[Dusty_Star]

Originally Posted by ThirdOfFive

True words. Much easier on the ego to seek out allies for your particular point of view than to admit to being bamboozled.

Extending that out a bit...what good does it do, really, to publicly cling to your fears no matter what? Of course COVID is real. So is chlamydia, leprosy, diabetes, flu, Alzheimer's, etc. etc. The best thing to do in all cases is to adopt a dispassionate approach, take common-sense precautions and go on with your life so far as you are able. Who really cares if everyone else agrees with you? But just from my own experience: I've seen a guy at Costco in Altamonte Springs go into screaming hysterics at the sight of another customer whose mask had slipped down below is nose, another guy at a supermarket back in Minnesota loudly and publicly berate the store manager for not completely sanitizing every grocery cart prior to it's next use, one guy in a foursome we were in long after mask-wearing became optional becoming upset because we were not wearing masks and he was, etc. etc. My daughter (a nurse in St. Paul, MN) knows several people who a couple of years back got themselves tested almost daily at medical facilities in the area (which were consequently so backed up with The Fearful that people who really did need medical help had to wait, sometimes to their significant detriment). But the one that most sticks in my mind was a guy I encountered at a driving range in May 2020. He had his son with him and they were going to hit some balls. The guy's son remained in the car while the guy, wearing a mask of course, went to the owner and demanded a spot on the range as far away from other patrons as possible. Not a problem because there were only a couple of other folks there, but until the guy got his wish his son remained in the car, and then both stayed as far away from other patrons as they could. I knew the owner and mentioned that it was kind of odd. The owner, who apparently knew the guy, said that that incident was nothing: the guy had kept his family basically sealed in their house since I believe February, doing all the shopping, providing homeschooling for the kids, etc. etc. The outing with his son was the first time the kid had been allowed out of the house in months.

I've often wondered if fear of COVID is/was at least as destructive, if not more so, than COVID itself. And people who are looking for allies to validate their own fear certainly aren't helping much.

Excellent post. The fear & anxiety in society was debilitating. I was sincerely hoping it was all over, for good. (At least for this time).