It doesn't appear to be a panic. It appears to be a transformation into a third-world society, in which armed gangs terrorize the populace. Medical convoys have been targeted and attacked...
I've been saying for a long time that there exists a VERY thin veneer between what we call our SOCIETY, and the reality of life in a barbarous third-world country.
We are seeing people do what they do best- act like animals. Thank God the authors of the constitution had the foresight (hindsight?) to allow the average citizen to own and use firearms.
The bigger question is what to do about it. Posturing and making statements such as "looting must stop", "looting must not be tolerated", "lawlessness must end NOW" is pointless.
The following three words will go a long way toward stemming the problem: SHOOT TO KILL.