—
This was riveting. I hope you find time to watch it.
Brian Stelter: To look away is a disgrace to coronavirus victims
CNN: Reliable Sources -- May 10, 2020
Here’s a partial Transcript, I just put together: [starting at time-mark 1:15]
[...]
Think about Hurricane Katrina,
where at least 1800 people died, along the Gulf Coast.
This week there was a daily average of at 1900 deaths per day
[from COVID-19].
So basically, one Hurricane Katrina every day.
And again just like with Hurricane Katrina that's only an estimate.
We still don't know exactly how many people died from Katrina.
We probably won't ever know exactly how many people died from COVID-19.
But there are some commonalities of the federal government's failures,
in responding.
But you know, let's just think about this.
Between 1 thousand and 2 thousand deaths per day.
It's as if 10 planes crash every day,
and we just expect to happen tomorrow.
It's as if New Orleans floods every day,
and we just assume it's going happen again tomorrow.
{Pause}
This brings us to the president, and the leadership we're seeing
-- or the lack of leadership, from the federal government.
There are some attempts now to downplay what is happening.
Or to normalize what is happening.
As we saw this week, the president talking about shuttering his Coronavirus Task Force. Then, saying he's not going to do that.
Were not seeing Daily Briefing by the Task Force.
Were not getting the kind of national data we need from the government.
And were seeing some allegations of the Administration retaliating
against Whistle-blowers, who are speaking out,
trying to call attention to some of these failures.
{Pause}
It's a frightening time.
You know we've seen these attempts to hold information back,
to block public disclosure about Coronavirus supplies, for example.
We've seen this attempt to bury a detailed guide from the CDC
about re-opening country.
Of course, when the AP came out with this scoop,
They said, ‘Oh, it's just a rough draft, were still working on it.’
OK, then can we see it tomorrow? Can we see it on Tuesday?
Why does it feel like the government is withholding information,
in the midst of a Crisis -- the size of which we've never seen?
{Pause}
The data is important. The numbers are important.
The death toll isn't just something, ah
-- to be 'downplayed'.
It's not something we can hide from
-- even if it is gut-wrenching to hear about every day.
It's like New Orleans, floods, every day.
It's like the planes, go into the towers, every day.
And to look away,
or act like it's now "normal," ... or acceptable,
is a disgrace to the Victims.
{Pause}
Brian Stelter goes on from there, to take on “right-wing media these days” and the disservice they are doing to the country. For their normalization efforts, in trying to make the Michael Flynn story “more important” than the Pandemic … their ongoing efforts to make any other story “a bigger deal than the deaths of 2000 Americans per day” …
—
I think Mr. Stelter just may have a point.
This is not normal.
This is not acceptable.
Anyone trying to say it is,
is disgracing the memory of the Victims of COVID-19,
and the Victims of the failure to respond to it, adequately.
In time. With sufficient urgently.
In a competent, and life-saving manner, that the threatening situation called for, from its earliest stages.
— —