Frontliner - Tumblr Posts
I get that people want everything to go back to normal and forget about COVID-19 and the phases of reopening the country like most of the rest of the world, but... this is likely never going to end. We have a new normal, and we are also divided on many fronts. We have too many options, differing opinions, and different ideals for the perfect world.
But why is it so hard for Americans to follow the example set by other countries in the response to the pandemic? We may be living in a capitalist country, but the tax money is misused by our politicians who would rather fund projects in countries that would rather see this country fall. We have minimal control over our political climate, and that has ruled how the government is responding after they spend most of the money on irrelevant projects.
We do have control over our own actions though. When we were little, we should have all learned about manners and common decency in society, to respect each other’s beliefs, and to accept each other despite our differences. Where did these lessons go? Why are so many people unable to respect that others make certain choices? Why can people not quietly comply with the new store policies or follow simple directions for proper procedures?
If you don’t want to wear a mask but need to go shopping, almost every store will allow you to order online and pick it up without needing to step out of the car. If you don’t want to wear a mask to enter any establishment that requires you to wear a mask inside, you can conduct your business over the phone or with an online conference service and get your physical items with a curbside pickup.
Americans have to wake up to the reality of this world. We have a system that has always been doomed to fail sooner or later and are plagued by people who are being overly sensitive about the most ridiculous subjects, many times witnessed in people with no connection or reason for what they are offended by.
People are dying from COVID-19, at least three of my relatives work in hospitals, and one of my relatives works in a lab where these tests are conducted. The lab workers are exhausted. The medical staff are exhausted. They are not able to keep up with these cases, they haven’t been able to from the start. They are burning themselves out by working overtime every day of the week to make sure the rest of us are taken care of.
The worst is that one of my aunts lost ten ICU patients in two days back in March when we went into quarantine. She has been keeping herself as distant from her children as possible to try protecting them from the virus in case she carried it home. I have only been able to track the county where she works, and she must have seen over a hundred people die from COVID-19 by now. She has said that she couldn’t do anything to help them after a certain point, and told us how suddenly her patients would change from lively and fine to crashing in the time it takes to duck out of their room for only a few minutes.
Why can’t so many Americans accept that we have to put physical social interactions on hold? Why is it so hard for people to wear a mask properly or at all? We could have ended this months ago if people just listened to these frontline workers by staying home, staying apart, and wearing the mask. Is it so hard to listen to these people begging us to do something so easy? Is a little discomfort so hard to handle for a short amount of time to protect ourselves and each other? Is it so hard not to shame those who do their part if they feel they are at risk of spreading the virus because of their workplace conditions? What has happened to us that we can’t be decent and calm in any given situation?
Why don’t people care about each other anymore? Why do people let history repeat itself instead of trying to move past these mistakes? Why have people chosen to ignore these lessons? Why can’t people look at the bigger picture and find a logical and acceptable reason for their actions? Why do we make everything about politics these days? Why do we let the corrupt remain in office to ruin us further? Why do we let our differences get in the way of the potential for success? Why do we have people rioting just because their party representatives lost an election and destroy their own homes and cities?
How many of us are embarrassed to be an American right now?