Is it too late to turn this ship around?
The CDC did it again. When forced, they admitted that they were holding important research data because they felt it would not play well with the message they wanted to get across. This particular data showed that vaccinated individuals were not as well protected as they were being led to believe. Not revealing this data, while maybe getting a few more people vaccinated, led to a much more severe issue. People who were vaccinated, and possibly at higher risk, were led to believe they were safe. That probably put them in a much more vulnerable position. It also put more distrust in the CDC, making them even less capable of getting anything implemented now or in the near future. In short, the CDC is responsible for a lot of this current virus surge.
Our leaders in all respects have blood on their hands.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I am not just blaming the CDC for our failures. Our leaders in all respects have blood on their hands for the way they have handled this. The first blow came when political leaders saw this as a chance to make or break the upcoming elections. From the first news of the pandemic to the present, our politicians on both sides have made this first about politics, and if the virus happens to be minimized or eradicated, we will call that a collateral win for our side. If not, we will still call it a win for our side. Then high level scientists realized that this was the opportunity to get notoriety and power. Being more political figureheads than actual day to day scientists, they quickly moved from science to propaganda to get the people to do what they felt was best. More than likely, having spent much time in our crumbling academia, they did not feel that “the people”, who they taught, were smart enough to understand the data. Then big business and big tech came into the picture, with fame and profit being their motives. Athletes, who have come to feel they are entitled to represent the world on everything, decided to jump in with their endorsements. Soon every cause in the nation was using this crisis to try to make their cause more important. In short, everyone was looking to use this crisis as an opportunity to get ahead. They were not looking after the people, or trying to stop COVID. They were only helping themselves.
Now lets look at what should have been. No matter what you think about the last 18 months, no one can legitimately say this has not been a crisis. We should have come together. Politicians on both sides of the aisle should have put politics, and their political party aside to bring us together as one. Science should have been allowed to do science. The best and smartest young data scientists should have been crunching the numbers and explaining them in complete, albeit somewhat simplified terms. The media should have made it a point to get the honest, unadulterated data out there. Here was a chance to get their audiences smarter on concepts of data and science. If the data didn’t show what we were doing was working, scientists should have looked at the data, pointed out what showed it wasn’t working, and looked for what else we could try.
Would we have saved any lives from COVID? I cannot say that we would or would not. COVID is much more complex of a problem than we have been led to believe, and we were not scientifically prepared for its coming. But I am convinced we would have saved a lot of the lives lost to our attempts to stop COVID. If the country wanted to try mandatory masks to see if that helped, it could have been implemented. When the vaccine came out, we could have gotten the vaccine into more people. Remove the division, be open and honest, and the people will follow. Almost all of them. If and when those things turned out to not work well enough, we could have looked at other options.
A house divided against Itself Cannot Stand
A refrain that has been heard throughout history should have been listened to. “A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand” has been in many speeches over the years. Lincoln was just one of many who used that idiom. But we still have not learned that lesson. The United States is a house divided against itself. And because of that, we did not stand a chance against COVID. Unless we get rid of the division, there is no way we will stand a chance. If COVID just magically goes away on its own, another issue will come to take its place. We will not harvest peace till we stop sowing division.
But instead of getting past the division, we have done nothing but increase it. We divide and blame.
Those not wearing masks are to blame for COVID. Those wearing masks are to blame for COVID.
Those who didn’t get vaccinated are to blame for COVID. Those who did get vaccinated are to blame for COVID.
Republicans are to blame for COVID. Democrats are to blame for COVID.
The elderly are to blame for COVID. The young are to blame for COVID. Whites are to blame for COVID and it is hitting other races disparately. The Chinese are to blame for COVID. Scientists are to blame for COVID. The media is to blame for COVID. You get the idea. Everybody but your group is considered to be the blame for COVID. You can blame someone, and then feel better about yourself. I have heard each of these accusations multiple times over the last year.
You want to know a secret? COVID is to blame for COVID. COVID is the enemy. Unless we stop dividing ourselves and come together, the enemy will not be defeated. Even if we do come together, there is no guarantee that the enemy will be defeated. But at least we have a fighting chance. Right now, we don’t have a chance in hell. Which is coincidentally what we are making life to be in the USA. And that is the sad state of America. Can we all come together and turn this ship around? It may be our only hope.