To: readers across the Aisle
Subject: Change is coming
Date: June 22, 2020
To: readers across the Aisle
Subject: Voting in America- not so black and white
Date: May 27, 2020
To: readers across the Aisle
Subject: Land of the COVID
Date: July 7th, 2020
Land of the COVID
It's been 4 months since the first coronavirus death in the United States. After 3 months of lockdown, most states are in different phases of reopening. Nearly 40 million lost their jobs.
So what changed? In a lot of states, we just got tired of waiting.
This week, we explore the politicization of the virus:
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spike in southern states
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collective good vs. individual liberty
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reopening vs. lockdown
Let's take a walk down the Aisle...
The Spike (written and directed by COVID-19)
Sun Belt states (Florida, Texas, and Arizona) are seeing a spike in COVID-19 cases, caused by transmission from mainly younger, asymptomatic carriers. I mean how much longer were we supposed to go without Sunday brunch?
Data shows that spike can be attributed to both an increase in testing and real community spread, not protests.
Right: optimistic because hospitalizations remain low and the death rate hasn't spiked since the median age of infection is 37 (in FL).
Left: worst is yet to come, since death rates lag.
The quarantine is too damn long
Since reopening started, 4.8M jobs were added.
Conservatives are saying that we can't stay locked down forever. The negative effects on public health of closing everything can outweigh the negative effects of COVID-19 spread.
Conservatives believe in an individual's right to choose if they will take the risk of going to a bar, rally, or football game.
Liberals are saying that we need more government restrictions:
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mandated face masks
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pause reopenings
The left believes the government should exert more control to ensure the individual doesn't put the greater good at risk.
via Giphy
All our eggs in one Fauci
Dr. Fauci is doing his best to advise the country and we're thankful for his service, but he has contradicted himself.
Meanwhile, ex-NYT writer Alex Berenson makes a lot of interesting points in his previously censored book, like the correlation between "cooling" period (days where Southerners are forced inside for AC) and the recent spike in COVID-19 cases.
So if the virus spreads more efficiently inside due to the recirculation of air, is pausing reopening a good idea?
Doctors who said this long before were also censored. Only official gov. sources were allowed to post COVID-19 guidance in order to limit the spread of misinformation.
Left: wants to listen only to official scientific sources, like the CDC, WHO, Fauci, etc.
Right: what happens when the WHO or Fauci is wrong?
The Turned Tables
Gov. Cuomo of New York and Gov. DeSantis in Florida took different approaches:
Cuomo (Democrat):
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strict quarantine measures & expanded testing
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historic revenue loss
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allowed COVID patients to return to nursing homes
DeSantis (Republican):
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reopened quickly to recover economy (not pulling back despite spike)
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does not mandate masks at state-level
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sent national guard to nursing homes
Cuomo succeeded in flattening the curve in the epicenter of the pandemic, but he failed to protect the elderly. DeSantis succeeded in reopening the economy & protecting nursing homes, but now Florida is in third for most cases in the country.
DeSantis previously called for a quarantine on all New Yorkers traveling to their state. Now, Cuomo is quarantining all Floridians that travel to New York.
Other controversies
What: McCloskeys point arms at protestors
Right: couple was afraid for their personal safety/property as mob threatened them
Left: protestors were peaceful and marching through to get to mayor's house
What: deaths in Seattle after protests
Right: 19-year-old shot in CHOP dies after protestors prevent police from providing medical attention
Left: 24-year-old dies after car runs into protestors on closed highway
What: NY, LA, and Minneapolis defund police
Right: causing funding cuts to sexual assault units & spike in crime
Left: allowing for more money into education & healthcare
What: social media censorship of politicians
Right: conservatives flocking to make Parler accounts
Left: liberals urging advertisers to pull money from FB, since it won't censor hate speech
What: statues being taken down
Right: exec. order protecting monuments; some agree that Confederate symbols should be removed
Left: remove symbols of oppression, especially Confederates
What: NYT article on Russia paying Taliban militants to attack US soldiers
Right: the claim wasn't verified yet + leaking this info helps Russia more
Left: President is misinformed about national intelligence
What: Supreme Court strikes down restrictive abortion law in Louisiana
Right: court is corrupt and Justice Roberts keeps taking the liberal side
Left: right to choose but the fight to protect Roe v. Wade continues
Closing points
Both conservatives and liberals now agree to protect our fellow Americans + the economy:
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Wear a mask
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Take social distancing guidelines seriously
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Follow the guidance of your local officials
I wish I was making this up
Normally I put satire here, but unfortunately this is real
Spread some good
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Help Horace Anderson and Summer Taylor's families
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Man who worked as trash collector gets accepted into Harvard Law School
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Nursing home residents receive letters in isolation
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Pennsylvania man saves police officer's life, despite previous bad encounters with police
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Illinois police chief, former Secret Service agent who took bullet for Reagan is retiring
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15 year-old invents wristband to curb infections
Bored out of your mind?
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The Great Hack: how Trump campaign used FB data to run political ads (helpful to understand left's push for censorship)
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Uncle Tom: black conservatives on how they are labeled as sellouts or race traitors for their views (can't afford to buy it? check out this interview)
Quote of the Week
“I love America more than any other country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.”
-James Baldwin
Thank you, share, subscribe? What else do people say at the end of these things?
Thank you for walking across the Aisle with us this week. Now that you have both sides of the story, it’s up to you to decide where you stand.
Regardless of where you end up, we’re thankful that you read ideas that challenged your position, and we hope you’ll leave with a better understanding of the other side.
See you next week!
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This article cites 16 liberal news sources in blue and 18 conservative news sources in red. 9 sources were considered neutral in gray.