1. Every major crisis tells a good deal about the human species. Its strengths and weaknesses come to the surface for all to see. What has been learned from the coronavirus pandemic, though? Now that it appears to be receding, at least for the time being, the question is coming into focus. One would hope that lessons learned will be of value to humans in the future, which cannot but bring many more crises sooner or later, pandemics included. Not to beat around the bush, climate change and environmental degradation are sure to trigger innumerable calamities in the foreseeable future, and human health will unavoidably suffer in the process. Looking back, the pandemic offered an opportunity to prepare for difficult times.

2. As for strengths of the species, they are few and they are squarely biological in nature. No matter how hard the pandemic, most humans are bound to survive it. In addition, the majority of them will eventually become immune to the microorganism behind it. In spite of many casualties around the world, this pandemic has turned out to be rather mild by comparison with some of the worst ones in the past. At any rate, humans are lucky to be so well protected by their sturdy biology that goes back to their primate ancestors. Pandemics take away only the frailest among them.

In addition, humans living in small and tight communities do their best to help those close to them. This goes well beyond the family ties. Those in greatest need do get assistance from their neighbors. In this particular case, it was the chronically ill and elderly who attracted most attention on account of their vulnerability by comparison with those of younger age and better health. True, there were some volunteers helping everyone in need in larger communities, but there were not too many of them. All this is as it would be expected, as humans are biologically inclined to serve well only communities that are reminiscent of tribes in the past, which counted a couple of hundred humans at most. This proclivity also goes back to the primate roots of the species.

3. Concerning weaknesses, the list is considerably longer, as well as disconcerting in the long run, but only a few major ones will be considered here. To begin with, most humans cannot even imagine skipping a wedding or a funeral. And the pandemic spreads with great ease among those celebrating or mourning in tight quarters. The same holds for all sorts of social events that are considered essential by many humans, such as parties, concerts, sport events, and religious congregations. In spite of all the warnings, quite a few humans did take part in such events. And the consequences were deadly in many cases during this pandemic. A large number of those infected could be traced to social events that brought many humans together.

Next, humans tend to panic when in dire straits. One form that panic took during the coronavirus pandemic was uncontrollable acquisition of purported necessities, which resulted in shortages leading to even greater panic. Predictably, of greatest importance to the majority of humans was food, but toilet paper came close behind this time around. Across the world, toilet paper was in short supply as soon as the panic took hold. Similarly, panic-buying of alcoholic beverages, as well as hashish, cocaine, heroin, and other drugs also took place. Among things that humans started hoarding with growing passion were firearms and ammunition, too. As it turned out, this was not limited only to the United States, where firearms are perceived as essentials by many. In fact, hoarding of weapons was noticed in several countries across the globe.

With the help of the World Wide Web, all sorts of misinformation spread around the world at tremendous speed. Conspiracy theories blossomed. Some of these were of old vintage, such as the “theory” that the pandemic was caused by the Jews. Similarly, fake news of all descriptions infected a wide spectrum of social networks. This included makebelieve remedies against the coronavirus of all sorts. Spreading in ways not unlike those of viruses, misinformation contributed to the growing panic, and especially in countries hard hit by the pandemic. The vaunted information technology only contributed to the speed with which misinformation spread across the globe. The much-lauded progress showed its other side for all to see.

Not surprisingly, the coronavirus pandemic has also brought an explosion of criminal activity across the globe. Every crisis provides new opportunities for criminals of all descriptions. Because of the quarantine in developed countries, there was a growing number of cases in cybercrime, fraud, counterfeit and substandard goods, and organized property crime. The dark side of the World Wide Web came to the fore without delay. In less developed countries, there was a rapid growth of fraud, burglary, and robbery. Always on the ready, criminals adjusted to the new conditions with great speed. At the same time, the police and army personnel were detracted by new assignments focusing on the control of the pandemic itself.

More important, the response in terms of testing apparatus, medications, treatments, protective gear, as well as the required tools and facilities for patient care was rather dismal around the world. For all the talk about unprecedented technological development and galloping progress in this epoch, there is little that meets the eye in a crisis. The performance of America and much of Europe was very poor during the pandemic while China and Russia were amazing to watch when the going got tough. To China’s credit, it helped a large number of countries in trouble once the pandemic was under control on its own territory. Russia also provided vital aid to a good number of countries. In addition to scarce medical supplies, these two countries also provided their experienced medical personnel. There was a good deal of geopolitical wisdom behind the help, no doubt, but it cannot but be remembered by many for its promptness and magnanimity.

Another notable weakness of the human species is the lack of worldwide coordination of the effort to stop the pandemic. Even though a few international organizations, such as the World Health Organization, International Monetary Fund, and the United Nations, made several attempts to help coordinate the global effort, very few countries followed their advice. Along these lines, the European Union also performed very poorly. Most of the countries forming it were left alone to deal with the crisis as best they could. It was clear once again that humans cannot coordinate their activities even in dire times, let alone cooperate so as to attain collective benefits. The very notion that they are of the same species is either foreign or irrelevant to most. Nations, religions, and races are paramount in their minds, and xenophobia tends to thwart all efforts at cooperation during crises.

Perhaps most important at this particular moment, a great majority of humans are not inclined to follow the advice of doctors and medical scientists no matter how simple and straightforward it happens to be. Isolating themselves to the best of their ability is beyond most humans’ capability. Without the police and even the army, they will do on the sly whatever suits their fancy. And they will enjoy themselves tremendously precisely because they are misbehaving with impunity. Not surprisingly, the more dictatorial the regime, the better humans behave in a pandemic, for they have few other options. The most powerful leaders around the globe are sure to learn a good deal from this pandemic. The tougher they get, the greater the approval they will receive soon enough.

4. Any surprises here? Well, hardly any. Humans are quite predictable after some five-thousand years on historical record, and this particular pandemic has brought next to nothing new to light. Given their biology, most humans are bound to survive pandemics of any severity. Similarly, they are bound to cope with all the losses pandemics bring in their wake. But they are not likely to learn much from any crisis that comes their way. A few learned ones among them will put their experiences into writing, but not many humans will read such accounts with any interest once the calamity is over and done with. In the end, they cannot but stumble from one crisis to another without any lessons learned. And this is perhaps the single lesson of the coronavirus pandemic worthy of note at this particular point in time.