Time to tilt at windmills again. “Unleash the Kracken”? “Let slip the dogs of war”? You decide. In my own mind, there are so many questions and not enough (real) answers. Why are we blindly accepting that you can buy bread, but you cannot buy toothpicks? In this posting, I unpack my own thoughts and postulate on why humans are by nature so easily lead…for either the right or the wrong reasons. I need to state upfront that I hold no medical degree of any sort, but I like to think that I am a free-thinker. However, that is becoming increasingly difficult given the amount of incorrect information that is produced by certain news media outlets as well as what I term, anti-social media. So indulge me, if you would, while I get in a few thrusts at my own personal windmill.
Are we being treated like mushrooms? Are we being kept in the dark by those who wield more power than we do?
These are some of the questions that I have been asking myself during the time that we have been in lockdown. I need to state that I have been compliant with the Government directives to date. I have only been out twice since the inception of lockdown. Once to the supermarket and a trip to the local pharmacy to collect chronic meds. Not being a smoker or a drinker the ban on those two commodities does not affect me at all. The alcohol I can understand as being in lockdown for an extended period the consuming of drink could lead to a variety of issues. But cigarettes? I fail to see the rationale behind that decision. And I wonder who actually drew up the list of non-essential items? Where they properly qualified or was it just a face in an office ticking boxes? I have contacted one of the major supermarket chains to ask about certain products, but all I got was a form letter from the customer care department. No reasons, just details of products that COULD be sold. My question is basically if an item is in the store, why can it not be sold? The list of banned goods seems to be so arbitrary. You can buy electrical goods, like extension cords and light globes, but you cannot by cup-hooks or other DIY items? Why? I know that I am lucky to have boxes of screws etc that came in most useful when I was cleaning out our home pottery/photographic studio. And as a result of YEARS of hoarding, I was able to complete all the DIY projects I had set myself. You cannot buy prepared foods, like chicken and other hot foods…again I ask why? And the one that I REALLY do not understand is plastic containers…WTAF? In our house, my wife has been baking and cooking up a storm and we might well have needed extra containers. Thank goodness for old ice-cream containers! Finally, years of hoarding them have paid off. I suppose my ultimate question is why are we as South Africans and consumers not asking questions? Why are we accepting this denial of basic rights as par for the current situation? Although there are some in our community that are trying to do good and be helpful to those who have not, there are just as many who are too quick to report those who they perceive to be flouting the lockdown regulations without trying to find out why. I saw a posting on anti-social media recently complaining about beggars at a local intersection and entreating others to call the police. They could not be bothered to a] call the police themselves? or b] find out anything about the beggars? This seems to be how humans can devolve into their base instincts so quickly. Wear masks? Then wear them correctly! Wear gloves? Have you got hundreds of pairs to keep changing them every time you touch something? As an aside, my best is when I see people, alone in their cars wearing gloves and masks…WHY? My fear is how will we behave once we are ‘allowed’ to interact with each other face-to-face again. I believe that despite all the positive and motivational quotations being posted, we will return to being insular and selfish in a very short period of time. I hope that I will be proved incorrect, but human nature being what it is, I feel that we will go back to our default position…NIMBY…not in my back yard. I hope that I am proved wrong.
There are upsides to being confined to barracks. I have been able to get a lot of work done at home. I have been able to clean up hard-drives of hundreds of excess images that have been taking up space for years. Due to the fact that I cannot currently travel, I have been able to get ahead of schedule with most of my commissioned writing. I have been able to actually slow down and pace myself so that I have work to do on a daily basis. I have time to contemplate how blessed I am for so many reasons. I have reconnected with friends and family that I have not spoken to in a long while. Technology, when used correctly, can be useful and not just a mindless scrolling through Facebook. I have also learned to rid my phone of time-wasting Apps. And what a cathartic experience THAT has been. Like a weight has been lifted from shoulders. There you have it, my perspective on what is going on right now here in Johannesburg.
Float like a feather into the ‘new dawn’ whatever that might be. Try to disrupt as little as possible, or if you choose to step up onto a proverbial soapbox, then at least have all the correct facts at hand. As I write this we here in South Africa are heading into the final few days of our Government enforced lockdown. Although April 30th has been mooted as the lifting of lockdown, given the virus conditions at that time, that date might once again be changed and the goalposts not only shifted but removed altogether. How might we deal with that is the subject that I will raise if that becomes an issue. Take care, stay at home and more importantly…stay healthy. It is really not worth putting yourself or your loved ones at risk because you feel the need to visit a supermarket unnecessarily.
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