The Owens Valley is a microcosm of America. If the businesses stay shut, the virus spread is minimal, but the price will be bankruptcy and unemployment. If they open, they avoid financial ruin, but the price will be more people dying. There is point where you have to say "We're screwed."
I have health issues that make it unlikely that I could survive the virus. It will be a long time before I eat a restaurant meal or stay at a motel or fly in an airplane. It won't kill me to skip the Owens Valley for a year. It might kill me if I don't.
