Ultimate test in being comfortable with being
uncomfortable
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| Looking into downtown Saskatoon back on March 22. |
Over social media lines, the battleground of people confronting each other regarding how the pandemic is being handled gets so toxic at times that I am almost afraid to write a column on the subject. You begin to wonder if it is even worth sharing your feelings or opinions regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.
It seems if you do, you have to be prepared to fight someone
physically in a UFC octagon ring.
The whole shutdown of all non-essential services and
activities across most of the world is something the world has never seen
before in its history, and a number of other pandemics have ripped through the
world in its history. In North American, we have been facing this reality since
shutdowns started to occur on March 11.
Sweden and Brazil are just two places that haven’t observed
lockdown measures so far.
Even as I write this piece, I wonder if I should be putting
out how I feel. I am not even sure it will help in the discussion.
I have taken to the idea that the COVID-19 pandemic is a
traumatic event, and everyone will deal with how they react to this event
differently. The only thing I can equate the pandemic too is a death in the
family, where everyone in the family reacts to the death in their own way.
There are people out there who believe the world’s reaction to the pandemic is a complete overreaction. There are others that believe we all need to stay locked up in our homes and avoid interacting with all other humans for the next four years.
There are people out there who believe the world’s reaction to the pandemic is a complete overreaction. There are others that believe we all need to stay locked up in our homes and avoid interacting with all other humans for the next four years.
You have predictions from some we should be over this in six
weeks or two months, and that includes a handful of medical professionals who
say we should start getting back to normal.
You have other health officials, who seem to be in the main seats of influence, at first saying at the start of the pandemic this will go on for 18 months to two years.
You have other health officials, who seem to be in the main seats of influence, at first saying at the start of the pandemic this will go on for 18 months to two years.
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| Merlis Belsher Place functions as field hospital in waiting. |
It feels like the there is a major battle going on between
the health officials and the economists. At the moment, it feels like World
Health Organization as a body rules most of the world and has free reign to
dictate what the world does.
No matter what happens, the reality for myself and likely
most who read this piece is we do not control the strings of power. All we can
do is roll with the punches and do our best on a day-to-day basis to make our
way in this crazy world.
You just try to put your head down and stay in your lane as
best you can while the world sorts itself out.
That was the truth before the pandemic. That is a more pronounced truth now.
That was the truth before the pandemic. That is a more pronounced truth now.
While I myself have no power to influence anything, I still
believe there needs to be accountability in every facet of life. Of course,
people and organizations do earn leeway when they conduct themselves in a
responsible matter over a period of time.
That includes health officials and people in political power
that make decisions.
I should give background about why I say health officials
just so it is out front that what I write may be coloured.
As I grew up, my experiences with family doctors weren’t the
greatest. It seemed from the time I was born up through my university years, I
would often get sick often due to bronchitis, and all the family doctors would
do is give me prescriptions that didn’t work.
It felt like I often had to fight off any illness on my own.
Over my life, I have made friends here and there, who have admitted to
basically firing their family doctor after experiencing the same sort of thing.
That all changed when I moved to Medicine Hat, Alta., when
Bill Ruzycki became my family doctor. Ruzycki was also the team doctor for the
WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, who were the WHL team I was covering as a beat
writer for the Medicine Hat News.
Any time I needed a prescription or wasn’t well when I lived in Medicine Hat from 2004 to 2014, everything Ruzycki prescribed to me worked. I also didn’t get sick with a physical illness that often during my time in the Hat too.
Any time I needed a prescription or wasn’t well when I lived in Medicine Hat from 2004 to 2014, everything Ruzycki prescribed to me worked. I also didn’t get sick with a physical illness that often during my time in the Hat too.
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| Signs like this are visible at Saskatoon facilities. |
I just hoped he would never retire.
Since moving to Saskatoon in the summer of 2014, the doctor
I have seen at one specific medical clinic has been fine. I haven’t had to see
him for anything serious.
Still, I have kind of kept in the back of my mind which
doctors I would see in Saskatoon if I “really” got sick. Those doctors also
happen to work as doctors for sports teams I have covered.
I also have had some family members who have felt the
pitfall of “mistakes” from the medical system where no one was held
accountable. Because doctors get cleared of some mishaps doesn’t mean the
mishap never happened.
Unfortunately, that has coloured my view of the medical
system.
No matter what arguments are presented to me about why we
need to do what we do in this COVID-19 pandemic, I am still always asking in my
head, “Are we doing the right thing?”
For one, I always think any new data that might have been
collected on this thing over the last two months isn’t being used. It feels
like the first apocalyptic models are viewed as the only correct way to
interpret things.
It also feels like anyone that raises a different view from
the medical profession gets discredited right away. When that happens, I draw
parallels to dealing with the “mistakes” that have occurred to members of my
family who were in the medical system dealing with an ailment.
Did a mistake happen somewhere regarding COVID-19?
Did a mistake happen somewhere regarding COVID-19?
It is also human nature that once people obtain power they
don’t want to give it up, and I believe that could include people calling the
shots in the medical community. It seems fear about how easily COVID-19 can be
transmitted is being weaponized for political motives.
I should also note I don’t have any trust for United States
President Donald Trump either. It seems like anyone even thinks about
questioning the direction we are headed in is automatically slated as a Trump
supporter.
It is possible to question both and wonder if both are doing
bad jobs.
To me, it feels like the whole story with this COVID-19
pandemic hasn’t come out yet. I believe it is a threat. Where it fits in with
other threats, the true information on that front may never come out.
As we deal with this chronic stress situation that has no
end date, it feels like there are people out there that believe once the pandemic
passes life with return in North America to what it was on March 10. Due to the
fact the world has gone into a self-imposed recession that might already be a
depression, we won’t see that world from March 10 for a very long time.
Also, it seems like people believe governments will just take
care of society as we sit in our homes and wait for this to pass. I almost laugh at that thought.
When this is over, the tax rates are going to go through the roof at least with all the bailout programs rolled out in Canada.
When this is over, the tax rates are going to go through the roof at least with all the bailout programs rolled out in Canada.
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| Malls reopened in Saskatoon this week including Midtown Plaze seen here. |
This whole situation is not easy and is uncomfortable.
It will be interesting to see how the world looks back on
this period of time two or three years down the road.
Since almost all of us are not in position to call the
shots, all we can do is look after our mental well-being on a day-to-day basis
and remain in the present as much as possible.
Along the way, we should try our best to be nicer to each
other too including to those that see things from a different viewpoint.
Chiefs’ Beckman takes WHL player of the year honours
On Thursday, Saskatoon product Adam Beckman was named the
winner of the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the WHL player of the year. The
left-winger, who played through his 18-year-old season with the Spokane Chiefs,
topped the WHL in goals (48) and points (107) appearing in 63 regular season
games. He had a plus-44 rating to go along with his point totals.
Last year, Beckman, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 174
pounds, was selected in the third and 75th overall by the Minnesota
Wild in the NHL Entry Draft, and he has signed an NHL entry-level contract with
the Wild.
During his career in the WHL spent entirely with the Chiefs,
Beckman has appeared in 132 regular season games posting 80 goals, 89 assists
and a plus-63 rating.
The WHL had been rolling out its league awards via an online
format, and Beckman’s player of the year award win concluded that rollout.
For Saskatoon Minor Hockey, it has to be cool to see one of
their products take the WHL’s top individual honour.
Beckman’s Chiefs had a 41-18-4-1 record before the last bit
of the WHL regular season and the entire major junior post-season was nixed due
to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The asshole stats and final thought
The next part of this post will be what I call are “I’m an
asshole” statistics.
I believe I will be viewed as an asshole by a number of
people for reporting these statistics.
I just hope in the future the source these statistics come
from doesn’t get shut down. If it does, mainstream outlets will be hooped too,
because I believe this is the source they draw COVID-19 numbers from.
- Since I have typed what will be viewed as a mainly unpopular post, here are some statistics compiled by the Worldometer, which seems to be extremely accurate in counting deaths in real time around the world. At the time this post went live, there were 344,019 deaths due to COVID-19 this year. Also so far this year, Worldometer report there have been 3,239,260 deaths by cancer, 1,971,663 deaths caused by smoking, 986,459 deaths caused by alcohol, 663,030 deaths by HIV/AIDS, 422,947 deaths by suicide, 386,872 deaths by malaria, 192,051 deaths by seasonal flu and 121,909 deaths from mothers giving birth. Just putting that out there.
- One crazy statistic Worldometer reports in there has been over US$157,691,000,000 spent this year on illegal drugs in the world. Just putting that out there.
- At the time this post went live, there were six hospitalizations in the province of Saskatchewan due to COVID-19. In Saskatoon, there are 1,266 hospital bed set aside for COVID-19 patients including 250 beds in the field hospital in waiting at Merlis Belsher Place. Just putting that out there.
- For what it is worth, I like the reopening plan the Government of Saskatchewan has laid out and is following. With all the items I have written in this post that will be disliked, I think Saskatchewan Scott Moe and Saskatchewan’s Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab are doing a good job navigating this whole COVID-19 pandemic. To me, they seem to be the most real out of any of the leaders dealing with this. Of course, not every decision that is made will be the greatest, but I feel fortunate I am living in Saskatchewan through this. Even with what I just wrote, I suspect there will be people that don’t like the fact I wrote this point.
If you have any
comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them
to stankssports@gmail.com.
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