What if the Pandemic Never Ends?

Summary

The website content contemplates a dystopian future where the pandemic becomes a permanent state, fundamentally altering human interactions and societal norms.

Abstract

The article "What if the Pandemic Never Ends?" presents a thought-provoking scenario where COVID-19 remains an indefinite part of life, challenging the assumption that a solution will eventually be found. It questions the collective faith in an unnamed group of experts, "They," to resolve the crisis, drawing parallels with other unsolved issues like cancer and world hunger. The text paints a picture of a new reality where simple acts of human connection, such as handshakes, hugs, and kisses, become fraught with danger, and traditional social activities like dining out, attending sports events, and dating are transformed or lost. It speculates on the potential for a society where health precautions like masks, gloves, and social distancing are the norm, and where even the concept of flu season loses meaning because the threat is constant. Despite the grim outlook, the article acknowledges a lingering hope that "They" might still find a way to save us from this perpetual state of pandemic.

Opinions

The author suggests that the pandemic could become a fixture of human life, with the virus continually mutating and evading eradication.
There is a critique of the blind faith many have in a group of experts, "They," to solve complex problems, despite their lack of progress with other global issues.
The article posits that even if the pandemic becomes endemic, the

Coronavirus forever

Image by Everton Vila via Unsplash

What if it never ends? Every day people talk about what they’re going to do when this is all over. What’s the first trip you’re going to take when this is all over? What’s the first bar you’re going to when this is all over? What restaurant will be the first you get to, who is the first person you’re going to kiss, when this is all over? But what if “When this is all over,” never comes?

What if Coronavirus is the new reality? What if millions of people still refuse to wear a mask, if parties and conventions keep going on? What if there’s never a vaccine for Coronavirus, and the virus just mutates into a seemingly endless series of new strains? Never cured, never stopped.

We assume that there will be a solution, that the mysterious group of people known as “They,” will come up with something, which “They” always do, except in the case of cancer, HIV, herpes, world hunger, war and a few others. But what if even “They” cannot get us out of this?

Then

Our new reality could be one in which even a handshake is an act of aggression. A series of sneezes or a cough could clear a room. The best case scenario of this future, even if it turns out that the wacky, “This is nothing more than the flu,” people are right, the very best scenario even in that case would be that there is no flu season; flu season is endless, eternal. We are not.

You could never again let friends or family play with the new baby, not like before. Masks and latex gloves would be the order of the day. Disinfect the baby afterwards. Breast feeding might be deemed too dangerous. A baby sitter might have to undergo testing and isolation.

There might have to be Elderly Only stores. Restaurants, even the fancy place you go to on your birthday, might be drive thru only. What if you could never again throw your arm around the shoulder of a stranger at a sports bar when the home team wins? We might never be able to see a game live again. Maybe we’re currently in the last generation of team sports. Only Tennis, golf and auto racing from now on.

What if no young couple ever again knows what it’s like to lean in for the very first kiss of your lifetime and have your heart beat so loudly you can actually hear it in your own ears? Future first kisses may become something to be proceeded by written permission, temperature checks and photo copies of medical records.

If it never ends, is the lap dance a dying art form? Fathers twenty years from now might tell incredulous sons stories about when they used to go to strip clubs in the olden days and pay pretty young girls to dance on their laps.

We would never again meet someone at a bar and answer each other by speaking right into each other’s ears, even though the music isn’t really that loud, so that our cheek my sneak a touch with their cheek and perhaps we might inhale the beauty of them. We might not be able to take the tips of their fingers in our hand and lead them to a crowded dance floor, and hold them close.

But Maybe

We believe in “They” like we believe in God. Even the Atheists believe in “They.” We are all devout. Perhaps “They” will bounce back from the disappointments of cancer and herpes, triumphantly saving us from ourselves. Maybe we’ll have one more chance to slow dance. Maybe a date can still end in a kiss. Maybe you can still go to a movie and hold hands. Maybe a kiss can still be a kiss.

Maybe.