My thoughts on Michigan tonight....

[Heartstrings]

I’ve spent the past bit being pretty frustrated at the Lansing protest then frustration really just turned into disappointment. It’s not a matter of your rights being taken away, it’s a matter that’s beyond yourself. The moment we can recognize that this pandemic is about the person next to you the sooner we can regain a sense of normalcy. When we realize this isn’t about your garden, your boat, your boredom, or your paycheck...but it’s about your mom, your dad, your child, your siblings, your spouse, your neighbor, your grandparents, your co-worker, or the stranger at the grocery store.

I know it doesn’t seem fair that someone has the right to tell you what you can and cannot do right now, but it’s not with ill intentions. These actions put in place ARE working.

However, here’s what I think is unfair...

Dying alone is unfair.

Not having visitors at the hospital is unfair.

Saying goodbye to a loved one via FaceTime is unfair.

Doing your best to social distance, while people just don’t care. That’s unfair.

Beating COVID, only to learn your loved one was also intubated, but they didn’t make it. That’s unfair.

It’s unfair but that’s life right now.

All healthcare workers are strong, but they’re also terrified. It’s scary to watch this day in and day out. It’s scary to live in a world with this happening, yet thousands of people are protesting outside their cars - when all we asked was for people to stay home. I understand having our normalcy taken away is frustrating, but remember, you need to be alive first to have normalcy.

Thank you Michigan protesters for a big slap in the face to your healthcare workers. I hope they don’t see you in the ICU next week. 😞

[Solly Mack]

1. K&R

Well said. Thank you.

[DownriverDem]

23. trump rallies

They want to go to restaurants, shopping and get their boats out. It's all about them. trump is doing all he can to divide us. It was a trump rally with trump signs & confederate flags. May they get the coronavirus and die. Sorry, but they disgust me big time. Just wait. I bet we see these rallies every week.

[Cha]

2. Mahalo for this, Heartstrings.. Well said!

StaySafe!

[KPN]

3. Hear, hear!

[smirkymonkey]

4. K&R

They never think about these things. They never think about anybody but themselves.

It makes me so sad and angry.

[roamer65]

5. These lawbreakers need to be identified and denied health care if they contract the virus.

They need to made to pay for their selfishness.

[iemitsu]

6. These demonstrations are being orchestrated by Trump

while he places all responsibility on the governors to reopen the economy.
He is also getting in the way of massive testing, which is needed to restart and his minions will blame the governors.
Trump is pure evil.

[blm]

7. ✔️✔️

[dawg day]

8. I saw a photo of these protesters--

saw all men. And many of them were carrying rifles.

I've been reading analysis of the whole Trump factor, and something I get is that this is NOT about politics (meaning what government does). Rather they make everything cultural, and their culture is "anti". That's why they think it's appropriate to bring rifles to a protest about a virus. No, guns have utterly nothing to do with coronavirus, but in their heads, it does. They just want to emphasize whatever is against "lib".

To us rational people, they seem like they are placing themselves against everything healthy.
We want people to be safe from gun violence, safe from anger, safe from viruses.
They are against all that, and want to make sure everyone knows it.

[NoRoadUntravelled]

25. What you say makes a lot of sense.

[C Moon]

9. I remember a few years ago, when this Trump bull shit hit the fan...

people began calling Firemen/women overpaid whining wimps. The GOP AM radio folks were starting a protest against what they said were overpaid emergency personnel.

That, of course, has finally faded from their limited memories, as it didn't work for the GOP so they moved over to focus on some other "fuck the poor" brainwashing scheme.

[KT2000]

10. It is stark now

the trumpers are just selfish and that is what their cult is about. As with trump there is no greater good, just what is good for me.

Imagine if there was a draft!!

[SheltieLover]

11. K&R

Lock them up for blocking hospital road for ambulances, then throw away the key. They are domestic terrorists!

[pazzyanne]

12. K & R, with gusto! nt

[handmade34]

14. it does

make me a bit ashamed to be from Michigan

[JI7]

15. It's about Trump and Helping him Politically

That's what these organized protests were about.

There ARE people who are bored and selfish in itself and isn't really about politics but they do things like have those underground parties and other secret get togethers and things.

But these particular protests were political and the main purpose was about helping Trump.

[Buckeyeblue]

16. Covid-19 is as much an existential crisis as it is a pandemic

For all of the reasons you highlighted. This pandemic has forced us to ask the question, "how do I want to live my life?"

We are staying at home not to protect ourselves in most instances but to promote the health of the greater good. Even though for most of us, this virus would only amount to a few days of discomfort, we do what we do to make sure the vulnerable among us stay healthy and to make sure that our health care system is not ruined.

With that said, I understand the point of view of a small business owner whose business may be ruined. The person who says, I'm willing to risk 2% of the people dying to save my life's work. As a culture, we have raised up the idea that we measure a person by their life's work.

Of course, the protesters in Michigan were just idiots. I live in SW Michigan which is as red as you can get. Poor people who vote against their own best interests because they fear losing their guns or think that Democrats hate god.

[Hortensis]

17. Children losing mothers and fathers because schools were reopened is unfair,

and let's throw in their grandparents and others who love them.

The average age of parenting has increased. COVID mortality starts rising scarily in the 30s and in the 40s is prohibitive, far worse in the 50s. Yet many parents busily raising children are in their 40s and 50s, like our son and daughter.

A Republican senator was on Hannity last night explaining that sending kids back to school would only cause an increase in mortality of 2-3% (and why would we believe HIS figure?) and would be more than worth it. The people trying to eliminate school lunch programs are now concerned about children missing those lunches.

Even with controls in place we are going to hear way too many tragedies of children, once the adored centers of their families' worlds, now alone. Without them, COVID orphans would become a demographic of their own.

[brer cat]

18. Well said, Heartstrings.

K&R

[musicman65]

19. Being in Grand Rapids

:: We feel the pain of restrictions,my hair is growing to my ass,at least I have hair.
this is hard for many,however we need to follow the rules to get back to normal and to find a bit of humour in these dark times

[crickets]

20. Well said, Heartstrings.

The people involved in these 'protests' are modeling the same selfish behavior they see from trump: trying to bend the situation to meet their desires instead of recognizing that the reality is not going to change to suit them. It's frustrating to watch knowing that, unlike toddler trump, their behavior increases the risk of catching the virus and dying from it, or worse, perhaps killing those around them through their short-sighted selfishness.

[jimlup]

21. As a Michigander I'm worried and ashamed

that these idiots live in the same state as me.

And it is important to add that I am very much an INDIVIDUAL LIBERTY superseeds everything else. It is just that individual liberty is staying the fuck home to protect the weak. Can't these idiots understand that that? Apparently not.

[catbyte]

22. It sickens me that that vile thing infesting the White House has managed to politicize a VIRUS, ffs

[summer_in_TX]

24. Gonna quote part if this without attribution.

Oh alright, I mean "steal this."

Well put.