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The Protests. The Looting. What is Justified?

The protests are. The looting is not.

African Americans are justified in their rage at how they have been treated by the police. They are justified in clamoring for fairness, for dialogue, for the end of prejudicial behaviors. They are justified in their call for prompt review of cases where improprieties or sheer cruelty have been present.

Yes, they are.

But as riots and wanton destruction spread across our land, I am disturbed by the lack of leadership to call the nation to its senses.

Why hasn’t our President been a President?
Why hasn’t he held a national broadcast calling for whatever actions are needed to stop the unfairness from continuing? Why hasn’t he called for police reform on a national level? Why hasn’t he looked us in the eye and acknowledged that something has been very wrong for George Floyd to have died as he did in Minneapolis.

And why hasn’t the African American leadership of the country stepped front and asked that the looting stop right now?

That is a responsibility that should not be shirked.

We need action now.

We need dialogue.

People have the right to protest, and loudly so, but not to loot, not to steal, not to destroy.

We do not need silence from our leaders, whatever their color. What is the point of letting a deeply flawed President continue to embarrass himself by his repeated blunders?

The nation is in flames and he has yet to step up and say, ‘Yes, protesters, there is something wrong, yes, and I too watched the video of George Floyd’s death. I, too, fellow Americans, felt the suffocating pain of his last moments as he lay pinned down by the knee of an officer with no regard for the damage his action might be inflicting. I too felt the anguish.’

But our President cannot say that because he lacks that depth of feeling. It is simply not in him.

Calls have gone out for him to address the nation, but as of this writing he has yet to do so.

There is a huge void of leadership in the country.

Someone has to step in. If we feel at a loss then let us reach back into our recent history.

And so I assure you, that Marin Luther King would have by now, stood up on a doorstep somewhere in Minneapolis and addressed the entire nation, whites, blacks, Latinos, Asian, vehemently asking, with all the power he could muster, that we show restraint, that the difficult time we are now living calls for reflection, for feeling the fullness of our hurt, asking that we reflect on how all of us have been deeply offended by the violence of some police officers and, even beyond that, that we are deeply offended by the institutionalized violence that leads to lack of opportunity in our land, uneven health care and education.

Martin Luther King would not have played it safe, holding back to see how much more our flawed President will do in his path to self destruction.

So, please, dear leaders, someone, no matter what your color, step up and call upon the spirit of the man who gave us the glorious words, ‘I have a dream, that one day in America we will be judged by the strength of our character and not the color of our skin.’

Someone, please, in this hour of need, someone with access to the media, please step up and do the right thing.

Oscar Valdes is the author of ‘Psychiatrist for A Nation’ available on Amazon.

Oscarvaldes.net

Demonize Others and you Dehumanize Yourself. The George Floyd Case.

The knee… there it was… pressed hard against George Floyd’s neck as he lay prone on the ground, his hands cuffed in back.

‘Mama… please… I can’t breathe…’ said Floyd as he lay helpless, pinned in place by the pressure of the officer’s knee.

But the officer seemed deaf. He couldn’t hear the plight of the man he had completely neutralized. He couldn’t hear the call for help of a man who, at no point, had been a threat to him.

George Floyd had been drunk and had bought cigarettes with a fake 20 dollar bill. The store clerk called the cops.

George Floyd did not put up a fight, having allowed himself to be cuffed, but then objected to going in the back of the police car. So the officers pulled him out and George fell or was thrown to the ground.

And there he lay. With the officer’s knee taking away his life. Moment by moment.

The other officers, meanwhile, swirled around, not one of them, not a single one of them, having the common sense to tell the officer pressing down on Floyd’s neck to ease up, please, you might kill the man.

Ease up, you don’t know what kind of shape that man under you is in.

Ease up, you don’t know what damage you are inflicting.

Ease up, we’re here over a fake 20 dollar bill.

Ease up, the man under you hasn’t physically hurt anyone.

Ease up, please, because you might take his life away.

No.

The other officers kept swirling about, just as onlookers videoed the scene and tried to persuade the officer pressing on Floyd’s neck to come to his senses, to please realize what he was doing.

But the officer didn’t get it.

And then George Floyd was dead.

It happened on Memorial Day in Minneapolis, a liberal American city, with excellent universities and sound institutions. A city with lots of good people.

But the accumulated wisdom of the city’s citizens had not passed through to the leadership of their police department.

For that officer’s knee to have stayed so long on George Floyd’s neck, that officer had to have demonized him. Yes, Floyd had to be a very bad man. He deserved to be punished on the spot. Never mind waiting for his day in court.

George Floyd had bought cigarettes with a 20 dollar fake bill, so that’s what you get for it in the city of Minneapolis, a knee on the back of your neck, so watch out people.

What the officer pinning George Floyd down chose to ignore, or never bothered to look into, or was never told about, or just wasn’t within his reach, was that as he demonized George Floyd he dehumanized himself.

None of the officers’ higher ups had made a point of making that clear, or maybe they thought that knees that pinned people down were good deterrents.

Maybe the Minneapolis police department had a department of psychology, maybe not. If they did, then they hadn’t been showing up. They hadn’t gone out to see the troops in action, and spot potential problems.

George Floyd was killed by an officer of the Minneapolis police department. It happened on Memorial Day, the 25th of May, 2020. Four days later, on the 29th , the officer was charged with murder and he began to be referred to as a former officer. But the whole department is responsible for George Floyd’s death.

The greatest fault ought to lie with the leadership. The ones at the very top. The ones entrusted with the task of thinking about the value of human beings, about the importance of not demonizing others.

It is very easy to single out the officer with the knee and put all the burden of wrongdoing on him.

To single him out is to divert attention from those who, having the responsibility of selecting and educating the officers, have failed to do their jobs.

It falls to the leaders of the department, to continually be reminding their troops that their task is to restrain, not punish, and that the more force at their disposal, the more careful they have to be so as not to inflict harm.

We’re all at risk for demonizing others. It’s the easier path. It does not require much thought.

The higher task, on the other hand, is to acknowledge the value of every human being, and as we do, we will likely find value in ourselves.

The officer pinning down George Floyd, had not found much to value in himself and so, he thought, there could not be much of value in George Floyd.

Oscar valdes is the author of ‘Psychiatrist for A Nation’, available on Amazon.

oscarvaldes.net

Joe and Jill go Up the Hill

The big question to answer is, should Biden select an African American woman for the vice presidential spot?

To try and find out I transformed myself into a fly and flew into the Bidens’ living quarters. Becoming a fly allowed me to pass through the many secret service checks. A few times they swatted at me and even sprayed some nasty mist in my direction but I managed to dodge till, finally, was able to find a spot up on the ceiling of their living room. I anchored myself in such fashion that I could hear all they said, without seeing any of what they did. Respecting their privacy is important to me.

They had just stepped in from their bedroom when I first heard them. They sat down.

Joe – That is the question. Will African Americans feel disappointed and cool on me if I don’t choose one of them?

Jill – It’s a lot of pressure you’re under.

Joe – I wouldn’t be where I am if it hadn’t been for their showing up in great numbers in the South Carolina primary.

Jill – But still you worry about it, don’t you?

Joe – I do.

Jill – Why?

Joe – My main task is to win and remove Trump. The nation cannot endure four more years of this man. The African American vote alone won’t get us there. We need votes from every sector, from the Right to the Left, the poor to the rich and from all minorities. Whites are a majority in this country. I have to appeal to those who voted for Trump and are disappointed with his performance. Race played a big part in Trump’s victory. So I have to reach out to those voters and say to them, ‘look at me, brothers and sisters, I am a white man. Throughout all my political career I have defended the rights of African Americans, and guess what? Doing so has not diminished me but, instead, made me a better person and a better politician for all Americans. Had I not made the choices I made, Obama would not have chosen me as his running mate, and I would not have been able to serve the nation as I did.

Jill – I like that, Joe.

Joe – Thanks, baby.

Jill – It speaks to the need for continued integration, and that new strengths will arise from our coming together… not pulling apart.

Joe – Yes.

Jill – I worry, though, that the various camps… Warren’s, Harris’, Klobuchar’s… and the women governors who believe they might be picked… all keep striving to find favor with you… the people they represent thinking that what they stand for should be put up front on the national agenda, that their views should have a stronger voice, and their candidate being selected would make that more likely.

Joe – I understand. My task, though, is to convey to the nation, that I will be a President for everyone. I will be a president for the Trump supporter who will vote against me, and I will be a president for him because I will listen to what he has to say. I will also be a president to those who have given up on going to the polls, because they no longer believe their plight will ever be heard. Having been a life long supporter of African American causes, has helped me acquire the strength required.

Jill – You don’t feel you have to prove it by choosing an African American…

Joe – Right. Color alone will not sway me. Character will. How can we forget the good Reverend?

Jill – Indeed.

Joe – When you go to the polls and vote for me, you will be voting for what I stand, and my pledge to devote the rest of my life to making this country all it can be. And I will show you my taxes, too.

Jill laughs.

Jill – Joe… have you made up your mind, already?

Joe – I have.

Jill – I had a sense.

Joe – It wasn’t a difficult decision, once I thought about it in detail.

Jill – You feel good about it?

Joe – Very good.

Jill – Any hint?

Joe – I’ll give you one… it is one of the women who ran for president.

Jill – Why?

Joe – Because they put themselves out… they went for it with all they had. I value that.

Jill – That narrows it down quite a bit.

Joe – Yes. Who was your favorite?

Jill – I don’t want to tell you, it might influence you.

Joe – I’ve made up my mind.

Jill – I’ll wait till you announce. When will you?

Joe – At the convention. Keeping to tradition.

Jill – Something to look forward to.

Joe – Yes.

They are quiet for a moment.

Jill – Here’s another question for you… don’t answer if you don’t want. In multiracial America, is there room for an all white presidential ticket?

Joe – You’re nipping close, aren’t you?

Jill – You don’t have to answer.

Joe – Yes, there is. There’s room for an all white ticket.

Jill leans back in her seat and as she does she looks up and notices the fly on the ceiling.

Jill – There’s a fly up there. Wonder how it got in. Joe… Trump will not go down quietly.

Joe – I know. And neither will the voices that preach disunion, privilege and enmity. Look… this race is mine to lose… only I offer the hope for a government that is open to all… and to which I will bring the best and brightest to the White House… from the Right, the Left and the Center, and steer a path to reconciliation and healing.

Jill – And I will be there at your side.

Joe – Ah… what else can a man ask for? Come over here, baby.

At which point, thinking the rest was none of my business, I flew away so I could record what you have just read.

Oscar Valdes is the author of ‘Psychiatrist for a Nation’, available on Amazon and Oscarvaldes.net.

Down in a Georgia Town. USA. 2020.

He saw him running down the street of their lovely neighborhood. But a black man running down our streets? Must be up to some mischief, thought A.

He quickly called his son and asked him to get in the truck, they were going to chase after him. Bring weapons, of course, you had to have those. And so they did.

They chased after the black man, caught up and yelled at him to stop, they needed to talk. But the black man was too scared to stop.

He could have. He just didn’t. Something about the rage in the white men asking him to halt.

A scuffle followed, fists flew, and shots were fired.

The black man fell to the ground, mortally wounded.

He was a neighbor it turned out, lived in the outskirts of town with his mother.

He had gone out for a jog, stopped by a construction site and went in to check it out. There were no signs barring him from doing so. He was curious and stepped in. He looked around for a while, then went back out and resumed his jog.

But A. and son had already set after him.

The killing was reported to the local authorities and was on its way to being buried and forgotten when someone in the court system leaked a video to the press.

The case became national news.

A. and son were arrested and charged with the black man’s murder.

Sitting alone in his cell, A. reflected on the incident. His life forever changed. He had never killed a man. Now he had.

But why?

If he thought the black man may have been up to mischief, he could’ve pulled up alongside him, asked him to please slow down, he just needed to ask him something. He could’ve done it without the rage in his eyes. He could have done it without the accusatory tone.

But he didn’t.

Why didn’t he?
The black man had been jogging. He was carrying nothing in his hands. But A. assumed the fellow had done something wrong. He had assumed a black man in a white man’s neighborhood would have to be up to some mischief. What else?

Sitting alone in his cell, A. reflected on the incident. His life now forever changed. But not only his life but his son’s life.

He didn’t like the feeling.

One thing was to have had all those preconceptions about black people, another was to have passed them on to his son.

He felt worse.

He had not examined his rage for black folks, and then passed it on to his son.

He was an old man, now. Retired. But his son was just starting out in life.

Why had he done that to him?

Why hadn’t he had the courage to say to him, ‘son, I have my views on race, but you need to make up your own mind. I may just be wrong about all this. I may just be wrong because I haven’t really thought about it real hard. So, son, you think about it. Think about it, make your own choices, and live your own life.’

As he sat in his cell, feeling alone and depressed, saddened that his life had come to this, what hurt him the most was that he had passed his hatred of others on to his son. What hurt him the most, was that he didn’t give his son permission to be his own man.

Sitting alone in his cell, A. kept reflecting on the incident.

He felt tired.

And just who had taught him to hate? Had he learned on his own? Had any black man ever injured him?

No one had.

When he was a young man he had thought of leaving his town and going somewhere else, see how other people thought about things, but he hadn‘t done it.

When his son was growing up, he had thought of telling him to go off, get away from this town, and find out how other people think in the world.

He had thought about it but hadn’t done it.

Now he regretted it.

Sitting alone in his cell, A. thought of himself as a trapped man. No one was holding him down or tying him up. He was trapped by his own views and thoughts. And what hurt him the most now, was that he had trapped his own son.

Every man had to be responsible for his actions. To do so every man had to have thoughts of his own.

Sitting alone in his cell, A. thought that he hadn’t put in the time to have thoughts of his own. Certainly not on the matter of race. And he hadn’t taught his son, either.

That’s what hurt him the most.

And it was on him.

Yes, it was.

He wanted to apologize to the mother of the man he had killed, yes, he did, but he wanted to apologize, most of all, to his own son, his own blood, whose life he had cursed.

To Reopen or Not

We have to. And if we’re careful about it we can do it.

Careful will mean keeping that important distance at all times. And being mindful that a mask which does not have a good fit simply won’t be enough protection if you’re talking to someone infected, even if they’re asymptomatic.

It’s also good to keep in mind the notion of dose.

It is not the same thing to touch a surface that has been previously touched by someone with the virus – and then putting your hands in your mouth or nose or eye – than to have a conversation at close range with someone who has the symptoms or have someone infected breathe or sneeze on you. In the latter case you’re sure to catch the bug, in the former it’s less likely, and if you do, your body will have a better chance of fighting it.

Masks have a positive deterrent effect. Even when the fit around the face is loose and consequently allows a path for the bug to reach you.

Masks tell us that we’re mindful of the spread of the virus. I hadn’t been wearing them unless I had to speak to someone at less than 6 ft, but now I’ve started doing it.

It is also a courtesy to passersby.

Who knows, one might have an unexpected fit of cough or a sneeze just as one draws near another person, whether masked or not.

Will wearing a mask keep me from catching the bug from someone infected who doesn’t yet know it (because the illness is incubating), if I’m seated next to them during a 4 hour plane flight? I would rather not take the chance. And for that reason I’m unlikely to hop on a plane anytime soon if I can avoid it. Tough on the airlines, tourism, hotels.

Can we adhere to safety precautions and conduct business at the same time? Sure we can.

But it will require an arrangement that instituted the safety measures.

I can see stores doing it. And even restaurants, though capacity will have to be reduced. But it will be hard on cinemas. It will be a while for me to step back into one.

Bars? Never mind.

But I think the University of California system is overreacting when it called for online classes this Fall. Surely students can be trusted to follow safety guidelines.

And what about doctors’ offices? So many have been closed. People are not going to stop getting sick for other reasons. Why force that needless back log and burden emergency rooms?

Basic protective equipment is available.

People who are sick need to be provided with means to support themselves while staying at home unless they have to be hospitalized. Doing so keeps the rest of us safe.

China, now much maligned for not supposedly doing enough to warn us of the perils of corona, had created fever clinics, where anyone with a fever could go and get checked. No costs attached.

A good idea is a good idea, no matter where it comes from.

If people who became symptomatic knew they had a place to go to get checked and, if sick, would be cared for and their expenses covered while ill, then they would be more likely to step up and get tested.

Public transport? Wear a mask and hope for the best. It will definitely put you at greater risk.

Do we then wait for Corona to pass on? We can’t.

There’s too much at stake. The economy won’t handle it.

Jerome Powell, the Fed chair, spoke today about the road ahead. He was not optimistic. We are in an economic contraction and it will take time to recover, even with congress providing relief measures. Lots of jobs may not be coming back as the worksite adjusts to the new reality, i.e. working from home, for instance.

We can’t wait around for the vaccine, can we?

No. It will take too long.

But we can get back to work safely if we are careful and respectful of others.

And why not learn from the rest of the world?

As of today, there have been nearly 85 thousand deaths here in the US, whereas in Japan, with a population of 125 million, there have been 675. That’s right. Six hundred and seventy five. In South Korea, next door, there have been fewer than 300 deaths (population of nearly 52 million), so they’re comparable to Japan.

China, with a population of 1.4 billion, has had less than 4700 deaths, and their economy is already up and running.

Surely there’s no harm in asking what they’ve done right and learning from it, is there?

Eating a little humble pie is in order.

One spoonful at a time.

Savoring it. Mmmm, yes.

Good for longevity too.

And we’ll be making America Great Again.

China and Trump

They’re beating him handily.

First he picked a fight with them over trade and intellectual property. It wasn’t that there weren’t real issues to be addressed, but our president had to make a great show of it. Defeat China, force her to her knees. But they didn’t go down.

Instead of working with our European allies to enlarge the negotiating bloc since they also were affected, he dismissed them. Trump thought he knew better. He would do it alone. After all, he had decades of experience making deals in New York buying and selling hotels.

But that hasn’t translated well into dealing effectively with the world, has it?

The trade war with China raised prices for us and led to huge subsidies to our farmers whose products China chose not to buy in retaliation. Eventually a deal was reached that favored the US slightly, but it was a pyrrhic victory because a lot of resentment was stirred.

Then came the virus.

China did what it had to do. That China is an autocratic and repressive regime there is no doubt, but they fixed their problem. They were heavy handed in quarantining and tracing their people, but they fixed their problem.

As of this writing, 4600 deaths from the virus have been reported in their nation of 1.4 billion and their economy is revving up again.

Contrast with over 71000 Americans deaths in a country of 330 million, less than a quarter the size of China.

Contrast with 550 deaths in Japan, with a population of 126 million, less than half of America’s.

So what happened?

Think on it for a moment.

Yes, that’s right. We screwed up. Big time.

That’s 71000 Americans.

The difference in the death tolls is not the price of freedom. It is the price of folly.

And that price keeps rising.

Known for our abundance we got caught off guard and scrambling for ventilators, for masks, for protective equipment to assist our burdened and valiant health workers.

What happened?

It is so sad, isn’t it?

It is not that we lack the productive capacity or the ingenuity or the will or the drive or enterprising push to get things done. No. It’s not that at all.

We knew the virus was coming.

On December 31st 2019 The Wuhan Health Commission alerted the Chinese National Health Commission and their CDC. That same day the World Health Organization (WHO) was also notified of the outbreak. Mind you, it took another 30 days to January the 30th, for the WHO to declare it a ‘public health emergency of international concern’ but on January the 23rd , Wuhan city, with 11 million people, was shut down. If that wasn’t a momentous event, then what is? When was the last time a city that size was shut down? To anyone paying attention it should’ve sent a big warning sign. Danger ahead! Watch out!

But we missed it.

Washington DC, America’s seat of power, was distracted.

Our great leader was tweeting on one or another inconsequential matter.

I can only imagine what was going through the president’s mind. When is my next rally? When will I, again, be showered with great praise?

His impeachment on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of congress had begun on December 18th 2019 and would not end until February 5th 2020. But all along the outcome was assured. With Republican Senators firmly under his control, Trump would be acquitted. Still he didn’t pay attention.

And the virus gathered force.

The president’s defense? Denial. Grand Denial.

It was like the flu, nothing more, it would go away quickly, he said. We, Americans, would be just fine.

71 thousand Americans have died since. The damage to the economy enormous.

Coronavirus was beyond his grasp like it is beyond him to apologize for not seeing it.

And the virus keeps pummeling us.

We’re all hoping for medical researchers to save us. Those gifted men and women from all over the world, who toil tirelessly to come up with a weapon that will stop the virus on its tracks.

But the White House cannot lead.

Just the other day, a global effort was put together to raise funds for vaccine research. We didn’t pitch in. Mind, you, there’s already much work being done here, but an American contribution to the grand effort would have been symbolic of the desire to join in and be part of a world team. We couldn’t do it.

Our Secretary of State, however, has been very busy trying to get other world leaders to agree to labelling coronavirus the Wuhan virus. But world leaders have not been persuaded.

Not wanting to stop blaming China, the president has spoken of imposing new tariffs in retaliation. They should’ve warned us, the White House says. China should’ve done more to prevent the catastrophe.

Well, they did. China made their own mistakes silencing doctors that told of the incipient outbreak, but eventually they turned around and got to work.

We didn’t.

But we could have.

We had plenty of time to take action and prevent the viral spread.

But all is not lost, is it? No. We can still put more blame on China, still time to make up a story that the Chinese actually manufactured the virus so they could inflict us great pain.

And for the gullible that might just do.

For the rest of us, however, let the virus be a warning of what we must do to remain a strong nation.

One key ingredient is to be willing to face the facts as they are and not deny them, to be able to see the truth and act decisively.

And no, China is not in descent as a nation. Let us not delude ourselves. Their economy has temporarily contracted but they remain a powerful engine of growth, a huge market to the world and a mighty rival.

And yes, the spirit of entrepreneurship is alive and well in that land, entrepreneurs contributing significantly to their GDP and representing a huge source of employment for their countrymen.

Eventually, that spirit will prevail in China and their system of government will change.

Meanwhile, we’d better give up the idea that the future is ours. It is not. We have to make it our own, and to do so we must be willing to face the facts at home and abroad and act accordingly.

With a population less than a quarter of China’s size, America’s openness to immigrants and our commitment to freedom of speech, we have a great advantage. But let’s watch out. A short sighted, tribal leader, can squander it all. In less than one term in office.

So What Are They Doing in Japan?

As of today, they have had 6701 cases with only 101 deaths. Unbelievable.

They are next to South Korea which got hit big.

Is it their custom of not shaking hands but bowing instead when they greet? Or their washing of hands often?

A country with a population of 126 million is showing a stunningly small incidence of infections and deaths.

I hear little in the news about this remarkable difference.

They’re doing something the rest of us have not.

Or were they wise to implement safeguards as the infection spread from China?

We all could use more information from their experience, and if too late for this edition of the virus, certainly to prepare for the next one.

Japanese authorities, please don’t be shy and let the world know.

Thanks

China Has Arrived

There is a certain majesty to China’s move to command the world stage. As the number of infected and dead rise worldwide, China is stepping up and saying ‘We have got this. We mitigated as was necessary and we have controlled the coronavirus epidemic.’

So far, the results back the assertion. Their economy is starting up again and, filled with confidence, are now sending experts to aid other nations in the grip of the virus, such as Iran and Italy. They are even building hospitals for them.

The Chinese did it.

And they deserve recognition.

China went into full battle with the virus and has come out ahead (South Korea has done the same).

The Chinese imposed severe restrictions on movement, mobilized resources, and got the job done. My hat off to them.

The Chinese do not deserve, to have the US try to devalue them by calling the virus the Wuhan virus. What that shows is how envious the present American leadership is. Trump and company had ample time to take the necessary steps to prevent the wide spread of the disease but instead wasted the opportunity. Is there a word for it? Yes. It is Denial. Massive Denial.

Preoccupied with lesser and partisan concerns, i.e. the building of the wall, his impeachment, Mr Trump could not think ahead to what was looming and how it endangered the lives of Americans. He could not bother to summon the multitude of experts the nation has at its disposal, because he needed to attend the political rallies that he requires to prop up his confidence.

Surely, the crowds chanted vigorously, Make America Great Again! just as dark clouds drifted menacingly in our direction.

The preoccupation with getting elected, prevented the president from hearing the advice that would have led to us having the necessary masks and testing kits and ventilators. But to think in those terms, requires a mind that is free to rise above partisan concerns and look beyond.

Mr Trump could not do that.

As of today, our nation has had nearly 4 thousand deaths from the virus, a figure larger than China’s, with a population 4 times the size of ours. And the forecast of future deaths is ominous.

Consumed as we are with tending to our own, we must now cede the stage to China, and we must because they were vastly more effective than we have been.

It would do us a world of good to recognize it.

It would do us a world of good to state openly, that China has done a most competent job at saving lives. Even as they segregate Uighurs and curtail freedoms to their citizens, which stains their standing as a leading nation.

And yet, as things stand, it would do us a world of good to be frank and upright and recognize that, in combatting the virus, they have done a better job than we have.

As we endeavor to follow the instructions to slow the spread of the disease, we will soon limit the lurid escalation of the death rate. There are already signs that the rate of infection is beginning to slow.

But our economy has suffered a major hit, many businesses will not reopen and unemployment is soaring.

Who knows how long this contraction will last.

China’s economy, by contrast, is revving up and, for now, will be the dominant world economy.

It will do us a world of good, our leaders foremost, to recognize it.

It wasn’t long ago, that nations in need would have looked to our country for urgent assistance.

Preoccupied with divisive concerns, we have shirked from the world, and now we see the cost.

There’s a price to pay for being short sighted.

A price to pay in lives and in prestige.

That matters.

Day 3 After National Emergency Declaration. China versus US, South Korea, Europe, Japan etc.

After the first case appeared in December 2019, China bungled the initial response, which made things worse. Since then, however, they’ve managed to halt the spread of the virus.

We bungled in our own way, because with knowledge of what had started in Wuhan, and that in the age of travel an ocean is not a barrier, our response could’ve been more effective. For instance, we could’ve had plenty of testing kits for the virus.

So they bungled and we bungled also.

Now for the second phase. China instituted strict quarantines. Their economy has taken a hit but they’ve halted the spread of the virus. Those results are a challenge to us.

Can our open society, with a plurality of voices and a wide diversity of competencies and political views, manage to present a united front to stem the tide of infections and limit the damage so it’s less that what China has endured?

The battle is on. The number of infected cases and deaths will tell the story.

The stock market (which is not the economy but tells us something about it) plunged another 3 thousand points today.

The virus has already sent us into a bear market. With the severe contraction in the service sector, most economists agree we’re headed for a recession.

There is consensus that this is not 2008. The disruptive force is not buried within our financial system but swimming in our body fluids, so this is very different.

China is ahead of the game. How they do, how quickly their economy bounces back, will tell us a great deal. If they pull out of the stagnation they’re in we will know that at least one path works. Maybe ours will too, but we’ll know that theirs works for sure.

The hope is that, once their travel restrictions are lifted, the infection will not return. I am definitely pulling for them. And if the infection does not return then their economy will start to climb back.

There’s much more at stake here than getting over the virus. There’s the sense, at least in a lot of people watching these developments, that contrasting political systems are in fierce competition; that overbearing state control is being pitted against individual liberty.

I don’t have any doubt in which world I like to live, and will do what I can to make sure we control the spread of the virus.

Pasadena was dark and rainy today.

Most eateries were doing take out business only, but the mood seemed positive.

This morning I went into a store to buy some fresh vegetables and the shelves were barren. I was able to get some other things I needed. I have yet to find hand sanitizers but put my name on a list at a specialty pharmacy. A single surgical mask was going for 6 dollars. I passed.

One prediction has it that sooner or later, all of us will catch the virus. But the longer it takes for most of us to get infected, the more likely it will be that we’ll have the resources to help us heal.

At an early morning appointment with my dental hygienist, I mentioned that coronavirus was showing us how interdependent we are. ‘Yes,’ she answered, ‘it’s humbling.’

No cough, no fever.

We’re going to beat this.

Good night.

Day 2 After National Emergency Declaration

The incidence of cases keeps climbing. China, Singapore and Japan and perhaps the UK seem to be keeping a lid on the numbers but Italy’s figures are jumping.

In California, people 65 and older are asked to stay home. Theatres and restaurants are closing and the CDC recommends that social gatherings be limited to 50 people.

The economy is widely expected to contract for this quarter and the next which would put us in recession territory. In a calming move the Federal Reserve announced that the interest rate would be slashed to near zero.

There were more people out today in Pasadena. Some restaurants were open, others closed. It was a pretty day overall.

Until testing is widely available I’ll monitor my condition and only go in to urgent care or my doctor’s office if I develop a cough and a fever.

I read that the nation’s food supply is ample so I’m okay for now.

Tomorrow I won’t be walking into a Starbucks. They’ve gone to online only.

If testing were widely available, I’d get tested but that is not yet possible.

I expect to go to work Tuesday, unless I hear from my work site.

My priority, of course, is to not catch this virus.

I’m getting better at not touching my face, but it’s a struggle. I’m more aware of it when I step out. When I do, I’ve assigned my left hand to open doors, keeping my right hand for anything that would touch food.

I watched the debate between Biden and Sanders. Biden brought up the importance of getting the military involved. I think it’s necessary. This being a national emergency, the government should also be repurposing private industry to make the kinds of machinery that we will need to help us save lives, such as respirators. The virus is especially hard on the lungs and the supportive assistance the respirators provide will make the difference between life and death.

With the military involved, we will be able to improvise enough additional hospital space to tend to the greater number we expect to be infected.

The coronavirus has declared war on us and we have to fight back.

No need to panic. We’ll get through this.

I was glad to see Biden commit to selecting a woman as VP. I thought it was the high point of the debate. Sanders wavered when asked if he’d go along with that but then said yes, most likely.

If you can go out for a walk during the day, do so. It will boost your immunity and clear your mind.

Good night.