With COVID-19 I feel that there have been many things that showed the best in our humanity, from helping out our neighbors more to drive by birthday parades and creative social distanced events. However, I also feel that this pandemic has brought out the worst in a lot of people.
For starters, I keep hearing a lot about the fact that many of the people who die from COVID-19 are elderly or have pre-existing health conditions. They state it matter-of-fact like, ‘oh well, they have diabetes’, or ‘they were in their eighties, they lived a long life.’
It’s at these people that I want to scream. It doesn’t matter if you are two or 102, your life still matters—their life still matters. It doesn’t matter that they had health conditions previous to COVID-19, had they not contracted the virus they could have lived for many more years, some even decades.
Who gets to decide at what age it is okay to simply brush off someone’s death? Where is the compassion? If someone dies at 80, they still are gone forever; their death still hurts for their family and friends. How would you like it if someone told you that your death won’t matter, and that this whole pandemic is made up anyways?
It is ridiculous to me that people are burrowing their heads in the sand pretending this virus doesn’t exist. Do you think that the people who are suffering with COVID-19 or have died with it are just making it up?
Not to mention the utter hypocrisy I keep seeing from anti-maskers. Most people cry blasphemy if someone refuses to acknowledge the sacrifice of our troops on Remembrance Day, and rightly so, however there is a sad double standard happening.
You respect our veterans who were willing to lay down their lives to fight for our freedom, yet you don’t respect them enough to wear a mask and protect them now?
They were willing to face war to protect us and you won’t even put a scrap of cloth over your face while you shop? Who is really the snowflake.
Next time you think, these deaths are only the elderly or sick anyways, they don’t count—I dare you to look in your grandparents or parents (depending on your age) eyes and tell them flat out, ‘you’re old anyways so it’s okay if you die from COVID—it’s all a conspiracy anyway.’
I’m mind-boggled by the mass amount of disrespect for human life right now. And I repeat, regardless of age, or race, social standing, or health, YOU DESERVE TO LIVE.
I hope people realize this and that our community and people in general can start showing everyone a little bit of compassion.