There’s a flipside to social distancing

Dear Editor:

I am really concerned about how our governments are responding to COVID-19. They seem to totally disregard the toll that social distancing and not working are having on people and society.

It is good to listen to experts when deciding on how to deal with this situation, but our leaders are only listening to the narrow opinions of medical doctors. They are not listening to psychologists about the harm that social distancing is doing to individuals, though the increased calls to crisis lines and women’s shelters probably tell part of that story.

Our leaders aren’t listening to sociologists about the terrible damage done to society when we can not come together to either celebrate good times or to grieve as in Nova Scotia. What is the price of seeing other human beings not as potential friends or allies, but as The Other, dangerous carriers of disease to be avoided at all cost?

This has led to the rise of extreme rightwing movements around the world. Our leaders definitely minimize the economic pain that will be caused by high unemployment, failed businesses and the enormous debt and deficits that could last for perhaps a generation.

The only reason that we can afford the great health care that we have is because of the vibrant economy that we had going into this crisis. I’m afraid those days are over. It took the Second World War to get us out of the Great Depression and I don’t think anybody wants to go there again.

Here is my modest proposal. On Monday, May 4, we tell our government that social distancing is over. We send our children back to school, we pick up our tools and go to work, we open our businesses, we hug the people we haven’t seen for far too long and we resume our lives.

Thomas Hoenisch

Naramata