Davison's Doodle

What has Covid-19 done for us?

A blunt observation. The virus has exposed anger. The righteous and fearful angry dispositions of our ourselves and our neighbors. It has replaced empathy, compassion, and justice with profit, nativism, and impunity. It has, somewhat, helped point to what matters most when everything matters.

What has Covid-19 done?

Exposed the fragility of America’s economy and global economic connections. 17 million unemployed. State employment agencies understaffed , underfunded, and infrastructure incapable of handling half that case load. Our Nation taxes labor more than profit, and much more than money making money. Just because one is free to look for another job does not make one free. Wall Street is a legalized craps game where the Big players never, ever loose. Who was held accountable for the 2008 financial crisis? Who went to jail? What regulations were put in place to keep that from happening again?

The SCOTUS Citizens United decision unleashed information robber barons and con artists. Citizens don’t know who is really funding politicians and the honor system relies on people having honor. Maybe that is why some politicians disclose the number of individual small donors they have. I’m more interested in your corporate list and your bundler list. That is who will be lobbying once elected. It is another reason why we need to see the tax returns for the current year and past 20 years of every person running for President. In matters financial and in matters of peace, will a President choose the good of the Nation or the good of their individual bank account. I’m not a scripture quoting Christian, but given the current administration’s example of running the Federal Government every professing Christian needs to revisit a parable and remember, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21) Greed is not good.

What has Covid-19 done?

Exposed the fear and anxiety of the early 21st century. Fear of what it takes for America to be a shining city on a hill. Fear of loosing position, power, influence, or paying the taxes so that a neighbor can thrive in the system the same way you have. This President, his administration and enablers, have embraced the national anthem of the “2000 Year Old Man” as America’s anthem as it distinguishes between Republican and Democratic cities and States. “Let all the other caves go to hell except cave 76!” The corporate overlords continue to take their cut from the division in our Nation. How would you define an “equal chance” at the American dream? Maybe the better question is, “What are our common obligations to each other to keep the rules “fair” for all?” Is the American dream meant to be competitive or sacrificial? Abundant or scarce?

What has Covid-19 done?

Reminded me of Eddie Murphy’s comedy take on two Americas in, “White Like Me.” It makes me laugh and pause. Wait. What? Black Lives Matter.

Reminded me that Blazing Saddles was a brilliant, satirical comedy. We’ve lost the ability to look at ourselves, listen to ourselves, and laugh at ourselves on the way to being a better human being as well as a more perfect Union. Maybe Spike Lee could do a remake, but it is probably better to let this piece of film be a historical reminder. Remember, Do the Right Thing.

What has Covid-19 done?

Within Christendom the virus has exposed the masked nature of our neighbors, cousins in faith, and siblings in faith. It has strained relationships and created a zero sum game for power and dominance. No longer we, but I. Me and mine. Me and my Jesus. My church. Right now, masks in public benefit the common good to slow the spread of the virus, but like so much in our Nation, for some masks are also a political statement even in one’s place of worship. Unfortunate. Disappointing. Unnecessary. It is not about religious freedom. The only thing theological about masks is that they can alert a person that the breath of God being expelled may need a mint. I’ll admit that I didn’t want to wear a seatbelt once it became a law, but I’m no longer a child and have put away childish ways, mostly. Well, specifically about seatbelts.

What has Covid-19 done?

Unmasked, again, the systemic inequities and “isms” of these United States that continue to plague our culture around race, economics, and gender. Unregulated capitalism is no more the answer than unregulated socialism is. How many times must we try “trickle down” economics to have enough data points to know it does not work? How many black, brown, red, and yellow people have to die in custody for the Nation to admit that there is a problem with policing? How many more children and adults have to be murdered with weapons meant for the military battlefield before we have enough data points to know that we have a gun problem in this Nation? How much longer must this adolescent phase as a Nation continue?

Covid-19 unmasked that cheaper and faster has replaced right and wrong for a majority of the Nation. If it were not so, charity would not be necessary to maintain the status quo. We can’t be a great society, or Nation, when the law requires Warren Buffett’s secretary to pay more in taxes than he does.

What has Covid-19 done?

Displayed the different silos we each participated in before SIP (shelter in place). It has helped some of us understand what is important in our daily lives and what we can do without. It has brought families around dinner tables at home. It has exposed the for-profit childcare system that is part of our economic system as a necessity instead of a choice. If the “Right to Lifers” were consistent, then childcare would be free or based on your income, public schools would first class learning centers, and birth control universally covered for women and men by insurance.

The virus has shown that we can no longer treat teachers or teaching as a pay for service industry. It is a profession. A vocation. A part of the social contract of this Nation supported by taxes so that educated citizens can guide the Nation with their spending, voting, and communal service. The virus has exposed our choices, our moral compasses, and how to spot the helpers as if we needed that refresher course. It has shown a light on the underpaid “essential” workers that might show up on an episode of Dirty Jobs.

What has Covid-19 done?

Streaming services! Our budget allows my companion and I to access several streaming services and cable TV. My childhood was filled with edgy sitcoms and dramas brought into the house by antenna (on a good day). I’m thankful my parents let me watch Maud, All in the Family, Alice, Good Times, Sanford & Son, M*A*S*H, and Hill Street Blues. Black-ish and This Is Us seem like equals to those old shows, but I’ve only seen an episode or two. They are on the playlist for the fall.

I grew up watching TV and it is on more than it is off in our house. It seem’s like the Riddler’s fictional “Box” from “Batman Forever” (1995) is a real device as we are entertained and numbed by the visual to be either incapable of change or outraged and in the streets. Generational systemic change plods along or not. Engineered reality TV and goofy competition shows keep the population comfortably numb. It is like we are caught in an episode of The Truman Show and the public is Truman. We are unaware or don’t care that we are being acted upon for the amusement of others and to sell product.

My companion and I are rewatching HBO’s, The Newsroom and realizing how timely it was, and is. The opening scene from the pilot, I think, is true of today.

What has Covid-19 done?

Am I more grateful, thoughtful, and precise. Are we more grateful, thoughtful, and precise. More self aware or self conscious about our effect on others? Able to admit mistakes? More compassionate and less fearful. I wonder what the social side effects of a Covid-19 vaccine or treatment will include. Will the social side effects depend on who is elected to Congress and is elected President of these United States of America this November?

What has Covid-19 done for us?