My Thoughts on The Coronavirus Pandemic

The Coronavirus is the biggest story of 2020 thus far. Its significance will grow now that the World Health Organization today declared it a pandemic.


Until now, my only comment on the subject occurred in late February when President Trump tabbed Vice-President Pence to head up the U.S. government's response. Given how the outbreak has begun to affect every facet of our lives the time has come for me to express my thoughts on the subject for whatever they might be worth.


Although the Coronavirus became a global public health concern at the end of January, it has only been over the past week or so that I every time I walk out into the streets of New York City nearly every conversation I hear is about the Coronavirus. The only other I ever experienced something like this was in the days following the September 11th attacks when I lived in Boston (no doubt those conversations in NYC were a thousand fold). The difference is that those conversations in 2001 concerned an event which had already occurred whereas with the Coronavirus conversations the discussion revolves around an event where the worst is yet to come.


At this point, I have not been directly impacted by the Coronavirus although this could soon change. I cannot say the same for others in my family. One of my uncles is unable to visit my aunt who is afflicted with Alzheimer's at a long term care facility as per New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's directive. My uncle is far from alone in this situation.


I know a number of people who have been ordered to work from home and wonder if this is a viable long term solution. And what of the people who have the kind of job where one cannot work from home?


Then you have universities implementing full fledged virtual learning such as Harvard University. Students on spring break have been asked not to return to campus while students living on campus have been given five days to leave their dorms and some of the students have nowhere to go. If nothing else, this new state of affairs is bound to baffle a certain orange feline.


This is going on at other universities. Parents with children who attend out of state academic institutions now must grapple with whether to have their kids come home or find a way to remain out of state.


What of the people of New Rochelle? Less than 25 miles north of NYC, the National Guard has been called in to place into containment. Given its predominantly Jewish population, I cannot help but wonder if we will see another spike in anti-Semitism as we have seen with anti-Chinese sentiment in Chinatowns across the world including NYC.




Yesterday morning, there was a lineup outside of ABC for Live with Kelly & Ryan. Today, they are going audience free and will for the foreseeable future following Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, The View and Good Morning America.


The St. Patrick's Day Parade in NYC is scheduled to proceed but Mayor de Blasio is evidently in discussion with organizers. Festivities have been cancelled in Dublin, in Chicago and in Boston. Next month's Boston Marathon might be spared, but who can say? And of what of sporting events, concerts and festivals? Coachella has been delayed until October.


Unless Bernie Sanders is smart enough to call it quits (I doubt it) then he and Joe Biden will debate in an empty room in Phoenix on Sunday night.


The MTA hasn't been shutdown, but de Blasio are Cuomo are strongly discouraging people from using it. I wonder how long it will be before NYC's Department of Parks and Recreation closes down swimming pools. Until they do, I will still be going. I will also continue to go bowling (as I will be this evening) until that option isn't available to me. Aside from washing my hands on a regular basis, the Coronavirus is beyond my control. I'm not going to let it dictate my life to the best of my ability. Simply put, I will make every effort to live my normal life.


I'm not taking a cavalier or devil may care attitude. I'm well aware of the fact we are in a dangerous global situation that is bound to get worse. Can our health care system handle millions of sick people in a short period of time? Will this lead to recession and economic collapse? Not to mention an escalation of hatred and scapegoating. Although one can speak out against xenophobia which arises from the Coronavirus whether I get sick or lose my job are matters over which I have limited control. Should I have to deal with them I will cross that bridge should it come. Otherwise, I carry on. I inhale and I exhale. I can do no more.