The Fear Factor

I remember it well.  

It was a time when little children at Harry Spence Elementary went to school with thoughts of multiplication, fractions and probability.  Smiling, they passed others in the hallway, stopping to gossip about their third grade teachers and the new kid in class.

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church held services, sometimes twice a day, celebrating God's saving grace through songs and communion.  People met after the service to shake hands and eat cookies, telling each other about their sons attending college or the birth of a new baby girl.

Downtown La Crosse was buzzing with new restaurants and high rise apartments.  Workers flooded from buildings -- where they worked 5 days a week --- to meet friends for happy hour and made plans for a weekend getaway.   Organizers for Oktoberfest and Riverfest were talking to promoters and sponsors, hoping to make 2020 one to remember.

Liz and I, just back from a vacation in southern California, were looking forward to a weekend in Milwaukee to watch the Bucks and Golden State Warrior play on Saturday night.  Joining us for the weekend was Emma who was now head soccer coach for Bethany Lutheran College.

And then things changed...

Like a novel you read years before, vague memories fight their way to the surface, where they bend today's reality into something that seems alien and abnormal.  Remote learning, church without singing, empty buildings and cancelled sporting events have become the new norm, and yet I haven't forgotten how much better it was just a few years ago.

It's been almost a year and a half since my last Wu Flu update, with some positive developments and unfortunately, many negative ones.

I find it difficult to believe this country, founded on inalienable rights and individual achievement, is still afraid to call an end to the endless mandates and fear porn coming out of Washington D.C..

Their message, disguised so skillfully by Sleepy Joe, Dr. Evil Fauci and others puppets on school boards, federal agencies and hospital administrations, is one of fear and apocalyptic doom if you don't "follow the science." 

It has been a mystery to me why so many good people believe this crap.  Why do so many teachers literally throw kids they claim to love "under the bus?"  Why are doctors ignoring the Hippocratic Oath they swore to uphold?    Why do restaurants enforce mask mandates, but allow you to remove your mask as soon as you sit down?  

It's a fear of mine, that people will become so accustomed to their safety protocols, that they will think it's normal.  Especially the young, who haven't lived long enough to appreciate the way things used to be.  To prove my point, I'm reading about college students demanding virtual learning over in-person learning.  "It's too risky!" they yell in protest.  Why is everything with them a protest?  It's obvious they're not paying the $70,000 a year required to receive such personalized attention. 

My own sons seem tolerant of mandates, masks and vaccines regardless of my own objections.  There's no reasoning with them --  despite efforts I've made to send really smart articles, emails and videos counteracting the proven science (ha, ha) of these pandemic prevarications. they continue to buy into some tenebrous idea that we should be doing our part for "public health."  

I hear something like that, and I'm reminded of the "good German," a term used to describe those who claimed ignorance of the Holocaust and German war crimes.  Ignorance, whether intentional or honest is never a good excuse.

One of those really smart videos, from the Brownstone Institute, featured Thomas Harrington, who believes the ruling class has created a "fearful class" in order to control them.  Ever since 9/11 they have induced fear as a way to get us to change our behavior.  Threats from shoe bombs, planes driven into buildings, white insurgency (January 6) and Trump as Hitler have become common tools used to change the way we fly and disagree with the results of elections.  I used to laugh over school cancellations because it might get cold or forecasts call for six inches of snow.  How many times have I, as a parent, been told to protect our children from molesters, creepy boy scout leaders and nefarious ice cream vendors?  Our children have been told to not dress a certain way for Halloween, misappropriate certain cultures and fear Columbus Day, all under the guise of politically correct sensitivities.  

Even adults are subject to messages telling us to fear everyday life.  Nothing shows this better than the weather.  Moderate snow fall is referred to as a blizzard.   Polar vortexes, cyclone bombs and heat domes have become common deterrents from leaving the safety of our houses.  And don't get me started on climate change (WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!).

Is there any doubt people would be afraid of Covid?

Think of the harm we are doing to our society.  No, not we, but they.  If I had any say, I'd be going back to the way we were before March, 2020 with precautions built in for those most susceptible.  Either intentionally, (as in rewarding good behavior), or unintentionally (by thinking we are saving the day) we have damage society in irreparable ways.  Both efforts turned out to be wrong -- and as a result we've lost our rebellious nature toward risky behavior, and gladly accept anything mandated by authority figures.  Say goodbye to critical thinking needed for normal existence.

After two years of Bizzaro world, I see too many good people afraid of, obedient to and eager to enforce the dictates of Washington's elites.  We have allowed illogical fear rather than quantifiable risk analysis -- to rule our lives.

The virus has not only changed the way we behave, but also the way we talk and communicate.   For years the left has used newspeak to diminish the range of thought and action by reducing freedom of expression as it relates to political beliefs.  Affirmative action, Black Lives Matter and women's health are examples of how the left has changed the discussion of bad behavior into something that should be encouraged, even applauded.

The left has been busy as bees working on changing words -- how we communicate questions and answers -- relating to societal norms.  During 2021, we can thank Covid -- mostly -- for the following:

Infodemic

Immune response

Misinformation

Covid toes

Drive through __________ (fill in the blank)

Vaccine (new terminology actual means it doesn't provide immunity)

Color revolution

No vac joke covid  (Novak Djokovic gets banned)

Circle back

Calling someone (who is black) a white supremacist because you don't want the narrative to change

Undocumented immigrant

Equity (did you know Covid is racist?)

Supply chain

Cisgender 

Removal of certain words can be just as effective as changing the meaning of words.  It's still a way to shift one's understanding of a situation.   Not to be outdone, here are a few words that are now considered persona non grata in corporate America, Big Tech and on campuses worldwide.  Think twice about using these words in 2022:

Chloroquine, Hydroxychloroquine, and Ivermectin.  These three alternatives will get you banned quicker than Aaron Rogers can leave Green Bay after losing another playoff game.

Mankind

Master bedroom

Cake walk

Urban

Manhole

Founding Fathers

Sold down the river

Male

Female

Tranny

Actress 

Freshman  (basically anything that has the word man like anchorman, mailman, or chairman).  

It seems that leftists on campus and in corporate America are afraid of words that are not on their "approved" list.  They have seen the need to control not only our behaviors but also the way we communicate.  Who are these people deciding certain words are harmful or not in line with current newspeak?  Fearful authorities who think they are better than you and me..

If topics like the virus, race and gender are viewed as "decided by science," why are they afraid?  What do they have to hide?  

The truth?

It is essential we don't allow them to do it.  Use as many politically incorrect words as you can and watch them squirm and foam at the mouth.

We have seen that fear works both sides of a debate.  Authorities are afraid they will lose control, and citizens are afraid that authorities may be right.

Two years after the Wu Flu changed our lives, there are signs enough people have decided
to shift behavior away from fear and toward getting back to normal. 

Canadian truckers have formed a freedom protest by driving their trucks from Vancouver to Ottawa to protest Canadian government's vaccine mandates for cross border truckers.  It has been so successful that others in America are proposing our own truckers consider a freedom protest.

Contrast their behavior with compliance early in the pandemic.  Remember the ban on casual sex, forming a socially distanced queue at the airport before being sardined into a packed plane with the same people two hours later?  What about swings in local parks put into quarantined or removed, not allowing people to sit together on a park bench, or best of all, no butterfly strokes while swimming?

We've come a long way since the early days of Covid., and with 70% of people recently polled, many are ready to get on with their lives.  Fear is a useful tool for only so long.  As months, then years have gone by, people are seeing that -- with intelligent behavior -- there is nothing to fear.  Except authoritarian leaders who don't want the party to end.

The choice has always been ours to make.  You can go back to refusing to hang the wash out to dry because you're afraid the sheets might catch Covid and infect you -- or scrap the mandates and masks for human interaction the way God meant it to be.

I know which way I'm going, and it won't be because I'm afraid.

Waiting For Company, Part 1

I've mentioned many times my reasons for writing this blog, but the main reason is to chronicle my thinking about politics, sports and family.  Some day I won't be here and I want my family and friends to understand my thinking on things that happen to me. 

So, with that understanding, my views here aren't meant to judge or criticize people.  I'm not trying to tell people what to do or make them question the value of what they are doing.  Just to give someone who want's to understand me better the opportunity to do so.



I feel like the world has gone completely insane.

For those of us old enough to remember, there was a comedy movie released in 1963 called "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World."  It starred some of my favorite movie stars, including Spencer Tracy, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Ethel  Merman, Mickey Rooney, Phil Silvers and Jonathan Winters.

While it didn't involve a worldwide pandemic, it did involve irrational fear, absurd behavior, traffic jams and, in the end, mindless mob mentality.  Fortunately, it was a comedy, and everyone's reaction to  Spencer Tracey's actions survived to see another day (and star in another movie).

Unfortunately, what's happening in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic's spread, isn't funny at all, and too many people are going to die.  It's unlike anything any of us have ever seen, with every day bringing a new understanding of the virus's rapid spread and its unbelievable impact on our daily lives.  No March Madness (still having trouble with that one), no new movies, no church, cancelled vacations, no wine tastings, delayed planting of spring flowers and worse of all, no visits to family and friends.

But not everything with this virus has been bad.

In addition to bringing a better understanding of the difference between a pandemic vs. epidemic, quarantine vs. isolation, and respirator vs. ventilator, I have expanded my useable vocabulary to include asymptomatic, community spread, contact tracing, wet market, "flatten the curve," herd immunity, essential businesses, apocalyptic surge, "social distancing," patient zero and "shelter in place."   When I'm really frustrated I use words like covidiots, "Let the experts talk!" and blue plague.

It has also spawned an epidemic of a different kind -- toilet paper -- and bringing out some of the funniest memes and social media posts in the history of the internet.  I'm sorry if you are upset by jokes about such a serious subject -- but they're not really about the virus itself.  Instead, these funny memes are about stupid human beings doing stupid things like hoarding a commodity unrelated to the virus.  I have not yet talked to someone who hoards toilet paper, but if I did, I doubt I'd get a good reason, beyond "I don't want to run out!"   I suspect some of these people also think Trump stole the election by colluding with Russia.  Or worse, that Trump wants people to go back to work by Easter so he can be re-elected in November.

Which leads me to ask -- must we kill the economy to kill the virus?

Washington D.C. has, for the most part, recommended shutting everything down.  State governors have follow along.  With the exception of some essential businesses, people are working from home or have been laid off.  Dr. Anthony Fauci (a member of Trump's COVID-19 response team) feels this is necessary to contain the spread of the virus.  Dr. Fauci is an American physician and immunologist who has served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984.  So it stands that he is THE expert when it comes to virus pandemics.  And his advice, with Trump's support, have saved hundreds, if not thousands of lives.  Of which I am thankful.

But do we just assume these people are always right? 

I'll be the first to tell you government officials and experts have been wrong over my lifetime.  They have hurt the American people through government regulations, taxation, healthcare and deficit spending.  Could they be hurting us with their reaction to COVID-19, as well?

Yes, doctors are experts -- but aren't economists experts as well?  In less than three weeks we've destroyed much of the growth we experienced over the past three years.  Was it really necessary to shut down so many businesses to contain COVID-19?  I don't have an answer, and I doubt anyone else does either.  We are being proactive in our response, because no one wants to harm people we love who are susceptible to the deadly virus.  At some point we will learn enough to answer that question.  If my prayers are answered, the infections and deaths will be much lower than reported by the press. 

But what if the "benefit" of closing so many businesses causes more damage than if everyone kept working and we protected those most vulnerable?  EVERY DAY, heart disease or cancer takes 3,000 loved ones,  63 are lost to the common flu, car accidents kill more than 465 people, and more than 129 succumb to suicide.  If we use the same method to determine the number of deaths attributed to COVID-19, we'd be at 3 per day.

Our solution to COVID-19 guarantees an increase in poverty, promotes poor social interaction and other community factors.  Even before our decision to shut down and shelter at home, researchers at Columbia University found poverty and poor educational support contributed to as many deaths in the U.S. as heart attacks, strokes and lung cancer.

So how many more are going to die because we want to remain safe?

Again, I don't have the answers and I don't mean to upset anyone who thinks staying at home is the right thing to do.  By all means, do so.  And we must protect those in danger.  

I just fear our government has taken our economy and damaged it in a way I'm not sure will ever be the same again.

 

How do we flatten the curve on panic?

Earlier today, The New York Times became the epicenter of the Blue Plague by stating people in hospitals throughout the city were dying, as desperately under-prepared and under-equipped doctors and nurses could not find ventilators for thousands of arriving patients in a state of panic.  This is incitement at its worse.

This week's newspaper's had these headlines on their front pages -- "Atlanta hospitals overwhelmed by COVID-19 cases;" Governor Cuomo slams feds - "You pick" who's "going to die;" and 14 million job's at risk.  Are we entering another Great Depression?"

Last night's CBS Evening News lead off the broadcast by highlighting "skyrocketing" unemployment numbers exceeding 3.3 million.  In the "highest unemployment numbers not seen since the Great Depression" questioned its impact on President Trump's re-election bid.  Next was a story on the U.S. surpassing China with the most confirmed cases of coronavirus at 85,000 and counting. 

Does anyone really believe anything coming out of China?   Earlier this year we had one of our Chinese students say how the Chinese government would always use the same number for fatalities no matter the tragic event being reported.  She knew it wasn't true, but what could she do?  If China can't tell their own people the truth, why would they tell the world the truth?

Another breaking story highlighted the "surging" anti-Asian hate -- a result of Trump's use of "Wuhan virus" during his daily press briefings.  And finally, for good measure, there were interviews with unemployed people "feeling very, very afraid." 

Apparently CBS had no time to spend on this good news from today --  the stock market (and many people's retirement accounts) was up more than 6%.  This marked the third day in a row when the market posted gains.  The last three days saw market gains of over 2000, then 500 and now 1300.  I'm sure the market will rise and fall over the next few months, but isn't it note worthy that they only report on the market's freefall, but not its rise?

Nonetheless, the bad news went on for 20 minutes, before I couldn't take it anymore and turned it off.  A quick change to Pandora and a little rock n' roll from Journey and Foreigner had me in a much better mood in no time.

So is there some way we can report the news without constantly hyping worse case scenarios, and without using doom and gloom adjectives to describe daily results?

Of course there is.  During the 2009 world pandemic, resulting from the H1N1 "swine flu,"  more than 60 million U.S. citizens were infected by the flu which caused pneumonia and acute distress syndrome (ARDS).  Most patients needed immediate respiratory support with mechanical ventilation.  The virus was spread mainly from person to person, through coughing or sneezing.  Sometimes people became infected by touching something such as surfaces or objects containing the virus.  Unlike the current pandemic, it affected younger people and was not an issue for people over 60 years old.  But on the whole, it sounds very familiar doesn't it? 

The numbers I have read for swine flu the U.S. are eye-opening -- 60 million people infected, more than 11,000 people died.  That's just the United States!  Compare that to COVID-19.  As of the end of March, we had 85,000 infected and 1,300 deaths according to John Hopkins Hospital.  I realize the numbers aren't final, and the virus may be more deadly than the swine flu, but isn't it interesting that in 2009 we didn't cancel sporting events, stop all international flights, order restaurants and bars to close, cancel schools (even though it affected the young, including children), or put "stay at home" requirements on all of us?

What was different in 2009 than in 2020?  The media's response.  And which political party was in power.

When the media wants to drive a narrative -- and you know what I'm suggesting -- it's easy to see why the New York Times and CBS News are spending so much time accelerating the panic curve.  In the words of the New York Times, be very afraid...

I thought I would end on a high note, as I've never been one to stomach bad news, so why should I contribute to it?

A coworker sent me a link to a comedy special called "What's Wrong With People," starring stand-up comedian Sebastian Maniscalco (he played Johnny Venere in the movie "Green Book", if you saw that movie).  It's a hilarious skit about people who ring your doorbell.  In this small bit, he remembers how forty years ago, family and friends would come over to his parent's house and eat cake and drink Sanka.  They were called company, and everyone looked forward to seeing them and spending time together.

Fast forward to today, where if someone rings your doorbell, everyone hits the floor and turns out the lights.  Instead of welcoming people into your house, you avoid them like the plague.

It's really funny and you should watch it.  You can find it here:   just copy and paste https://youtu.be/0Swzvm-gXHg

My wife's suggestion was that when this COVID-19 nightmare is over, we should plan on ringing a few doorbells again.  It's time to spend time with company again, and I think we are all looking forward to it being sooner than later.

Thanks Liz and Pat, you've made my day.