I've been watching the government response to the COVID-19 crisis for the past few months, like most of you. I'll admit, I haven't really watched it as closely, for several reasons. I've been hyperfocused on several aspects of the response because it is my job to do so. I also have been trying to clear my head a bit, not react to everything, seeing that it's costing me the friends I have left. You get my drift. But I digress.
I've been trying to see things differently than I have before. Back then, I'll admit, I understood less. I was focusing on the political aspect of things, of how elected officials do the things they do, and why. It explains why I've written more angry essays about the last president than the current one, I think. It's not because I am on the side of this one, but rather, because I understand more. I know, the "ikaw kaya mag-presidente" defense is flimsy, but having seen at least a small slice of how things work in government - and even got involved, in the most marginal of ways - I have come to several realizations, the most critical of them being how your motivations change the higher up the ladder you go. The more beholden you are to the number of votes you can get in the next election, the more your actions are motivated by the need to keep power, if not for yourself, then for people who theoretically have your back.
So, this government's response to COVID-19? It's hard to tell, if you ask me. I personally don't want to lapse towards easy conspiracy theories - not the fantastic ones like "this coronavirus is a bioweapon", but rather, the sort that easily explains a sequence of events the way a magic wand supposedly makes things disappear. But then, it's difficult to resist the thought that this administration would take the opportunities provided by the pandemic to make things easier for itself. People are polarized and both extremes are more vocal than before, or at least since the beginning of this presidency. But any manifestation of dissatisfaction, of dissent, would adversely impact the capacity of those higher up to keep power to themselves. What better way to prevent this than to keep people home? No public gatherings. No, it's not because we want you to shut up, but because we want you safe and well. And you can always air your grievances online - but, of course, people who disagree with you will probably pummel your notifications with vitriol, death threats, and perhaps the possibility of being doxxed.
Read more »
24 April, Friday
Of course, they're extending the enhanced community quarantine.
I'm not saying this in an annoyed tone. (Is it not evident in written form? Yeah, I thought so.) I get it. Things haven't exactly settled down. While the number of cases here haven't seen the catastrophic jumps we've been afraid of, it's clear, somewhat, that we haven't really reached the peak of it. That, and a lot of people telegraphed this possibility for the past week. Of course, even that was subject to idle debate. Do we gradually reopen the economy, or do we enforce draconian measures just to keep people inside?
Read more »
