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his feel-good phrase bombards us repeatedly from all forms of the media. It’s intended to soothe the angst of the omnipresent quarantine circumstances. While presented in statement form, many would argue that the words should end with a question mark.
In that case, the answer is “No.”
The environment resulting from the coronavirus/COVID 19 pandemic has evolved into questionable isolation tactics by bureaucrats, political battles and Americans turning on each other over differences of opinion.
Each person, each family, has differing views of the conditions thrust upon us because we are each affected in different ways.
The breadwinner of a household losing their entire income stream in a snap lives in a totally different environment than the employed household, the household with intact income or the retired person/couple with various forms of income.
While some are merely inconvenienced, for others it’s terrifying to see the income stream shut off in a day’s notice whilst the mailman still delivers the bills.
It is arrogant and wrong for those with a fail-safe income to belittle those without as selfish.
Irrespective of one’s position, the common-denominator shared emotion is fear.
One side is fearful of becoming infected under any circumstance and another is fearful of literally losing everything from their business to their home and all assets.
The non-opening stance breeds another fright.
It’s the woman who discovered a lump in her breast two months ago and cannot see her doctor or get a biopsy. She resides 24/7 consumed with the worst what-ifs; the man who was told to make an appointment for chemotherapy but learned he could not; the decrepit person in constant pain who cannot get the scheduled hip replacement and the chronically ill missing regular appointments for various testing and follow-ups.
Whose fear should be deemed greater?
Supposedly, every human in America is under the umbrella of the danger of being infected by COVID-19, but how each of us maneuvers the quarantine is not the same.
It’s reasonable for people to be frustrated after seven to eight weeks of steadfast compliance with the stay-at-home directive, and then hear “leaders” begin tossing out quarantine extension dates with no visible reasoning other than the virus is still out there.
Well, yes it is, but that blanket reason could mean America waiting months on end to “be safe.”
What was so special about May 15 anyway?
Why not May 6, May 11?
As that chosen date nears, some mouthpieces speak of extensions to June, July and beyond to open businesses. Many people are suspicious and with good cause.
Gov. Gavin Newsom recently said it’ll be months before you can get a haircut. Well, who’s cutting his? Someone certainly is.
There are a couple of thoughts that cannot be ignored. One is that some people, whom most of us have never heard of before, are presently in the celebrity limelight. If conditions start directing back to some semblance of normalcy, the celebrity disappears.
Secondly, some mayors and governors are hesitant to consider opening up businesses because they are looking at their next political step and don’t want to be tainted if there’s a rise in bad numbers.
That’s not leadership; it’s self-serving cowardice.
Irrespective of opening up, there’s bound to be a rise in the bad numbers as more testing is done and certainly as long as deaths are deemed as COVID-19 deaths irrespective of all other pre-existing conditions.
The latter is a sham.
The public will never know the true number of deaths that are solely attachable to COVID 19. For example, the death of someone suffering from the late stages of lung cancer will be recorded as a COVID-19 death not only if they were exposed but also because perhaps they could have been.
Author and radio talk show host Dennis Prager tells this very similar story about a dear friend of his.
I have faith in the vast majority of the American people. They’ve proven their grit and compliance up to this point, but now the push-back is happening. Lording governors and mayors are foisting their one-size-fits-all mandates on those they see as lesser than them and the edge has been reached.
Americans are full of ingenuity and common sense. Business owners know their territory. They will not carelessly toss out the successful steps taken to date and be reckless in opening up their operations.
For those who want to restart, give them a chance to enact their plans of behavior and sanitation and work toward opening up America’s economy.
For those who want to and can stay closed, that’s their choice.
Locally, I am dismayed that our mayor has not taken the time or opportunity to meet with the various city business owners and discuss what can be partially and sensibly opened up in Santa Clarita.
Form plans, talk with our area’s county Supervisor Kathryn Barger; get off the cozy dime and listen to the people who bring in the revenue that supports this city. It’s past time for the city of Santa Clarita to have leadership and not blindly sheep-follow the obliteration happening in the SCV.
Obedience has slid into the feeling of oppression and suppression, and the masses will rightfully rebel.
Betty Arenson is a Santa Clarita resident. “Right Here, Right Now” appears Saturdays, and rotates among local Republicans.
