This is the Kator Daily Podcast for Friday, May 22nd, 2020.

I'm Caleb Brown.

In Italy, the coronavirus outbreak hit especially hard, so naturally the government

attempted to control the price of face masks with

predictable results. Cato adjunct scholar Alberto Mingardi wrote about the

government's ill-fated attempt to control prices on vital goods at the Wall Street Journal, we spoke earlier

this week.

Italy has been hit hard by the coronavirus and COVID-19.

How in general has, do you rate the government response? How well do you rate in general the private sector response?

Well the government was shocked like anybody else by the pandemic.

Clearly, the response has been messy and with the benefit of inside,

several mistakes were made right at the beginning for example the

government order to close schools and government officials said very clearly you

know if you have problems about, you know, finding some

place to live your kids, leave them with their grandparents.

It was a major mistake, right at the beginning in some regions, COVID-19 patients, I mean

coming to hospitals in substantial numbers, they were sent to nursing homes.

Another major mistake that happened all throughout the ward, including in New York.

So clearly, we add problems because we were facing something which was totally

unknown a new virus at the very same time Italy as strongly left of center government and so this

particular mindset the government

ideology added up to the problems.

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