Where did anyone/everyone get the idea that this crisis was over? Was it from the fat orange man? Jesus, don’t listen him. Why are so many politicians and media types referring to the COVID pandemic in the past tense? Why are people congregating without masks in the foyers and doorways of restaurants and stores? How in the world are college football coaches even considering having camps in early July? I don’t understand what aspect of the COVID epidemic has been fundamentally changed since late February.

This virus doesn’t care if you’re sick and tired of distancing. This virus hasn’t weakened or receded. This virus isn’t suddenly sympathetic towards old and sick people or interested in holding children unharmed. This SARS virus is a highly contagious killer. This is the same virus that scared the hell out of us just 2 months ago. Now, it appears that we are set and determined to remove the only effective checks on the spread of the virus, the non pharmaceutical interventions, and let’s see what happens. The virus is still there. Still waiting. Still terrifying. And we have no weapons.

The early results are not good. Over the past week, 18 states and Puerto Rico are seeing increasing COVID infections, some at alarming rates. California, Texas, and Florida, 3 of the country’s 4 most populous states, have rising incidence of COVID. (The other most populous state, New York, has already been decimated by the epidemic. In New York City, 1 in 400 citizens has died of the disease.) All three of those states have recently, radically re-opened for business. Even as the numbers rise, most Governors, either systematically or randomly, continue to advance the stages of reopening their businesses and society. My former state, South Carolina, has an epi curve that can only be viewed as frightening, yet they continue to welcome tourists and open their bars. I watch in wonder.

At this writing, there have been over 2.5 million US citizens infected with this virus (forget the 1.8 million count. That’s fiction) and that number increases by more than 20,000 per day. Nationally, 20,000 cases per day is about the number we were seeing in the last week of March. Were any of us feeling optimistic at the end of March? Then why are you feeling optimistic now? Because you haven’t been infected? Well, we’re currently dismantling the most effective interventions and we have no treatment or vaccine, so don’t feel too confident about dodging that bullet.

The number of COVID dead is well above the official 107,000 and increases by about 1000 per day. Like you, I’m glad the number isn’t 2000 per day or more, but adding 1000 bodies every day to an already sobering total is the definition of a “pyrrhic victory”.

We need to open our economy and our society. That’s not really a liberal vs. conservative issue. We all know that we can’t continue with everything shut down for much longer. What I was hoping to see was a systematic, fact-based reopening based, at least partly, on a healthy respect for an untreatable, highly contagious virus spreading through our country. That hasn’t happened, except in some northeast states.

Gyms should not be open. Bars should not be open. Masks should be required for employees and customers in all stores. Required – not recommended. Employee health and safety should be of paramount importance for all businesses. What the Trump administration has done to the essential workers in our meat processing plants will be one of the great sins of this crisis and that is saying something when you consider how many sins they have committed during this entire debacle.

As we move forward, my advice is to wear a mask and observe distancing when you are out. Keep in mind, this is an airborne virus, so try to avoid breathing other people’s exhaled air. Stay out of small places where other people are gathered. Stay out of lines and, if you have to be queued up, keep your distance. Outside is always better with this virus – eating outside, exercising outside, socializing outside. Regularly wash your hands and clean surfaces that you deem suspicious. If you know another couple that has been practicing these interventions over the last 10 weeks, I’d feel comfortable socializing with them. Life goes on and no life is risk free.  Btw, having studied risk for decades, you wouldn’t want to live your life risk free. You’d be even more boring than you already are, and that’s frightening.

The COVID crisis is not over. We have a long way to go. You know what you can do to reduce your personal exposure to this virus, so follow those practices. As for the bigger picture of your country and your state, vote in November.

Be careful. Be informed. Be safe.