Be careful what you wish for. You may just get it.
And so it went for me, as I contemplated whether I’d ever again be able to write a story about something other than the damned Wu-flu. Well, as the events of the last week unfolded, I unfortunately got my wish—though, as you’ll see from my rants to follow, it always seems to go back to the virus no matter what any of us do.
It’s enough to make me pine for the good old days of Amy Fisher.
Anyway, in case you need a memory refresher, allow me to take you back to a time, not so long ago, when the media bombarded us with images such as this one, all in an effort to impress upon us how vitally important it was that we all stay at home to slow the spread, flatten the curve, shock the monkey or whatever it was that our government officials, punch-drunk with lockdown power, quite gravely admonished us was absolutely necessary to save us from the ravages of the Chinese coronavirus:
Who wouldn’t look at that and feel a swell of camaraderie, the sense that we’re all in it together. and that we’re setting aside the loss of our jobs, the loss of our livelihoods, the loss of our very freedoms in a noble effort to secure the common good? I know I certainly felt that way when I saw these pleas, even if I had my doubts about the veracity of news reports saying that the virus could potentially kill millions if we didn’t retreat to our homes and stay there until the authorities—who didn’t really seem to know much more than the rest of us did—told us it was safe to come out.
But then along came the riots, and the end of social distancing, as tens of thousands of people spilled out into the streets of cities all across America–all conspicuously run by Democrats, by the way—to scream, holler, loot, pillage, burn and murder under the cover of protesting the horrible killing of George Floyd, a black man, while in police custody. Surely, I thought, those same medical professionals who, amplified by a media hell-bent on keeping us all confined, would emerge to pound some reason into the rioter’s heads (at least while said rioters weren’t hurling bricks at cops’ heads) and tell them for God’s sake stop, don’t you know that you’re killing grandma with those shenanigans? Get thee to a quarantine forthwith!
In the immortal words of Sally Brown upon getting cheated out of tricks or treats after spending all night with Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin, “What a fool I was.”
Dozens of public health and disease experts have signed an open letter in support of the nationwide anti-racism protests.
"White supremacy is a lethal public health issue that predates and contributes to COVID-19," they wrote.https://t.co/EewPNgDSu3
— NPR (@NPR) June 2, 2020
Funny how they didn’t feel that way about mass unemployment, and all the despair, suicide, substance abuse and general social upheaval that comes with it. But at least it’s good to know that COVID is cool with all the looting, so long as it’s being done to combat white supremacy. Who knew that a simple strand of RNA could tell the difference between “good” demonstrations like this one, and the “bad” demonstrations against the lockdowns a couple of weeks ago? From social disease to social justice disease, we’ve come a long way, baby.
Which brings me to my larger point. While in the beginning, these nationwide lockdowns may have been ordered with the goal of preserving public health, they have long since ceased to be about that. Need proof? Just look at the same politicians who freaked out about pool parties and who still insist on keeping your church, synagogue or mosque closed, and then compare that with their cheering on the protesters. If these governors and mayors truly believed that COVID-19 was such a serious threat that it warranted the destruction of the greatest economy we’ve seen in decades and the wholesale suspension of our civil liberties, they wouldn’t have hesitated to call out the National Guard and stop these protests cold. Nor would these so-called disease “experts” publish something so ludicrous as a letter that for all intents and purposes encourages people to spread the virus!
All of which makes me wonder: Did they ever believe COVID-19 was that big a threat? And if they did, when did they realize it wasn’t the monster they thought it was?
And most importantly, when were they planning to let the rest of us in on the secret?
I think the answer has something to do with a certain date in November, and whether or not a certain dementia-addled candidate on the Democrat ticket wins the election.
The riots, however, called their bluff. Don’t let them forget that when all this has passed, and they try to lock us down again.
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