s not a chance to hit the stores for unessential items or to catch up with old friends over lunch.

It’s time for us to hunker down with those who live under our roofs and play our part in breaking the chain of deadly infection that is linking the country and that threatens to link every nation on Earth.

There are people reading this who are not so fortunate as to be able to work from home. Some of them are essential for public health and safety—doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers, sanitation workers and more.

Every one of us who stays home extends protection to them. Each day we limit contact and self-isolate, we are potentially sparing a public health and safety worker who we need to remain on the front lines of this fight.

There are other workers whose jobs don’t allow them to work from home. Waiters, cashiers, those who stock the shelves at your local grocery store and others in retail are among them, dealing with the public each day in critical roles that keep society functioning.

Judging by the emptiness of our streets, we suspect many retail stores will scale back and others will operate with limited hours. That will help reduce transmission. And we’re heartened to see many restaurant owners shifting to takeout only. That too will reduce the number of workers who have public contact and help flatten infection rates.

Meanwhile, we urge people to only go shopping for essential items. Managers and owners need to take careful stock of who is needed on the clock and permit others to remain home.

The government can do its part by providing financial support to workers and businesses weathering what will be a disastrous financial blow.

The sooner we decide as a society to isolate ourselves as much as possible, the better off we will be. It’s a way of pulling together by staying apart.