Day 136: A Pandemic World—Without Money

New York needs money. No, not a traditional budget blowup: We’re suffering a life-threatening liquidity crisis on the simplest level.

WE HAVE NO CASH HERE!

WE NEED AN ARMY OF ATM STOCKERS & FIXERS (Shane Becker) The whole city shut down at once. A lot of people are getting fired for the duration, many without severance. I count seven friends whose jobs are gone, including the calculating Fitch. He wants to know how people are supposed to file for unemployment benefits at offices that are closed. What about welfare payments? Or food stamps? Sure, do it online. Let’s hope those servers are sympathetic. I doubt many workers are tending incoming applications.

For those fortunate enough to remain employed, who will process their checks? We see gleaming, empty towers. The suburbanites who staff offices either got out or are still trying. They’re not tending accounts in an enterprising spirit.

Bank service looks pretty spotty on my TV. ATMs ran out of money the first day—not counting the ones that were pried open.

There can’t be much for sale in stores. We won’t even be able to get a black market going without cash. Do we have to invent our own scrip? Even I’m starting to miss my nearest Chasebucks Coffee Bank, at least conceptually.