EDITORIAL

Main stream media: Fear-mongers par excellence

Posted 5/28/20

To the Editor, Throughout the history of civilization, fear has always been a tool used by those in power to control and subjugate. It can be very effective if one chooses not to think for himself. Mercifully, there are those who are not taken in by the

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EDITORIAL

Main stream media: Fear-mongers par excellence

Posted

To the Editor,

Throughout the history of civilization, fear has always been a tool used by those in power to control and subjugate. It can be very effective if one chooses not to think for himself. Mercifully, there are those who are not taken in by the hysteria of this latest virus du jour and one of them is Philip Dercole, a gentleman whom I have never met.

Last week the Beacon published a letter to the editor by Mr. Dercole who courageously, selflessly, with reason and common sense, simply stated that the shutdown of our economy was folly and we should reopen immediately. Ah! A voice of sanity in a world gone mad.

Yes, like any other flu, it does attack the elderly like Mr. Dercole who is 76 and are always at risk, as are those with existing health issues, but 98% of those infected will recover. And yes, it has been devastating poor countries where the death rates are closely coupled with poverty, nutrition, scant medical care, and poor hygiene. Regarding the outbreak in Italy where there are hundreds of thousands of Chinese workers in the leather and fashion industries in the north, with Chinese workers and tourists flying back and forth between China and Italy, it would be predictable that given the elderly demographics of Europe, Italy would be hard hit. Still, there are those who consider this a Wuhan virus and whether or not this is true is irrelevant to this argument.

There is a recent study from Stanford University stating quite unequivocally that Covid-19 has an infection rate of 0.12-0.2% and thus is no more dangerous than seasonal flu. But why then the alarm?

Enter the Main Stream Media: a collection of fear-mongers par excellence. White House briefings and those from our own state house have done little to mitigate the worry and concern many people face daily. Unfortunately most people get their news from these contaminated sources, so the cycle is never broken.

Indeed, when I see vaunted "medical experts" standing on the same dais with politicians, in my opinion their credibility has just dropped to near zero.  The first ones to jump in and prognosticate are probably not the ones to listen to.  The Surgeon General, Dr. Jerome Adams has recently admitted that the models which were used came from WHO and the CDC and were, in essence, defective and predicted a death toll seriously flawed.

Shutting down an economy over this, requires some serious political hubris and the decision to do so was one of unfathomable stupidity. In all my 70 years on this planet, I have seen nothing like it and hope never again to see such a thing. The suffering, loss of wages, food insecurity, businesses closed forever, mortgage payments in jeopardy are just a few of the things that represent the reality of such recklessness.

But perhaps, just perhaps there is a small dividend for all of this. I would guess with the schools closed and working at home, kids might just learn to think for themselves.

Jim Morgan, Warwick

Comments

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  • Unbeacon20

    It is quite clear that this gentleman(?) Is paddling right wing republican garbage and replican editor/owner of Beacon let him do that.jim ,flu has vaccine and covid19 does not that is why 120,000 people died because of ignorant ...hol es like you paddling this ..it.why do not you move to Alabama or Mississippi where you belong

    Thursday, May 28, 2020 Report this

  • JimMorgan

    Is English your first language?

    Thursday, May 28, 2020 Report this

  • JohnStark

    Anthony: To the extent that your response remotely resembles standard written English, we can certainly agree on the fact that the virus has accomplished what the American electorate failed to do in the following ways:

    Undermine a popular American president

    Devastate a thriving American economy

    Create expanded government dependence

    Close those annoying churches

    But hope springs eternal. A large number or Rhode Islanders will remain dependent upon government. And the state will remain the northeast's economic laughing stock. Mission accomplished.

    Sunday, May 31, 2020 Report this

  • Caliban

    I believe there was an overreaction, and the economy is going to crash. That, in turn, will result in hyperinflation, (a hidden tax), the devaluation of the dollar, a curtailment of social safety nets such as Medicare and Social Security, and another turn for the worse for the average American, which is about 99 percent of us. Mr. Morgan, pay no attention to Anthony and the "sheeple" who blindly accept anything the governement -- whether state or federal -- wants to cram down our throats. You make some valid points.

    Thursday, June 4, 2020 Report this