and the winner is...

By now, it should be clear to just about anyone who is paying attention that the only way to stop the spread of the virus, or at least slow it down before vaccines which are showing promise are generally made available to all of us is to have a uniform national response that all, or at least so much of society follows as to effectively flatten the curve.  That includes the usual calls we have come to hear for mask wearing, social distancing, etc.  As the virus proliferates, it includes banning the type of social gatherings where the virus is likely to be spread, which unfortunately includes many businesses and gathering places that we all enjoy patronizing.

By now, we have also become used to the anti-mask, anti-lockdown you cannot tell me what to do crowd, as they tout their right to make the rest of us sick and question the efficacy of just about any common sense method touted by medical experts to slow the spread.  These folks apparently believe that individual responsibility is what counts, regardless of the fact that once anyone shows any irresponsibility, it increases the risk for everyone else.  We all know that there will always be irresponsible people out there for whom nobody can tell them what to do no matter what.

But I now give you the clear winner of the debate:

A friend who lives in the middle of the country recently commented on restrictions the governor of the state this friend lives in had just imposed.  The friend challenged anyone to show where any such restrictions had resulted in a flattening of the curve or any measurable success in dealing with the virus.

In the county where I live on Long Island, we had such restrictions in place since the early days of the pandemic in March, eased a bit during the summer and now slowly being reimposed.  Our positivity rate as of yesterday was 3.49%, which we consider to be terrible.  The rate in my friend's state as of this morning was 15.6%.  While I did not comment on that particular post, as it would result in nothing more than the usual gang from the right coming down on my neck, the comments posted after my friend's challenge crystallized what the rest of us are dealing with.

The highlight; frankly, one of the dumbest statements I have ever seen, came from the genius who posted that he was fully protected from the virus by his second amendment rights.

I repeat.  He thinks the second amendment protects him from contracting the virus.

There are sane people who reside in this part of the country.  One of them asked midwest gun guy what part of the virus he planned on aiming at when he pulled out his high tech weaponry.  In response, midwest gun guy replied that if a mask can stop the virus, he can stop it with a gun.

He thinks he can shoot the virus.

I repeat.  He thinks he can shoot the virus.

Who knew?

How could all of our doctors, researchers, public health specialists and scientists have gotten it so wrong?

And why aren't our soldiers, national guardsmen, sheriffs, police departments, highway patrolmen, state and local militias and neighborhood watches out there protecting us?  For that matter, where are the second amendment enthusiasts, private militia gangs, the you can't take my guns away and you can't tell me what to do crowd?

Any minute now, I expect to hear a veritable fusillade of bullets from our duly appointed law enforcers and patriots whizzing past my windows, followed by street cleaners driving by to clean up the remaining bodies of dead viruses in the street.

Any minute now...

Any fucking minute...