Here we are, in a second week of isolation, now enforced by the State of Colorado, uncertain how we will persevere should this last much longer.
I’m terrified, and and wonder how we’ve ended up in a dystopian end-times novel, or movie — except this is real. As of this moment, more than 32,000 1,000,000 people are dead worldwide, and it seems to increase exponentially by the day.
The response in the United States has been woefully inadequate. The sociopathic narcissist-in-chief has gone from denial, to forced capitulation — but still daily voices half-truths and outright lies, when what we need is a tranquil, reserved, authoritative voice to calm our fears and assure us that we’ll get to the other side. Sadly, all we receive is bluster and derision, as we huddle in our homes full of anxiety about our imminent demise.
I’m lucky. I already work from home, and that continues as though nothing has changed. I walk the dog, as normal, although the streets are strangely vacant, there are no contrails of aircraft overhead, and vehicle traffic is minimal. Other pedestrians (the few) wave hesitantly from the opposite side of the street, in some strange solidarity of self-isolation and fear. It’s surreal. Many are out of work, I’m sure — many more will be in the weeks to come, and it makes us wonder re: further stratification between haves and have-nots. Case in point, background checks for gun purchases have doubled in Colorado, tripled in Florida, and the FBI has stated they are “working to maintain their services“. In Colorado, the backlog means sales may go through without a check, as the law requires them to be processed within 3 days, or the dealer can legally go through with the purchase. Who is buying all these guns, and for what purpose, is the question.
I don’t know how this plays out. Things certainly won’t get back to “normal”. There’s already a devastating economic, social, and health impact across the globe. Because older people seem to be more vulnerable, there are vicious hashtags like #BoomerEraser being perpetuated across social media (which is the least social of media), and idiot politicians argue that senior citizens should be willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. I’d argue that our ‘leaders’ have failed us, but I’m willing to go out if they do it first. Maybe that’s what all the guns are for.