There Are No Guarantees In Life, Dr. Fauci
Let me preface this by saying there is no one who values human life more than me. There is no one who admires, respects, and stands in awe of our medical professionals and the work they continue to do, more than me.
That being said…
White House Coronavirus Task Force team member Dr. Anthony Fauci-I think he’s a brilliant virologist. I also think he might want to consider staying in his lane and tap the brakes a bit.
He told the NY Times this week that America may have to go without certain sports for a year because of the coronavirus. “If you can’t guarantee safety, then unfortunately you’re going to have to bite the bullet and say, “We may have to go without this sport for this season.”
That all sounds well and good, but let’s be practical about a few things. First off, NOTHING in life is guaranteed. A guarantee is an absolute certainty, an indelible promise. As we’ve all found over the years, and especially in these times, NONE OF US is promised tomorrow.
And this has NOTHING to do with my desire for sports to return (gosh, I miss them).
No, this has everything to do with reminding that our lives are lived with the assessment and acceptance of everyday risks.
For example, on average, 40,000 people are killed in automobile accidents (in America) each year, yet we accept the risk that the next time we get behind the wheel could be our last, to continue our lives.
Tens of thousands of people are killed every year by the Flu (the CDC estimates the number to be as much as 56,000 annually), yet we accept that risk of exposure in work, restaurants, schools, etc. in favor of continuing our lives.
I realize that you may think I’m comparing apples to oranges here, and that is not my intent. I just feel that there has been an overwhelming sense of fear thrust upon our psyches that has stunted common sense and thought.
Covid-19 is not going anywhere.
It is a virus (like the flu), and will be with us until we find a cure.
Don’t hold your breath as a cure is a “guarantee” (there’s that word again) you won’t die if you take a certain drug or adhere to a certain protocol. Science and medicine hasn’t cured anything since Polio (1953…67 years ago).
Part of beating this thing is learning how we are going to live with and thru it. Here’s some good news.
As of the writing of this, there are 385,000,000 people who live in America. More than 57,000 have perished from Covid-19. How is that good news? That is only .0148% of the population.
(Again) The CDC estimates that as many as 56,000 die annually from the Flu (and that’s WITH a vaccine)
Alcohol will kill 88,000 people this year (.0228% of the population)
Cigarette smoking is responsible for a whopping 480,000 deaths per year (.124%) with secondhand smoke accounting for 41,000 of those (.0106%).
We live with risks that we may or may not be aware of every day. Covid-19 is and will be one of them. As with all risks, make the best assessment for you and your loved ones.
Wash your hands? Of course! Did your mama not tell you that a long time ago?
Wear a mask? Okay. If that makes you feel more comfortable, why not?
Practice a certain level of “social distancing” (HATE that term-btw)? Why not? If nothing else, this pandemic has taught us people are nasty. <g>
Take EXTRA precaution if you are in an “At-Risk Group?” Certainly, but if you were immuno-compromised before…weren’t you already taking extra precautions? Then, keep it up! And we should work extra hard to protect these as well.
Then, well, then proceed with same bold caution you exercised every day of your life.
It’s worth the risk.
And I’ll GUARANTEE you that!
