As mentioned in previous posts, I’m not too troubled about the novel coronavirus because I don’t value human life very much. I think the planet would be far better off if, oohhhhh, 60% of humans were wiped out. 70%, 80%, whatever. The sky is the limit really because no matter how many of us disappear, the remaining will breed like rats in short order. We are a species that is never in short supply, never in danger of becoming extinct, so I don’t worry what is going to happen to us. And even if we were to go extinct, so what? If anything on this planet deserves it, it’s us, full stop. No other organism is so cruel, thoughtless, greedy, selfish, wasteful, entitled, destructive, hateful. I could go on. We’re pretty darn special that way.
That being said, I have been bothered by a few things related to covid-19 lately. The first is the incredible amount of waste this pandemic is creating. Everyone is obsessed with wearing ‘disposable’ (cripes, I hate that term — we use it as if ‘disposable’ is a good thing when we should actually be alarmed and repulsed by the idea of throwing out more shit) PPE, ie personal protective equipment, like gloves, masks, and face shields — pretty much the entire planet is going through mountains of those items every day now, which means they’re ending up in landfills and the ocean. Fantastic. Hoo-ray, you didn’t have to touch a gas pump, now sea creatures are starving to death with bellies full of plastic. Never mind the studies that show plastic and its carcinogenic effects are making their way back up the food chain to us already. Good grief, we are shockingly selfish and short-sighted. It’s dizzying.
Another aspect of this coronavirus that is bothering me is the thought that most PPE is probably made in developing countries by slave labourers who are probably treated terribly to start with, and now those same people are likely being forced to work around the clock, non-stop, in an effort to keep up with global demand. Imagine the criminal shit going on those places normally, and how much worse it must be right now. I feel like that is a story worth investigating, but you know virtually no one would give a shit about it. We’re only concerned with our well-being here, and don’t give a shit if it comes at the expense of poor people elsewhere. When you think about our governments buying mass quantities of this shit despite knowing full well what is going on to manufacture it, it really drives home the idea that racism and colonialism are deeply institutionalized. And it’s not just here in North America, it’s in all societies — no one gives a rat’s ass about people they deem below them.
Those are my biggest concerns about covid-19: increased waste, and increased abuse of other people. As if a pandemic is any reason to let us indulge some of our worst habits. Whatever, this is nothing new. It’s not like I didn’t already hate the human race.
drool
crimson highway 