It's made there but not right now

The coronavirus in China has already started its path to devastating world economies.  The supply chain from auto parts manufacturers in China can't get product to Hyundai in South Korea and so Hyundai has shut down production.  South Korean workers get laid off.  Hyundai dealers around the world can't get cars and if you have nothing to sell, you can't make money.  If you can't make money, you can't get groceries or pay your mortgage or, well, you get it.

At work on Friday, with tongue in cheek my coworker said to me, "No reported cases in North Korea!"  I said, "Because they're dropping like flies and Kim Jung-Un is on a respirator in Switzerland."  "But no reported cases!" he exclaimed.  Correct!  Nor will there ever be.  When 250,000 to 3.5 million -- they will never tell for sure -- died of the North Korean Famine, also called the Arduous March or the March of Suffering, did we really know the scope of it?  Nope, because of their Dear Leader.  Of course, people in America are starving and our very own Dear Orange Leader doesn't mention that.  Young gay men were dying of AIDS in insane numbers in the 1980s and our own Dear Ex-Actor Leader would not say it by its name.  Oh, did I digress?  We still won't hear about anyone having coronavirus in North Korea.  "It's across the river from China!" exclaimed by coworker.  "But that's a much different part of China," I said. "Still," he said. "Across the river!"  And North Korea is linked to China like no other country is linked to them.

The virus has not yet reached its zenith in any way and it will be worse before it gets better and China's economy will suffer followed by many other economies.  So much stuff in so many stores is made in China!  Imagine Target and Macy's and Crate and Barrel and Pottery Barn and Walgreen's and CVS and Ikea without items from China.  The shelves will be empty and maybe, just maybe, American manufacturing will step up and make plates and cups and saucers and bowls and shelves and bookcases and rugs and iPhones.  

Yeah, iPhones.  Don't drop yours and hope that it keeps working because it might be a while before 12 comes around.

This reminds me about this very computer.  It's six years old and the warranted is long expired but Apple still supports it.  I love you, Apple, and I will be racing over right after my clever Japanese vacation unless coronavirus says  hell no, you can't go, in which case it be in early March, unless you run out because of, oh, coronavirus.  See?  It's made there, just not right now.