Staying Lockdown?

 

Heard in the news today that my locality will remain in lockdown.  The logical next question is till when?  And the official answer from the government is: until a 14-day downward trend in the number of COVID-19 cases.

Understandably folks are getting antsy about staying at home, but I am actually okay with the provided answer.  When my family members traveled back from out of state, they had to self quarantine for 14 days as part of staying-at-home order to ensure no infection.

In fact, I prefer the answer than the “date certain” which is the wrong answer.  No one can predict the COVID-19 when will it be safe, let alone on a specific date.  I know political pressures are mounting to re-open business.  And I support a phased approach.

Something like: Phase One to re-open low-risk businesses first.  Parks, manufacturing plants, and other low density facilities would be the targets.  Wait for 5 to 6 weeks to see if the infection trends up, down or remains flat. Then Phase Two, and so on.

Re-opening needs to be implemented in a responsible way.  With a systematic approach, social distancing, and testing, we can control and navigate our way back and minimize the COVID-19 fatalities at the same time.

Are you locked down still?

Living Without Fear

 

Living without fear is a choice.  So much in life are worth celebrating. Every day is a miracle that we are part of its creation.  Partake in this creative process is a blessing. Why let fear robs that opportunity away.

Yes, COVID-19 has lots of people afraid.  After all, over 84 thousand people died in the US from it (and 296 thousands worldwide) thus far.  Who knows how many more before it’s over.  But why dwell on that?  Better to focus on what is personally achievable instead.

For instance, I run for my health.  I would not let the COVID-19 stop me from running, or living for that matter.  I practice social distancing for sure.  But I still wave while crossing others safely during my run.  Social distancing is not social isolation. I am not going to let anyone rob me of my life.

If anything, the pandemic provides a common bond for us all.  Something we can relate to and striving toward its eradication, a shared goal everywhere on this planet.  Until that happens and beyond, I will live without fear.

What worries do you have about the pandemic?

Bingeing

 

While staying at home, one of the popular releases is bingeing. Whether watching Netflix, surfing internet, eating junk foods, or any other excessive indulgences considered.  The reason is simple: people are bored and are looking for ways to fight off their boredom.

Not pointing finger here, because I too being there, done that (and still do at times).  Therefore I sympathize with their causes. My personal favorite is snacking on nuts, any kinds of nuts: peanuts, pistachios, walnuts.  You name it.

Yes, nuts are healthier than the typical snacks or sweets.  But problem with bingeing is the excessive part. Just can’t stop.  As a result, I have added cushions to my midriff and weights to my scale. And of course I also feel the difference when I run.

Be that as it may.  I suppose, going off the rail in this unusual time is understandable, everything considered.  Maybe bingeing is considered compassionate toward self?

Binge much?

Painting With Words

 

Painter uses a brush, and writer employees a pen.  Both are sharing a story just their mediums are different.  But their creative processes are more similar than what the end products appear – book versus painting.

Perhaps because I can’t paint, words are more appealing to me. They are expressive and can describe different colors, shapes, smells, and sounds.  To convey a story, words may demand longer attention span from readers than a painting.  But not always.

My favorite is by Ernest Hemingway: For Sale: baby shoes, never worn.  In six words, it shows that more is not necessarily better.  What unsaid are like the blank spaces on a canvass  leaving more to the recipients’ imagination.

Hemingway is known for his direct writing style.  Most other writings take more, much more, than six words.  But the idea of painting with words remains valid.

What is your preferred writing style?

 

Week In Review – 10 May 2020

During this COVID-19 pandemic, clarity is rare while uncertainty is rampant. Nobody knows how it will end.  Meanwhile, bad news fill the page: economy tanking, death toll climbing, unemployment skyrocketed. The future as far as anyone can tell is gloomy.

But these catastrophes are our human responses to the pandemic and bear little resemblance to what in the natural order.  Don’t believe it?  Check for yourself.  The outside world looks indifferent to the sufferings we are experiencing.

As far as Mother Nature is concerned, sun is still shining, trees growing and birds chirping  All ready to welcoming the warmer and brighter climate of the coming summer. Nothing unusual, except maybe the polar vortex.

Therefore, much of what we are feeling can be ameliorated if only our leaders are faithful to what they are elected to serve and not mired in the politics.  And we do our part such as the election in November to keep them accountable.

Stay safe & have a nice week!

Negative Liberty

 

“Negative liberty” is a term stands for “freedom from interference by other people” per the Wikipedia.  It deals with external restrains. For example, freedom of speech, religion, and so on in the US Constitution restrain the government from interfering with individual liberties.

But what about the Stay-at-home, wearing mask, or other social distancing orders?  Do they violate our liberty?  I believe the answer is no.  To explain why, let me introduce another term “positive liberty.”

Positive liberty stands for possession of the power and resource to fulfill one’s own potential (Wikipedia). It deals with internal restrains.  To the extent it entails the responsible exercise of free-will under the rule of  law without depriving other’s right.

So government leaders have to weigh the individual liberty with public health concerns in applying the social distancing rules.  And we as individuals have to be responsible in exercising our free-will. Whether the rules are successful or popular, that is a different debate.

What do you think about the government’s stay-at-home orders? Too much? Not enough?

Polar Vortex In The Forecast

 

Record cold for May. source: Accuweather.com

The arctic jet stream from the North will pay us at the Mid Atlantic a visit this weekend. If we get snow, it will be a first for me this late in the year.  Either way, I will be prepared for my morning run.

Climate change anybody?

“Justice Is Blind”

 

The phrase “justice is blind” took on a different meaning today.

US Attorney General William Barr dropped all charges against Michael Flynn. Yes, the disgraced former White House National Security advisor who pleaded guilty for lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation during the Russian investigation.

This amounts to a slap on the collective face of American people, blatant disregard to the American system of justice and insult to the American values. Bill Barr should be dragged in front of the US Senate and face the consequence for pulling such a political stunt.

Or better yet, Barr should be impeached.

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.  ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

Feeling Rudderless

 

Never have I felt more adrift than I do now.  Surely, in the midst of social distancing against this COVID-19 outbreak, it’s understandable that anxiety runs high.  But that is not what causing my sense of lost.

The problem for me is that I don’t understand how our country is being run.  Take this news for instance: the White House’s coronavirus task force would be shut down and be replaced with a new group geared toward reopening the country. What!

Mr. Trump wants to focus on him getting re-elected.  I get that.  But at the expense of more American lives?  Right now the pandemic has hit all fifty states. What people need to know foremost is how we are doing in fighting the virus. What’s more important?

Yes, many are working hard to treat the infected and to develop a vaccine.  But these efforts are not impromptu.  Shouldn’t the federal government be coordinating all our resources in seeking the solution?  And any communication to bridge the gap helps.

Doing away with the Task Force just does not make sense to me.

Am I the only one lost?

Vote-By-Mail?

 

It is the month of May. And more than half of the states have openned or partially openned their businesses from the lockdown. The impact of such moves is yet to be determined, but surely further spread of the virus from the increased contacts.

Regardless the outcome, one risk we don’t have to take is the general election in November. The election is mandated by the US Constitutions.  With the on-going COVID-19, voter turnout is a real concern. Hence, the alternative of vote-by-mail.

In a USA TODAY poll, two-thirds of Americans support voting by mail as an alternative to voting in person on Election Day during the coronavirus pandemic. And the procedure is nothing new. Five states already all vote-by-mail anyway. And every state has provisions for absentee ballot according to the USA.gov.

So why not do it? You ask? Apparently, Mr. Trump and the Republican Party want to maintain the status quo and their incumbent advantage by not risking anything different form the 2016 election.  Plus foreign influences from Russia and China are legitimate concerns.

We still have 6 months till the election.  Seems the prudent thing to do is get-ready now: printing the ballots, mock elections to work out the kinks.  So to avoid a train collision in November.

Will you vote by mail?