Lessons Learned From COVID

Defiance!!

How many of you watched the Rose Bowl parade? I read that the parade was cancelled, so I was surprised when I scrolled down my channels on New Year’s morning to find the parade just starting. The parade as well as the Rose Bowl game were in fact cancelled by Gavin Newsome, the governor of California. It seems that the governor’s reopening plan didn’t include large gatherings. The Rose Bowl committee, however, had too much invested in the event and voted to ignore the governor’s directive. They did, however, change the name to “The Rose Bowl Parade Celebration” and required spectators to be vaccinated and wear masks. But the parade and the game went on despite the COVID surge in the Los Angeles area. I wonder what this tells me. I can see at least three possible lessons.

First, I think people are just plain tired of all the COVID hype. I’m not saying the virus isn’t real nor am I saying it isn’t a public health threat. What I am saying is that Americans are tired of our lives being dominated by the pandemic. We have endured unprecedented restrictions in our daily lives. We have tolerated incursions into our individual liberties, yet the pandemic goes on. The reported infection rate in the US is at record levels, and we see no end in sight. We are tired of wearing masks. We are tired of staying at home. We are tired of being told we can’t go to our grandkids ball games. We are tired of being bombarded with public announcements of doom and destruction. We are just plain tired.

It could very well be that the average citizen of these United States understands all the facts and is willing to take the risk. I have faith in America. I have utter confidence that our friends and neighbors have IQs at least as high as most politicians. We watch the evening news and sort out the exaggerations and baloney to come up with enough information to make an informed decision. For an increasing majority that deliberate decision is that they are willing to take the risk. The risk is very real, but the chances of any one individual catching the virus is less than one in five. Of those who are infected, only one in seventy dies. The overall odds of the average American dying from COVID is less than two tenths of one percent, and the odds of an otherwise healthy individual dying is almost zero. Many Americans may be willing to take the risk.

Lastly, I fear that the credibility of our elected officials and so-called health experts has been damaged beyond repair. Except for some isolated cases, the predictions of gloom and doom have proven to be untrue. We were told that wearing masks and staying home would stop the spread. We are still being told that vaccines are the answer, but the rate of infection continues to rise. Nothing government has tried so far has worked. I have concluded our leaders have no clue.

I don’t have an answer, but I think all three of my observations are true. Our elected officials and health experts have no idea what they are doing. People are tired of watching the blind leading the blind. An increasing number of Americans are tired of COVID dominating their lives and are willing to take the risk.

Frank Watson is a retired Air Force Colonel and long-time resident of Eastern Washington. He has been a free-lance columnist for over 20 years.