The Invisible Enemy
Probably the most painful aspect of all this is the fact that we have been ordered to stay in our bubbles, socially distanced from people, and watch helplessly as our way of life wilts on the vine. It is a slow death made possible by an invisible enemy who holds the keys to creation and destruction.
I go to bed with questions, wake up in the middle of the night with questions, open my eyes in the morning with the questions. Is this what hopelessness feels like? At this point in the game, there is no light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. I don’t believe all is lost nor is there reason to worry (I already spent two full days worrying and found it doesn’t help). The honeymoon phase is still upon us in the middle of our Week 2 quarantine. Information overload is the name of the game and controlling which source is allowed to enter your mental psyche is a minute by minute choice. Social media, my friends, and family are trying their best to be positive with the words they speak and what is being shared on all digital platforms, but are these the discussions we should be having? No conspiracy theories here, but are we watching the deliberate systematic dismantling of society? What is the end goal? How will businesses, communities, and local governments recover? I mentioned in a prior post that we need to discuss pooling resources; I am not hearing anyone in my immediate circle consider or offer suggestions. Are we alone in this? When the coronavirus veil is lifted; what will we be left with? Where do we start? I vividly recall the 2008 recession: extended work furloughs, local governments contracted inwardly and cut jobs, tax money dried up, the mortgage industry failed, homelessness spiked, children suffered, suicide rates rose. This is a drop in the bucket compared to what we are and will be dealing with.
The specter of hoarding has eased slightly. My wife went to the grocery store and reported that the shelves were fully stocked. I could tell she felt better while she unloaded the grocery bags. We also decided not to part ways with our gardener. He and his wife arrive every Wednesday to our house and do a great job mowing and trimming the grass, weeding, pruning bushes, and raking the front and back yards. Two weeks ago, I was adamant that this $80.00 a month expense needed to be cut, but we are going to hold off at least another month before making a decision. My wife was the one that lobbied hard for keeping the gardener because she felt this would have a greater negative effect on his family than ours. I, on the other hand, want to close down all unnecessary discretionary spending and make sure there are no “leaks” in our budget. For now, she is right and we will slowly pull back the reigns on making decisions that will have a negative impact on other persons livelihood. Time will tell if we have made the right decisions. Bottom line is the fact that I still have full-time employment, the economy is sputtering but alive, and there is a stimulus bill on the way as of Wednesday morning.
I read portions of the two trillion-dollar stimulus package this morning, and the “digital dollar” idea was taking out of the final deal while the one-time payment to families stayed the same ($1,200.00 to many Americans and an additional $500.00 per child).
I read an interesting article in the New York Times online newspaper that shed light on the differences between the H1N1 flu pandemic and COVID-19. Here is an easy to read chart featuring comparison data points through Week 16 (As of March 22, 2020).
Looking at it from this perspective, there are massive differences between the two strains. Deaths are definitively on the rise nationally and globally, hospitals are in the beginning stages of being overwhelmed here in California and differing hot spots across the U.S, and the outbreak has not peaked.
Global news is bleak depending on the country. Spain and Italy dominate the headlines with astronomical death tolls and spread rates scorching the regions. I read about the favela’s (slum or shantytown) in Brazil having to deal with roving gangs performing neighborhood lockdowns in lieu of government ineptitude. Americans in Peru are stuck with no way out. Our citizens are appealing for assistance from our government, but the Peruvian government refuses to allow planes to land. I can’t imagine their circumstances and hold out hope that they can be reunited with their families.
Finally, U.S. government leaders are becoming sick. Senators are being quarantined resulting in a crippling of the legislative system because they cannot be present to vote on important policies. There are no provisions to allow them a proxy vote which tilts the balance back to the Democrats in both Congress (majority) and Senate. What are the options if more legislators are unable to perform their job? For example, Trump stated during a press conference within the past 24 hours that he wants the economy to “open” on April 12th. California Gavin Newsom stated in a press conference on the same day that we were at least eight weeks from any consideration of ending the quarantine and this was a dynamic situation with no clear guidelines other than statistical evidence. Who are we to believe? Who is in control? If Trump says to open businesses on April 12th and Governor Newsom opposes this order; What do we do?
