Hi!
Perspective.
Things can look huge until you take a step back.
Things look a certain way, but shift dramatically when you change the angle.
Point of view is everything.
So here it is. I need a favour.
If you are approaching life these days with the point of view that still entertains the thinking that this virus is no big deal, that no one dies as a result of it, or have bought into the swirling myths about the vaccines, please stop spewing your crazy all over everybody else. I know that I, for one, am tired of coddling the stupidity to spare feelings. You obviously don't care about other people's feelings, why should those of us who choose to live in reality keep treading on eggshells around you.
You have had ample opportunity to embrace reality and choose not to. We are over a year into this thing. The level of ignorance at which you are willing to indulge is on you at this point.
I've tried. I'm all about respecting opinion, but not when you keep trying to try to exchange it for fact.
The world is round, they really did land on the moon, 9/11 was not a homegrown conspiracy, climate change is real and no, humans did not hang out with dinosaurs back in the day.
Facts and opinions are not the same things. Opinions don't trump expertise. Expertise is earned through experience, education, and time, not Youtube.
Stop causing scenes in stores and coffee shops, The people who work there don't deserve the abuse you seem to enjoy dishing out and definitely don't get paid enough to put up with your crap.
No shoes, no shirt, no mask, no service. Masks have no more to do with your freedom than seatbelts, get over yourself.
Soon, in spite of all your efforts to the contrary, we will once again be able to walk around maskless. Something we could have likely done months ago if you and your ilk would have just worn the damn mask the whole time. But I digress.
I guess you'll have to go back to your go-to pre-pandemic excuses to abuse people in the service industry. Don't even pretend you didn't.
Oh, and guess what, we know you are allowed your own opinion. But, that doesn't mean we need to hear it, every minute of every friggin day.
When you declare that nobody dies from this, you might want to take into consideration that there may be people in the room who have had people they cherish perish from exactly this. And, before you jump, no, not everyone who has died from this had other health issues, and those that did, would still be here if not for this virus.
Just stop. Nobody outside your bubble believes the bull. You aren't convincing anybody. Time has proven the doctors right and you wrong. The proof is in the pudding, as they say.
Find another way to get your fifteen minutes of fame.
People actually died and got very sick from this virus. Denial doesn't change that.
The deep drop in cases of cold and flu this year is due to people wearing masks, social distancing, and washing their hands more than normal. It further proves the point that the measures we've been asked to take, work. There is nothing nefarious about it. Proof. Pudding.
The vaccines are working. And, working really well. Millions of shots have made it into arms around the world with a minute few suffering more than mild side effects. In Canada, two deaths have been linked to vaccines. To put that into perspective, this virus has killed fourteen people in the past week, and that's just in the Province of Saskatchewan. And, that's with the numbers going down.
How many of those wouldn't be gone if all of us would have taken this more seriously. I can't help but wonder how their families would define "freedom."
Here it is from where I sit.
I watch as people I know, and some I love, dive deep, headfirst into the pool of lies. The reasons they do so baffle me.
I watch as people I know and love die from this virus.
I watch as people I know get sucked into the lies so far that they end up sacrificing their livelihoods in efforts of proving a point that can never be proven.
I watch as these lies convince naturally optimistic people that this world has become full of evil and deception. That they can no longer trust their local news, their family doctor, or world-renowned epidemiologists.
I watch as baristas, grocery clerks, and others in the service industry get called every name in the book, screamed at, suffering verbal and, in some cases, physical violence under the guise of so-called freedom from some imaginary oppression.
I watch as people throw tantrums and destroy property because they are asked to wear a mask. A mask. They are willing to smash displays, make dramatic sweeps of shelves, shatter glass, and then have the audacity to be shocked that they get arrested for acting like this.
These are private businesses. They don't have to put up with your crap. They owe you nothing.
Stop expecting everyone else to kiss better your self-inflicted wounds. If you don't want your business shut down by the health department, follow health guidelines. This is nothing new, there are a million health guidelines. These are temporary ones put in place because of a global pandemic. An emergent situation that required emergent measures. Temporary, which is why the rules didn't become laws. It wouldn't make sense to have permanent laws on the books pertaining to the pandemic.
Honestly, it's like you are playing this game of pretend and get super pissed when other people won't play along.
I, for one, no longer have the patience nor the desire to placate your delusions. I'm pretty sure I'm not alone.
If reality hasn't hit you by now, it's not going to, and there is nothing I can say or do to change your mind. My only hope, at this point, is that you quit playing in public. It's like watching bad improv where all the players obtained their comedic training at a silent monastery.
********************************************************************
Until next time...
May you do what's needed to beat this thing, it's simple, just a couple of little pricks.
May you encourage those you love to do the same, make it a party, take some pics.
May the number of pricks given climb fast and far beyond every expectation.
May we get through this final stretch at a sprint, as a world, as a nation.
*****************************************************************
