The coronavirus has accomplished what terrorists couldn’t.
Think about that for a second.
As I type this, the San Francisco area has a “shelter in place” order.
Businesses are shutting down. Sports leagues are ending their seasons. Disneyland is closed. Artistic performances of all kinds are being cancelled or postponed. Toilet paper - fucking TOILET PAPER - is being hoarded (I truly don’t understand why).
All of these things are unprecedented in my lifetime.
I wonder how much of the hysteria and the reaction of people in general and our various governments has been affected by the news cycle and the instant connection to information provided by the internet. If the same disease popped up 10 years ago, would we have the same reaction? What about 20 years ago? 30? 40? 50? I highly doubt it. And I don’t know if that’s good or bad.
I do know this whole thing feels overblown to me. The only thing that gives me pause is the fact (?) that one can carry the virus, show no symptoms, and pass it along to others. If true, that almost makes this whole mess seem reasonable.
Almost.
I had another thought about this whole thing.
If one believes, as I do, that the truly elite (the most wealthy) in this world run it, then one must assume they have a way to control the masses. Religion used to be a huge go to. Television has been. Printed words before that. Internet now; social media and engineering. Some of these tools were once thought to help free us from tyranny, and in some ways, they still do.
But I don’t think anyone can reasonably deny the negative effect the internet can have, especially social media. It gives the worst of us - and the worst in us - a voice, but at this point, it’s a bit like throwing a grain of sand in the desert. Everyone has a voice, so in some ways, no one does.
However, most of us access it regularly for various reasons.
Whoever controls information potentially controls reality.
What if - just, what if - all of this is an exercise to see how the public responds? Or to see how easily we submit to orders which completely ignore or curtail our basic freedoms? I’m not saying this is the case, nor am I saying no one is getting sick.
But, the conspiracy theorist in me wonders. My suspicious nature allows the question to rise in my mind.
Does that even matter?
Not really. It’s not like I’m going to openly defy the government unless I have some need I consider urgent. It’s not like I’m going to fight against something that seems to be in the public health’s best interest.
And I’m not going to go down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories; I’m sure they’re blossoming.
And yet, I can’t help but wonder what’s really happening. I suppose it could be exactly as it appears, in which case, we’re gearing up for interesting times.
But still...the most binding chains are the ones we don’t even know exist.
Yeah, yeah. I’m full of shit.
On to brighter topics. Words, Music, and Pain is out and available wherever you stream or download music.
My next musical project will be called “One Man. One Voice. One Year.” I’ll post a video where I perform a song by myself every week for a year. I’ll be doing mostly my own material, though a few cover tunes may sneak in there. I suspect I’ll post my first video this Sunday 3/22/20, but I may wait until 3/29/20. I’ll make that decision soon.
I’m also going to start the audio for my book this week. I have no idea how long it will take, but it needs to get done.
That’s it for now. Be good. Stay healthy. Physically and mentally.