Life in the Time of COVID-19: How One Man’s Indifference (Trump’s) Has Shaped America’s Response to the Global Pandemic

Hello, there, Dear Reader. As I start this post, it’s 1:32 PM Eastern on Friday, November 13, 2020. Outside, the temperature is 82˚F (28˚C) under partly sunny skies. With humidity at 70% and the wind blowing at 4 MPH (7 KM/H), the feels-like temperature is 87˚F (31˚C). Today’s forecast calls for partly sunny skies – which, apparently, we have – and a high of 83˚F (28˚C). Tonight, the skies will be partly cloudy; the low temperature is expected to reach 70˚F (21˚C).

Well, here we are, a few short weeks away from Thanksgiving 2020, and America is still in the grip of the global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19. And instead of getting better nearly nine months into the “new normal” of lockdowns, social distancing, and the wearing of masks in public spaces, things are getting worse.

Don’t believe me? Here are the latest statistics, per the COVID-19 Dashboard by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU):[1]

Global Cases: 53,166,374

Global Deaths: 1,312,339

U.S. Cases: 10,675,820

U.S. Deaths: 243,044

To say that the U.S., which many of its citizens often claim that it is the best country in the world and that its health care system is unrivaled as far as quality of care and state-of-the-art medical tech and know-how go, is the No.1 nation as far as COVID-19 cases and related deaths is sad, infuriating, and embarrassing.

As I see it, this is the most obvious failure of leadership on the part of President Donald J. Trump, whose mishandling of the biggest public health crisis in a century has contributed to both the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the deaths of 243,044 men, women, and children throughout the U.S.

Even now, after Trump, his wife Melania, and many people in both his election campaign and White House staffs have come down with COVID-19, the President basically ignores the current spike in cases and deaths that Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s expert on contagious diseases and viruses, predicted as long ago as this summer. Instead, he pouts like a man-child over his Election 2020 loss and fights to hinder the transition of Presidential power from his ruinous Administration to the presumptive President-elect, Joe Biden.

If Trump had any iota of leadership skills and truly cared about all of us in the U.S., he would have taken the COVID-19 pandemic seriously and followed the various recommendations from such organizations as the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and prevention. More to the point, he should have been the first one to put partisan politics aside and encourage everyone – especially his “Y’all Qaeda” and “Vanilla ISIS” red cap-wearing fans – to follow the CDC’s most basic recommendations:

Alas, he has not, even though we know – thanks to journalist Bob Woodward of the Washington Post – that even when Trump was telling us a load of Grade A bovine fecal matter that COVID-19 was “the Democrats’ latest hoax” and that “it would go away soon,” he knew that the virus was dangerous yet he downplayed it so as not to upset “his” economy by creating a panic.

I have already written extensively about Trump’s failure to help “stop the spread” and save thousands of Americans who might have otherwise lived[2] had he acted, well, differently, so I won’t delve into that topic any further here.

However, I will note that Trump’s public disdain for science, social responsibility, and basic human decency are reflected in the behavior and utterances of his loyal followers, a.k.a. his “base.”

Consider: Today, PBS Newshour, one of the most respected TV news shows in the U.S., posted a link to this article on Facebook:

Fauci recommends masks at Thanksgiving gatherings if COVID-19 status unknown

In the comments section, many of the responses were rational and reflected an awareness that the pandemic is a public health issue and that everyone needs to act responsibly to prevent further spread of the virus and save more lives.

SG: If spreading a disease is your way of being thankful for your family, you don’t deserve your family. Love them enough to stay home.

JH: Dr. Fauci is repeating what other scientists and Drs. Have been saying for months. Wear the mask

And social distance. It is common sense.

EDM: Just don’t gather this year…let’s try to get this under some control….wear a mask when out…social distance…wash your hands !

But then there are “But muh freedom!” guys like this goofball, who has been in “Facebook jail” a few times for “supporting my President.”

JS: Dr. Fauci needs to mind his own beeswax. My family gatherings are none of the government’s concern. What’s next? Raids on homes who bought turkeys big enough to feed more than 10? FOAD.

In response to SG’s comment, a 61-year-old man, DG, chimes in. He writes:  SG, there is no guarantee tomorrow.

Further down on the article’s comment section, DG has this bit of wisdom to share:

Go do what you want to do. You are still Free

The absolutely worst comment I saw on this comments section comes from a woman, RM:

Fauci is crooked. Listen to yourselves! Your going to stop seeing your loved ones because these people tell you too????? Stop living in fear and get on with your lives as normal.  And take those disgusting germ infested masks off and breathe some fresh air for goodness sakes!!!!

And all of these comments were written by men and women who support Donald Trump and his public posturing of denialism and indifference to the general welfare of the American people.

Sickening…in every sense of the word!

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[1] As of 2:25 PM, November 13, 2020.

[2] Including Herman Cain, the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, one-time Presidential candidate, and loyal Trump supporter, who died on July 30 after being infected with SARS-CoV-2 at a Trump campaign rally in Tulsa, OK.