Scenes of people in bars, on beaches, crowding streets, breathing all over each other, not wearing facemasks, make it clear that the national “reopening” surrenders our only defenses against COVID-19, which are behavioral; and accepts continuation of the uncontrolled spread of the disease. The only glimmer of light against this gross failure in leadership is the large number of people who continue to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Their motivation is simple: overpowering fear of the disease.

We need to demonize COVID-19 ceaselessly until fear empties the bars, the beaches, the streets. COVID-19 does not just kill, it maims; it can cause life-long damage to the body. The infection can cause blood clots that attack the lungs, causing pneumonia and death. It can cause stroke, also loss of taste and smell, plus symptoms similar to PTSD.

This virus is able to infect and damage cardiac tissue directly. Patients often experience kidney and liver damage. The virus can cause a “cytokine storm” where the immune system attacks the body’s own healthy tissues and organs. COVID-19, defined by its symptoms, does not sound very threatening. COVID-19’s multiple, fearsome consequences, in contrast, deliver powerful motivation to go back to staying home.

Charles Harding

Mystic