1 - I think we, as American citizens, are generally over-reacting.  Why?  For starters, as has been often discussed here on CB lately, America has at least 20,000 deaths every year due to the flu (influenza) and we, including the mainstream media, don't bat an eye when that occurs.  That is a fact that those with an opposing opinion simply can't refute.  Yes, of course the number of deaths in the US will continue to increase from what it is right now (73, according to what I read an hour ago), and may very well get up to 20,000, but until then there really is not justification for excessive fear or even outrage.  

2 - Like others have said on here today, though "life" is indeed important, so is a vibrant, functioning economy.  My wife sided more on the "life" side of this discussion when I spoke with her today about this but I told her that our family was extremely blessed in both 2001 (the 9-11 economic struggles) and in 2008 (the housing meltdown) with a stable, well-paying job in the military.  We are currently blessed to have a super job based on skills I learned in the military.  My point being that we as a family did not suffer economically like millions of other fellow Americans did in '01 and '08.  Therefore, I don't think either she or I am qualified to say a stumbling economy is no big deal.  Just because my family was immune from it doesn't mean the anxiety and worry didn't happen then and fear and anxiety certainly will grow now if our economy takes a serious blow.

3 - This leads to my opinion that the White House should be focusing more on selective self-iosolating policies.  Other CBers have said this as well.  The federal gov't says that those most at risk are the elderly and those with serious, existing health conditions and that the rest of us should be relatively safe.  We may very well get the virus and feel crummy for a week or so but the statistics are heavily in our favor that we should rebound even (as I understand it) without super-drugs/medication. 

4 - The virus is certainly worthy of our respect, meaning, it does need to be dealt with intelligently, but I believe that a certain entity in America is actively working to hype fear, and that they've done this for decades.  That entity would be the vast, vast majority of the mainstream media.  They push fear because it keeps people running back to the TV/internet/newspaper/iPhone to see "what is going on now."  Shame on them.  Without getting into it to a great degree, I'll even say that I believe it is likely that they are hyping fear to purposely hurt those in power that generally don't agree with their (MSM) general slant on things, if you catch my drift.

I'm certainly not an epidemiologist nor even a doctor and if others can present intelligent, factual arguments maybe I'll change my mind but for now I believe we are largely giving in to unwarranted fear.