Level Four Lockdown: Day Twelve
Curfew. 8 p.m.
Mood: Too busy to think about that
My cousin had the following meme on his Facebook page, and I've been pondering it for a while.
I will preface this with the fact that my cousin lives in the USA and is on the red side of things. I was talking to my aunt (his mother) who can't quite believe her kids' politics, but she's a dyed in the wool Democrat and I think a lot of Democrats have been pondering America for the last few years.
But still, my Trump voting cousin had this on his page and it got me thinking. Which is not strange. I ponder a lot of the stuff I see coming off their pages, just for the other point of view. I've had the odd minor run in with my cousin about gun laws. They're American. I'm not. They're pro gun. I'm not (Again, I'll preface this with the fact I'm not anti-gun, but if you're not a cop, in military service, on a farm, or a member of a gun club, what do you need one for? I'm very proud of our gun laws.). I remember one discussion. He asked me who would protect me from our government and the tyrants. Hmm, I think I said that was why I voted, and I liked living in a country with few guns, and seemingly fewer nut jobs - but that was well before COVID.
But I digress. My cousins have been raised in very different countries under very different circumstances, in slightly different times.
But I wonder how they'd react to the my views on COVID-19.
Am I afraid of this wretched virus?
No.
Do I understand the risk?
Yes.
Do I prioritise fear over life?
I don't think so.
I think more I'm prioritising the safety of myself and the community over my so called 'freedoms'. The act of wearing a bit of cloth over my face when I'm in public seems to be a paltry act if it helps to minimise transmission. Same with working home, observing the curfew, staying away from people and not being able to life a normal life. I'm okay with this. I'm from the school where the safety of the community comes paramount to my personal freedoms.
You then hear about the anti-maskers, the anti-vaxxers, the sovereign citizens, the libertarians and every other type of wing nut out there on social media.
To be frank, I've had to turn off - remove myself from the dialogue.
I'm doing what's asked of me. Staying home, respecting the curfew, minimising going out, socialising online. Yes, it's boring and a bit hard. I'm glad I know how to look after my mental health. I'm grateful for friends and the cat.
Am I compliant? Yeah, probably. Am I observant of the laws? Yes. Do I feel put out by this? Not really It's boring, there are hard days. I hate seeing the community suffering as badly as it is.
Do I feel controlled? No.
But I see not doing everything to surpress the virus as far more dangerous than letting it run rife through the community. Watching it as it's decimated our aged care homes has been hard enough - what would be it be like to have it truly rage through the population? Nobody has immunity to this. you don't know how bad you're going to get it if you do get it. They don't know the long term consequences of catching this awful bug. The thought of dying, drowning with your lungs full of pus really doesn't appeal.
We have another month of this Stage Four lockdown. Keeping a clear head seems the easiest way through it. I've stopped watching the news for the most part, getting the numbers and a bit of commentary from the newspapers, rather than social media. Ensuring I get out for that necessary hour a day is critical. The masks don't bother me. Certainly not worth getting into a fight at Bunnings over.
Sure, the extra police presence is a bit disconcerting - but the six cops on bikes I saw around Richmond this morning appeared pretty harmless. The extra cops and PSOs have been around for months. They're just there, in the background doing not much.
Some would say I am prioritising fear over life by my compliance.
I'm not afraid. I just see complying with the regulations as a public service. It's nice to think not only of myself for a change.
Today's song:
Curfew. 8 p.m.
Mood: Too busy to think about that
My cousin had the following meme on his Facebook page, and I've been pondering it for a while.
I will preface this with the fact that my cousin lives in the USA and is on the red side of things. I was talking to my aunt (his mother) who can't quite believe her kids' politics, but she's a dyed in the wool Democrat and I think a lot of Democrats have been pondering America for the last few years.
But still, my Trump voting cousin had this on his page and it got me thinking. Which is not strange. I ponder a lot of the stuff I see coming off their pages, just for the other point of view. I've had the odd minor run in with my cousin about gun laws. They're American. I'm not. They're pro gun. I'm not (Again, I'll preface this with the fact I'm not anti-gun, but if you're not a cop, in military service, on a farm, or a member of a gun club, what do you need one for? I'm very proud of our gun laws.). I remember one discussion. He asked me who would protect me from our government and the tyrants. Hmm, I think I said that was why I voted, and I liked living in a country with few guns, and seemingly fewer nut jobs - but that was well before COVID.
But I digress. My cousins have been raised in very different countries under very different circumstances, in slightly different times.
But I wonder how they'd react to the my views on COVID-19.
Am I afraid of this wretched virus?
No.
Do I understand the risk?
Yes.
Do I prioritise fear over life?
I don't think so.
I think more I'm prioritising the safety of myself and the community over my so called 'freedoms'. The act of wearing a bit of cloth over my face when I'm in public seems to be a paltry act if it helps to minimise transmission. Same with working home, observing the curfew, staying away from people and not being able to life a normal life. I'm okay with this. I'm from the school where the safety of the community comes paramount to my personal freedoms.
You then hear about the anti-maskers, the anti-vaxxers, the sovereign citizens, the libertarians and every other type of wing nut out there on social media.
To be frank, I've had to turn off - remove myself from the dialogue.
I'm doing what's asked of me. Staying home, respecting the curfew, minimising going out, socialising online. Yes, it's boring and a bit hard. I'm glad I know how to look after my mental health. I'm grateful for friends and the cat.
Am I compliant? Yeah, probably. Am I observant of the laws? Yes. Do I feel put out by this? Not really It's boring, there are hard days. I hate seeing the community suffering as badly as it is.
Do I feel controlled? No.
But I see not doing everything to surpress the virus as far more dangerous than letting it run rife through the community. Watching it as it's decimated our aged care homes has been hard enough - what would be it be like to have it truly rage through the population? Nobody has immunity to this. you don't know how bad you're going to get it if you do get it. They don't know the long term consequences of catching this awful bug. The thought of dying, drowning with your lungs full of pus really doesn't appeal.
We have another month of this Stage Four lockdown. Keeping a clear head seems the easiest way through it. I've stopped watching the news for the most part, getting the numbers and a bit of commentary from the newspapers, rather than social media. Ensuring I get out for that necessary hour a day is critical. The masks don't bother me. Certainly not worth getting into a fight at Bunnings over.
Sure, the extra police presence is a bit disconcerting - but the six cops on bikes I saw around Richmond this morning appeared pretty harmless. The extra cops and PSOs have been around for months. They're just there, in the background doing not much.
Some would say I am prioritising fear over life by my compliance.
I'm not afraid. I just see complying with the regulations as a public service. It's nice to think not only of myself for a change.
Today's song:
No comments:
Post a Comment