Before you 'cuse me

BNormal, IL
April 2, 2020

From Benjamin J. Gonzales on Facebook, as forwarded by my niece, who is stuck at a hotel/motel she manages:

Hey friends... I've seen a number of people saying that those who are defying stay at home orders, being stupid and going to massive prayer services, etc deserve to get ill or die.

I'm not going to have any of that.

I'm a firm believer in the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Are they being shitty? Yup.

Do they deserve to die? No.

Let's take this as an opportunity to reflect on why we are social distancing, why we are trying to reshape that curve... to save more lives, not to decide who deserves to die and who doesn't. Let's hope that as many lives as possible be spared. That person you think deserves to die is someone's parent, or sibling, or child, they aren't just a faceless number or statistic.

Let's hope, together, work, together, to help spread messages of truth, valuable information to help, and spread a message of cooperative effort to stymie the growth of this disease so that we all come out healthy, stronger, smarter and better together.

I know this may sound idealistic, but really, each positive step in that direction with our words and actions will do more good. Certainly a lot more good than wishing death upon others.

And my response:

I feel about these folks who flaunt the social distancing precepts exactly like the people who give a thumbs-down on wonderful songs that 99.9% of others like. "Who are these that give a thumbs-down? Why did you bother to listen? Go away! You suck! etc etc - don't be in my universe! and even Fug you and die a horrible death!

Look, man - it ain't a perfect world by any measure: a lot of people in hell would like a glass of ice water, but every dog has a certain number of fleas. Accept that the world is messy and you have to coexist with a certain number of people who are contrary to your cherished beliefs.

Don't go castigating them and comparing them to your god. Just do the right goddam thing.

https://youtu.be/HoDwVNOPyyw


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Don't know what

Bloomington IL 61701 February 23, 2020 Ambient ambiance: In the 50s and real sunny right in the virtual middle of the winter I was walking up the nearest moraine right through the nearby alley when I spotted a feller in a long coat doing something or other - smokin', I reckon - and also talkin' to someone hidden from my view behind a utility pole of some sort. The feller spotted me about the same time I spotted him, and we both narrowed our eyes in the manner of Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef in "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," or so I imagined. But only for a moment - a quick moment, or a mini-moment. Well, it was real quick, as we both realized there was no reason to get excited. Behind the utility pole sat a woman all bundled up in a long coat and scarf and whatnot and smoking a cigarette hard, but I heard her coughing before I actually saw her. She was coughin' to beat the band, like she had bronchitis, so when I saw her, I said, "Huh...
Read more

Nazi State

Monona County, Iowa 1995 The guy was wearing blue jeans, an army jacket, and a baseball cap. He took off his cap to reveal close-cropped graying hair. His face was lean and muscular, and his eyes were bright. “Do you want me to strap in?” he asked as I buckled my seatbelt. I said yes, and as he hunted for the belt, he said, “Never use ‘em myself. I was in the paratroopers in the war, and I don’t like to use ‘em. If I’m on a plane, I want to sit in the back and not wear a seatbelt. If something happens, I want to get out of there fast. Ya know, they can’t force you to use one. Most plane accidents take place on landing or taking off, so what I do, I just go up to the first-class section.” “You mean on a commercial airliner?” I asked, noting that he had put the shoulder strap over the wrong shoulder. “Yeah,” he said, and then adjusted the strap after I pointed out the correct position. The guy then started rapping about how he was going to Fargo, North Dakota, to join...
Read more

Break Time at Conception

Image
May 24, 1992 Conception Abbey, Conception, MO: Break Time Mr. and Mrs. Friendly & Niece & the Purtiest Cat You’ll Ever See This woman accosted me from the front seat of the roadster pictured here as I walked up a hill toward the Conception water tower. She had seen me taking a picture from lower on the hill, and she called out, “Hey, are you the person fixing up that new place over there?” “No,” I said, “I’m just passing through. “Well, where are ya from?” she asked. “From Lincoln, Nebraska,” I said. “You walked from there!?” she asked in astonishment. “No,” I said. “I drove down in my car.” “Come ta see the church?” she asked further. “Yep,” I said. “Stayin’ a couple of nights.” “Here comes my niece,” she said as a seven- or eight-year-old girl came walking up and plopped herself in the back seat of the car next to a stack of elementary school books. I spied a grade 6 science book, so maybe the kid was older than she looked. A pair of fuzzy white di...
Read more