Some Pandemic Thoughts

Right now you’re probably tired of hearing the words “coronavirus,” “pandemic,” “COVID-19,” and so on. This post is not intended to add to your annoyance. Rather, my intention is to document some of my thoughts about what’s going on at the moment for the sake of history. As I write, we are in what is forecast to be the worst couple of weeks in terms of infections and death. In years to come, historians, researchers, and interested laypeople may be interested to know what people were thinking at the time. This post is my contribution to that public record. I doubt I will be saying anything no-one else has said, but nevertheless, here’s where I’m at.

As I write, the State of North Carolina is in “shut down.” Non-essential businesses have been told to close. Restaurants can only serve take-out food. Citizens have been told to stay home and only go out if necessary, and if you are around other people, to practice social distancing by keeping six feet apart. We are to wash our hands regularly, not touch our faces, and wear a mask outdoors. And all because of something we cannot see. Granted, in New York City and other major metropolitan areas, the hospitals bear evidence of the devastation caused by this virus. But North Carolina doesn’t appear to be as badly hit.

There are about 11 million people in our state, but so far only 33 reported deaths related to COVID-19. Here in Pitt County, on the east side of the state, we’ve had 36 reported cases and one related death out of about 180,000 people. This makes it all the more surreal to be sequestered like this. Of course, I understand the reasoning. “Flattening the curve” they call it, which just means making sure the virus doesn’t spread beyond the capacity of the medical system to cope with the afflicted. And it seems to be paying off, though in truth how can we know? This is a new virus, so we have no idea what it would have looked like for the U.S. if we had done nothing. We can only conjecture based on what happened with other countries. And while that is somewhat helpful, we are not Italy, France, or Spain.

Really, what this social distancing is buying us is time. Time to figure out the mechanics of the virus, how to limit its effects, and ultimately how to prevent it infecting people. We’re also trying to figure out when we can all get back to something like normal. When is it safe to go back to our offices, our concerts, our ball parks? At the moment no-one is sure. It’s possible the authorities might start letting the less affected areas return to normality, and gradually let up on the brakes in counties and states as cases decline. But to do that, we need to be sure our hospitals are ready for a resurgence, because no-one’s sure we’ll ever really be rid of this thing. Like the flu, it’s possible this will evermore be part of our seasonal allergy mix.

Beyond the virus itself, however, there is a fear of what the measures our government has taken might mean for the future. In a month, we have gone from the lowest unemployment in 50 years to the highest since the Depression. While it’s very possible a lot of those jobs will return after this is over (whatever “over” looks like), there are jobs and small businesses that will be among the virus’s fatal victims. How much of the government overreach people have been willing to tolerate in an emergency will come back to haunt us? We will ever shake hands again? Will masks become a part of our culture as they are in many Asian countries? Only time will tell.

One thing is certain: this situation cannot go on for many more weeks. Our economy can’t tolerate it, and I don’t think many people will put up with it. I might be a home-bod, but many of my fellow citizens are not. And while we are thankful for the internet helping us stay connected, I think many are realizing how valuable in-person relationships are. We miss being in the same room with our friends.

Personally, I don’t feel nearly as affected as others. As I said, I’m a home-bod and I work from home. Life hasn’t changed much for me. My four working children still have their jobs. They are in food service, which is considered “essential” so their workplaces remain open. The ones in my family most affected are the three children who serve food in a retirement facility. Because the elderly are most at risk, especially those with health issues, they have to take extra precautions, including having their temperatures taken when they arrive at work, and answering questions about their health before they are allowed in.

The biggest change for me is church. Since the governor has banned gatherings of more than 10, churches are prohibited from meeting at this time. Our pastors have been live-streaming their sermons which is helpful, but it’s not church. I think it’s a sign of our culture that worship services are not considered “essential.” All pretense that this country is in any way Christian, or has anything other than a secular outlook has been shattered by this virus. There are so far only a couple of states (Arizona and Florida) whose governors have included worship services among the “essential” functions that can continue to meet. But everyone else, from the Federal government on down, has told worshipers to stay home for now.

This may seem a reasonable request under the circumstances, but I don’t think it is. If we truly respect the First Amendment and the free practice of religion, we should treat worship services as we do other “essential” functions in our society. We should ask that churches (and other religious institutions) do their best to practice social distancing, and keep their facilities as clean as possible, but insist they continue to gather for worship and prayer. I know many would be willing to accommodate. During the first week of social distancing, before the “stay home” mandate came down, our church met in three separate services. The first service was for the over 50s and they sat on the left side of the church. The second was for the under 50s with non-nursery-aged children. They sat on the right side. The deacons then sprayed and cleaned all the seats in preparation for the third service, which was for the under 50s with nursery-aged kids. This seems like a lot of work, but we’d be willing to do that every week for the sake of being able to meet together for worship.

It’s this kind of government intrusion that many fear most. While they will grin and bear it for a season, there is the concern that it sets a precedent. Will future governments feel at liberty to call a national emergency so they can invoke these powers again because we did it now? As many have said, while we are rightly concerned to solve the current crisis, we need to be sure the cure doesn’t end up being worse than the disease.

There’s more I could say, but I guess that’ll do for now. Stay well everyone. Now, go watch some funny animal videos on YouTube. 🙂