Now where were we?
So far we’ve established the reasons why, months ago, I begrudgingly accepted that Ms. Rona wouldn’t be a one-time guest appearance in the United States sitcom. Instead, her name would start popping up in the opening credits – a classic telltale sign we should expect her presence until the end of the season, at minimum. Quick refresher why: ill-equipped healthcare system + major wealth disparity (i.e. most citizens and businesses are one disaster away from bankruptcy) + sociopathic government that ignores the crisis until it’s far too late + society that values capital over human life +… honestly, so much more. The point is, a lot of nerds like me saw this coming.
Now kick-offs the portion of the COVID series where I get extra lame and hopefully not too sanctimonious. A substantial reason why I was prompted to write this blog? So much of what I’ve experienced suggests that the majority of Americans do not grasp that we’re living out A Series of Unfortunate Events. I heard a woman at work proclaim that “coronavirus is all hysteria” the day we were instructed to start working from home. I’ve seen acquaintances treat social distancing as a punch line online. I’m familiar with the state of Florida.
At one point, I may or may not have posted this on my Instagram Story in response:
I know, I know, snarkily shaming people isn’t me being peak constructive, as satisfying as it may be. But I’m trying to be legitimately helpful now, promise!
That starts by pushing the cold, unsexy facts front and center because there’s a boatload of misinformation flying around. You have the CDC originally claiming that masks will not protect us from the virus, purely because there was a mask shortage in the US. (Half of me understands the rationale behind this, the other half of me is like, “Y’all, we already have ENOUGH resistance to professional opinion in this country, let’s try to keep it reliable, alright?”) You have the World Health Organization disagreeing with experts on how far the virus travels. You have states easing up on stay at home orders, giving the masses the false reassurance they’re safe now. Obviously, every word out of the White House means jack shit.
So, let me cut through the noise of what is and isn’t a social no-no. First of all, quarantine parties shouldn’t ever be a thing, because one thing we know for certain is that humans can be asymptomatic carriers. Or at least 99% of us realized this.
In other words, short of a test (which, for the record, haven’t always been the most reliable), there’s no way to confirm whether or not your buddy caught the virus while browsing produce at Whole Foods or even from something as innocuous as an Amazon package. (And yes, the latter may seem improbable, but coronavirus can live on cardboard, so let’s stay vigilant with those 20-second scrubs.) Look at South Korea, where their cases had seemingly gotten under control and then one individual – “Patient 31” – singlehandedly caused a massive spike in cases.
This segues into the ever-popular ‘six feet’ social distancing standard and how many of us have incorrectly interpreted it. The reality is, six feet distance isn’t an excuse to continue with your daily routine and chill with your crew as long as they’re an arm’s distance away. Experts are advising us to keep that distance for essential tasks, like grocery shopping and picking up medication and sobbing outside our ex’s house. The entire point of this measurement is to estimate approximately how far you must be to not risk infection – but the assumption is that these are unavoidable circumstances.
Naturally, one may think, “But obviously that’s changed now, states are beginning to open up?” Fair question. I’ll dive into why we shouldn’t exactly place our trust in the demon that is Governor Abbott in part 3, but in regards to what certified epidemiologists are declaring, it isn’t exactly cut and dry. Many maintain that flattening the curve only means that hospitals can accommodate us, not that coronavirus is less of a threat – and until there’s mass testing, we can’t relax measures (i.e. they’re firmly Team #StayTheHellAtHome). Other experts argue that in areas we’re observing a downward trend, people can begin making teensy allowances. But don’t get too pumped, that doesn’t translate to “go ahead and hang with your BFFs, no worries for the rest of your days!” There are still non-negotiable precautions to take when socializing:
- Try to stay outside, because Ms. Rona thrives in a closed environment.
- Everyone who is older than two years of age? They should be rocking a mask the whole time.
- Six feet distance applies to everyone outside your household unit the whole time. So greeting your neighbor with a warm embrace kind of defeats the purpose.
Keep in mind that six feet is the bare minimum – especially because it isn’t any sort of golden metric of separation to begin with. Fun fact: that number is derived from a model of disease transmission developed in the 1930s… and nearly a century later, I’m thinking it could probs use a little refresher. If that doesn’t convince you, professors have even done studies that suggest six feet likely isn’t enough, and if you’re really bored out of your skull, you can peruse this study conducted in Belgium and the Netherlands about how we ought to aim for five meters distance with walkers and runners.
Believe me when I say that relaying all of this doesn’t exactly spark joy for me. Ever since early-mid March, with the exception of essential workers, my boyfriend/roomie is the only person I’ve interacted with face-to-face. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love his company, but I would also equally love to watch Fleabag and blackout with the gals. (Luckily, William is also a big Fleabag fan.) And personally, even with laxer restrictions, I’m keeping myself on house arrest for the unforeseeable future.
But I do sympathize with those living alone, and after months of no human contact, acknowledge the toll that solitude has on mental health. However, there is an abundance of evidence that shows the dire consequences when we don’t adhere to social distancing protocol with even one friend. So if you make the choice to socialize, ensure that every member of your group is ticking off every safety box. Because the unfortunate truth is that the longer we all kind of, sort of social distance, the longer this lasts, and the harder it will be for our country to recover. And you want to enjoy brunch guilt-free eventually, don’t you?
But in all seriousness, brunch is the least of our concern; 90,000 Americans have already died and we’re a good year away from a vaccine. We have to collectively minimize risk as much as possible because it’s at the expense of human life. And ultimately, we need to take the path of most caution because we simply don’t know much about coronavirus at all. We don’t know the full range of risk factors, we don’t know what percentage of adults are asymptomatic, we don’t know whether the virus will subside in warmer months like the flu (though as of now, all signs are pointing towards “LOL nope” on this one), we don’t even know if people who get infected have immunity. Yes, most experts believe those who recover likely have some degree of immunity, but there’s no conclusive data as to what that degree is and for how long that lasts, and even antibody tests don’t guarantee that someone has true immunity. We just don’t know.
(If you won’t listen to me, at least listen to Dr. Mike. He wears glasses, so that makes him a credible source, right?)
Part 3 coming soon.
The Art of Being Basic 