Then and now …

… Why life went on as normal during the killer pandemic of 1969.

…schools were not shut down nationwide, other than a few dozen because of too many sick teachers. Face masks weren’t required or even common. Though Woodstock was not held during the peak months of the H3N2 pandemic (the first wave ended by early March 1969, and it didn’t flare up again until November of that year), the festival went ahead when the virus was still active and had no known cure.

“Life continued as normal,” said Jeffrey Tucker, the editorial director for the American Institute for Economic Research.

Which, he said, isn’t all that surprising. “That generation approached viruses with calm, rationality and intelligence,” he said.