Another Fine Mess !

How many of you recall Laurel and Hardy? They were a comedy team back in silent films and then in movies till the mid-fifties. I enjoyed them but more important they were my dad’s favorites. He could watch the same episode multiple times, and enjoy it just as much or even more the second, third, or fourth time. Stan Laurel played the bumbling foil to the the pompous Oliver Hardy. Usually at least once during each film Hardy would somewhat caustically, although entirely expected, say to Laurel, “Well, this is another fine mess you’ve got us into!”

With this present coronavirus situation,  my initial comment to no one in particular is: “This is another fine mess you’ve gotten us into!” Yes, I think that China is to blame. However, I am not here to throw any stones, but rather to try to focus on . . . “What’s next?” 

I firmly believe that if this were not an election year, we would not have dug ourselves into this deep deep hole. From the git-go the Democrats and the main-stream-media were out to get and trap the President, and they may have succeeded in causing an overly dramatic response when compared to the H1N1 Swine flu pandemic of 2009-2010 when President Obama had a worshiping media praising his every move. Be that as it may, as I pointed out earlier, I am not here to throw stones, but to try to figure out how to get out of this “fine mess.”

Last week, the President outlined that each state would be responsible for navigating itself out of these troubled waters. In every state there will be some sort of a relaxation of social distancing with each state setting their own time table for the speed at which progress is going to occur. Many states will be focused on what’s happening in adjacent states or in states with comparable populations. Unless there is a significant drop in the rate of new infections as the weather warms up, there will undoubtedly be setbacks, with the rate of new infections accelerating instead of decelerating. When this occurs, the decision that each individual state will have to make is either to press on or to retreat. In my opinion, the right decision will be to press on and call the raise, so to speak. Those states that fold to this increased pressure will have increasing social upheaval as the ordinary citizen will be “done!”

The second main problem that wii occur as these social isolation diktats are relaxed will involve letting people go back to work. When? How? Testing? Testing who? “This is another fine mess you’ve gotten us into!” Someone who knows close to nothing, will think that some sort of testing will be necessary to try to figure out who will be allowed to return to work. Do you test for antibodies to the virus or do you test for the virus itself? If the antibody test is negative, meaning that the individual has not had the virus . . . then what? Back to work or wait until that individual gets sick, and then gets the antibody. A mess! If the test for the virus itself is positive then what? Two weeks of isolation? . . . even though that individual is asymptomatic and perhaps already back to work. If I were asymptomatic and working, I would not have any test done on myself, as all that can happen is bad! I do not think that the government can force anyone to have his blood tested, or if the result of that can can be publicized. “Another fine mess . . . !”

The third main problem involves schools. A lot of children without access to wi-fi will have lost basically a semester of school. Pass them all anyway? Did anybody think about this before closing all schools? At this date should we let all of the school children return to their school? If so when? Do the school children need a blood test? If so . . . dream on! Chaos! “Another fine mess . . .!”

All of this talk about testing assumes that whichever test is chosen will have no false positives and no false negatives. This is not a realistic assumption, and remember that the government, either federal or state, will be administering and tracking these tests – How do you spell snafu with capital letters? 

And finally, when all of this confusion settles out, what is going to happen next fall if the virus comes back and there is neither herd immunity nor a vaccine?

“Another fine mess . . . !”

My solution: 

In May each state can do whatever it wishes at whatever speed it wants in order to usher back normality. On June 1st back to work, no restrictions. Open everything. School will also start on June 1st. High schools, grade schools, and pre-schools – all full time. Both state sponsored colleges and private colleges are on their own, but are encouraged to get back to normal operations quickly. The school year which will start on June 1st will be extended to July 15 to make up for all the school lost during the shutdowns.

Will some people die as a result of the opening up of our economy? Yes, without question, but unless we act soon the disastrous effects on our economy might last for years. Does it matter if someone dies in June or July as opposed to next fall if the virus comes back? Many many people will die from drug addiction and alcoholism exacerbated or brought on by this disastrous economy, and suicides will go up considerably. Will we count these deaths as a result of the virus, or as results of our so-called cure? 

Why should the rest of the country pay for what has happened in  New York and New Jersey? Answer: They shouldn’t!