I cannot believe the number of Americans who are mocking, and criticizing the buying frenzy that is going on as Americans respond to the Coronavirus. First, this is not largely panic buying. While some may be in a panic, the vast majority of Americans seem to be doing the prudent thing and in an orderly manner. Empty shelves for a few hours or a few days does not automatically equal panic buying, but reveals an issue with our ‘just in time inventory’ system. Many people seem to have redefined the word ‘panic’ in their panic of not being able to purchase what they want when they want it. This is not to say we will not see Americans panic if things get worse. But the point of this article is preparedness, not panic, and that empty shelves do not automatically equal panic, but reveal a need to understand the positive and negative nature of ‘just in time inventory.’ 

Here in the Memphis area, we have seen shelves get cleaned out for a day or so on some items. Some items still need to be re-stocked. But as is common in the south, most everyone is being friendly, laid back, smiling, and greeting each other in the traditional southern manner. While the shelves get cleaned out for a period of time, the restaurants are still as packed as ever. Clearly, not the behavior of people in a panic, but actually the behavior of people who have gone to the store, stocked up, are prepared, and now are going out to eat.

I have watched in person as well as online as many stories and videos as I can find for the research I am doing. Yes, there have been a few morons who want to fight over supplies. However, millions of Americans have been kind, patient, orderly and helpful. Our local grocery store the other night was packed like it was the day before Thanksgiving, yet, people were calm, and in good spirits. In fact, it was a spirit of "we are in this together and it will work out." My wife was trying to reach for an item that was high on a shelf, and an older gentleman stopped his shopping to reach up and help her with a smile and a friendly southern greeting.

So to all the clueless critics who are mocking their fellow Americans for stocking up, you need to button it up and listen up for you would be the first one to ridicule these same Americans if they did nothing to prepare for a quarantine and found themselves dependent on the local police, sheriff's deputies, or National Guard for their groceries.

Largely, what we have seen in America the past few days is not panic buying, as some have described it. If your town finds itself quarantined for a few weeks, this is going to be seen for what it has largely been, and that is responsible Americans seeking to be self-sufficient and not a burden on society and local authorities managing a crisis. You want to know what panic buying looks like? Panic buying is when the government says you have 12 hours to stock food and supplies, and then get off the streets or you will be arrested and/or fined. Under such a scenario there would not be enough food, toilet paper, water, and other supplies for the vast majority of people in your town or city. 

In fact, for several years, we have encouraged people to take emergency preparedness seriously. A few years ago we actually hosted two national conferences on this topic and produced docuMovies addressing the need for a culture of preparedness. Sadly, we were mocked by so-called conservatives and religious useful idiots for offering such education with nationally recognized experts.

Some people are claiming because shelves are going empty that this is panic buying. That is frankly a comment that comes from ignorance of our ‘just in time inventory.’ Milk, eggs, and bread go off the shelves here in the south all the time when there is the threat of snow. That does not mean people making those purchase are panicked, but are simply being prepared so they do not have to go out in bad weather. The lack of supplies does not mean the shopper panicked, but simply reveals the ‘just in time inventory’ of our system is not set up for so many people making purchases within the same two days. 

Grocery stores count on a revolving door of customers over many days that allow for the shelves to be restocked. During the holidays, the stores greatly increase their inventory to be ready for the Thanksgiving rush and the Christmas rush. If they did not increase their inventory at these certain times of the year and the shelves went empty, this would not mean there was panic buying, but that the stores had not prepared for the heightened numbers of shoppers within a closer period of time.

Store shelves going empty before the next truck can arrive in a day or two, is NOT evidence of panic, but evidence that more people showed up at the store in larger numbers than is the normal pattern and purchased more than their normal pattern. That is not the fault of the shopper and not a sign of panic. In this current situation, the stores were caught off guard, but they will restock. So those who are panicking over the empty shelves need to stop panicking and realize the shelves will be filled back up within hours in most cases. 

Apparently, many Americans are so lacking in an understanding of how our system works that when they don’t get what they want, they claim shoppers are in a panic or are being selfish. I bet if they got what they wanted when they arrived at the store, they would not be hurling insults at their fellow Americans. Perhaps they are now the ones panicking and should have prepared in advance. Their lack of planning, prudence, and understanding does not equal panic on the part of people who showed up at the stores to make purchases that are completely prudent for the situation at hand. Many older folks went out and purchased several days or a few weeks of food because they are following the advice of the White House Coronavirus Task Force and are going to stay home until this is over. That is prudent for them, that is NOT panic buying, and it was what they were asked to do if they were in a certain age range or had underlying conditions. To claim those folks are in a buying panic is likely just an individual throwing an insult because they are mad they did not get what they wanted when they wanted it, or felt inconvenienced. 

The truly prepared and prudent did not prepare this week, but like we have encouraged for years, they bought supplies years ago. Maybe Americans will learn their lesson and always have an emergency supply on hand.

Right now, the stores are actually restocking very fast. I have been tracking this in my community, as well as around the country. The government has run the numbers on this and they know about how many days of this kind of buying needs to take place before most Americans who want to stock in supplies are able to get supplies with re-stocked shelves based on ‘just in time inventory.’ If you really knew what was going on behind the scenes and how the Trump Administration is rolling this out, you would be extremely impressed. While their response was initially chaotic and contradictory, their plan and messaging changed dramatically over the past seven days. I would suggest it is because they saw what unfolded in Italy with their hospitals being overwhelmed to the point of rationing healthcare that let the old die in order to give treatment to the young.

You can bet the Trump Administration’s emergency response team has computer models they are following that have set in motion a chain reaction designed to give Americans the chance to stock up in case the Trump Administration or state officials decide to implement quarantines in hot zones. The Administration appears to be giving people more time to stock up on supplies in cases they have to put in certain measures.

The government is telling people to stock up like we are seeing by using cleverly crafted language, press conferences, and press interviews that are meant to induce people into action of preparation and not panic. That is why this should not be called panic purchasing but preparation purchasing.

I have spent years studying brainwashing and information operations and in fact, I am in the middle of producing my next docuMovie that will be out in the fall of 2020 on this very topic. While all brainwashing is bad, information operations can be used for good or evil. In the case of the Coronavirus, the American people are completely oblivious to the positive and prudent information operation that has been, and continues to be, orchestrated by the Trump Administration. It is actually a beautiful thing to watch, if you know what to look for. The American people have been totally herded into an orchestrated and timed collective symphony of prudent purchasing.

Both state and federal governments are orchestrating in concert under the direction of the White House conductors who are directing a massive overture that has resulted in a crescendo of purchasing that started out at a slow tempo and then escalated as the messaging that has caused the tempo of preparedness to greatly increase in a matter of days.

The Trump White House and its Coronavirus task force has given all the signs they know they may need to quarantine cities or states. President Trump is now talking about shutting down flights to certain cities.  The messaging by federal and state officials has been said on purpose in order to invoke the prudent preparation of buying we have seen on a national level that is of an historic nature.

Apparently the real focus of this national emergency is to keep senior Americans and Americans with underlining conditions from catching this virus. While most Americans who catch the virus will survive, the key is to keep Americans from spreading it to older Americans that can then cause their demographic to flood the hospitals with the need for advanced care. The term they are using is "flattening out the curve" in order to stop Americans from flooding the hospitals. 

The government's goal in part is to make sure as many people as possible will have enough in their homes if the federal government, state governments, or city governments implement a quarantine for a few weeks in hot zones. The more Americans there are who can be self-sufficient in their own homes the more this will free up the first responders, National Guard, and other government emergency workers so they can address the homeless, and financially strapped, who were not able to prepare and shelter without government assistance.

I don't know how the government could have made it any clearer with the signals they have been sending as to what they are afraid they might have to impose. In fact, I wrote this article at 1am Sunday morning on March 15, 2020 and then I went to bed. When I woke up, the messaging by the White House had become outright blunt. White House Coronavirus Task Force member and Director of Infectious Disease, Dr. Anthony Fauci, told NBC News that  “Americans should be prepared that they are going to have to hunker down significantly more than we as a country are doing.” They are now openly stating that a total national shut down for several days is on the table. Notice how the White House has ramped up their messaging from suggestive to blunt.

Again, if you understood the social sciences of what is happening right now, and how they have been messaged the past week, you would be really impressed. Trust me, this will be a case study that is used for future national emergencies. Government officials, first responders, and historians will study what went right and what did not, so our national emergency plans can be tweaked for the future.

What we are watching unfold is really an amazing thing to behold from an information operation perspective, social sciences perspective, national emergency perspective, and emergency preparedness perspective.

Studying this entire operation on a state by state basis reveals how well most of our cities are doing with our ‘just in time inventory.’ The stories that come out later concerning the trucking and warehouse logistics that kicked in to meet the demand will be impressive and a testimony to the American worker. I, for one, am going to track down these stories and tell them, because they are a testimony to the greatness of the American worker and the American spirit when we as a people and nation are faced with an emergency. A big part of this success story will have been the lack of panic purchasing by Americans, and their prudent preparedness purchasing.

Sadly, it could get bad and very sad before it gets better. However, if Americans have prepared and can hunker down for a period of time in order to slow down the spread of the virus, then our hospitals and hospital workers will be able to keep up and offer the critical and advanced health-care to the patients that need the life or death treatment. I dedicated my radio show to this issue on March 2, 2020 when certain talk show hosts such as Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and Laura Ingraham were still denying, and in some cases, even mocking the seriousness of this crisis.

For people that talk a lot about fake news, it appears they were the very fountain head of fake news when it comes to this literal national emergency, and I believe it was because they were putting politics, the economy, and the re-election of President Trump ahead of our national interests. Ironically, I believe it is possible their irresponsible broadcasts may have greatly damaged President Trump’s re-election. Suffice to say, if President Trump and his team pull the country through this crisis with the appropriate response, it will not be because he was listening to Rush, Sean and Laura, but because he listened to the man that has served six Presidents, Dr. Anthony Fauci. Dr. Fauci has openly stated on Sunday morning, March 15, 2020 that the White House is trying to stop the worst case scenario from occurring as has occurred in Italy. Clearly the White House want Americans to prepare for all the elements that would be implemented for a worst case scenario.

Do you know 100% for sure that the White House or your governor or mayor will not order a shut down or a quarantine in any state or city? And this is why government officials want Americans to prepare for such a scenario if it is necessary. If that does not occur, then Americans can set aside their emergency supplies for the future, or consume them. So where is the downside to prudent purchasing?

If Americans would stop mocking those who are preparing and take this seriously, literally more lives could be saved. When this is all over, I, for one, will be rolling out the audio and video clips of national figures who mocked this entire crisis, and I will encourage Americans to think twice before they listen to such simpletons who could not do the simple math that predicted we would be in the spot we are now in. Certain broadcasters have proven they have little understanding of complex issues and are more political hacks than responsible broadcasters. As the world becomes more perilous and the threat to our complex systems becomes greater, who you listen to in order to gain your understanding of national and world events will greatly impact your families finances, security, and future.

Regardless of what comes of this current national state of emergency, this has been a much needed awakening for the American people concerning how fast a crisis can unfold. As revealed in my docuMovie Siege, America is currently facing any numerous clear and present dangers. You can watch 1 hour for free at www.siegethemovie.com

The Coronavirus crisis would be a walk in the park compared to a biological attack that involved anthrax as discussed in my Siege docuMovie clips. Click here to watch a 15 minute clip that reveals the clear and present dangers America faces from biological terrorism.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_Evf3xCwB8

We are Americans and we should act like Americans and not mock the rugged individualism, self-determination, and desire by Americans to not be dependent on the government for daily sustenance in either good times or during a literal national emergency. America is a unique nation and we will get through this and we will weather this crisis better than we would if Americans had not been involved in the prudent purchasing.

So the Americans who are panicking over the perceived panic of people involved in prudent purchasing need to chill out and be thankful Americans are doing their part so they can be part of the solution and not the problem.

Update: On Sunday evening, March 15, 2020, Dr. Fauci was asked in a White House press conference if America will follow the example of Italy and close down all restaurants and local pubs. Dr. Fauci said everything was on the table to push down the infection curve and stop a rush at the hospitals. Again, more messaging by the White House as part of their information operation. With statements like this by Dr. Fauci, no wonder people are out buying food. Sadly, most people today eat out and not at home so they would need to stock up on food. So the American people who have stocked up have proven they were and are being prudent. Why has President Trump had a meeting with the biggest food chains in America? Are they preparing for another big run on the stores, and if so why?

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Previous Articles on this topic

5 Sets of Changing Numbers to Use When Analyzing the Coronavirus
http://www.worldviewweekend.com/news/article/5-sets-changing-numbers-use-when-analyzing-coronavirus

To All Those Saying Coronavirus is Over Hyped: Run The Numbers When It Comes to the Hospitals

http://www.worldviewweekend.com/news/article/all-those-saying-coronavirus-over-hyped-run-numbers-when-it-comes-hospitals

 Video Clip: Biological Weapons, China, Russia & Their End Game For America

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_Evf3xCwB8

Current Radio Show:

http://www.worldviewweekend.com/radio/audio/brannon-howse-march-13-2020