Decision making in the Age of Corona Virus. An Editorial by Neil Miller, Publisher, The New York Extra/TheNYExtra.com, Editing by Toni Hoyos
What to do? And who to believe? That’s the dilemma everyone is faced with from “The News Media” concerning the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s one view, and an opposite view. And then there’s a 3rd view that says both are wrong!
Where are the days of Walter Cronkite, Huntley/Brinkley and Harry Reasoner? Some are too young to remember these giants of TV journalism of the post Golden Age of Television, but these announcers/writers brought believability to their craft every night, they were trusted and respected by their viewers.
Now we are faced with “The New Age” of not only news media, but an explosion of personal communication via Facebook, U tube and other social media sources, that lets everyone have a place at the table.
What a wonderful world we live in, where you can instantly share photos, videos, live events, and personal views! As we know, sadly, ever since the inception over 30 yrs ago of compuserve prodigy and other services, the negative and potentially evil side of these great tools exist.
Today, this resource is even more important as everyone is saturated with a unending stream of information leading to mental and emotional overload. Polls, graphs, press conferences etc. pass by our lives each and every day overloading us with content. And then, there is the real problem being fed to us, mass information, disinformation, conspiracy theories and every variation in between. Some of it is reliable some not.
We are faced with anti-vaxxers, scam cures, the the possible over reaching actions of local and Federal spokes people. And perhaps, most sinister, are those, inside and outside our nation, that would sow discord amongst us with wrong and scary details.
What to do? We are faced with facts, depending how you look at it that are either responsible or detrimental to our county. Specifically, we are going to have to deal with the great desire to reopen our society in regards to work and play. Dealing with the fringe elements of either side of the political spectrum is what has to be avoided, and common sense needs to prevail.
All over the nation, businesses are closed and need to reopen. All over the nation, people need to return to their lives, regarding schools, restaurants, music and sports venues. Once again using common sense precautions.
We can expect another wave this winter, and by then we need to have in place, not a cure, but a method to contain the deadly effects of the virus. Until then we need to move as a people, to find a quicker, but still a proper way to a more open way of life. We CANNOT bang the drums to regain our lost freedoms without the right way of proceeding, but we also CANNOT sacrifice any more time, money and emotion staying in the same place. Protect the sick, the elderly and those at risk, and let us return to the life we love.
