May you live in interesting times. Not, it seems, an “old Chinese curse,” but a curse no less. The article linked above has a good quote from an 1898 speech delivered by Joseph Chamberlain, father of Neville Chamberlain:
I think that you will all agree that we are living in most interesting times. (Hear, hear.) I never remember myself a time in which our history was so full, in which day by day brought us new objects of interest, and, let me say also, new objects for anxiety. (Hear, hear.)
Seems fairly apropos today. We are dealing with a polarized electorate, due at least in part (I mean, it’s always been somewhat polarized) to the intentional creation of right-wing media outlets, purportedly to counter a “liberal bias” in the media at large. We are living under a presidency that is the natural outcome of that. A surprisingly substantial percentage of the population of the U.S. has been brainwashed to believe that the sole sources of truth are Fox News and the president himself. Woe to those who’ve bought into that fallacy, as it’s exceedingly difficult to extract people from cults. Common sense should tell you that a single source of news is dangerous, especially when that news source is in league with the government, but you know what they (Voltaire) say about common sense.
While I consider myself liberal and progressive, I do not believe in a “my way or the highway” approach to governing, as the Tea Party movement of the GOP does, who advocate for a no compromise approach to governing — all conservative, all the time. I believe that governing necessarily requires compromise. America is a large and diverse country, and to believe that either party, which earns the sympathy of about half the population, should rule over the nation in the way they see fit just seems wrong.
So add to this our current COVID-19 pandemic. Even given a (hypothetical) thoughtful and organized response to this challenge, it would have been difficult. But this president and his “news” network chose to minimize the danger, chose to politicize this struggle that does and will affect Americans of all stripes, and given the choice would opt for hypothetical short term economic gains over American lives. If you previously thought the president’s mendacity and ignorance were somehow harmless, it should be abundantly clear by now that they are quite literally harmful.
I’m not at all sure I can claim to be hopeful, but I do believe there are opportunities for some positive things to come out of this terrible time. If people could take the following to heart, then something positive could come out of the coronavirus pandemic.
1 People should realize that facts are supremely important. We need to be able to agree on facts. Not alternative facts, not Liberal facts or Conservative facts. Without that, we are adrift in a stormy sea of opinion and feelings. There is a place for both of those things, but they don’t take the place of facts.
2 The news must be a place for facts. There cannot be be Right Wing news or Left Wing news. Having a Free Press has been vital to this country. The press cannot be an extension of the government, as Fox News is with the current administration. You don’t have to look far to see the evils that state sponsored media allow.
3 Science is the rigorous process of seeking truth and facts. While it is not perfect, it is the best way that humans have come up with to discover fundamental truth. Science must not be politicized, and scientists must not be silenced to further any particular political agenda. The truth must come first; politics only comes after the truth is known. But again, science is a process for getting to the truth. Our understanding of truth improves over time by the use of science. Pointing out the errors of science only proves that the process works.