Okay, so I have turned this little blog into where I put my more partisan thoughts and today will be no different. Today I am going to tackle something that far too many people are ignoring, and I am going to address why it matters. Judging by the title you can guess that it will not be a crowd pleaser. In fact, I hope to make people uncomfortable.
Now that we have the introduction out of the way we can talk about the groups of people who have been left behind during this COVID nonsense: the chronically ill, the mentally ill, and the young. Two of these groups will be given much more room in this piece, but the last is a vital community. I want to start with the young because I think it is a crime that we have stolen a year away from people who should be enjoying the best years of their lives.
During the last 10+ months (and yes, in NC it has been 10+ months) we have watched as everyone was promised that if “we just saved one life” then it would be worth it. No, it hasn’t. Young people have had to put their lives on hold so that a 75+ year old can live another year. That is not meant to demean the life of the elderly but instead to highlight that we should not be playing a tradeoff game. The sixteen year old does not need to be locked away for their own protection. They do not need to be locked away for everyone else’s protection either. They should be enjoying life: Playing sports, hanging out with friends, and finishing school (since many schools finish somewhere around mid-May).
In this nation right now we are watching a phenomenon that says that the healthy and young are dangerous to the general public. By doing this we have destroyed the ability of the young to really live. Lives are being destroyed. Public education is failing and those who can are sending their kids to private schools to try and regain some level of normalcy. Most states have started to return kids to in-person learning due to the loss of academics and the increase in suicides. In Clarke County Nevada they have had children as young as 9 committing suicide. All this shows is the callous nature of the lockdowns.
Scaring everyone into believing that anyone is a vector (no matter the actual science) has ruined these young people’s lives. This is not something that will be fixed the moment that the yellow-bellied politicians decide that we are “safe enough.” Many of these people will be broken for years. The isolation and depression has caused long-term effects among young people that we will not truly understand until we finally see a return to normal. States such as Florida, Texas, and South Dakota have not seen these issues (or not nearly as widespread). Why? Simply put, they have not sacrificed the young on the altar of “science.”
This brings me to the second group of people who are never talked about: The chronically ill. People who need regular care for a chronic illness have been completely forgotten. Why does it matter if a person is not getting their chemo as long as they are not giving another person COVID? What kind of sick thinking does it take for the oligarchs to believe this?
In many states, for multiple months, no one could receive “elective” care. This list included cancer screening, certain types of dental care, and “elective surgeries” (to include things such as hip replacements). In what world is any of this “elective?” We are not talking about boob jobs here. You need a total knee replacement? Nah, someone might get COVID. You think you might have cancer? Well, too bad, you might be carrying COVID.
The above sounds like a joke or hyperbole but it is not. Now these people are ever worse off, even if they can now seek “elective care.” Cancer can have developed beyond healing, hip replacements are being pushed even further due to the sudden need, and numerous other types of testing are being stymied by bureaucratic red tape. I should know, I have been jumping through medical hoops for the last six months. I had to go do some testing the other day only to be told I had to wear two masks to be in the hospital. What a fucking joke. The situation was so egregious that I have told my specialist that I will not do more testing like Tuesday until we can get back to normal. The stress and embarrassment was just too much.
Yeah, I am putting off seriously needed medical testing because the stress of the red tape is so bad that I cannot go through it. Do not worry though, I won’t be giving anyone COVID! This is a grand, monstrous embarrassment for the medical community. Treating the chronically ill as if they should take a back seat to a person who MIGHT get sick is sick in and of itself.
If people want to tell me how I just do not understand why they need to be this way can take a long walk off a short pier. Taking six months of testing and the constant stress of the situation has been more than eye opening for me. I am watching people continue to shift the goalposts in order to justify the treatment of those who desperately need help. If you ever were to find yourself in this situation I would hope and pray that you never have to go through it when there is a “pandemic” going on.
This brings me to the final group that has simply been ignored by the Corona bros (to borrow a term from Clay Travis): The mentally ill. To the masses it does not register that this level of social isolation and loneliness has crushed the mentally ill. Suicide is far higher at the moment than it has been in decades. Hospitalizations are up, as are drug prescriptions for depression and anxiety. Many have not had face-to-face contact with their providers for over a year (due to the scheduling needs of most mentally ill people).
The last sentence will be countered with “But they can do video appointments!” This is gaslighting of the highest caliber. Mostly it is done because the person saying it has no bloody clue how mental health care works. Your doctor needs to see body language cues (that may be missed by camera) and do things such as blood work (certain meds require this), therapeutic types (such as light therapy), and other serious functions. These things being missed can lead to increases in stress, isolation, aggression, and even violence. How do I know this?
Here is a little story about the last year:
I have spent the last ten months (short a month or so) having friends come by once a week. We do board games, card games, and RPGs. Because of these people having regular face-to-face contact with me I have managed to hold off a hospitalization. My doctors are highly concerned, mostly because I have developed full-blown agoraphobia. I can no longer be in public without having panic attacks and trouble breathing. I have to have my service animal with me at all times. I do all of these things while suffering from moderate-to-severe Bipolar Type I.
How many people have bothered to think of how far degraded my life style has been? I can tell you that I can count on one hand (it is fewer than five but more than one). No one cares if I become one of the statistics (since Veteran suicide is up to about 27 or 29 a day right now). COVID is scary!
The above categories are only a few of those who have been left behind. We could talk about small business owners (many who are still teetering on the edge of insolvency). We could talk about families who are not sure where the next meal is coming from. We could talk about a lot of these people. No one is, writ large. We are so self-absorbed that we have forgotten that there are people who need help. We have forgotten that there is a face to these absurd power-grabs. It is time to look into those faces, and say “We are sorry we forgot you.” If you cannot do that, you need to reevaluate your own humanity.