Each day a part of me reflexively looks at the latest death charts

[Tom Rinaldo]

and without any conscious ability to restrain myself, I look for upticks in infection rates in Red parts of our nation where social distancing either has not been embraced or is actively being undermined by Republican officials. I wince with soul wrenching intensity when I realize I'm experiencing a trace of "disappointment" if the disease still seems constrained in those areas.

This is not who I want to be. I don't wish this death on anyone. I don't want to see any part of our nation brought to its knees by Covid-19. I don't want hospital staff overwhelmed anywhere. I don't want for any first responders to have to risk their lives, and I don't want any of our nation's children to be shut out of their classrooms. On this issue, and on this issue alone, I wish Donald Trump were right. I would rather it were the health officials and the elected officials who follow their advice who were "over reacting" rather than some right leaning public and elected officials who were severely "under reacting" to the crisis we are in. But "under reacting" is putting it charitably. The ugly truth is that some powerful economic interests are more concerned about the risk to their profits than to the risk to our lives.

I understand that we can't stay locked down tight forever. That would kill tens of thousands of Americans as surely as does Covid-19. So I am desperate that we get this right the first time before more Americans are encouraged to prematurely venture out of doors. What is leading toward our fucking this up now is Donald Trump, and those in bed with him, with their repeated siren calls of "a return to normalcy" while America remains in the teeth of this deadly pandemic. They have to be stopped. They have to be discredited so fully that no more than a small fraction of those possessing three active brain cells ever heeds their words again. Unfortunately those false prophets have already cast the die. They loudly interpret the success of shut downs at slowing the spread of Covid-19 as the reason to lift those shut downs, without sound plans in place to stop the plague from rushing back.

As long as those voices are capable of spreading falsehoods our best efforts get thrown against us. Rather than using every moment to prepare for the disease spread that physical distance from urban centers has granted to some less cosmopolitan parts of our nation, too many have proclaimed its slower arrival as a "the coast is clear" signal in order to downplay the pending threat. That is exactly what Trump did on a national level as Covid-19 ravaged Asia and Europe before it exploded on our shores. We are dying now because of that.

It seems that the only thing that will stop the racket of false assurances is reality itself, the reality of pestilence arriving full force at their own doorsteps. If that is in fact the case, if nothing else can quiet them, then in the long run the sooner that happens the better off we all will ultimately be. And it hurts like Hell to even think that.

[Botany]

1. I have been watching my county, Franklin in central OH

On 3/15 we had 3 cases and 0 deaths and today we have about 1,600 cases and 30 deaths

[Tom Rinaldo]

2. That is fast and frightening

How is this trend being processed by people locally? Is it being down played in the background or is it becoming front and center locally?

[Hugin]

3. One of the reasons the toll isn't higher in those areas is because of the millions and millions of..

us who are taking the situation as life or death seriously and following the protocols.

I live in a fairly purple area and what I am seeing is not so much a difference in political ideals, Red vs Blue, Democrat vs Republican, Liberal vs Conservative. Definitely, not an equivalence of numbers as is played in much of the mass media.

Here, it's more like the crazy-assed True Believing Trumpanzees vs Everyone Else. (Regardless of political persuasion) And, the division in numbers is far from being equal.

I will admit the majority of Republicans in my area are old school conservatives. They as a whole have historically entertained compromise. Yes, they have their 'One Issues', but, the COVID response doesn't seem to be on that list.

My encounters with the militant deniers has been rare, so far.

Generally, though. My experience has been positive. Now, whether the conservatives are following the protocols because they themselves recognize the danger or if it's respecting the efforts of those who do, I really can't say. I appreciate it.

[gibraltar72]

4. Polling indicates the economy is not going to be saved

by throwing the gates open. People are not going to flow out of their homes magically and start buying stuff. There has to be a sense of security. Businesses are going to fail simply because we open too early. It is gonna be done bass akward if Trump gets his way. It just won't work.

[Hugin]

5. It's going to take a whole lot of coaxing to get people back into mass transit.

Especially, aircraft and the cruise lines.

So, I'm not sure from where this rush of resort goers Trumpaloompah is envisioning is going to come. His hotels, golf courses, and resorts were failing before this all broke out.

[Tom Rinaldo]

6. Yes, it would be a failed as well as dangerous effort

But even with lower disease transmission because many consumers would stay away, it will still increase because of those who do go out. There won't be enough patrons to keep businesses from losing money while trying to stay open, just enough to make the pandemic that much worse.

[Tom Rinaldo]

7. I'm doing it again this morning.

If new hot spots emerge before Republican Governors start to "open up" their States in a few days, perhaps fewer people will be lured into the killing zone before we as a society can mobilize to counter further infection spread.