SO MANY QUESTIONS

How many lives did the shutdown save? Or more to the point, how many more people would be dead right now if we hadn't shut down? I hear some folks talk like the shut down was too much, that it was hysteria, that social media fanned the flames of mass hysteria, the we had pandemics before without shutting down, and on and on. I get that it sucks to be in shut down, to have jobs lost, friends and family cut off from one another, and bars closed. We like to be out and about, to hug, to be close to one another, to go to concerts and shows. So I think part of that reaction in natural. Human nature. But I still think the most important question to ask is how many more people would be dead right now if we hadn't shut down. Today, according to various sources, over 7,000,000 have contracted the virus, and over 400,000 have died from it.  Here in America, we've lost 110,000 people so far. That's a lot. And the numbers aren't stopping today or any time soon. Most likely, there will be a second wave. There will be more people lost. More families torn asunder. So again, I ask, how many people did we save? How many more can we save? What are we doing, moving forward, to make sure we don't have to shut down again?

Is it me, or are some folks acting like the pandemic is over already? I go out and see people completely ignoring the idea of social distancing. Worse, I see some who treat those of us still trying to social distance with disdain. Sometimes it's a roll of the eyes. Other times it's a glare. And before you say it, yes, there should be more social distancing at the protests. All of them. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about when I take a walk or hike with my wife. When I go to the store. When I try to do what I can in our slightly re-opened but changed forever world. Last I checked, the virus has no vaccine yet, no treatment that guarantees you survive. It just is. And yet I see people desperately acting like none of this happened. And that is worrying.

Also, where are we with the virus? How much have we learned? Is there any better idea of how it spreads? What we should do to not spread it? What we should do when we go out? Is there any plan, whatsoever, to have the CDC do any more press conferences? Why are we getting more information from news shows, internet memes, and neighbors than from the federal government?

And last question today, what is the next step/plan for how to confront the economic burden this has placed on everyone? Is there discussion of a national health plan? Is there a plan for free and easy testing for everyone in the country? Will there be a second stimulus package for the middle and working class? Why haven't all the first stimulus checks gone out yet? We still haven't received ours, and when we check on the website or call the useless info line at the IRS, they just tell us it's being processed and to be patient. And does anyone believe anything the President says about anything anymore?

Here's a song, a crossover because this makes me think of strife, unrest, and injustice. It's Marvin Gaye singing What's Going On?