Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

Episode Summary: "Corona and Our Mental Health"

Date: April 2, 2020
Guests: Dr. Harriet Fraad, mental health counselor and hypnotherapist
Main Theme:
This episode investigates the underappreciated mental health crisis precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Host Richard Wolff and guest Dr. Harriet Fraad discuss the psychological fallout of widespread lockdowns, the failure of the U.S. economic and healthcare systems to prepare for and mitigate these effects, and the urgent need for community-based, systemic solutions.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Context: Systemic Unpreparedness and the Profit Motive

• Wolff contextualizes the discussion by critiquing the U.S. government’s and private sector’s lack of preparation for pandemics, citing profit-driven motives and absence of public planning.
  Notable quote:

  “It may not be privately profitable for companies that make those things to take those steps, but that’s no excuse.” – Richard Wolff (02:25)

• Transition: Wolff states that, unlike typical coverage, this episode will focus not on the economic collapse or the immediate biomedical issues, but on the pandemic's indirect, psychological effects—especially as they interact with capitalism's failures.
  Notable quote:

  “We’re going to approach it by recognizing another dimension ... it also affects mental health. The way we feel about ourselves, about our work, about our lives, about our children, about our loved ones.” – Richard Wolff (03:30)

2. Authority, Obedience, and Psychological Regression

• Dr. Fraad analyzes the psychological impact of pandemic-induced uncertainty and mixed directives, likening the populace to children in an unstable, authoritarian household.

  • Society's reliance on authority in crisis mirrors childhood dependence on unexplained, fluctuating parental authority.
  • Childhood obedience: People revert to quasi-childlike obedience amid contradictory government messaging, which can be dangerous.
  • Authoritarian habits (from family, religion, or school) foster uncritical compliance or, alternatively, the urge to question.

  Notable quote:

  “Children who are brought up in authoritarian families ... grow up feeling that the authority must be trusted and they dare not question ... Many people think, oh, I better obey. I’ve been bad. That’s why bad things happen to me ... That was the basis of German fascism.” – Harriet Fraad (08:46)

• Breakdown of population responses:

  • About 20% will always obey authority
  • 20% will always question
  • The crucial 60% are “the mass of people who are in trouble right now,” susceptible to persuasion in either direction.
    (10:43–11:23)

3. Lockdown's Impact on Mental Health

A. Isolation and Loneliness

• Special hardship for singles:

  • In urban centers like NYC, half the population lives alone; these individuals rely on external socialization for contact.
  • Human beings are social animals with a deep, biochemical need for physical interaction.
    Notable quote:

  "We need one another very, very badly in order to survive. So to be isolated is terrible." – Harriet Fraad (15:57)

• Loneliness as a physiological warning:

  • It is as primal as hunger or thirst—signals an urgent need for human connection.
  • “Already, before this catastrophe ... one in four Americans had no one to talk to, even in the worst crisis in their lives.” (22:31)

B. Family Violence and Abuse

• Correlation with crisis:
  • School closures and lockdowns intensify risk: Children cannot escape abusive homes; parents are under pressure.
  • Spikes in child abuse, shaken baby syndrome, domestic violence, and an overwhelmed system with few resources to help.
    Notable quote:

  “Child abuse is soaring in the United States. More and more children are taken to emergency rooms seriously injured by their enraged parents. Babies have a spike in shaken baby syndrome ... Battered women’s shelters are full. We have made no provisions for battered women.” – Harriet Fraad (17:48)

4. System’s Failure to Address Mental Health

• No mental health preparation or ongoing support:
  • No public information, no emergency programs, no training for support workers—even after the virus appeared.
  • Missed opportunities: Possible to have had public education via celebrities, but “Nothing, nothing, nothing.” (21:12) Notable quote:

  “No mental health workers there, no social workers there to help, no programs to counsel people on what this does to them.” – Harriet Fraad (19:02)

5. Economic Impact of Depression & Social Solutions

• Wolff points out that depression also carries “a major problem in how people work ... the impact on the economy ... is not even mentioned.” (26:03)

• Fraad underscores that depression leads to inward withdrawal, self-reinforcing loneliness, and decreased ability for communication or self-advocacy.

• Touch and physical proximity are critical for producing oxytocin—a natural human need for comfort, absent in lockdown.
  Notable quote:

  "We need something called a biochemical that we produce called oxytocin ... It comes from physical touching ... it's an enormous physical need, and people are doing without it. Anxiety is created, and anxiety leads to all sorts of problems." – Harriet Fraad (24:42)

• Alternative approaches:

  • Sweden’s shared living spaces: Small private units with large communal areas that allow safe interaction.
  • Even with social distancing, people need to gather—modeled by how White House press briefings are held (24:22).

6. Concrete Advice for Listeners (27:18)

• Fraad’s suggestions:
  • Recognize that feeling isolated is not “your fault.”
  • Communicate in any way possible (phone, internet).
  • Reach out—share feelings and reactions with friends.
  • If you live with someone, share physical comfort through hugs, holding hands, etc.

Memorable Quotes with Timestamps

• “Attaching a nationality to a virus is an invention of Donald Trump.”
  – Richard Wolff (02:03)

• “Child abuse is soaring ... Babies have a spike in shaken baby syndrome ... battered women’s shelters are full.”
  – Harriet Fraad (17:48)

• “There’s no help now either ... nothing being done now.”
  – Harriet Fraad (20:39)

• “Loneliness is a signal to the mind and body, just like when you’re hungry.”
  – Harriet Fraad (22:31)

• “Depression ... can feed on itself ... that’s very, very dangerous.”
  – Harriet Fraad (26:42)

Important Segments & Timestamps

• 00:25 – Wolff’s introduction on historical failures to prepare for pandemics
• 06:30 – Dr. Harriet Fraad joins; her background, mental health focus
• 07:22 – Fraad on regression to childlike obedience under crisis
• 10:40 – Population breakdown: obedience versus questioning, and the vulnerable middle
• 15:49 – Fraad on mental health strains: singles and family groups under lockdown
• 17:48 – Fraad on rising child abuse, domestic violence, lack of resources
• 22:31 – Fraad on loneliness as basic human need; link to depression
• 26:03 – Wolff on broader economic ramifications of depression
• 27:18 – Fraad’s suggestions for coping and mutual support

Tone & Closing

The conversation is analytic yet urgent, pragmatic yet critical, with both speakers emphasizing how social and psychological needs are as vital as physical health during the pandemic. Fraad delivers advice with compassion, urging collective awareness, connection, and systemic advocacy.

Closing thought:

“This could have and should have been foreseen, planned for and handled with an awareness … not just to the economics of our lives, but to the most intimate, personal qualities of our present and our future. We’ve had a breakdown of this system and it’s the key thing to learn from.” – Richard Wolff (28:23)

This summary offers a comprehensive understanding of the episode’s focus on mental health, societal response in crisis, and the urgent call for systemic change, accessible to listeners and non-listeners alike.