COLUMN: Riding out the coronavirus

It seems that the things I remember most vividly when it comes to the history-making events that have happened in my lifetime all involve tragedies. I remember exactly where I was when I heard that the space shuttle Challenger had exploded, for example. And I’m sure that all of us who are old enough to have lived through 9/11 have very sharp and detailed memories of what that tragic day was like.

Now, unfortunately, we are experience another tragic national event that will be impossible for us all to forget when it is finally over. And this tragedy in not only affecting Americans - the COVID-19 pandemic has the whole world gripped by fear.

It feels like we’ve all somehow been dropped in the middle of a disaster movie, doesn’t it? Life has just been put on hold for all of us as we concentrate on trying to stay out of the way of this viral monster while still providing our families with the bare essentials we need to get by.

We all tried to keep a sense of humor about the situation in the beginning. I must have heard a dozen jokes about why everyone was stocking up on toilet paper.

Later I heard that people were also stocking up on guns and ammunition, which I didn’t find to be humorous at all. It says a lot about how we feel about each other in this country that so many of us feel the need to stockpile weaponry in anticipation of what might happen If the situation continues to deteriorate.

This COVID-19 monster has two heads – the fear of contracting the illness itself and the anxiety we all are feeling over the potentially devastating economic consequences resulting from the shuttering of so many businesses in our attempts to limit the spread of the virus. In the long term, the economic devastation may cause more pain and suffering than the virus itself.

I’m one of the lucky ones who is currently being paid to work from home and whose job is not in jeopardy. Many Americans are not so fortunate. They may not get paid at all while their employers’ businesses are shut down, and some will even be laid off.

Our federal government feels our pain, and as I write this the two major parties are working hard on emergency legislation that will shore up our health care system, provide aid to those who are unable to work, and give support to businesses that might not survive the virus-related lockdown that is keeping them from operating normally. It is likely that the cost of this emergency relief program will be in the neighborhood of $2 trillion and include direct payments of more than $1000 for most Americans.

These eye-popping figure become even more alarming when we remember that our federal government was already going to be in the red to the tune of a record $1 trillion for this fiscal year before the emergency relief was figured in. Of course, there is no consideration being given how all of this will be paid for, they just have to be seen as doing something, and doing it quick. This is, after all, an election year.

You won’t be seeing those checks (if they are coming at all) for at least a few months, so for now we are going to have keep our heads down and ride this situation out as best we can. How bad it gets and how quickly we can go back to something resembling normality depends largely on how well we follow the advice of health experts on what to do and not do to keep the virus from continuing to spread.

So wash your hands often, keep your distance from people, and don’t touch your face. And keep your toilet paper secure and well-hidden. Some people seem sure that it’s going to be worth its weight in gold soon.

Bill Ferguson is a resident of Warner Robins. Readers can write him at fergcolumn@hotmail.com.