By Oh boy, oh boy!
There have been so many hiccups and opportunities squandered by our elected officials in how corona virus has been dealt with. The compounding of same continues. Perhaps you do not live in the same country as me, though you have similar feelings and opinions towards the strange methods & restrictions that have been rolled out throughout the pandemic’s innings.
The country I hail from is Ireland. The mighty nation of 40 shades of green and Guinness stout. The pubs and the culture of music and fun which in the gaelic language translates “ceoil Agus craic”. Here on the island nation of Ireland the “craic” has like many businesses of the world, has come to a grinding halt.
Opportunities squandered?
As an island nation, we the Irish have had a prime position of protecting ourselves from the corona virus by closing our borders. This task is simply achieved. The only way to travel to our country is by plane or by ferry. Closing of our ports could have easily cocooned an entire nation. Though our political body and representatives spend quite a lot of time kissing the “arse” of mainland Europe that to close our country could only be “unheard of”. Though a method of protecting Irish citizens and an entire nation from a fast spreading virus, “opportunity squandered”.
In March and April and May of 2020 the ongoing reports of cases of corona virus and the death toll were reported daily. Never once were there any focus to report to the public of our nation the precise location of the virus outbreaks or where as the trendy word nowadays “clusters” were. This issue I raise as to the failure of our government to report to us the public is Unconstitutional and something an entire nation could rightfully so take legal action against. Yes a government can be sued and it is and always has been the duty of our government to protect the people of the island always and ever.
NO closed borders equals a failure to the people of our nation.
NO direct reporting of precise locations equals a failure of service to the people of the nation.
Many countries have been devastated by the death rate and death count during this pandemic. It is quite saddening to see how some other nations around the globe have been rocked by this virus. I suppose it is fair for me to admit right here that I believe the virus to be very real. I believe it to be very contagious. I believe it to be rampant. Though there are areas and elements of how we operate a society during the pandemic that I am quite confused about. I suppose it is also only fair that I admit to how I am rarely confused about things for too long. I may remain at times in a state of blur or somewhat foggy about things, there are many things in life I do not understand, how and ever never really confused.
So what is it that is confusing?
Okay, let’s lay some stuff out here.
1. Closure of businesses to stop the spread of virus by way of limiting the movements of the people.
This makes sense. The less people are moving about and the less they are interacting with each other. The less likely to allow a virus to spread by slowing down the movement of a society on a whole.
2. The ongoing closure of businesses after numbers of virus cases has subsided.
This makes no sense. All precautionary elements have been implemented by businesses. Hand sanitizers, requiring masks to be worn and plastic screens between customers and staff. Visors worn by staff and staff filling the guidelines of “covid compliant”.
3.The Public Houses of Ireland remain closed. We calls these places “pubs”
This confuses me to the nth degree. A pub is no less likely to be a location of virus spread than a local store or a restaraunt for example. What exactly is the game being played here?
I must admit to you also at this point in the post, I am what we would call a “non drinker” which means I do not consume alcohol. Whether a pub is open or not open really has no bearing on my life whatsoever.
The Irish culture has always been about the “pub culture”. Around the world the coffee shop is a much more “normal” place for people to meet and socialise as they take their coffee and maybe a cake. Some coffee shops around the globe even offer a soup to their customers. Here in Ireland, long before the coffee shop, the pub has been the social gathering establishment of choice. Soup and coffee have been available for lunchtime meetings for decades. When someone may wish to take a coffee and a sandwich coupled with a lunch meeting, the pub is where this occurred.
The Irish pub has not always and is not only a place where people go to get drunk and become belligerent. The pub is and has always been the speak easy of Irish culture. To remain in a status of closed and restricted from opening by a government order is perhaps the single most ridiculous statement a government can ever make.
Is this an attempt to completely take away an individuality of a nation?
Perhaps the “arse” kissing of the European Union is so much so that to have wider pathways along city streets and chairs outside of coffee shops and pubs closed is an attempt to bring about an entire shift to an age old culture of a nation. Bringing back the pubs as night spots and for “clubbing” only so to speak.
THE CONFUSION
The confusion that exists inside of my mind on the issue and some stuff that many are thinking. Can anyone explain clearly and precisely these things;
A supermarket or local grocery store / shop, these have remained open throughout the entire time of the pandemic and have never once been identified as possible locations of “virus spread”. The supermarkets are seeing thousands of customers per week, every week and all the way since the beginning of covid-19. More customers than could ever been seen in a tiny salon or small rural pub.
Restaraunts and hotels needed to open in an attempt to bring back some economic circulation of money. Again public places where a thousand people could wander in and out of in the course of a week. Much more than a pub in a town in Ireland.
Yet the pubs remain closed. A cornerstone of Irish culture remains closed while other establishments are permitted to open. This really does not make any sense hence my confusion.
How about we shift away from the pub situation for a moment and we take a look at the reopening of schools. Yes I get it, in the beginning of the pandemic, it was said that children were the carriers and they were immune or it is a virus that seemed to only attack mature respiratory systems. What a unique virus indeed. I can vouch for this for sure that nobody wants to see their children die. Though the reopening of schools is possibly a no brainer to returning some normality to life on the island. I have seen many comments as to pro and con of the opening of schools. A question I pose to you,
How many supermarket workers have tested positive for corona virus? How many supermarket workers have died from corona virus?
Please do remember that supermarkets have never closed for pandemic reasons.
What is it that has made the supermarket immune to the virus?
Yet we may have to give contact tracing personal info should we wish to dine in a restaraunt. Again the confusion arises. I have always liked to use a simple line that I believe I heard in a rap song once, “I only scratch my head when it itches”
The actions of our Irish government and the restrictive measures taken in making attempts to deal with the corona virus pandemic have brought about some serious head scratching. I may even go so far as to say, I have even shook my head vigorously on occasion in a bewildered state of mind.
How about an ounce of cop on inside of Dail eireann?
Schools can reopen and if a teacher is worried, perform class via video and stream live via monitor. This is 2020 after all and all technologies exist to aid and assist such a platform.
Pubs can reopen as they pose no more of a threat than any supermarket on our shores.
All businesses can re open providing covid compliant.
The area that has never really been looked at has been the ports. We as a nation depend on tourism. So do many countries of the world. Our sacrafice has to be in preventing new strains and the cross contamination from our European neighbours. Perhaps all political debate and discussion on stimulus packages etc etc within Europe should be carried out via video conference, how come that has not been the case? Why does anyone NEED to travel for political discussion? There is no need for the exposure of our politicians to travel to Europe.
I think I might have developed an itch in my head. Somewhat of an Imaginary itch where I think I have scratched and scratched so much that I have now convinced myself it is always itchy.
The footfall of traffic in any Irish grocery store / supermarket is and has been far greater than ever before. Much more than any school or any public house “pub”. This is a simple and realistic breakdown of statistics as there could be.
The footfall of a any Irish supermarket or grocery store is much greater than that of any school in Ireland where the students are the same head count returning each and everyday. A supermarket sees not the same returning customers each and everyday.
Something that could have been summed up in a few simple lines.
Let’s get the pubs open and allow people to enjoy the last of their summer before the kids happily return to school
As for the allocations of monies and stimulus to the country and how this has been handled with “covid payments” oh no! I fear I may wear a hole in my head at this stage.
To finish up and to leave a question hanging for anyone to consider.
Can anyone tell me what has happened to the housing crisis and the horrendous homeless crisis amid this fiasco?
Enjoy your Sunday
SHARE, RETWEET, REBLOG, FOLLOW @TWOsonsTOOmany
A.McNallyauthor.com 