“The authors contend such an erosion of trust can become self-reinforcing. ‘One can envisage a scenario where low levels of trust allow an epidemic to spread, and where the spread of the epidemic reduces trust in government still further, hindering the ability of the authorities to contain future epidemics and address other social problems.'” WaPo: Coronavirus will undermine trust in government, ‘scarring body and mind’ for decades, research finds. (And trust in government wasn’t exactly having a heyday before the pandemic hit…)