Red vs. Blue: The Covid Edition

Are you tired of turning on the TV or looking at your phone and seeing Coronavirus headlined on the news? If you said yes, that makes two of us. We have seen yet another “surge” of Coronavirus cases. I have lost track of the number of surges we have had, and I am convinced I am going to run out of fingers to count on with the way things are going. In addition to the pandemic, November 2020 welcomed Joe Biden into office as the President of the United States. I have my own political views and some people close to me may know them. However, that is not the point I am about to make.

It is obvious that the Coronavirus has become some type of political game. An individual’s political views have ended up affecting how someone responds to the virus and how they go about deciding if they even believe that the virus is an issue at all. I do not think I have to specify which parties I am referring to because, I believe, that it may be obvious. I am also not saying everyone in each party is completely biased to believe one thing over another. I am not trying to change anyone’s political views, I am just trying to open some eyes to understanding that COVID-19 is real and an issue, not just politics. I am typically not a person who enjoys entertaining myself with political discussion, but this just has to be said.

Let’s just get one thing straight, COVID-19 is science, not politics. It still astounds me how people can watch their loved ones fall horribly ill or even die from COVID-19 and still choose to not do anything to prevent the spread. I have witnessed so many selfish people and I am left wondering how many people I have walked past in the grocery store that have the virus, but they choose not to acknowledge it. Some people must think that their political views are superior to the health and wellbeing of the public, I guess. Somehow it all appears to come back to the vaccine. Someone may say that they saw something on the news about how the vaccine did this or that or sent someone to the hospital. With that being said, I believe that people neglect to have a reality check. Check your sources. Find out what is true and what is not. Ask questions. Educate yourself.

Let’s also not forget that the Coronavirus is not only an issue in the U.S. but also all over the world. China was the first country headlined. Remember when Italy shut down for an extended period of time? It is not just us and our political system. The virus is everywhere. The vaccine is available in several other countries. However, we must remember that people will do whatever they can to support their idea that the virus is not a big deal and that this country is “corrupt” or “ruined” because of the game politics has put together. We cannot be thinking this way; not now.

I had a friend of mine tell me once that their family was too involved in one political party to get vaccinated. I am not going to harp on the vaccine, but this is what I am talking about. If this is not evidence that COVID-19 is a political game, I really do not know what is. At the end of the day, it is not about you and your views. How can we look at the television and see the number of people hospitalized or see a loved one suffer the consequences of someone else’s boneheaded actions of being so ignorant about the virus that we do nothing about it? I have concluded that some people are just trying to prove a point.

I had an older woman come into my workplace one day last summer. She told me that although she was vaccinated, she was still scared. I had another man come in asking if masks were required in my workplace and I said that it is encouraged, however it is a choice. He proceeded to tell me that he does not mind wearing a mask. I knew nothing about that man, but all I knew was he cared enough about others to wear a mask. He said that he did not mind wearing one, regardless of the policies. People need to understand that their political views have nothing to do with the virus. People can believe whatever they want, but science is different than politics. So, help protect that scared woman, don’t take my account of that man with a grain of salt. Wear a mask, do as you are told and, please, keep the political views to yourself when it comes to Coronavirus.

Everyone is tired and wants to return to a normal life, but we are slipping into another surge once again leaving ourselves with the hopeless feeling of whether our lives will ever go back to normal. However, we see that people appear to value their political views over the health and wellbeing of themselves and their neighbors. Let’s get this straight: your political views should not determine your vaccination status or how you choose to respond to the virus. This thing is not going away any time soon, quite obviously. The answers to protecting ourselves and preventing the spread are right in front of us. It is not that hard everybody. Quit being so selfish and enthralled in politics that you are neglecting to notice what is important right now.