Politicization of the pandemic has been a travesty, and we’re paying the price

It’s an old joke: What’s the difference between a recession and a depression? A recession is when you’re out of work, and a depression is when I’m out of work. It seems many of us aren’t concerned about anything until it affects us directly.

That seems to be the story with Covid-19. Some people think there’s absolutely nothing to worry about until they or somebody close to them catches it. I know a number of such people, and yes, some of them died from it. Once they became sick, they were miserable and warned anyone who would listen to be careful and avoid it. Once hospitalized, we never heard from some of them again.

Admittedly, I hate wearing masks, but I’m afraid I’d hate being on a ventilator even more.

It’s an absolute travesty that our leaders politicized this. Liberals want everyone to wear masks, and conservatives feel forcing people to wear masks is unconstitutional. And so it is, but Covid doesn’t care whether someone is liberal or conservative. Neither side is immune.

Wearing a mask affords us little protection unless it’s an N95, but it dramatically reduces the likelihood of us transmitting it to anyone around us should we have the virus. The most dangerous people are those who have it and don’t know it yet.

In my opinion, there should be no need for mandates. Why wouldn’t we want to protect ourselves and each other?

In my case, I’m conservative, and I’m fully vaccinated even though I wasn’t under any mandates. I have several pre-existing conditions that are considerations. Additionally, I have a number of doctor and nurse friends, as well as those who treat me, and they’re all fully vaccinated. They’ve advised me to get vaccinated even without my asking them.

If we visit a doctor’s office or any medical facility, we find everyone wearing masks and most, if not all, are vaccinated. Some doctors won’t even see patients in person because of the pandemic. I know of one doctor who has a computer monitor in each examination room. The patient has a video conference with the doctor sitting in his office. If a hands-on examination is required, he gets fully suited up (N95 mask, face shield, gloves, etc.) before he has any physical contact with the patient. There’s no mandate requiring these precautions; they just don’t want to get sick.

If doctors and nurses — people who know a lot more about viruses than most of us — are taking these precautions, wouldn’t it make sense for even the most macho among us to consider some precautions?

Admittedly, there are doctors and nurses who refuse to get vaccinated, and they believe they have good reasons for not doing so.

There is no perfect vaccine. I’ve gotten the flu after getting a flu shot. Covid vaccines were developed very quickly in response to a crisis. Even so, it appears the vaccines are far less dangerous than the viruses.

Remember the early days of Covid?

Working from home is not an option for all jobs. Many things can’t be produced without people working together. So, what do we do in cases like that?

We’ve always made sacrifices to protect ourselves. Work in construction, and you wear a hard hat. Nobody likes them, but they don’t want their heads crushed either. If you work with heavy components, steel-toed shoes are important. If you work in a lab or a clean room, you wear full-body coverings.

Before I traveled to Asia, I had to get vaccinated against malaria and other diseases. I can’t remember anyone having problems with that.

Forcing people creates resistance.

We’ve painted ourselves into a corner. If only there was a way to rewind the tape and play it again without politicization. Explain the need from a trusted source (hard to find) and much of the resistance would disappear.

Ronald J. Bourque, a consultant and speaker from Salem, has had engagements throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. He can be reached at 603-898-1871 or RonBourque3@gmail.com.