Not Why, but How

   We are now in Week Nine of the "New York Pause."  63 days.  Tomorrow starts Week Ten.  There is talk of "Quarantine Fatigue," of people letting their guard down, not wearing masks, not standing six feet apart, and not staying home.
   In another era, there would be less complaining about compliance and more patience.  When did we become people who could not accept hardship on behalf of the health and safety of others?  When did we become a population of whiners, asking why this is happening to us instead of asking how we can get through this together?
   It's true that the pandemic didn't strike with the same intensity across all fifty states.  I live in New York, the hardest hit state in the Union.  Governor Cuomo, in his daily address, praises New Yorkers for taking this pandemic seriously.  As he points out, he couldn't possibly mandate that several million New Yorkers voluntarily stay home from work, wear masks when in public, and only go out for essentials.  We chose to do those things.  And, as a result, we have lowered the growth of the Pandemic in our state to a near-plateau.  There are fewer deaths, fewer new cases.  We have overcome the enemy!
   Now, we're poised for Phase One of the re-opening plan.  Half the regions in New York are now beginning, slowly, to return to some semblance of normalcy.  Why, next weekend, Memorial Day Weekend, our beaches on Lake Ontario will be open!  Last week it snowed, and next week we can go swimming, theoretically.   My fear is that the relaxing of the quarantine guidelines will result in a resurgence of this disease.  Cuomo speaks of "tightening the valve," of watching the numbers, and reacting accordingly.  If new cases, deaths, and hospitalizations go up, we will tighten up on the social distancing.  This is a cautious, measured approach.  Testing will be a key factor in how smoothly we can fully re-open our state.
   Meanwhile in Washington, the man in the White House has suggested that the U.S. has more cases of COVID19 because we are testing more people.  His solution:  Stop testing, and the number of cases will go down!  As of Friday, he has fired the fifth member of his administration who holds some form of accountability over him and his people.  The Republican Party stands by and watches him dismantle our system of checks and balances.  Are they even asking why?   I see this as a parallel to the logic of our mothers and fathers while in a crisis:  It's not why, but how we deal with this situation.  Whether it be pandemic or political chaos, our approach should be the same.  Seek truth. Listen deeply.  Find a way to control the outbreak.  And do it.  Not asking why, but how.  How can we eradicate the disease that reigns in our government?
   Vote.