Friday, November 20, 2020

I'm trying to understand...

We know that masks and social distancing help prevent the spread of coronavirus. If common sense was not enough to bring one to this understanding, there's plenty of evidence from scientific studies to confirm that masks work to keep us safe and to keep safe those we love as well.

And yet, there's a strong ideological resistance among some against being required to wear masks. These folks want the economy to open up wide with no restrictions in place. And those same folks are active in state legislatures and in the courts to prevent governors, mayors and county administrators from having the power to require masks and social distancing. The callousness of these folks is beyond measure.

Can they not stand up for their rights and urge the safety of others at the same time? For example, they might ask that folks be allowed to choose whether or not to wear masks, while also admitting the stupidity and risk of refusing to do so? While advocating for freedom, could they not also advocate for responsibility exercised for the protection of each other?

We are braced for a Thanksgiving like no other. Had we shut down for an additional two weeks in the spring, as painful as that would have been, it would have saved well over 200,000 lives and would have allowed us to move at this point, much closer to normal life.

I know that many people I care about are planning to share Thanksgiving with family and friends who will be put at risk by each other. Scott Atlas says that folks should just go ahead and enjoy Thanksgiving because for some it may be their last. Are you the one who wants to make sure that someone has their last Thanksgiving? Or can we look forward to next year with the knowledge that you've done your part to keep others safe?

There's a bit of common sense that comes from hands-on learning... Today I'm working on cedar boxes in the wood shop. The box in the photo is one I sold the other day on Etsy. https://www.etsy.com/shop/DougStowe

Make, fix and create. 


7 comments:

  1. It is the cowardice of anonymity. If it were possible to identify the contaminating person, it might be different.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Not all who pass on the disease are shielded by anonymity. How would folks like to live with the knowledge that they killed their granny. Yes, that will happen.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous9:27 PM

    I'm trying to understand why some people think there is only one correct way to think. One of the beauties of our modern world is that many viewpoints can come together. Unless there is coercion of some kind, there will always be diversity of thought.

    ReplyDelete
  4. There are indeed lots of ways to think. Some want to live by faith in what they are told by religion. Some have greater faith in the conclusions of science. Some would prefer to accept conspiracies however ridiculous they may be. We call that thinking. I'm not telling you what to think, but I would personally prefer that we keep our families and our health-care workers safe this holiday season. The thought that we might have killed granny by ignoring what the scientists are telling us would not be a pleasant thought to carry for the rest of our lives. Unless you like the notion of having rushed her toward eternal rest.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous9:15 PM

    You say people who do not agree with you show "stupidity" and "callousness." The Democrats like to say the other side is the party of hate, but they should have a hard look at themselves. I agree with you on masking, but I despair of America ever coming together when both sides dig in and point fingers and name-call.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm glad that we agree on the use of masks. The conservative media was pushing the idea that the pandemic was a liberal hoax that would go away after the election. That some would believe it is evidence of stupidity. That some, knowing better would promote that idea was callous, particularly since they knew from the outset that Covid 19 is a life threatening disease. Trump described it honestly in his interview with Bernstein, and then told the folks publicly that it would go away before Easter.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I meant Woodward, not Bernstein. if you want to remain anonymous, that's OK. But I would prefer to have conversations with real people.

    ReplyDelete