There are times you can be for something or against something or neutral. But other times, like when you are jumping out of a plane, you either pull the ripcord or you don’t. Not deciding is the same as deciding not to. The world has now jumped out of a Boeing 747 and the momentum is carrying us toward more and more COVID-19 infections. At this moment, this very moment, we have to decide how to slow the momentum down.
We have the choice between being pro-humanity or anti-humanity. To be anti-humanity is to not be concerned about the public good as a whole and be only concerned about one’s own survival. To be pro-humanity means to be concerned about your fellow humans as well as yourself. When it comes to the global pandemic that we are facing right now, there is no middle ground. You are either pro-humanity or anti-humanity.
The COVID-19 virus is anti-humanity. It knows only one thing and that is to attack the human system in various ways in order to survive. The virus is definitely anti-humanity.
The headline on Hays Post on July 2, 2020 reads “Masks Encouraged, Not Required in Ellis County.” What we know about masks at this point is not as mysterious as the County Health Director lets on. The main purpose of the mask is to protect others. When you wear a mask , the mask provides minimal protection for you. But where the mask shines is in protecting others from your particles that you project into the air. Think of it like using a kleenex or handkerchief when you sneeze. You do it for other people.
So when you are in Dillons where the pro-humanity workers are wearing their masks to protect you, and you go in without a mask, you, demonstrating anti-humanity behavior, are placing the workers at Dillons at risk. If everyone is wearing a mask in Dillons, both workers and patrons, it is a pro-humanity win-win situation.
Let’s take a quiz and see if our county commissioners are pro-humanity or anti-humanity. We will even include the Ellis County Health Director since most of the information concerning the virus comes from him. I will be using quotes from the Hays Post article mentioned above, which I believe gets to the essence of their arguments concerning masks. Good luck!
• Jason Kennedy, Ellis County Director of Health
Kennedy said when it comes to the county’s response to the pandemic, it would not require masks in public. “We have eight active cases, we have zero hospitalizations, and thankfully,we have zero deaths”, Kennedy said. “Our hospital capacity is sufficient to handle anything we want at this point.”
Would you feel horrified if I told you that we have plenty of open cemetery plots at this time, as a response to COVID-19? There is little difference between that and the county health director telling us that we have plenty of ICU bed spaces; so party on, dudes!
• Pro-humanity
• Anti-humanity
2) Ellis County Commissioner Dustin Roths
“I encourage anyone that wants to wear a mask, that might be at risk, that may be around other people, and not be able to social distance for a period of time, feel free (to wear a mask). We actually probably encourage it.”
Remember that a mask is most effective for protecting others around you. Commissioner Roths seems to be saying to those who are most vulnerable “go ahead and take the risk of being around those without a mask. It’s your funeral.”
• Pro-humanity
• Anti-humanity
3) Ellis County Commissioner Dean Haselhorst
“If you feel threatened at all out in public or when you are at a gathering, please do wear a mask.” “I encourage you to do that.”
Thanks, Commissioner Haselhorst, for giving us permission to wear a mask. Again, the mask is worn by others in order to protect those who are feeling threatened. Was it “opposite day” at the county commission meeting on Thursday?
• Pro-humanity
• Anti-humanity
4) Ellis County Commissioner Butch Schlyer
“They don’t want to be told what they have to wear (the citizens of Ellis County) that sense of independence, people just thrive on it.” “They don’t want to be dictated to and mandated to, especially by some bureaucrat in some distant land.”
Sounding like a petulant teenager arguing with his mom about what shirt to wear to school, Commissioner Schlyer, the former Ellis County Health Director, is advocating every man, woman and child for himself during a global pandemic. He concluded with a good pinch of misogyny that the Governor will not tell him what to do. Even if that means killing off a few people?
• Pro-humanity
• Anti-humanity
If you answered b to all of the above, good job!
By now you may be feeling like an orphan when it comes to the county protecting your health and well being. But there is hope.
Governor of Kansas Laura Kelly
“We are at war with COVID-19. Do your civic duty and wear a mask to keep your family and neighbors healthy and keep Kansas open for business.”
Definitely pro-humanity.
Jacinta Faber, Ellis County