Mitchell Blatt

With the world in the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic, although with the end seemingly in sight for some countries, many retrospectives are appearing about what went wrong, what was done right, and the experience of living under repeated lockdowns. 
For some, the biggest impact has been in dating. People in many countries showed big drop offs in romantic activity. According to surveys taken in April and May of 2020, 53 per cent of Australians and 41 per cent of Chinese reported having less intimate encounters than the year before. 
However, it was Americans who were among the most likely to say they wouldn't be comfortable dating for some time. Half of Americans surveyed in May 2020 said they would not feel comfortable dating in July, while only 44 per cent of Koreans, 30 per cent of Brazilians, and 25 per cent of Italians shared this concern.
Testimonials of Americans who dated published in the online magazine "Slate" proved there was much to be apprehensive about dating in America during the pandemic. People talked about sitting on a park bench for hours with their masks on the whole time. 
Refusing to hug each other, or, after hugging and kissing, getting tested for the virus thereafter were common reactions; one person even mentioned how they were scared to share an umbrella due to the two-meter social distancing rule.
What those extreme measures practiced by some illustrate is the lack of unity and social trust between Americans. Throughout the pandemic, many have been refusing to take even limited precautions to prevent its spread. They have refused to wear masks for the entire year, did not limit their social interactions in anyway, and even gathered illegally at private parties or rule-breaking bars. 
Now, many are refusing to get vaccinated even though it would allow them to (safely) do without a mask.
On the other hand – and in part influenced by those lack of precautions – some "worry warts" went way overboard in their caution. There was no need to wear a face shield when going shopping, as some did, and the dating behaviour explained above is unnecessary and at times contradictory.
If you are seeing people carousing about mask-less, and the number of new cases in your country approaching 100,000 a day, as it was in the United States, you can perhaps be forgiven for being so scared of meeting a stranger. You have no way of knowing if that person is one of the reckless who could get you infected, jeopardizing your work situation, your health, and that of your friends and family.
In my experience in South Korea, however, where I spent a fair amount of time during the pandemic and reside today, there is a much higher degree of social trust than in America. Almost everyone you see is wearing a mask and showing concern about coronavirus. 
The numbers bear it out, too. Countries like South Korea, China, Australia, Germany, Japan, and Vietnam, among others, have had much lower levels of viral transmission, due to greater levels of government and public vigilance, and thus a lower risk of encountering an infected person.
Aren't dates supposed to be exciting? Not if your "date" is video chatting. Putting a plastic barrier between the two of you is going to stop the spread of feelings.
-- China.org.cn