Dear World, This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things

Confused people act out.

Confused masses ruin everything for everyone.

And that’s the current situation.

We are living in a world of carelessly amplified outrage and largely unmitigated chaos. Oh sure, you might not see it on your block. And, depending on the red or blue shade of your political lens, you may describe your current bliss bubble by stating, “See. It isn’t happening. You’re crazy”.

Or, you may define the situation from your fortified mind bunker like this, “It’s not happening here yet, but you better be ready. It’s just a matter of time. I’m not crazy, you’re crazy.”

We’re not crazy. We’re not wrong.

We’re confused.

We’ve somehow agreed to emotionally regress back into our childhoods en masse and the leaders we seek to guide us are nowhere to be found.

We’ve been sent to our rooms and it appears all of the grown-ups are out getting drunk on their own perceived authority.

We sit, angry or afraid and isolated, in front of screens that assault our senses 24/7 with the images and voices we’ve selected to abuse us. The chambers of our own opinions echo the validity of our arguments back to us with increasing intensity minute after minute. They are programmed to do exactly that. They are programmed to be smart devices, after all.

Covid — 19

It’s deadly. It’s different.

Be afraid. Don’t worry.

Comply. Resist.

Shut up about it.

Wear a mask. Don’t wear a mask. Wear a mask.

You’re virtuous if you wear a mask. You’re a sheep if you wear a mask.

You’re a patriot if you don’t wear a mask. You’re stupid if you don’t wear a mask.

Do you have a star on your belly? Dr. Seuss warned us about such things.

We need more tests. We have the most tests.

Everyone is sick. Some are sick. Everyone is infected.

The death count. The bed count. The case count.

The recovery count?

One life lost is one too many. Not too many are dying.

Most of them are old. But some of them are young.

We need to count and track all cases. We need to count and track all assumed cases.

We need you to report your friends.

15 days to slow the spread. We slowed the spread.

248 days later…and counting…

Social distance. Pull together.

No more than 10, no more than 8, no more than 5

Six feet away. Virus, drugs, or suicide, all are six feet under.

Thanksgiving is canceled. Christmas is canceled.

Joy is canceled. It’s for your own good.

Quarantine the sick. Quarantine the healthy and protect the sick. Quarantine the healthy to protect them from ever getting sick.

Crowds are super spreader events. Protests are immune.

Only specific protests are immune.

Riots aren’t riots.

Follow the science. No. Not that science.

Listen to the experts. No. Not those experts.

Free speech is welcome. Free speech is hate speech.

Amplify voices. But only these voices.

Censor voices. But only those voices.

Maybe we should go with the “Shaun of the Dead” plan:

“Take car. Go to mum’s. Kill Phil, grab Liz, go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for all of this to blow over. How’s that for a slice of fried gold?”

It seems to make as much sense as everything else.

What the world needs right now are humans who want to solve the problem.

And the problem isn’t Covid-19.

The problem is, we can’t decide what the problem is and all of the labels we’ve assigned ourselves are blocking our ability to see it.

We divide ourselves by the labels we assume and we diminish our humanity in the process.

Those who we look to unite us profit from our division.

And we are all suffering because of it.

So, until we can find these wise souls to deliver truth with clarity and without agenda, I agree with Liz.

“Please, can we just calm the fuck down.”

Then, perhaps, we should log off of the internet, shut off the screens, come out of ‘time out’, step back into life and trust ourselves and our fellow human beings to make sensible, responsible decisions.

God knows it’s got to be better than this.