Been self-distancing more than five days? Too long, right? Out of toilet paper? Milk? Ready to take a risk to get them? Agree with Lt. Governor Dan Patrick of Texas on Fox?
He believes: “Lots of grandparents out there” agree with ending the shut-down of the economy. He channels Trump–“Let’s get back to work.” Code: To Hell with Risk and Death; let the old folks die. Que Mueran, los Viejitos!
I wasn’t going to write about the Corona Virus (COVID-19). On most of the TV stations (except Fox) it is “all Virus, all the time.” Easy to tire of it. Easy to tire of binge watching good or bad shows on TV. But, now, I must. Patrick is just too disgusting to not reply. If you are one who thinks the health experts, the World Health Organization, and common sense are wrong, silly, over-reaching, then Patrick/Trump/Patrick/Rand Paul/Patrick/Trump/Patrick/Fill in Blank Republican are all on your side. “Pack the Churches on Easter” says Donald Trump. (Patrick, evangelical member of 2nd Baptist Church of Houston will be there; maybe he’ll go out later and swim in the pool, like Rand Paul?)
The idea seems to be: don’t watch TV; don’t say the evil word, and it will miraculously go away. (Dr. Trump even proposes untested, potentially dangerous medicinal mixtures on national TV for the virus.) Or, despite evidence from Spring Break in Florida and Mardi Gras in New Orleans, yes, DO join those “packed crowds” in Church at Easter! That nasty virus might hurt deserving young people cavorting on beaches or in the French Quarter, but surely God won’t let it affect you or your family in Church—on Easter Sunday! Surely the U.S. won’t have to do things such as Spain, using a football arena as a giant morgue, to handle the dead.
Meanwhile, please, please don’t watch MSNBC or CNN; please don’t read the Rio Grande Guardian, the Washington Post, or the New York Times—they just bring bad news. They are verboten in Trump’s world. He, the Golden Calf, is to be obeyed, nay, worshiped; he seems to counsel: “Fear not for your life! Think only of your 401K. Think only of me, able to re-open my hotels.”
Wait—all that might be fine, until you—or your own grandparents (who refused to commit suicide, as Lt. Gov. Patrick’s advice might imply) or other members of your family who might need a mask or a respirator. By then, of course, it may be too late. Here in Hidalgo County, we will observe the curfew; we will obey the law and common sense; oh dear, did we over-react? But, rest assured, we old folks, nosotros, los viejitos, will rise up and greet Lt. Gov. Patrick, come his next bid for re-election. Let the insanity continue!
