You Could do Worse, and you always have!
By
Mike Arroyo
April 23, 2020
Well. Before the Corona Virus (Team COVID) came into full play and the game of all started, we were concerned about strange elections with foreign influences and such, a majority of the public being disappointed with the results of the pending impeachment, and the future potential results of the up and coming 2020 elections. That has changed just a tad or so. Now we are confronted with a serious situation, of which is being dealt with, or not dealt with, on several levels. There are protesters of the lockdowns and such. They gathered on capitol steps and demanded that we return to ‘business as usual’. Never mind that ‘touchy feely’ right now couldn’t be more of a bad idea. They are like the Fort Lauderdale Spring Break crowd. Party marty harty til you drop! Thanks to them, unknown people were possibly affected by their ill decision to not stop from extreme social contact and who knows if a death or two were not the result as well, drop all right! Though I know that those college kids didn’t want for that to happen, and unfortunately, they didn’t wager on that development occurring more than they may have thought. Still. It was a bad decision, which begs to question, why were governors allowing gatherings of any sort to take place in spite of dire warnings from the CDC (Center for Disease Control). Much like the Romans at the tail end of their empire did not figure on it collapsing and didn’t really discuss the end of their empire and its odyssey, there were warnings that were not headed to either by them, just as it is now. They had become decadent and short sighted. Negative things, such as the fall of them, was something that drew little response and many governmental people and military personnel reckoned that they were rather safe. It is like the experiment where a frog is placed within a pot of water. If heated slowly, the amphibian in question sits on a pad, not realizing that the heat is increasing, though at a lethargic pace, it’s getting hotter. The frog will systematically boil until death, unaware as to why. The creature simply didn’t recognize the threat. Same as with people in general. Unless people are running out into the street, gasping for air, laden with horrendous purple and black boils, screaming in pain and finally collapsing on the asphalt, many will not appreciate the situation as dangerous, rather it is an annoyance and temporarily halted things in motion. Everything stopped for the most part, except things that we cannot do without, such as emergency services, medical staffs, grocery and convenience stores, fast food drive thrus, deliveries, military, and the rest not mentioned. I am in a fast food drive thru job and depended upon maintaining safe and sane practices and such. Rest assured, we on the ‘front line’ are here. We’ll feed people, everyone else will do whatever it is that they do on the ‘essential level’, to make sure that things run right and don’t cease outright. I consider not only the fact that after being reduced to part time, that I have been returned to full time due to being needed more than originally wagered by the upper management, a privilege, not a right. We will fight the good fight and nothing is over until it’s over. One thing that all us essential workers have in common…the fight and unity of all. Solidarity. In America and all over the globe, us humans must hold the line and strengthen what was once not long ago, weakened. Time and effort will dictate the eventual outcome. We essential workers will do everything in our power to get things back to normal, whatever that might have been or will be, respectively, and no matter how long it takes. Hope it isn’t too long!
Outside of that, I ponder about things to come. The future is now and whatever we do in present will obviously affect the state of things down the line. An item that it all boils down to is what will the 2020 election bring? Though it is clear who is running and what their platform is per their party and beliefs, it is not mentioned that alternatives might be better than what we have now. I conferred with some folks and they agreed that other candidates could definitely be considered a better deal than what we have with two men vying for the same position, of course, the state and local politics of all beckon the same ponderings. However, for all intents and purposes, we’ll focus on people and entities that might make a great US president in place of anyone on the ticket right now.
- Alfred E. Newman (Mad Magazine front man) – Here’s a person that has been out there and running for office during many years. For a while, the editors, writers and cartoonists at Mad Magazine stopped doing that for a while because, “There’s a real possibility that Alfred could get elected in the modern day and age.” Right now, that would not be such a bad option. I would vote for him. Can’t do worse than what we have to date. Let’s get him a campaign together.
- Warren Buffett – He is up there in age, but is an exception to self interested people with money and power. The man would only need at least a four year span to do the job, but I would be confident that he might just do that. Caring about the state of things in the world could be a benefit in times like these, unlike what we have now, which is close to nothing.
- Beetle Bailey – Private Bailey would guide us through things, though maybe in a lazy, military sort of way. Would still be better than what is currently there now.
- James Carrey – Here’s a man on the move and is one with heart. He’s a great guy and knows a bit about the world. There would be some humor, but probably effort too. Would be an improvement in spite of his expertise. Hey! Actors have been president. Did I hear someone say, Ronald Reagan?
- George W Bush jr – Here’s a guy that was in the Oval Office twice. Many painted negative things about him, but hey, he did hold the nation together and I am sure that with his experience, and those around him from family and even friends, would guide the man. You could reason with him on quite a few levels.
- Any sports coach whatsoever – These guys have strategy in their blood and know how to plan for contingencies and lead a team, quite often to victory. They would be what is needed in Washington DC right now. Lacking in game plans as it stands in DC, that notion is not a bad idea at all.
- Bill Gates – The man built an empire with Microsoft and guess what…no bankruptcy whatsoever! Trump has had that happen over and over again, yet, he forges onward while those in his wake quite often paid the price. Bill gave much of his money away for great causes and formidable charitable organizations and education. What has this administration done? I heard silence, that’s right! Bill would at least do the right thing.
- Peter Griffin (Family Guy) – The general impression is that the man is, for the lack of better words, a moron and a cartoon character. Well. Has that ever stopped anyone before? Besides, those that watch the show quite a bit know that in one episode, he created his own country he named, Petoria. It didn’t last too long when the US Army put him essentially at bay. Still. He created a country and tried to, and to some degree, make it a success. There’s your political experience. And he has had adventures galore and some nifty outcomes to rather daunting circumstances and events. I would put faith into that above our sorry excuse for a government at this moment. Life’s experiences pay off in big ways.
- Anyone with a brain cell or two – Must be an American citizen and over 35 years of age. Plenty of talent there and can match up pretty much what we’ve got now. Seriously! I can find a handful of people that would be better than…
- Martin Sheen – He played the president on TV and really at one time thought he was the prez, though the man bounced back from that. Highly politically active and the opposite of ‘O Grande Laranja’ (Portuguese for ‘the Great Orange One), whom seems to get more orange as time goes on. Why? Nobody knows. Maybe too much vitamin C, perhaps. I am confident that he would do much better than the dude in charge now. Hard enough to call the cops on his son due to drug abuse proves that he can make tough minded and correct decisions. Not seeing all that much now at the White House or elsewhere.
If we don’t follow caution and logic through this mess that we know and love as COVID-19, then I do fear that yes, we really could do worse. Premature action, such as lifting bans prior to full assurance, could very well lead to higher casualties and outbreaks, which would be harder to contain and deal with. I know, cabin fever and uncertainty can drive stress levels way up and fuel hardcore anxiety. However, we must first determine the safest time to evolve from this looming and ongoing crisis at hand. Medical science must be the protocol, not speculation and misdirected actions. We have seen the problems that develop when we have self-centered and naïve people making critical decisions. Mind you, it is a fact that certified professionals informed President Trump about this matter in the beginning stages, however, he chose to simply ignore the communiqué. What do you say when the leader of a superpower ignores formidable and factual advice while favoring his own agenda above that? Aloof. Egotistical. Misguided. Diluted. Self-involved. Don’t forget that he claims to have ‘absolute power’. A false sense of impunity indeed.
Hear me now and believe me later. We need to make sure that whatever the outcome of all that we do not do worse. That is simply unacceptable and hence, the reason for the list of ten prime candidates above. We must do better, not worse!
***********************************************************************