Obvious Advocate - A Two-sided Rock

All this division, anger, seeming hatred just ain't the way it ought to be. We need a leader to change it. Something or somebody certainly should.

A previous editorial compared our flag-waving no-masked dissenters to the Mount St. Helens eruption dissenters. Scientists had warned that the St. was going to blow and, so, people were warned away and roads were blocked. People were indignant and drove on back roads to camp and get onto the mountain and wouldn't leave. 57 people died when she blew. Could have been worse.

Fair analogy, except people refusing to leave the mountain didn't necessarily threaten other lives. A better analogy would be comparing our unhappy flag-wavers to this odd new expression of freedom by driving hundreds of miles an hour on less-crowded roads. Because excessive speed can injure or kill others...and has.

Its like our nation has become a two-sided rock. On the top side are our medical care providers—doctors, nurses, paramedics—who are working grueling hours risking their lives every day caring for virus-infected patients. Each day trying to keep their sanity while attempting to keep people alive, yet often devastatingly walking into a room to find a dead person. Not worrying about themselves, but will they infect their own families, their loved ones, their fellow workers. On the same top-side of the rock are the minimum-wage workers providing essential services and those unselfish folks that distance themselves and wear masks not just to protect themselves, but others.

On the under-side are those indignant ones who crawl out angry. Claim their freedoms are being taken away if they can't do what they want. "Screw masks and distancing. I'm healthy; I ain't goin to get no virus. Where's MY rights? Ain't this a free country?!"...implying, of course, "free" to infect others.

Since they're so proud of their flag-waving, they should readily agree to a flag tattoo (American, confederate, nazi, whatever) printed right on their foreheads. Easier than waving that darn thing. And those on the top will know who the "free" under-siders are and can avoid them to keep from getting infected even if the "downers" don't show symptoms, yet. But when they do get infected, they won't have to stoop to being admitted to a hospital risking the lives of the health care folks and stress the under-resourced system. The health folks can spend their crucial time and resources caring for the unselfish top-siders who embarrassingly wore masks, tried to stay safe and not infect others.

Seems fair. The downers can die happy knowing they've protected their personal freedom. They should be proud. One problem: as John Prine told us in song years ago, "Your flag decal won't get you into heaven anymore." Oh, well. They can proudly burn free in hell.