What is the proper amount of concern?

Anyone who has turned on a TV news broadcast or looked on social media any time in the past few weeks has most likely been bombarded with tales of coronavirus/COVID-19.

Breathless reports of the steady march of the disease have dominated all discussion, as well as the crazy market swings in reaction to the perceived long-term effects this disease will have on global business.

But how should we react? Should we lock ourselves in our homes, stockpile food and other supplies and arm ourselves out of fear of looting and general mayhem? Or should we do nothing?

The answer, of course, is somewhere in the middle. Panic does no good. Running around like a chicken with its head cut off is not productive. But we should also take simple, common-sense steps to make it less likely that we will contract the disease or pass it along to someone else.

First of all (and this can’t be stressed enough), wash your hands often. If you wash your hands fre...