ith

W ith

all over the world, terms such as “social distancing,” “self-quarantine” and “attening the curve” are appearing in the media. Are we supposed to just know what these terms mean?

I’m no idiot, but these terms don’t mean anything to me.

It seems like if the government wants us to do something

(Editor’s Note: I guess, but none of those are new words. I guess “social distancing” is a little more nuanced than “don’t touch anyone,” but it seems like most folks could _gure it out. Just keep a “distance” from anyone when you are in a “social” setting. Not that hard, I don’t think.

“Self-quarantine” is a fancy phrase but it’s also pretty straightforward. Take your “self” and “quarantine” it.

Build yourself a toilet paper fort, _ll your super-soaker with Germ-X and ride out the apocalypse at home if you can. I know for some folks that’s easy to say but hard to do, but those who can do it de_nitely should.

OK, I’ll admit “attening the curve” _rst made me think of the lyrics to the “Dukes of Hazzard” theme song …

“Staightenin’ the curves, attenin’ the hills. Someday the mountain might get ‘em, but the law never will.” But just in the name of offering an explanation, it basically means the idea of slowing the spread of the coronavirus so that instead of getting to a quick, massive number of cases, you get a slower rate of infection. When charted, that creates a atter curve on the diagram. Hope this helps. Wash your hands!) Several newspapers have announced that France has shut down all public places ‘non-essential’ to public life including restaurants and cafes, although allowing tobacconists to stay open.

Surely, they should know that restaurants are essential for the French as are coffee shops for the Italians and sports grounds for Australians. Obviously, it is vital to try to stop the spread of the virus by reducing contact between people, but the anomalies are puzzling.

Most schools are still open, public transport is still running and overcrowded and even Governments are meeting and still functioning, well at least as well as they usually do. Everyone is doing a great job to protect the physical health of the people, but we shouldn’t forget the mental health as well.

If everyone is ‘effectively’ isolated, it will be hard for many to cope with the isolation. Let’s bunker down for a while and hope all is well and remember to stay calm as best as we can. (Editor’s Note: I mean, I don’t want anyone to get sick, and I certainly don’t want anyone to die, but I honestly think we’ve gone a little too into the extreme. I’m happy to be wrong here, but I just look at the impact that all of this quarantine and closure is going to have on us all.

I think the main problem I have is that the government doesn’t think we as a nation are smart enough to follow basic rules of hygiene and sickness. You know, like “wash your hands,” “cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze,” and “if you have a fever, stay home.” OK, the real problem I have is that they’re probably right. Is this virus a threat? Yes. Are people going to get sick?

Yes. But is it worth the billions and billions of dollars in the economic impact it’s going to have by shutting everything down for two weeks, for 30 days, or even longer? The real answer is, of course, yes. If doing this saves lives, it will have been worth it, but man, March Madness? Major League Baseball? … Wrestlemania?

It’s a catastrophe, I tells ya!) Well, here we are… Mayor Marco has pre-spent all of this casino money on raises and new buildings and new _re trucks and lord knows what else and you know Southland is going to be closing while this whole beer virus has the world scared to go outside. This is the beginning of the end of

(Editor’s Note: I hope you’re wrong. I actually bet you hope you’re wrong. I mean, why would you be rooting against the City of West Memphis, right? But you do raise some good points. I’m willing to bet that the city’s budget is a leveraged as it has ever been, and if this coronavirus pandemic extends into the summer, it will indeed be a horrible, horrible hit to the city. I will say, though, that so far, Southland is still open, and I can assure you, if they stay open, people will go there.

We drove past it Monday afternoon and the parking lot was plenty full. Is that the smart move for those folks?

Probably not, but you know, we can’t just stop living our lives … I mean, we could. But we won’t) Any word on when we might get Dear Abby or the Horoscopes back? Glad to see the online edition has been getting posted regularly again. Got my Friday paper on Friday (in the mail). We still love our paper!!! (Editor’s Note: Well, I appreciate the encouragement. To address your text, let’s just go in order … Dear Abby costs money. Right now, I don’t know if our revenues support adding the paid content.

Hopefully, that will change.

I can maybe _nd a free horoscope to run if people really want it back. Glad you’re getting your eyes on the paper (online and in print) in a timely manner. Please keep reading!)

COVID-19 spreading in communities