When you’re in a critical fight, you need to use all the weapons at your disposal. And so, it’s time once again for America to marshal its great arsenal of democracy. Just as Detroit automakers became aircraft, tank and gun manufacturers during World War II, today’s industrial companies need to repurpose their factories for the tools needed to fight the current enemy: the coronavirus.
Countries across the globe sealed their borders over the weekend and relegated citizens to the confines of their homes in an effort to slow the spread of the deadly virus before it overwhelms the Western World’s health-care systems. The president of Massachusetts General Hospital called on Sunday for the federal government to go into a “war-like stance” and launch a “Manhattan Project” to accelerate production of protective gear. No such plan has been announced by the Trump administration, but U.S. industrial companies should heed the call anyway. Because as far as wars go, this is one for which the country is woefully unprepared.
