COVID Casualties: Remnants of a Republic, Detritus of a Democracy(?)

       While not listed in the "upcoming posts" on October 18th, I am writing this for several reasons that are important to me and I hope meaningful for you.

#1 - Timing, Aghast: Timely, because I still have the interview from October 21st fresh on my mind, and I am still so dismayed with what I heard, that I just had to vent to someone (yep, even psychologists have to vent and this is one good place for me to do it--thank you for 'listening'!). The interview in question involved a BBC reporter and a young Nigerian (easy to find there, the median age being 18), in the midst of the ongoing Nigerian unrest (you think we have issues, check out what's happening there). Near the end of the interview the reporter opined (paraphrasing here): "Democracy is a great idea, but when it doesn't deliver, what then?" He went on to compare the relative efficacy in dealing with COVID by more totalitarian governments like China (see the irony?) who are more able to use draconian measures in obtaining complete compliance with lockdowns, etc.  (a sardonic poster commenting on  their measures: "Violators will be shot; survivors shot again"). Those Brits. I thought they included history as a core subject as well...does this gent not recall the fierceness with which his brethren fought to keep tyranny from its shores last century? 

#2 - Timing, Registered(?): Timely, because it's just a fortnight (no, not "Fortnite" you gamers, but the Brit term denoting fourteen days) now from our national/presidential elections and BBC, among other international reporting agencies are watching, listening, and parodying our campaigns and candidates. Perennially, we are called out for (well deserved, in this case) the low rate of voter turnouts even in national elections compared to some other nations, some of which wait in "queues"" (Brit lit again) for hours, if not days (the first time I voted in a national election was the first time 18 year-olds were allowed to vote and the either the college or other election officials screwed up our precincts, resulting in us voting a few hours after the president had been decided in a landslide!!). 

#3 Timing, Days of Old: Timely, because we never, ever want to forget our history, why our forefathers fought so fiercely themselves, to separate from our now Brit friends. Further back in our collective world history, as the Old Testament informs us, when Charlton Heston had plagued Yul Brynner & Company sufficiently, he finally pleaded, "Go, just take your people and Go!". it wouldn't take long, we learned,  for this initially grateful throng of Israelites to start mumbling and grumbling..."When are we gonna' get there already?!...Let's turn back, at least they gave us three squares back there..." What are we willing to sacrifice, when things become difficult along the road of self determination?

#4 Psychology, Core Beliefs: I can't think of many things more fundamentally philosophical and at the same time psychological as one's perspective on the role(s) of government alongside individual responsibility, in maintaining individual rights, freedoms, and LIBERTY.

       GET OUT AND VOTE: It's your right; it's your responsibility (in my opinion). OK, I'm done for now--Thank You again for listening!