Editorial #163 There Will Always Be Something.
We all use a coping mechanism to survive. Like wild animals, we always lookout for anything that could harm us. The sad part is: if we don’t find something to worry about, we would make something up. Like John Madden said: “You cannot have two serious injuries at the same time.” Thus: “We can never worry about two big problems at the same time.” This pandemic has over shadowed everything: The Hong Kong Riots, ISIS attacks, illegal immigration victims, human trafficking, global warming, suicide bombings, BREXIT and the presidential campaign, to mention a few. These news items are no long showing up on anyone “radar”.
The Covid-19 pandemic is unprecedented in its speed, seriousness and the measures used to control it. It has the psychosocial traits found in any movement be it environmental, political or social. It is characterized to sound deadly, serious and expensive, in order to redefine established norms to change the mindset of society.
People don’t change unless the pain of where they are is unbearable. The sad part of governing, people must sense fear or pain for extreme government actions to be allowed. To have society agree to fight a war, address the environment, provide universal health care, or eradicate this pandemic needs a sense of fear and urgency. That is the only way a democracy can get a majority to agree to anything.
Politicians walk a high wire. They must portray a sense urgency with optimism and to not cause panic. The Chinese proverb applies: “The situation is impossible but not serious.” Criticizing the president for being too optimistic, is childish and whining. When the media instills fear, reporting only bad news, hyping or recharacterizing small details, about which we can do nothing, is a form of terrorism.
Someone must make the hard decisions. To control this will not easy, but action must be taken, and criticism will always be leveled. The problem with democracy is any decision will never be the best or the worst. It will be the one that is most popular, slightly above mediocre as extremes are never acceptable by a majority.
This pandemic is a huge dose of reality and a life’s lesson that will test us and our system of government and methods of business. It is also the “alpha test” for life’s new normal. Thank God we live in a Constitutional Republic because if we had allowed the mob rule of a democracy to deal with this war, we would all die poor.
This is Keith Kube wishing you the bests in making the world a better place.
Bumper: Keith has a regular commentary on WJAG 780 radio at 7:40 on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Check his website www.keithkube.com for past editorials.