First there was denial, then a sluggish response — and now irrational fear out of proportion to the danger. The denial was in China, where the disease appears to have originated, the sluggish response was by Hong Kong, and the fear has spread worldwide. Advisories from the World Health Organization, governments, airlines and trade fairs warning against traveling to Hong Kong and Guangdong have combined with intense news coverage to make the recent outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, seem more dramatic than it really is. To be sure, there was reason for major concern when it was...