This is the second time I have had to complete a reading or watch a video regarding the similarities of the COVID-19 pandemic with the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. When the COVID-19 pandemic is over, the generations who survived the coronavirus will all agree that no matter where you were in the world, COVID-19 symbols were everywhere- from seeing people sport trendy face masks to signing compact agreements that legally bound you to abide by social distancing protocols to even hearing the word “corona” come up in every conversation you overhear. COVID-19 has managed to pervade all of our lives in an instant. As winter approaches, I am a bit anxious about our future. Both the Spanish flu article and the YouTube video pointed out that there was a second outbreak of the Spanish flu in America because some cities and states went back to “normal” too soon. While many cities and states have limited their business operations, I still wonder if our next COVID-19 outbreak will be because of other safety precautions besides people wearing their masks. For instance, if many people do not get their flu shot this season, could this possibly increase the entire population’s risk of being affected by COVID-19?
Aside from this, Trevor Noah and Dr. Bezio’s podcast highlighted the Lesson of 1918, which has evidence to prove how bringing crowds of people back too soon will increase the chances of the virus resurfacing again. Trevor Noah goes on to say that the mismanagement of the U.S. federal government is what has already caused the COVID-19 pandemic to claim the lives of thousands of more people that could have been avoided if proper leadership was in place. This fact should not be surprising because history shows us that the same cause-effect relationship was present during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. Also, Trevor Noah points out that the general distrust of leadership has caused many Americans to not follow social distancing guidelines seriously. If all of this is true, how can we, as a collective society, collaborate across differences and distance to achieve the same common goal: find a cure for the COVID-19 virus so that we can start rebuilding what was once “normal” in our daily lives?
I think that it would be much easier to come together as a society and fight against coronavirus if it was less of a political issue now. Now ideas regarding how to combat COVID-19 are becoming increasingly polarized based on party-line and it’s difficult to come together as a society and create solutions.
I think the most important point you brought up is trying to learn a lesson from the Spanish flu pandemic and how they relaxed their guidelines a little too early, and it resulted in widespread harm. If we really want to learn from history I think we have to sacrifice a little now. In other words, I think we have to collaborate by each doing our own jobs, managing ourselves, and not being selfish enough to risk the health of others.
I too am very nervous about this upcoming winter, and I sincerely hope that there isn’t a second outbreak. Unfortunately I think we are right on track for a second one as more people are gonna move inside because of the cold. Hopefully, we are able to learn from our mistakes earlier in the COVID epidemic and from the Spanish Flu, but I don’t see this happening.