I'm Italian and I'm not afraid of the Coronavirus

I'd like to remind you of some of the things many Italians that I know are afraid of.  I wrote many Italians instead of just Italians because I'm sure it's not all of them.  And I included that I know because I certainly can't speak for the ones that I don't know. But I'd like to add a sidebar here....I really wanted to write almost all Italians.  

They are afraid:
of drinking cold beverages
of going outside with wet hair
of eating in a cold place
of the famous "colpo d'aria", hit of cold air
of leaving the gym without taking a shower first
of driving with their windows open even when it's hot
of air conditioning in public places
of going to bed with wet hair
of taking their kids home from a birthday party if they're sweaty
of going on vacation without packing a thermometer

But the past couple of days that the Coronavirus has been running around northern Italy, I've received a whole lot of messages that say this:

I'm not afraid of the Coronavirus.

And when I sent a message to cancel English lessons a few of them wrote, "For the virus?! Oh, okay Tenley.  See you next week."  They seemed to be saying that I was the dumb one here. I haven't told them yet that I might not see them next week either.

Through the years they've told me they're afraid to leave the house with wet hair (it's not a beauty issue) because they think they'll get sick.  Air conditioning is evil.....and not because it makes them uncomfortably cold, like me, but because they will indubitably get a sore throat.  Going to bed with wet hair gives you the famous Italian disease that I've written about in the past called "cervicale."  Bad stomachaches on Monday come from eating in their grandma's cold dining room on Sunday.

So, how exactly can I defend myself when I say that this tough American woman is afraid of the Coronavirus?

At the moment I'm practicing these responses:
Have you seen the photos of China with row after row of beds in the new hospitals they built in a week?
Do you know that some cities in China have been on lockdown for one month and four days?
Have you noticed that flights have been cancelled?
Did you hear about the Swiss guy that went to a meeting in Milan and when he got back to Switzerland he tested positive for the Coronavirus?
Do you wonder why you can no longer exchange the sign of peace at mass?
Have you noticed that schools are closed?

Or maybe I should stick with this one:
I don't think they've ever cancelled Carnevale in Venice because someone showed up with wet hair.