In the United States, southern states began lifting lockdowns as early as April 24, led by Georgia. The decision led to predictable media hysteria. The Atlantic magazine infamously called the decision “Georgia’s Experiment In Human Sacrifice.” Yet the United States saw no spike in coronavirus cases in May or early June. On May 20, Marko Kolanovic, a senior strategist at J.P. Morgan (like Neil Ferguson, a physicist by training), analyzed reopening and transmission data. He concluded that the virus had actually spread more slowly in the United States after lockdowns ended.
