Gov. Charlie Baker’s new PSA about coronavirus safety protocols shouldn’t be necessary. He and his administration have been touting precautions against COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Baker told us to wear masks in public back in May, and in August reiterated the need for social distancing and limits on gatherings to stop the virus from spreading.
Public and private get-togethers were sparking a rise in coronavirus cases, hence a reset on restrictions.
Yet here we are, three months later, and Baker is back stumping for safety amid another rise in cases.
Why? Because we’re in the throes of an entitlement pandemic, and it’s undermining the best efforts of Baker and other leaders around the country.
In rolling out the state’s “Get Back Mass” public awareness program on how to safely celebrate the holidays, the governor urged the public to dial down the big Thanksgiving feast.
“Keep it small,” Baker said. “Large gatherings are not worth the risk to loved ones.”
Good luck with that message, sir.
According to the latest C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health, one-third of parents believe the benefits of gathering the family together for Thanksgiving is worth the risk of catching or spreading COVID-19.
As CNN reported, that’s despite the fact that nine out of 10 parents said grandparents — one of the highest-risk groups for severe infections — were typically at their Thanksgiving gathering. Polling results were based on responses from nearly 1,500 nationally representative parents with at least one child age 12 or younger.
“Our report suggests that while many children have spent less time with relatives during the pandemic, some parents may have a hard time forgoing holiday gatherings in order to reduce COVID-19 risks,” said Sarah Clark, co-director of the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health at Michigan Medicine.
Over half of parents felt it was “very important” that children were allowed to see extended family and share in family holiday traditions. Pandemic fatigue may be part of the reason why 61% of families who traditionally meet in person at the holidays plan to do so again this Thanksgiving, Clark said.
Sacrifice is hard, but forgoing fun for the sake of the common good shouldn’t be this hard of a sell.
It is, however, when we are bedeviled by the Entitled Class. This demographic spans income and education levels, it can be seen in the mask opponents who feel their views give them permission to assault store clerks who point out the mandate for compliance, the relentless wave of “influencers” who believe that having a passel of Instagram followers comes with the right to free meals, clothing, hotel rooms and other things they don’t want to pay for. It’s everyone who expects someone else to carry the ball while they benefit.
And it’s at the core of those who want the holidays to go on as usual, and if someone gets sick, they get sick.
The concept of spreading the virus to vulnerable populations seems of little to no importance to these people.
“We can’t afford to do Thanksgiving and the holidays the same way we’ve done it in the past,” Baker said.
No, we can’t. Not when the state has recorded 200,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and has a total coronavirus death toll of 10,512.
But many will have Thanksgiving as usual, and given the rapid spread of the virus, the effects could be devastating.
Here’s hoping Baker’s PSA will change some minds.
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November 24, 2020 at 05:34PM
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Why we still need to be reminded of coronavirus danger - Boston Herald
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