This is How We Get Back to Normal

As you read this we have hit another grim milestone in America over the last week when it comes to the tragic COVID-19 pandemic in terms of overall cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. Over the course of the first twelve days of the month of December there have been more cases and deaths than at any time in the pandemic and with no end in sight, things become darker and more depressing.

Twice in the last week alone, the death toll of the worst day in American history (September 11th, 2001) has been exceeded with 3,000 plus COVID deaths. This should outrage every single American and cause us to make the hard choices and work to get these numbers down, but sadly, our elected leaders in Washington and many of our fellow citizens still do not take it seriously and will not act in the interest of public health.

Masks Work , Social Distancing is Effective, and Staying Home Saves American Lives

These are the most important steps that we can take to get back to normal and stop the carnage from getting worse. The science is clear, wearing a mask has been proven to be an effective tool to slowing down the spread of the virus and keeping you and your fellow citizens safe from this virus. However, there are far too many who will not take these steps and leaders at the highest level of government who will not enforce these measures.

Masks are an effective way to contain this virus and keep yourself and those around you safe. This is not my opinion, it is a reality, but sadly it is a reality that many refuse to acknowledge and that is why we have rising cases and deaths across this country. That being said, the lack of people willing to wear masks is alarming and can be attributed to the lack of people in high places setting an example by wearing one themselves.

Masks are not against freedom and your rights are not restricted by being told you have to wear a mask just like people’s rights are not infringed upon when they are required to wear a seat belt or go through a metal detector in their local courthouse or at an airport. I am not sure if you remember but there was a time when seatbelts were not the norm and a time when people were not required to go through metal detectors to board a flight but then things happened where that become our “new normal” so to speak.

Now, people accept that not only are these things good ideas and the law but that they work. Since we changed our airport security measures we have not had a terrorist incident in our skies and seatbelts save many lives per year and there are countless other safety measures we take to keep people safe and they are work. These things are not there to restrict freedoms or control people but rather are there to keep our citizens alive and protect the general public.

Masks are no different. The main way that we contain this virus is to wear a mask — it is that simple.

The same is true with social distancing and reducing large gatherings of people. These things are just as important as masks at reducing COVID-19 infections and keeping our communities safe during this brutal pandemic that we find ourselves in. These measures are important for us to ensure the safety of all and they are vital for us to get back to normal and to do so sooner rather than later.

People have a misconception that if they socially distance then they do not have to wear a mask and this is not true. It is not an either or type of thing when it comes to this virus, we must do both and then do other things like wash our hands and be sure not to be around those who may have been exposed to the virus. The reason for this is that sometimes respiratory droplets can travel further than six-feet and we want that second layer of protection when possible.

Large gatherings are where the virus thrives and where a lot of the infections come from. This is why professional sports teams have greatly reduced their crowd size or banned fans altogether during this time. This is also why stores and malls and other places have severe limitations for their locations and how many people can be there at one time. You even see lines outside of places like Walmart and so on because of this and rightfully so.

Of course, people, like the current President of the United States is part of the problem when it comes to these measures as he does not lead by example and wear a mask or not hold large gatherings. He holds mask-less rallies with large groups in attendance, in the excess of 1,000+ people and that is a major issue for this virus being contained. Thankfully, he lost the recent election and we will not have those types of things going forward and can at last have leaders who make decisions with public health in mind.

The fact is, these measures are our best way for us to get back to normal and lead regular lives once again. These measures will get us out of this pandemic sooner and will help us to move forward in a safe and effective way as a nation and most of all, these measures are based on science and they work. Wearing masks, keeping our distance, and limiting large gatherings are the best things we can do to get the lives back that we used to have.

Hope is on the Way — The Vaccine is Here

It was just announced that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine was given the go-ahead to begin in the United States after a successful run of clinical trials and beginning use in the UK. The first round of shots are set to be given here in the states tomorrow and that is a good thing, it sends a message of hope that the beginning of the end has arrived.

Of course, the vaccine is not the end all. It is just a start and will take time before everyone is vaccinated and the virus begins to fade away. We still need to practice the health practices like masks and social distancing and avoiding large crowds as well as sanitizing even with the vaccine. This is because the vaccine may only protect you from getting it or getting sick with it, but not protect you from giving it to others.

That being said, this is hopeful. This pandemic has ravaged the world and our country has been especially hard hit by the virus and the mayhem that has come to our shores. We have all wondered when this thing would go away and life would become normal again and the vaccine is the end all, the solution, the miracle that we have all prayed for.

Here we are, the hope is coming and help is here.

The vaccine is not going to be something that will instantly bring us back to a normal existence but it is something that will send us in that direction and get us there within a manageable time frame. This vaccine will be our way to get life back to normal and end the lockdowns that are so difficult for our cities, small businesses, and the country as a whole.

This will not change things overnight but the vaccine is a way for us to get things going back to normal sooner rather than later .. or never. If we did not have this vaccine then we would be in much worse shape than we are now but because of the hard work of our scientists and doctors as well as the sacrifice of those taking the vaccine and participating in these trials, we will get out of this mess very soon.

The Normal Way of Life and Everything We Love is in Sight

We all want to go to sporting events , travel , date, socialize, to work, and so many other things once again and we will get there soon but we must have a patient approach, we are almost there. I know, when you live an isolated and lonely life for the better part of a year and cannot do the things you want and love to do then patience can be a challenge, but the end is near and to quit now would be saying that it was all for nothing.

I think people need to stay the course and wait to do these things until this vaccine circulates and people are protected from the virus and that herd immunity is amongst us. That means that for us to have that happen and for this vaccine to work, people need to take the vaccine first of all and not be anti-vaxxers and then we need people to continue to wear a mask, avoid large groups, and maintain their distance.

I believe we need to go a step further and stop flights or at least limit the number of people who can be in airports and on planes. If you watched the news and looked at those packed airports around the Thanksgiving holiday then you saw it coming where these crowds were going to cause cases to surge once again and the pandemic to get worse. This is one thing we can do, then we can issue a national mask mandate, expand the social distancing protocols to 12-feet, and even close places like casinos.

Folks, none of us like doing these things but this is a temporary situation until we can get the vaccine flowing throughout the country and finally get back to a normal life. We do not like these lockdowns or masks or any of the rest of it that we have to do. Things get lonely and many of us want to date and have social gatherings and so on, but these are unprecedented times and the only way that we get back to normal times is to do these things.

The end is near, the nearly 300,000 American deaths from this virus and devastation for so many in this country and world is something we can never forget but to prevent further carnage if we take these steps and exercise some patience until we can get to the other side.

Help is coming, the end of the pandemic is on way, but to get through this we must make the hard choices.