We’re not ready for the next pandemic

[Bloomberg]( Follow Us //link.mail.bloombergbusiness.com/click/19224626.38709/aHR0cHM6Ly90d2l0dGVyLmNvbS9ib3Bpbmlvbg/582c8673566a94262a8b49bdB1fbb349d This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a classic chicken noodle soup of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - The Wuhan coronavirus reminds us we [need to prepare]( for the next big outbreak. - At Davos, the [greenwashing will continue]( until morale improves. - Trump’s impeachment [defense is weak](, but Mitch [McConnell is strong](. - The student-debt nightmare may look a [bit less nightmarish](. This is not a drill. Photographer: STR/AFP/Getty Images Time to Get Ready for the Next Pandemic News that the Wuhan coronavirus can [spread]( from human to human rattled markets early this morning. News of the first [case]( in the U.S. [re-rattled]( them this afternoon. But this should move more than just markets. This disease, which has killed six people and spread from China to five other countries so far, is not nearly as deadly or economically devastating as the SARS pandemic of 17 years ago. Knock on wood. But it’s a chance to start acting on the lessons the world learned from SARS, writes Andreas Kluth. Because [another pandemic is coming]( one of these days, even if Wuhan’s not it. The two biggest SARS lessons are that governments must be honest about the disease’s spread, and politicians and countries must put aside differences to fight it together, Andreas writes. Fortunately, China seems to have learned the first lesson. The jury’s still out on whether an increasingly fractious world will ever learn the second. A recent study found most countries are [ill-prepared to fight]( a new pandemic, warns Adam Minter. Like nationalism and factionalism, another human trait working against us here is the tendency to respond to such disasters with “panic and neglect” — freaking out too much about the latest crisis, then forgetting to get ready for the next one.  Davos Man Says, ‘How Do You Do, Fellow Kids’ If you need further proof of the old adage “The establishment always wins,” just remember both Greta Thunberg and President Donald Trump [spoke]( today at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Thunberg is famous for shaming the kind of people who fly private jets to Davos every year and talk about climate change (which we should [start calling “global warming](” again, Faye Flam argues), without doing anything about it. Trump expresses an even deeper hostility toward the global elite than Thunberg. And yet there both of them were, rubbing elbows, if not sharing $43 [hot dogs](, with the haut monde. It’s an example of how the WEF is [co-opting populists]( across the political divide to sustain its brand even in the cancel-culture era, writes Lionel Laurent. There will be many Davos panels about saving the planet, and private jets will have an option of “[sustainable aviation fuel](,” whatever that is. But this greenwashing may simply mean attendees don’t have to [fear]( much has to actually change. The corporate world has recently shifted its focus from serving shareholders to serving the whole world — at least in mission statements. But doing the right thing for the planet [will cost shareholders](, writes Nir Kaissar. And it’s unclear they’re ready to pay the price.  One good thing has come out of Davos: Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to put a brewing trade spat on ice. Macron promised to suspend a tax on big (read: American) tech companies, and Trump agreed not to hit back with his own tariffs. This [only temporarily freezes]( one trade threat among many, warns Lionel Laurent in a second column. But as with climate change, it feels good to at least pretend you’re making progress. Further Climate Change Reading: BlackRock Inc. can [pressure Asian sovereigns]( to curb reliance on coal. — Clara Ferreira Marques Don’t Blink or You’ll Miss the Impeachment Trump’s impeachment trial began today, which may explain the president’s desire to be in Switzerland. Not that he has much to fear: Senate Republicans will probably let him off the hook. The only real question is how painful their votes will be. Ahead of the trial, Trump’s legal team filed defense memos that offered [weak legal arguments]( and pathetic factual ones, writes Noah Feldman. These certainly won’t make Republicans feel more comfortable acquitting Trump. But they may not have to take such a tough vote. In a second column, Noah Feldman notes Mitch McConnell’s trial rules could let Republicans [throw out all the evidence](, and then dismiss the impeachment for lack of evidence. Neat trick! Further Impeachment Reading: Four [things to watch]( as the trial begins. — Jonathan Bernstein Student Loan Load Now Slightly Lighter, Maybe If you could only write one sentence to describe the Millennial generation, you’d have to work the words “crushing student loan debt” into it: And yet the composition of that ever-rising debt mountain is [much more complicated]( than it seems, writes Brian Chappatta. New students aren’t borrowing as much as they once did. But the amount outstanding keeps growing partly because many borrowers are stretching out payments to better match incomes. That could make this burden a little easier to bear. Telltale Charts Top-line economic indicators sure look good these days. But inequality and other structural problems that were never really addressed after the Great Recession [are still around](, making the long-term outlook less rosy, writes Noah Smith. Many countries [face shrinking populations](, which threatens future economic growth, but encouraging people to have more babies isn’t the answer, writes Leonid Bershidsky. Further Reading China is investing in the kinds of projects that [lure its scientists back home](. — Adam Minter Western asset managers could [thrive in an opened China](. — Shuli Ren America’s single-family housing fixation is [unusual and unhelpful](, but it’s starting to finally go away. — Justin Fox It’s almost time to start worrying about a [no-deal Brexit again](. — Therese Raphael “Dow 36,000” now [isn’t as completely insane]( as it once seemed, but it’s still fundamentally wrong. — Aaron Brown Israel’s [Auschwitz commemoration]( is alienating the U.S. and Poland while favoring Russia. — Eli Lake [Suicide prevention]( is overdue for life-saving research. — Faye Flam ICYMI Boeing Co. now says the 737 Max [won’t fly again]( until mid-year. Hedge funds [not led by white men]( outperform peers 2-to-1. Global warming: the [real-time data](. Kickers How to [retrieve AirPods]( from a subway grate. (h/t Scott Kominers) Our food may be [stressing us out](. Singer apologizes, closes eyes, [dies onstage](. Eddie Murphy got [bad comedy advice]( from Rodney Dangerfield. Note: Please send bad comedy advice and complaints to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Twitter]( and [Facebook](.  Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](.  You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022