The Third Way

     We seem to have adopted a 3 pronged approach to dealing with COVID 19. We should examine it,  if for no other reason than because it's so screamingly stupid.  Our Founding Fathers may have hit on something.  They may have found a way for a society to never actually mature.  None of that lugubrious, sober-sided stuff for us. In some way, some have decided we don't have to make sense as long as we make money.

    History going back at least 2000 years shows us the only sure-fire response to an epidemic or a pandemic is quarantine. Give the malady nowhere to go and it dies out. We tried that and within a certain group, it's been very successful. We have found unique and creative ways to deal with the isolation. To a large degree, we have even maintained a sense of humor. 

    Another idea is "herd immunity".  There's no clear explanation of how or why that would actually work but carried to the predicted extreme it would produce in excess of 5 million dead Americans.   'Well, if he dies, he dies. Screw it.  Let's have another beer.'  I can't imagine that as a government policy but a lot of the Trump people still think that's the way to go.

   Another approach is to rely on science and vaccination.  That worked on smallpox, polio, whooping cough and on and on. In the next year or so we will see how that works. The anti-vaxxers have made a contribution to that effort to secure the herd whether they realize it or not. They've managed to start a little backburn of active covid to mop up what the science has missed. It's a good way to cull the stupid ones out and make us all stronger.

    So, this is what we have done. One segment of the population isolated, social distanced, washed hands, wore masks, waited for the vaccine and prayed when appropriate. The other segment said, "Party on Ted."  Freely picked their noses and prayed the vaccine gets here in time for Grandma and Grandpa and Mom and Dad.  There is a portion of that segment that prays at the drop of a hat anyway so, how much that counts I'm not sure but some certainly have made money if that's what they were praying for.

    There is a third prong. Another segment that dealt with the pandemic in a not so unique or creative way. They died.

    They died and there is increasing reason to believe hundreds of thousands of them died needlessly. That IS stupid.