VIEWPOINT / Sheldon Firem / Hambden Township

April 20, 2020 by Submitted

Will we ever learn? Each one of us and our institutions, will we ever learn? Covid-19 is a stern taskmaster. While it is killing hundreds of thousands, infecting millions, disrupting economies and challenging governments, Covid-19 is whispering lessons that we may not hear because there are some politicians, conspiracy theories, self-aggrandizing corporations, on-line rumors and profiteers who are screaming and streaming untruths into our ears.

We also may be sabotaging our own best interests in this crisis by listening to our own inflated, erroneous opinions.

Screaming loudly into a citizen’s ear will not promote learning about the coronavirus pandemic nor prepare the world for the next crisis. What will prepare us? We must listen to the lessons Covid-19 is whispering into our ears daily.

Now that we are all in this together, one suspects that we all have formulated an informal to-do list for the future. Listening to our inner voices, if they are buttressed by reason, common sense and a respect for others, will serve us well as we prepare to exit this crisis and plan for the next.

It is likely no surprise that the following broad and specific ideas have crossed all of our minds as we contemplate the future. Sheltering in place has given us the gift of self-reflection and the time to thoughtfully consider alternatives and strategies.

1. Honor truth as we would honor our parents; accept no alternatives.
2. Respect science, not blindly, but judiciously; data and anecdotal stories are wanting substitutes for tested and proven information and judgement.
3. Question leaders often; some leaders may have self-centered agendas untethered to the nation’s interests.
4. Value the citizen’s primacy and welfare in society; the corporate instinct for profit is secondary.
5. Be judiciously flexible when adapting to a crisis. Understand that early, incomplete information is not necessarily a lie or disinformation. Humans need time to get our minds around a crisis.
6. Remember the past and apply its lessons. We almost forgot about the Spanish flu of 1918. An understanding of the past is our guide book for the present.
7. Remember that citizens are not natural enemies; rise above the attempts of political parties, foreign countries and trolls to make it so.
8. Beware of scams, beware of scammers and beware of sharks selling easy answers, miracle salves, snake oil and extreme political agendas.
9. Plan to take more time off with family and friends. Sunday used to be an informal national day of rest, a weekly breather. A psychological breather has value in our overachieving lives.
10. Shop locally when possible; large food, product and service corporations have imperceptibly relieved us of our loyalty to small businesses on main street.
11. Beware of authoritarian leaders seeking to shape our government and our beliefs to their own advantage during a crisis. The Twentieth Century saw too many authoritarian leaders quite ready to manipulate an economic crisis into a totalitarian regime.
12. Read widely, listen intently, ask questions and click onto many political points of view.
13. Trust human intelligence over artificial intelligence; computers, digital projections and analytics are tools that help but have no authentic ability to take the human condition into account. Artificial Intelligence is at its core a mirror of what humans have inputted and coded into the system, sometimes with bias.
14. Choose face-to face dialogue. Human communication has no satisfying substitute; while on-line communication formats are indispensable now, we are all eagerly anticipating the hugs, the get-togethers, the hand-shakes, the touch, the smell, the warmth, the looks and even the good-natured verbal banter we heartily participate in.
15. Vote consistently and intently as a citizen, protected by the Constitution and Bill of Rights; vote as if our political lives depended on it, which of course they do.
16. Recognize authentic heroes. Professional sports are merely business games; our future, authentic Hall of Fame heroes wear the uniforms of custodians, nurses, doctors, EMS workers, therapists, police, truckers, national guard, fire personnel, grocery clerks, reporters, responsible leaders and volunteers.
17. Remember each world citizen is intimately connected; we breathe as one.
18. Beware of voting the party ticket; beware of the narrow thinking and manipulation of political parties. Wisdom and sound political leadership have never resided in one party.
19. Maintain one’s values, character and principles with the understanding that a respect for another’s values, character and principles validates and protects your own.
20. Stay calm and carry on. This too shall pass.

Will we ever stop learning the hard way? The possibility is there. The Covid-19 pandemic is whispering the answers. We now have time to think and listen.