Just another disease...

If you did not know how powerful media is then just look at the coronavirus situation. It is the news channels and the type of reporting that has resulted in an absolute storm on the shopfloors of the supermarkets. Despite the suggestions that over-70’s stay at home, Tesco in my part of South Wales was literally brimming with ‘oldies’. They were ‘fighting’ over toilet rolls, paracetamol and anything that could be kept for longer than a week. Rather interesting to see, the social scientists will have a field day to figure all that behaviour out, the how’s and the why’s. But the BBC has to share the blame, yes I know it is news but this way reporting in every sentence how many people had caught the virus and following that up with how many had died. Next we will have names and family history included. And then we have the Twitterati – you know them in common life as idiots or ultra liberal lefties– spouting all sorts of fancy reasons what this virus is about. I feel sorry for the Ruskies and Chinese, of course we have to put the blame somewhere don’t we? Putin is the guilty one or is it that laboratory in Wuhan may be? Or did some idiot in South Wales manufacture this virus in his garden shed? People, come on, get real, this virus or its brothers have been around for a long time!

It is related to the common cold virus, which also has the flu virus as its cousin. Every year there are more, the viruses simply mutate. So, let’s get it straight, this will happen again, we will have to grow resistance which might incur getting it and surviving it. Indeed as with all diseases, the weak and old and sometimes the young too, might succumb. Therefore it would be good to develop some vaccine. So, let’s talk less about the negative aspects and let’s hear more of the positive, BBC!

You might think to yourself ‘Yep, another disease, how many more will there be?’. Good question and I don’t know the answer either besides saying ‘Loads more’. You should look at how viruses and bacteria get to us and why. Most likely it is our lifestyle, the density of the population in any particular area, the things we consume (bats and slugs are nice at this time of the year). The battle of life, who consumes who, has been going on since life developed on the planet. Driven by the amount of food available or NOT available. So, it is a normal thing, we might not like it but it is what it is. We are food as much as other living things are.