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This Map Permits People To See Where Experts’ Stay-At-Home Warnings Are Being Followed
This map, published in the New York Times shows areas of the nation where Americans are staying at home as medical and scientific experts advise. Also shown, are the states where people are not staying home, and are primarily in the Southeast.
The map looks this way in the South, in part, because many of those unwilling to stay at home are conservative, blue collar white men, who, as they leave for work, the last voice they hear is from FOX Noise. Most also listen to conservative talk radio throughout the day, hearing Rush Limbaugh and others reaffirm their right wing hatred and mistrust of scientific experts, liberals, minorities, foreigners, women, and other perceived oppressors of the white conservative working class.
When quitting time rolls around, for some it’s to the bar, where FOX Noise is on the tube, for most, it's home to the same FOX Noise. Yes, where the talking heads of FOX Noise continue reaffirming the right wing hatred and mistrust of scientific experts, liberals, minorities, foreigners, women, and other perceived oppressors of the white conservative working class. But in the evening, the FOX programming includes a generous amount of new video that has been broadcast all day repeating the impeached president trump telling his devoted fanatics the coronavirus is “just a bad cold.” That “within a couple of days it’s going to be down to close to zero.” That the hysteria was nothing but a “new hoax” from Democrats who want to bring down the president.
For weeks that’s what they heard and believed, so they refused to take the warnings from experts seriously. However, that’s starting to shift now that the impeached president trump and the conservative noise machine have changed their tune, but it’s several weeks too late. It's a pitiful and unnecessary situation.
But it is somewhat unfair to blame the stronghold that COVID-19 has gained in the Southeastern states on conservative propaganda and blind loyalty to the impeached president trump alone. While these are significant factors, income inequality, poor infrastructure, poverty, food deserts, and a whole host of other reasons, some of them political, must also be considered.
Families of the working poor, many of which are black, are included on the NYT map. Unlike progressive states, unemployment insurance in the southern red states will not pay the breadwinners of these families to self-isolate to help stop the spread of COVID-19. These poor households, where budgets are already stretched, cannot afford to miss even a small portion of a paycheck. So, staying at home is impossible for most of these people.
There is no question that conservatism’s prioritizing protecting the wealth of the 0.1% over human life led to the slow response to the COVID-19 crisis. That inaction will, inevitably, cause the disease to remain with us for many months, resulting in many needless deaths. We’ll also see whether Republican conservatism’s myopic inaction has a negative or positive effect on the economy, and the wealth of the 0.1%. (Everyone knows the answer is negative and that numerous tax cuts for the 0.1% will be passed during the next eighteen to twenty four months, Even if the Democrats win the congressional majority and the White House in November, Democrats who accept political contributions from the billionaire class are also obliged to do the bidding of the 0.1%.)
Of course, the impeached president trump and his devoted fanatics will blame the Democrats, they always do. But, everyone must understand, these people voted for both the impeached president trump AND Dubya. Neither man can walk and chew gum at the same time, so, if distracted, even slightly, neither of them can function as a person, let alone as POTUS.
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This Map Permits People To See Where Experts’ Stay-At-Home Warnings Are Being Followed
This map, published in the New York Times shows areas of the nation where Americans are staying at home as medical and scientific experts advise. Also shown, are the states where people are not staying home, and are primarily in the Southeast.
The map looks this way in the South, in part, because many of those unwilling to stay at home are conservative, blue collar white men, who, as they leave for work, the last voice they hear is from FOX Noise. Most also listen to conservative talk radio throughout the day, hearing Rush Limbaugh and others reaffirm their right wing hatred and mistrust of scientific experts, liberals, minorities, foreigners, women, and other perceived oppressors of the white conservative working class.
When quitting time rolls around, for some it’s to the bar, where FOX Noise is on the tube, for most, it's home to the same FOX Noise. Yes, where the talking heads of FOX Noise continue reaffirming the right wing hatred and mistrust of scientific experts, liberals, minorities, foreigners, women, and other perceived oppressors of the white conservative working class. But in the evening, the FOX programming includes a generous amount of new video that has been broadcast all day repeating the impeached president trump telling his devoted fanatics the coronavirus is “just a bad cold.” That “within a couple of days it’s going to be down to close to zero.” That the hysteria was nothing but a “new hoax” from Democrats who want to bring down the president.
For weeks that’s what they heard and believed, so they refused to take the warnings from experts seriously. However, that’s starting to shift now that the impeached president trump and the conservative noise machine have changed their tune, but it’s several weeks too late. It's a pitiful and unnecessary situation.
But it is somewhat unfair to blame the stronghold that COVID-19 has gained in the Southeastern states on conservative propaganda and blind loyalty to the impeached president trump alone. While these are significant factors, income inequality, poor infrastructure, poverty, food deserts, and a whole host of other reasons, some of them political, must also be considered.
Families of the working poor, many of which are black, are included on the NYT map. Unlike progressive states, unemployment insurance in the southern red states will not pay the breadwinners of these families to self-isolate to help stop the spread of COVID-19. These poor households, where budgets are already stretched, cannot afford to miss even a small portion of a paycheck. So, staying at home is impossible for most of these people.
There is no question that conservatism’s prioritizing protecting the wealth of the 0.1% over human life led to the slow response to the COVID-19 crisis. That inaction will, inevitably, cause the disease to remain with us for many months, resulting in many needless deaths. We’ll also see whether Republican conservatism’s myopic inaction has a negative or positive effect on the economy, and the wealth of the 0.1%. (Everyone knows the answer is negative and that numerous tax cuts for the 0.1% will be passed during the next eighteen to twenty four months, Even if the Democrats win the congressional majority and the White House in November, Democrats who accept political contributions from the billionaire class are also obliged to do the bidding of the 0.1%.)
Of course, the impeached president trump and his devoted fanatics will blame the Democrats, they always do. But, everyone must understand, these people voted for both the impeached president trump AND Dubya. Neither man can walk and chew gum at the same time, so, if distracted, even slightly, neither of them can function as a person, let alone as POTUS.
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