You know how when you’re microscoping something and then lift your eyes monentarily you’re initially disoriented? Like, “Where am I?”, “What is this?” I had that happen just now with the COVID numbers today (They’re incomplete, so I’ll wait to post.). I was leaning over my computer screen moving the mouse a millimiter at a time, squinting to compare the 7-day trends and the dailies when I gave up (data incomplete) and lifted my eyes. Isolated and enlarged: 532,058. Disiriented : “Cases?”, “Worldwide Deaths?” Then it hits you. Harder than if you just googled total U.S. COVID Deaths. 

46-1 dismissed Dr Fauci’s advice one time: “If I’d followed his advice we’d have 500,000 Deaths!” Well, we do, and one-third on the way to 600k.

It’s not that Americans don’t care. It’s just that they really don’t care. Never have with this.  Used to be body bags were an unpleasant sight, death statistics the source of outrage. My mother started screaming when the big black limousine pulled up in front of “the apartment” to inform the family that my Uncle Jack had been killed in World Wat II (the day before Germany surrendered, too). After the first Barnesboro boy was killed in Vietnam, there was a school assembly for something. His little brother was on stage reciting some lines or something when he suddenly burst into tears. There was a collective “Ahh” from the teachers. We had riots and shit over Vietnam. World War II took four years to reach 405k American deaths; Vietnam, twenty-one years to get to 58k. We’ve surpassed WWII, Vietnam and WWI combined in ONE YEAR! We have lost the equivalent of the thirty-sixth largest city in the country, Fresno, California to COVID. “WHEN CAN WE GO TO FOOTBALL GAMES AGAIN?!

It boggles me. All I can do is report the numbers rinse and repeat. 532,058.