Bravery & stupidity

By Daniel McSweeney

Leamington Spa, England — From my comfortable chair here in our flat on England’s historic Grand Union Canal, I want to ruminate about the COVID-19 virus, an unprecedented 21st century health, social and economic crisis unlike anything seen since the global calamity of World War Two.

   To those people ranting that the pandemic is being overblown by governments and media, I too hope its’ spread might be contained sooner than later. Consider though such an outcome might be a product of the drastic actions taken to keep it under control. Had our leaders not responded with such vigour, we just might have made the so-called ‘Spanish Flu’ of 1918 look like a walk in the park.

   With that said, I believe we are living in a time of exceptional bravery – as well as stupidity.

     What got me going on these diverse reactions to the crisis was watching a clip about several young ladies in a warmer clime strolling around a crowded beach in bikinis enjoying March break. That sort of thing usually would bring a smile to my face, remembering times long past when I enjoyed time off from university – and of course just watching girls in bikinis.

    I was astounded at one girl claiming she would not let the corona virus stop her from enjoying vacation. Her reasoning was that she had ‘a good immune system.’ Well maybe she does – but that doesn’t mean she won’t pass it on to more vulnerable people like Grandma, Grandpa or some poor soul sneaking out to a grocery store to pick up loaf of bread. And even though these March breakers are young and seemingly healthy, it doesn’t mean they cannot become gravely ill from this insidious virus.

     Such people might be encouraged to realize this crisis is ‘not all about me.

    And then I watched a piece about a church in the United States that continues to hold services with hundreds of people, crying and weeping over each other as the Pastor urges his congregation not to be afraid because God will take care of them.

   He promises his flock that while emergency health and ambulance personnel might not be able to reach them, the Holy Ghost could and would take care of them.

   One ‘older’ woman, presumably attending the same service where tears and spittle flew through the air, boldly asserted no corona virus would stop her from attending church. It is nice to have such faith – but not when it endangers others.

   At the far end of the scale are people who purposely spit, cough at sneeze at others. That is not only stupidity – it is outright criminality.

    Enough of the darker side of humanity in this time of global pandemic. The good news is that bravery and nobility seems more abundant than stupidity.

   I believe bravery includes people self-isolating, living with the knowledge that they might not have jobs when all is said and done. They might lose loved ones; their homes and like all of us, our sense of security. It’s a heavy cross to bear just thinking about all this as we hunker down behind closed doors away from the rest of the world. We all worry about our kids and grand kids and how they will fare in this pandemic and from the  social and economic changes post COVID-19 will bring to the world.

     Even our leaders trying to mitigate the pandemic’s effects don’t have all the answers. By virtue of the modern world never having experienced a pandemic of this magnitude, they are, by necessity, making flexibilty a virtue. As circumstances unfold, all institutions of our society are going to have to re-write their playbooks. I assert that one of the most influential pillars of society – the banks – must  understand how they will play a big role in preventing more social and economic chaos from this terrible pandemic. In such places of commerce, where profit seems to be everything, it will be a hard pill to swallow. People though will not forget those who treated them poorly.

   I admire most the people who must go out everyday into a world of invisible microbes that threaten their health at every turn in the course of a working day. We would be lost with such brave souls. These include doctors, nurses, emergency health responders,  pharmacists, police and fire services and others who drive buses and trains, work in grocery stores, deliver essential goods and services; fix people’s emergency plumbing needs, folks who keep at least a semblance of society going.

    Here in the UK, the government issued a call for volunteers to help vulnerable people stay safe and well at home during the pandemic. The work involves delivering medicines, driving patients to appointments, bringing people home from hospital or simply making phone calls to check on people isolating at home. Most of the work they claim can be performed while exercising social distancing.

    They asked for 250,000 volunteers. More than 500,000 responded; and I expect they will have no problem signing up an additional 200,000 more as the need increases.

    In closing, stupidity is in no short supply in this time of the corona virus. On the other hand, bravery is making the rounds with every passing day illuminating the essential goodness in most people with whom we share this planet.

    And that’s something for which we should give thanks.