Waking up from a bad dream…but wait!

I had a dream the other night that the world was infected with a deadly virus that started in a foreign country and spread rapidly around the globe. When it reached the United States, it affected more than 2 million people and killed more than 120,000 in less than six weeks, and was continuing to spread almost uncontrolled on the 19^th day of June.

One state – Florida—reported 17 consecutive days of more than 1,000 new cases per day, and at least 25 of the 50 states saw escalating numbers of positive test results.

While this was happening, doctors and epidemiologists were telling us that all we had to do to fight off this virus was stay at home for a few weeks, shut down non-essential businesses, avoid group gatherings, wear a mask when we went out in public and wash our hands a lot.

It was that simple…and we couldn’t do it.

We couldn’t do it because the president of the United States – who was worried about his chances of re-election – was slow to respond to the virus, telling the country that only a few people were sick and they were getting better, the virus would magically disappear when the weather got warmer and that masks weren’t necessary because they made him look silly.

(Never mind that the virus was also affecting countries with very hot climates, the number of cases was growing exponentially and the president – who wore orange makeup and combed his bleached hair from one side of his head to the middle and then toward the back – looked silly even without a mask.)   

We couldn’t do it because the president convinced a lot of sycophantic governors to reopen shuttered businesses too early, claiming that saving the economy was more important than saving people’s lives. When that happened, we forgot about masks and gloves and “social distancing” and flocked to beaches, malls, restaurants and parks to celebrate.

We couldn’t do it because pampered people of privilege – after only a few weeks of isolation – went stir crazy and suddenly decided they desperately needed haircuts, nail trims, beach vacations and family outings at the nearest bowling alley.

And we couldn’t do it because, sadly, we’re a nation full of greedy, thoughtless, under-educated and selfish people who don’t care about anyone but themselves…and have a twisted idea of the protections they think are afforded them by the Constitution. We’re surrounded by millions of people who refuse to wear masks to protect other people, and are quick to mock those who do wear masks to protect themselves and others.

It’s because of these thoughtless “Deplorables” that people like me – who are staying home and avoiding places where the virus is likely to spread – can’t go out to the supermarket now and then or enjoy anything resembling a normal life. It doesn’t matter if I wear my mask in public if other people are breathing, talking, yelling, coughing, hacking and sneezing all over me. It won’t matter to any of them if I catch the coronavirus, and it won’t matter to most of them if I’m dead.    

So it is that three months after the first cases of coronavirus started to appear in the U.S., the president is preparing for an indoor rally that will attract 19,000 people to a convention center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, (and thousands more to an overflow venue) where they will pack in like sardines to hoot, holler, chant, yell and scream their love for a president who doesn’t care that he’s putting all of their lives at risk.

The Centers for Disease Control describes events such as Trump's rally as "highest risk," and doctors say if you wanted to plan an event that would put the most people in jeopardy and cause the greatest potential for spread of the virus, it would be a rally like the one Trump is going to have.  

At the same time, he’s planning for his convention speech in Florida in a few weeks – assuming there’s anyone left alive in Florida by then – and the rest of the country is following his lead and ignoring safety precautions we were all told to follow back in March.

Meanwhile, millions of people have set the virus aside, believing the unfortunate lie that the worst of it has passed. That’s why they are keeping their vacation bookings, wondering if they can use those concert tickets they bought last year, making plans for July 4 celebrations and trips to the county fair and worrying about whether we’ll have football games this fall.

This was the dream I had. It was a very long dream that seemed to go on all night. It was one of those bad dreams that you’re happy to put behind you when you finally wake up, a little sweaty and out of breath, and find yourself safe and secure in your own little bed.

Then I clicked on my television set and realized that everything I dreamed about was true.