Keeping Safety in Perspective
My favorite letter to the editor so far: 'Safe' is a relative term.
According to the CDC, these are the leading causes of death in the U.S.:
(Annual numbers)
- Heart disease: 647,457
- Cancer: 599,108
- Accidents (unintentional injuries): 169,936
- Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 160,201
- Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 146,383
- Alzheimer’s disease: 121,404
If the current predictions for COVID-19 deaths hold up, the disease still won't make the top five this year. Yet it seems to be the only threat we're worried about right now. The IDPH isn't giving us daily updates on heart disease fatalities, and Governor Flintstone doesn't hold a daily press conference to discuss COPD. Many of those deaths are preventable, but compulsory exercise and a ban on cigarettes have never been included in his dozens of executive orders. Go figure.
We were asked to flatten the curve to avoid overwhelming our healthcare system. Mission accomplished. Statewide, about 1/4 of our ICU beds are empty and 2/3 of our ventilators sit idle. Only 15% of all hospital beds are currently occupied by COVID-19 patients. Keeping in mind that flattening the curve also means extending its duration (not necessarily saving lives in the long run), I wonder when the curve will be flat enough. Domestic violence calls have risen sharply, suicide hotlines are overwhelmed, and our economy is in a tailspin.
Every day, people speculate on when life will return to "normal." The answer is simple. We will get back to normal when we put COVID-19 in perspective, remember that safety is never absolute, and choose to take calculated risks in the course of enjoying life. We will get back to normal when we stop letting the media tell us what we should be afraid of. At some point, we will stop living in fear and return to exercising reasonable precautions. We will once again treat each other as fellow humans, rather than potential carriers of an invisible killer. I pray that day comes soon.