I have noticed and yet never understood it:
There is no glory in prevention.
A common saying
You can hear this people say who are fighting for precautionary measures but you hear this even more often in times of crisis – like Covid19.
This really makes me angry. There should be glory in prevention. There are so many reasons why fighting a problem before it occurs is way better.
Money In the long run, preparing for difficult situations occasions costs that seem to be superfluous at the time of action, but turn out to be cheaper in unimaginable magnitudes. Not only are prices for products higher and costs of production losses incredibly rogue, but you will never have to pay for hazards you will have prevented. This safes time and money you can never measure because of their obscure nature. You will never know what threats you avoided and how much money and time you saved by doing so, because it is impossible to know all the possible implications.
In capitalism people get paid for how much economic value they can generate. This is in the way it is currently done just wrong. Scientists and volunteers who fight for all of us and safe all of us from unknown threats get paid nothing in comparison to their opposite position – the people how generate value (by maybe destroying value in the long run)
You can’t know what would have happened, so you can’t measure it, so you can’t put a price tag on it. So don’t be so insolent and cut costs here by “normal” measurements. You are either willing to deal with a specific amount of risk or you are not.
Morality Incautious people often make fun of people who worry about and prepare for possible threats, only to then call for solidarity in the time of need.