Coronavirus: A Year Ago

The first recorded case of coronavirus occurred a year ago. Since then the world has changed for billions of people. All because of a little virus. It only took a year.

When did you decide that covid was a big deal? We all have different 'fact markers' that make us feel like something is true that's on a sliding scale before we actually have solid information. I ordered N95 masks in December 2019. I saw the footage in China and something clicked: oh this is going to be bad. I turned out to be right. But I didn't have the same reaction to avian flu or swine flu. 

We all have a sliding scale of when something becomes 'real' for us. Some of my friends got 'corona woke' in February. Others snapped awake when there was a shutdown in March. And still others said 'this shutdown is stupid.'

I still remember the Richard Nelson Apple Family play where the conservative characters asked 'when did you decide that Sarah Palin was stupid before she actually turned out to be stupid?' I laughed at the time and thought 'what does it matter when I decided it? I was RIGHT!' But now I realize what he's talking about. At a certain point -before Palin actually revealed her ignorance- I made a subtle judgment in my head that this person was idiotic. What were the markers? Was it the overextended vowels and 'OOO's in her speech that reminded me of Fargo? Was it the phrasing of 'gosh darn' and other folkism that made me roll my eyes? I don't know but at some point when she was introduced to the public as a VP nominee I heard her, listened to her, and something clicked. A judgment: dumb. Now, then I found supporting facts to back up my judgment and the mainstream media's narrative aligned with my judgment so I felt 'right' but I could have easily been wrong. She could have turned out to be a genius and I judged her b/c she sounded like a person who adds eight O's to the word moose. 

Some times I try to remember that when someone has not clicked yet to reality...or my decision that this is the main reality we should be focusing on. I remember we're on a sliding scale and what's going to make them 'click' is going to be different from me. But I hope their stubbornness won't prevent them from having a realization. I hope that the fear of making a bad judgment won't make them double down, like some Republicans whose dying covid breath is 'this is a hoax.' 

Herman Cain is as dead as Godfather's Pizza b/c he made a judgment AND THEN he was unwilling to change it. Don't be afraid of being wrong. It's a much worst fate to die stubborn than to live to be corrected.