I agree the initial behavior was understandable given the uncertainty. What’s less understandable is how slowly we’ve adjusted to better information…

Agreed! What is challenging is that, as a culture, we do not have a collective sense of what is solid “information”. Between filter bubbles and the previous administration contradicting its own messaging, topped off with a populace lacking the mental training to sort through it all and figure out what makes sense, the resulting confusion seems inevitable.

It’s easy to point at the result(eg people making stupid decisions) and ignore the root causes (eg lack of critical thinking skills training, filter bubbles, and more), but to see real systemic changes, the root causes are what will need attention.

Early on I tried to figure out what the correct precautions were and then decided that everything practical until further notice is the proper response.

A point is what about next time? Who knows what works for Covid19 might be worthless for the next pandemic.