When the pandemic  started I had a thought that  perhaps it might be
good in the long-term, despite  being horrific in the short-term for
many. Here  is what  I was  thinking (these apply  to the  US and/or
Canada,  the two  countries I  have lived  in, but  I suspect  these
observations could apply to many countries):

- Job loss would be ameliorated by UBI after societal acknowledgment
  that yes, many people's jobs are complete bullshit.

- The US would finally realize that tying healthcare to one's job is
  nuts, and  join the rest of  the world with 'Medicare  for All' or
  some other public healthcare offering.

- Essential jobs would be recognized  as such and pay/benefits would
  rise accordingly  (healthcare, elder  care, food  harvest, storage
  and distribution, public utilities, public safety, etc).

- Companies would  finally realize  that endless economic  growth is
  not possible or desirable.

- Global  stock  market  collapse and  financial  uncertainty  would
  return us  to a time where  saving money, rather than  spending it
  was  considered a  virtue (and  yes  this assumes  some amount  of
  inflation, forcing  the hand  of central  banks to  raise interest
  rates).

- Remote work/education would become  the norm, on-site reserved for
  those who  must work that  way (typically just the  essential jobs
  noted above).

- In support of  remote work or education, countries  would begin to
  fund broadband internet access in  remote regions and subsidize it
  for the poor anywhere.

Sadly,  I  think  none  of  these things  will  come  to  pass.  The
counter-example to all  of these is the US, which,  outside of a few
regions,  has collectively  given  up on  the  pandemic and  resumed
business as  usual, grim  reaper be  damned. In  Canada we  saw some
token changes like pay increases for grocery workers, but those have
since  been rolled  back. Global  stock markets  did not  collapse -
central banks have  just printed and loaned money  with abandon, and
have cut interest  rates to near zero, encouraging  debt rather than
savings.

One thing I've noticed here in Canada is that most people long for a
return to "normal",  as destructive as that was and  is.  They don't
seem to be able to  conceive of something better. Government backers
and lobbyists in the form of large corporations and the uber-wealthy
certainly have  an incentive not  to change things, and  continue to
influence mass  media outlets, including  social media. In a  lot of
cases there  are no good options  for people who lose  their jobs or
become ill. My  naivete was that the pandemic would  force the hands
of governments  to enact meaningful,  long-term change, when  it did
nothing of the sort.