After a little reading it appears they all did some level of shutdown, schools, public events, etc.
Japan appears to have not tested much. Easy way to keep the numbers low is to not test much.

3 of them are islands as well which make controlling entry and exit a lot easier. US has thousands of land entry points from Mexico and Canada plus truck based cross border shipping and migrant workers never shut down. Korea might as well be an island as their only border is essentially closed. That initial ability to control entry and exit never really allowed the virus to gain much traction in those 4 countries. Not really sure why Scotland got off easy.

I’m not surprised by the number of people that believe this virus is something to be scared of, but I am surprised by the number of people on this forum that believe it. I thought we were smarter than that.

A person in Phoenix, AZ posted this today on another forum.

So I should be scared?

No, you're an oak

Yep. A live oak.

Sneaky, I think it goes deeper than getting the virus. Most of us will recover from that. This second wave being a lot of younger average age cases likely means an even higher percentage will recover. It is the possibility of our healthcare facilities and professionals being overwhelmed. Last I heard 28% of the current ICU patients in Houston are covid cases. That is 28% above and beyond their normal case load, which also still need medical attention. All the other maladies the population normally needs treatment for at a hospital have not diminished, regardless of the capacity of patients that can be treated. I think the majority of us likely see what this virus does on an individual basis much the same as you do. It is the compounding affects on healthcare to the rest of the population and their assorted ailments and injuries that put the population at risk of not receiving the treatment they need that is creating the greatest concern. If that scenario manifests, as it did in New York, depending on how dire it gets, a growing percentage of illness and injury that previously would have required an intensive care stay at the hospital with a good prognosis for full recovery may become chronic or fatal. That in my opinion is what makes the growing covid hospitalizations like a snowball rolling down hill. Not until that threat began to look like a possibility did our governor consider throttling back the reopening of Texas. The fatality rate of the virus is not what Abbott is backing away from. It is the compounding effect on medical care not being able to meet the medical needs of the masses in the hotspot locations. The hotspots also appear to be the most densely populated areas. From what I gather Houston is currently of most concern.
The rural area I reside only has a countywide population of 14,000. We have had very few covid cases. Although for most of us it is still business as usual, covid is still having a dramatic affect on our economy. I don’t speak for anyone but me but I assure you, I am as anxious as any Texan to put this mess behind us. The framework to open things back up has already been laid out. Where we differ is I see the burden lies on the population altering their behavior in order to get back to wide open again. The price of being obstinate is costing more than the gain.

Covid isn’t affecting the economy near as much as the knee jerk reaction to it.

Tell that to my buddies in the oil patch that lost their jobs

How about my buddies since I work in the oilfield? The knee jerk reaction is what caused it. THAT is what shut down the economy.

was more than knee jerk . Organized publicly since October of last year. Intentional.

Wrong person to quote on that but okay

I guess Ol’ Smokey Bear was smoking some good [censored] and didn’t realize he was talking to Oil Field hands that lost their jobs as a direct result of this idiotic knee jerk shutdown BS, and that’s exactly what it is. Mr Smokey Bear just called some of us bullshiters for contradicting the mask narrative that we are being spoon fed regardless of what some of us have researched and learned from our own real life experiences in other countries during this scamdemic.

God help us.

There has never been more sheep in this Country.

Taking my kids to work at the ranch, yall take care.

I’m ready to do all we can to put it behind us. The countries that kicked it have been mask wearers. Real masks... it doesn’t take much to call bullish!t on saying otherwise. Until we are doing all we can do to get things opened back up, its just finger pointing that isn’t getting us any closer to opened back up than toilet paper. There are lots of places a mask makes no sense. There are also places that they make sense, and places that make sense not to go right now. The oilfield workers I know support doing everything that can be done to flip the switch sooner rather than later and I do too. In the countries with the most success controlling covid, the dumb people not social distancing or using PPE get beat with a stick till they get right. That won’t work here and what they’ve been doing in Houston isn’t working either.... instead we’re doing what we want and it doesn’t take much to size up that we’re moving in the wrong direction...
We want the same thing skinner. Pissing and moaning about politics hasn’t helped. If advocating doing what the only countries to beat this thing did fuzzes you up then get over it.

Open it back up.

I have always had a real respect for anything Smokey has to say and I think most on here do as well. His comments on hunting and firearms and anything else have always seemed right on to me. He is obviously very smart and he articulates his thoughts very well. He never gets all up tight and never throws insults at others. Basically, he has earned my respect, so when he speaks I listen. That does not mean that he is right and others are wrong because no one knows with certainty the answers. Im not willing to spend the time to constantly debate these issues but I will say that Im backing him in this one. Im all for opening it back up but I just think everyone still needs to be smart about the little things that are easy to do.

Very disappointed in the governor......there are few strong leaders anymore......I will not wear a mask unless I decide to and I will make that choice to go to that location that requires it.....all those in fear of this virus need to find peace accepting the fact we are all gonna get this......destroying the economy will do nothing to change this fact......we are going to have deaths and casualties like we do in every war and this is a war against this virus.......the only way short term to win is is herd immunity IMO........not herd/flock mentality because the mob/collective says so......

100%

Agreed

I'd hoped he would have learned something from the first round about treating the rural areas the same as cities.

Perception can vary.......we are heading the right direction.......they are delaying the inevitable the way I see it.........

I can't wait to vote for Abbot again, there's no way in the world I'm ever voting for a democrat, especially after what I've seen from their governors and local officials over the last 4 months.

I would never vote democratic even though I am disappointed in his latest decision......