Life Lessons from the Toilet Paper Panic Buying Mania

(Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay)

It’s become a worldwide phenomena: the scrambling for toilet paper.

Toilet paper is officially the number one hot item to be grabbed in major supermarkets when panic descends.

People are driven to heightend anxiety at the thought of not having enough toilet paper in the event that they need to stay home for weeks. I was just reading a Facebook post by a friend about his trip to the supermarket. He related about how one lady had 72 bags of toilet rolls in her trolley, while another was about burst into tears on realising that she was too late to grab any.

In Hong Kong, it was reported that an armed gang stole a truckload of toilet paper worth around $130 in total. Imagine getting caught and put to jail for the crime of stealing toilet paper! Oh yes, when faced with the threat of survival, people are willing to go to great lengths. Neighbours were getting into fights, spats and arguments over toilet paper.

I remember the first day when the coronavirus fears first hit us locally. Usually, I don’t pay much attention to my newsfeed unless something important gets flagged up. What caught my eye that afternoon were postings made by friends about long queues in the supermarkets nearby. Realising what it could mean, I sent a…