by Kerry Dougherty
It’s not just the lockdowns that are getting to some of us. The closed gyms, restaurants and beaches.
It’s the incivility.
It’s the venom and hostility directed at anyone who dares to question the state shutdowns or suggest they’ve gone too far or gone on long enough. Or – God forbid – wonders if they were wise at all.
The retorts are mean, ugly and untrue. They leave no room for debate.
You want people to die.
You don’t care about the elderly.
You’re selfish.
You care more about getting your nails done than people’s lives.
You’re willing to die for the Dow .
That last accusation was hurled at me when unemployment hit 24 million and I pointed out on Twitter that the number was catastrophic.
I only said “catastrophic” because I couldn’t think of a stronger word.
Well, American unemployment hit 30 million yesterday. That number is so staggering it’s hard to contemplate. Think of it this way: the population of Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and South Carolina together is about 30 million. Imagine a swath of the country that large without a single person working to support their family.
Unthinkable.
We are not faced with a binary choice between shutting down our country indefinitely or having millions die of Covid-19. But many who favor endless shutdowns are framing it that way. They need to cut it out.
Look, I get it. We all have different ideas about how the country should handle this unprecedented health crisis. Absolutely no one knows what’s best. Governors disagree. Doctors disagree. Virologists disagree. Shoot, the World Health Organization disagrees with itself. For a time, they endorsed the brutal Chinese lockdowns. Yesterday, WHO’s top emergencies expert praised Sweden for its more measured approach.
No one wants more deaths.
But it’s unrealistic to think that the U.S. can remain closed until a cure is found or a vaccine is developed. The country will be a smoking ruin by then.
Patience is running out. People are stressed, falling into debt and afraid to seek routine preventative medical care. Some are isolated and lonely. Others are literally hungry. Hundreds of thousands of kids are believed to be behind on vaccinations. Churchgoers need their churches. Children are falling behind on school work. Adults with alcohol and drug addictions have lost their support groups. The food chain is breaking down.
We’ll be paying for this shutdown for years to come. In countless ways.
In places where hospitals are almost empty – as they are around the country and in many parts of Virginia – it’s time to reopen.
Will more people become infected? Probably. But the plan has always been to have the equipment and the best medical care ready for the small percentage of victims who will be sick enough to be hospitalized.
The most vulnerable folks know they’ll have to continue to isolate.
As one of my friends who is greatly at risk said to me the other day – outside and from a safe distance – “Don’t worry about me, I can take care of myself!
She can, too. She’s vigilant during seasonal flu epidemics.
Mounting evidence shows that the virus spreads more easily indoors than it does outside. That has to do with the viral load, sunshine and humidity. So perhaps closing schools and sending children home to stay inside with their parents and in some cases, grandparents, was not the best idea.
Certainly it argues against closing public parks, beaches and hiking trails now that spring is here.
It’s time to reopen most of the country and trust adults to do what’s best for themselves. No one will be forced to leave home until they’re ready.
No one wants anyone to die.
