There seems to be little or no discussion on whether or not to end free, unfettered global commercial air travel for anyone who wants to engage in traveling to anywhere for any reason at all. The problem of course is when commercial airliners transport persons who immediately after landing spread a pandemic.
To a lesser degree the same thing could be said for ship borne travel. The main difference being ships/ocean liners are significantly slower, so that during a short incubation period the disease manifests itself ship borne and may be able to be identified and made the subject of reasonable quarantine measures by public health officials.
The issue of course is that when anyone basically can be anywhere within 24 hours, then any disease anywhere can be everywhere.
Of course if free, unfettered commercial air travel weren't available to the masses, there would be no Corona global pandemic, like anything that exists today. This is not to suggest that all airline travel everywhere should, must and will be stopped everywhere. It is instead to invite persons to engage in a thoughtful discussion, because they are paying for the cost of free, unfettered commercial airline travel by not being able to go to work today, or by losing their business. Some people will have lost their lives today. Others will simply for a time have lost their health. Most people have lost their peace of mind and have had fear integrated into their lives, as a new companion. The real question is how long will it last? When it is finally gone will it come back again? If so will it be worse than now? If so how much worse can it be? The experts suggest it can be a lot worse.
Other experts suggest now it is almost over. History however will be in the end a rather exacting guide.
At this point shouldn't we ask the question why is the commercial airline industry the most important industry in the world? It must be the most important industry in the world because it has shut down most of the manufacturing industries globally, most non-essential service industries, the automotive industry is also substantially shut down. The list of industries, jobs lost reaches into the trillions. The real question logically that must be asked is why has the commercial airline industry been allowed to bankrupt all other industries?
Where exactly, when and who made the decision to imbue the commercial airline industry with that kind of power. Why did they do that? Who could benefit from such a decision, or is it possible that no such decision was ever made and that the system simply mismanaged has been allowed to run amok for lack of a better term. When the dust settles there will be lawsuits filed, should the commercial airline industry be sued out of existence. Certainly they will be applying to the federal government in this country and around the world for bailouts. The very people who helped bring this problem into existence are being bailed out so that they continue to keep the problem in existence.
Should there be a hierarchy in deciding who is or isn't allowed air travel or any international travel? To the trolls who would seek to heap pillory on this idea please understand certain governments such as Austria and the Czech Republic have already implemented this today without a recent Corona test, that shows you are disease free you won't get into their country.
“Austria’s government has decided that all aliens entering in the country from April 14 will be required to show evidence that they have tested negative for the test for COVID-19 in English, French, German or Italian. The test should be no older than four days.”
https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/austria-and-czech-republic-introduce-new-conditions-of-entry-from-april-14/
Even then there are still restrictions. The questions is if this would have been the case everywhere would we be looking at global pandemic today and if not why not? How many people have lost their businesses would still have their business. How many people that have lost their health would still have their health. How many people who are deceased, would still be alive.
There are other concerns. School children in certain places have lost so much education that they will have to repeat a school year. What is the cost to that child and to the society. Certain college and university students won't be able to graduate in time. What is the cost of that to the economy? All of these people who are not working are not paying taxes are going to be causing a revenue in terms of tax loss of what and for how long? How many more times can this be allowed to occur, how many more lockdowns can the economy afford? We know sadly there has also been an increase in reports of domestic violence, and child abuse and every other type of abuse imaginable, to include increases in mental illness, depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, increases in suicide, increases in homelessness and people who have had their utilities shut off.
Increases in food insecurity and hunger, school age children who have lost access to the free and reduced school breakfast and lunch programs. The boys and girl scouts troop meetings have been canceled. Camp grounds have closed. Some state national parks here and all over the world have closed. Art galleries have closed, museums have closed, zoos have closed. There has been a lot of desperation, loneliness, tears, anguish and yes death and through it all a new companion has crept into our lives called fear.
Fear of the virus, fear of death, fear of job loss, fear of our neighbors, fear of the person standing behind you, fear of being coughed on, fear of being sneezed on, fear of not being helped, fear of being stranded, fear of being isolated, fear of all outsiders, fear of all strangers. Nationalism is on the rise, xenophobia is on the rise, hatred is on the rise, racism is on the rice. Calls for isolation are on the rise. Fortress America has closed its borders. Fortress Europe has closed its borders. Families are separated and all because of a virus that could not have been propagated worldwide except for the airline industry.
When people spoke of the commercial airline industry they spoke of it in glowing terms. After World War II when coming out of the needs of the war, airports were built everywhere, commercial airline travel took off. Now because of it so have global pandemics become registered passengers in the commercial airline industry residing in first class, business class, economy class and in the luggage and storage bins. Can anyone anywhere at any time tell us with a straight face that the Corona pandemic would be possible without the commercial airline industry.
Now we are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel we hope, especially with the coming of summer. Hopefully things will come to an end, but then we look to the fall with great dread, because we will wonder if our friend corona will be back. We pray and hope not when Sars died in the summer it never came back. We hope that, that will be the case with Corona as well but the experts don't really know.
Commercial passenger airports were always viewed as exciting places, a place you could go for your own private little adventure to far away places. Have they now become a landmark of the harbinger of doom and gloom, fear, dismay, disease importation of plague ships that will change and end modern society as we have come to know it. Will there be any summer festivals, carnivals, fairs, concerts, outdoor theme parks to visit.
Of course we all know the truth, the truth is this the truth is, that commercial interests won't shut down commercial airline travel. In fact with your tax dollars, Euros, Peso, and other denominations you will be bailing them out. So they can continue their past work. The only people who have the power to shut down the commercial airline industry therefore is you, the airline passenger. If you stop flying, it stops happening. Now you may ask is it that simple well the answer is yes, they need you and without you they basically can't exist.
Now of course there are these selfish little shits among us who don't care about any of these things. They are going to indulge themselves no matter what, but even they forget they have neighbors, parents, work colleagues, brothers, sisters, cousins, team mates, who can choose not to reward them by looking at their me pictures of their far flung foreign fantastic vacations of the self entitled selfish little shits who bring the plague, death, destruction to our doorstep, and bankruptcy and all of the isms.
So it is I tell you earnestly folks, you each and every one of you can stop commercial airline travel. You can condemn it, not engage in it for as long as necessary in order for us to get our lives back to where they were. It will be a lot easier to do that than to have another 2 billion people locked down.
Besides which there is probably a lot to do in your own region, your own town, your own state, your own country without having to get on a flight of fancy which may not be safe anyway, because on airplanes there is no social distancing is there? Aren't we all squashed in that metal tube like a sardine can to spread viruses among other things. When choosing not to get on an airplane to preserve your own health, not to mention what you will bring home to family, friends and your community. Of course there are the sociopaths and psychopaths out there, who no one can ever appeal to, because that would be impossible for them to ever put interests other than themselves in first place.
Then of course there is business travel, which will never be stopped even though through modern teleconferencing, Skype etc., it has really become an excuse to provide a working vacation to executives, as a little side perk. It use to be that summer was the time for family vacations, car vacations, and the highways and byways would be full of campers, cars with luggage racks. Trains would also be a favorite form of travel across town and across the state.
At some point we were conned into getting onto commercial airlines and fly internationally, but we can change that back, because if we don't there may no longer be any America as we have come to know it, because believe it or not there are things out there worse than Covid 19.
Let's not discover them. Let's not bring them or welcome those who bring them to us. It would be heresy to say we should stop commercial air travel on a whim for anyone, everyone going anywhere for no reason. People will call us stupid, anything we write about it will attract trolls with big noses who will insert themselves in unseemly places. Yet we are also seeing the beginning of health passports being required. Austria doesn't want to let anyone in unless there is a vaccination, unless it is one of their own citizens or someone who lives there coming home with very few exceptions. When the next plague comes Austria will close its borders promptly is the idea, and they will be protected. As the plague rages elsewhere people will look at Austria with envious eyes, as tragedy befalls them again and again, until they have learned their lesson like Austria and require health passports.
I have seen diaries and articles written about this issue, overrun by selfish trolls for whom restraint is unthinkable, impossible. No matter what costs they impose on the rest of us. What is the truth and it is simple, a simple truth Covid 19 has changed the world. You can go off in a comfortable place called denial if you like but it won't help you and won't help any of us, because the pre Covid 19 world has gone.
Too many people have died to not forget what Covid has done. There will be much finger pointing, lots of investigations, big bank bailouts that will dwarf what happened in 2008 many fold. We will be paying for this for a long time. Yes of course we can be sure the pre Covid world has gone for good, it has gone forever. It will never come back. Neither will frivolous air travel. That has gone for good as well. Be in denial if you like, troll if you must and you will. Run away and hide if you think that will help, find a hiding place where the virus won't find you. But it seems commercial air travel has made that impossible because the virus is everywhere now. There is no place left to hide. For those who want to spew hate well I have written Covid 19 that is true enough, I didn't invent it. I didn't give it to you or anyone else.
You can turn this into kill the messenger if you like or you can simply pick up the phone and cancel your airline reservations all of them for good, and then you would have changed the world by power of one person forever by refusing to fund your own destruction any further. Is that an over reaction maybe it is. But at least it's not a lock down of 2 billion people and that is saying something isn't it.
Now it is your turn comment below, because unlike the commercial airline industry we here are willing to listen to you. Troll if you must, you see the difference is, unlike the big power centers we here are willing to listen to you, because they won't listen unless you cancel your airline reservations. So that health passports can be required everywhere and then flying will become safer. We have very little power today, but we do have at least the power of our purse, are you willing to use it? Or lose it as well along with your job, savings, property and everything else that can be taken from you.
All because no health passports are required anywhere in the world, unless of course you want to go to Austria and of course the neighboring Czech Republic.
While it is these two countries today it will be hundreds in the tomorrows to come. In a way this was always bound to happen. But certain people were willing to profit until it did happen. Now it has happened, let's bankrupt them by canceling unnecessary airline travel!