Skip to main content
Thursday, November 12, 2026Nov 12

Cook: Think like utopians – what kind of world do we want to reopen?

A passer-by wearing a mask out of concern for the COVID-19 coronavirus, background center, walks past mannequins in a clothing store, Wednesday, April 29, 2020, in Boston. Job cuts have escalated across the U.S. economy in recent days that remains all but shut down due measures taken to halt the spread of the virus. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
A passer-by wearing a mask out of concern for the COVID-19 coronavirus, background center, walks past mannequins in a clothing store, Wednesday, April 29, 2020, in Boston. Job cuts have escalated across the U.S. economy in recent days that remains all but shut down due measures taken to halt the spread of the virus. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) A passer-by wearing a mask out of concern for the COVID-19 coronavirus, background center, walks past mannequins in a clothing store, Wednesday, April 29, 2020, in Boston. Job cuts have escalated across the U.S. economy in recent days that remains all but shut down due measures taken to halt the spread of the virus. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Go back?

To normal?

I’m not sure I want to.

Most days, I am stopped in my tracks at the enormity of what we’re all experiencing. The suffering. The anxiety. The grief. I talk with small business owners. Hear from service industry workers. Confront my own vulnerability.

It can feel crushing.