The world was made to be lived in. It is not natural for people to be confined to their homes.
Many people may think we are taking action with COVID-19. We're told locking ourselves inside our doors is the best action we can take; but hiding inside is the very opposite of action. If this virus is as serious as we're being told, we should all be doing what we can to help fight the virus. We should be taking more Vitamin A, C, and D to build up our immune systems. While most of the media and authorities are telling us to take extreme actions by quarantining ourselves, what we should be doing is taking proactive precautions.
Everyone can do their part to fight the virus and spread the truth. Those who are in media can do their research and interviews and report what they find, not what they're told to say. Manufacturers could be producing more of what victims and hospitals need, rather than staying home. Celebrities could be hosting more fundraisers if they were simply allowed to leave their houses. At least give people a choice. We are being forced to be cowards by the people saying, "Stay home."
If the virus is as serious as the media and authorities are saying, why aren't there test centers in every town or at least every county? Every company in the medical and pharmaceutical industry should be creating tests and building test centers so we could more effectively quarantine the infected and keep them away from the vulnerable. During World War II, the entire economy was repurposed to support the war effort. With the way the authorities and media are depicting this virus, you would think it's worse than World War II. Sure, the government has ordered some businesses to repurpose materials and others have done so on their own, but it seems apparent that the main order has been to just stay home.
We are not a people who runs and hides when something we fear comes our way. Facing the fear and finding a way to put an end to it is the only way to truly defeat any danger. Praying to God for protection as Daniel did in the lion’s den is the better way, the way of our ancestors, and the way that makes us stronger. Facing our fears is what quells them. Not only that, but from the scientific standpoint in this case facing our fear may mean many of us get the virus, but we also have a greater likelihood to build up antibodies that way. Our immune system is built to combat sickness. If we just ran from every one that came our way we would never evolve. We would remain weak and vulnerable.
Yet that is exactly what we are doing, while claiming to protect the weak and vulnerable. Meanwhile, are we even asking the elderly if this is what they prefer? In Dennis Prager's video "The Overlooked Victims of Quarantine", he points out that--rather than feeling protected--many elderly people feel forgotten and lonely even more than they did before. The other day I went to a local park to find several elderly people just sitting in their cars in the parking lot because they planned to enjoy the park since nowhere else was open, but the weather turned poor so they decided to just sit there. Is this better for them? Have we asked the elderly, "Would you rather stay inside your home and decrease your risk of dying, or actually enjoy life by interacting with people and going out in the world where there is a greater risk?" Going out always posits a greater risk. Should we all just stay inside all of the time then?
I thought I lived in a free society where people were allowed to live and worship how they want. But now it's clear that all of that could change when our leaders say so. It's phenomenal to see how people can all unite to serve one cause, but this phenomenon has just as much potential for bad as it does for good. I am all for the power of the masses most of the time. But what happens when the masses unite for a bad cause, one that results in the closing of churches and businesses--the livelihood of many people?
This time is not going to be remembered as one of the greatest viruses in history. It's going to be remembered as one when people were forbidden to have weddings and even funerals.
This virus shows what is important to us and what is not. Public health: important. Religion: not important. In fact, this whole fiasco makes me feel like the Church is just one big elaborate performance that could be shut down at the will of the authorities. I had hoped the bishops would put up some resistance, but they fell in line quicker than I could say, "Father, forgive us."
Meanwhile, people are turning a blind eye to the other crises in the world because we're all focusing on COVID-19 headlines, and nothing else.
The world doesn't slow down just so we could deal with this virus. This whole quarantine is based on the assumption that other crises won't pop up in the future. Postponing immunity increases the likelihood that the virus will spring up again next year, or some future year; but there's no guarantee we won't be in the midst of some other crisis if and when it does. If and when it comes again, we could be dealing with the aftermath of a bad natural disaster, or another virus, or even a war. We could have a perfect storm if the virus pops up again due to our lack of immunity--while we are in the middle of another great crisis. It would have been better to bite the bullet now, rather than give the virus time to mutate before enough people grow immune. It would have been just a bad flu season if we just did it that way---the common sense way.
According to LiveScience, COVID-19 seems to mutate more slowly than influenza. This means we could have beaten the outbreak through the sheer ability of our immune system to create antibodies. In Sweden, they are not quarantining. With a population of about ten million, its numbers should be at least equivalent--if not worse--than New Jersey's (where I'm from), which has a population of about eight million. And yet that is not the case. By April 12, Sweden had about 919 deaths related to COVID-19, while New Jersey had 2,443 (according to Wikipedia). Mind you, New Jersey is more densely populated than Sweden, but the state has also been quarantining people since early to mid-March while Sweden has not. In addition, Sweden is closer to major outbreaks like Spain and Italy.
I believe the truth is sobering. About 94 percent of those who died from the virus had pre-existing conditions. This is a sobering statistic that goes deeper than the superficial numbers I've seen in other stories: cases, deaths and that's it. Furthermore, articles and studies that break down the statistics are not prevalent and harder to find. It's one thing when you don't provide the other side of the story in journalism. That's irresponsible in itself. But when you don't even provide legitimate proof for your own narrative, that's just dishonest. Responsible reporting would give a breakdown of the numbers each time: how many had pre-existing conditions? What was the average age of those who died from the virus? How many also caught the flu or pneumonia and might have died of those instead? How many are simply dying of the flu and pneumonia? How many caught COVID-19 but then died of something else? Just mentioning cases and deaths leaves so many questions.
Case numbers are based on a number of precarious and tenuous factors, and yet people are still living and swearing by them.
In the U.S., as of April 13 the number of deaths is around 21,000 according to the CDC. This seems like an alarming number, but this is still less than half of the number of those who died from influenza in the U.S. in the 2017-2018 flu season (61,000). I am not saying coronavirus is not a problem, but if it requires that we shut down society then we should do the same every year for the flu.
People say we don't know enough about this virus, so we need to be more careful. So we are being taught to fear what we don't know. Contrary to what professionals are saying, the virus simply is not that novel. Its symptoms are fever, tiredness, dry cough, and difficulty breathing in severe cases. These are similar to the symptoms of many other respiratory diseases and viruses. Some may say it's the incubation period of two to three weeks that makes it novel and extra dangerous. Go ahead and close society on that premise, then. I think it's extremely coincidental, though, that the one novel attribute of this virus is an attribute that quite literally can't be detected.
Some may say to not support the quarantine is to not be pro-life. But pro-life does not mean anti-death. If that were the case, pro-lifers wouldn't support any activity that may result in death, including getting in your car. Faithful Christians know that God is the giver and taker of life, and it's up to us to abide by basic rules of cleanliness and hygiene to avoid diseases. It is not our place to say when people should stop going to work, going to Church, going to the park, and just stop living.
As Cherie Zaslawsky said, "Remember those prescient words from Founding Father Benjamin Franklin: 'Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.' Whether or not they 'deserve' neither, they will surely get neither. Giving up liberty is a surefire road to tyranny."
I think more and more people are waking up, but it's important for us to get the word out and support those who have the courage to do likewise. Here are some other voices I've found helpful to that end: