Corona v. Humanity

Does this virus represent a war on humanity?

Without sounding fanatical, I think it does in a sense. World-wide, we are confronted with an enemy that is aggressive, dangerous, and potentially lethal. We need to treat it as such. If the color coded maps we are shown that illustrate the spread of the virus across the nation were actually depicting live troops of a foreign power marching across our nation with this pattern and speed, we would be in a militia state, bearing arms on our doorsteps. The call to action would be a resounding yes as each American united to stop the invaders from infiltrating every corner of our great nation. But these maps do not show real troops, and I am certainly not advocating for that extreme of a response, but I do not understand any hesitancy in following the expectations for social distancing that our leaders have shared. I fully support social distancing with integrity, consistency, and vigilance. I believe it is our duty to this nation and its people. As in World War eras, everyone at home

mobilized and sacrificed to support war efforts through rationing, conserving, going without, getting jobs to cover for those called to duty, and saying good bye to loved ones. It is our duty now to stand behind our country's war efforts against the corona virus. In this war though, the contributions and sacrifices look different. Today's efforts are about social distancing, reducing and conserving our resources, caring for our neighbor, and cultivating family. This is how we will save our nation from our current enemy - the corona virus.

It is our duty to our nation and fellow citizens that we:

• practice diligent and responsible use of social distancing to protect ourselves as well as others,

• contribute to efforts to support local health care facilities,

• demonstrate responsible and gracious use of resources, and

• are thankful for our families, friends, delivery personnel, and first responders.

These actions are different from those of our ancestors in appearance, but identical in value. Our battle is not in the trenches of Somme or battlefields of Normandy but on the streets of our neighborhoods, towns, and cities.

Now at home, my teenagers are unfortunately quite hesitant to abide by the responsible social distancing that I believe is appropriate and fulfilling of our duty as US citizens. They are in the, "It hasn't personally affected me yet so.." mode. I, on the other hand, am ready to hole up for a week or two. Even though the virus has not been identified in our community yet, it is only a matter of time. If we all "shelter in place" for two weeks, only leaving for absolute essentials, then the spread will be dramatically impacted in our favor.

Yes, our patience will get tried, and yes, it will be an enormous pain to adapt to life in the house and yard for two weeks, and yes, we may have to be smart and conservative in our consumption, and yes, we may have financial and social difficulties result, but it is our price to pay; it is our contribution to the war effort; it is our sacrifice. None of those things will matter if we're dead. That's my opinion though and what my gut is inclined to do, but as a family, we are not there yet.

There are those, including some in my own household, who believe the general public is overreacting and that this is not different from the flu or other viruses we've battled in recent years. Actually, it is vastly different. Human beings have never been exposed to this virus before; therefore none of us have the immunity within us already. Furthermore, because it is relatively new to scientists and generally unknown in the research, we really don't know its communicability rate, its mortality rate, or its ability to mutate. We can make early predictions based on what has happened so far and what we are currently seeing, but there's really no data to support valid, long term predictions. So yes, there is the possibility we are over reacting, that mortality rates stay low, that health care systems do not become overwhelmed and incapacitated, but isn't one life worth saving, even if it is the life of someone that you do not know personally?

More importantly, we will not know if we are overreacting until it is too late to act. By the time we reach a point to say, "Wow, maybe we should have taken this more seriously", it is too late for our actions to have the necessary impact. Do we wait for 80% of the population to die before we take notice... 50%?... 30%? Or does someone you actually love and care about have to die? What is your personal threshold? When do you decide, "Okay, this may be something to which I should pay attention"? I would rather overreact now than to live with the regret of acting, "too little, too late." We must be vigilant to public warnings and strive to be proactive and kind in today's circumstances.

So, do you chose to be part of the problem or part of the solution? Be the one who stays home so we can do the right thing, model responsibly for our youth, and add this battle to a long list of American victories.