“A Reality Of Uncertainty” (Medium)

 Medium published my new article “A Reality of Uncertainty”

All over the world, countries are feeling the toll of the second wave of Covid-19. Infections are rising and cities and countries are reinstating lockdown orders. The most pervasive feelings at this point seem to be uncertainty and despair. In the first wave, we thought we’d stay at home for a few weeks and wake up from the coronavirus nightmare. Now, in the second wave, we are beginning to realize it is not going away.

While all of nature functions as an integral system whose elements are connected and dependent on each other, we act as if we are separate beings, apart from the rest of humanity and the rest of nature, when the truth is the exact opposite. And because we feel this way, we are wrecking our home.

The only way to (hopefully) avoid it is to avoid contact with people, but how long can we do that? After all, we are social beings and other people’s company is an existential need for us. It seems as though we’re being forced to choose between suffocation from being locked up in our homes and suffocation from the virus. On top of that, the tension between those who choose to get out and enjoy other people’s company, and those who want to stay indoors and protect themselves and their loved ones is adding to the already mounting tensions in society. The prognosis for society in such a state is not good, to say the least.

There is, however, a way out of the catch. We haven’t been willing to try it, but a way out does exist. Since our conflict with nature has brought upon us this virus, ending the conflict is the way to eliminate it.

I like to watch TV shows about nature. When you look at how animals behave, you see that although their whole lives revolve around eating other animals or escaping other animals that want to eat them, there is perfect balance. There is no hatred among them; there is simply a natural mechanism that makes nature work in perfect harmony and life thrives.

Humans, however, are devoid of balance. We eat too much, accumulate stuff we don’t need, throw out perfectly good stuff, and litter the planet. While half the world is overweight, the other half is starving.

And worst of all, we are killing one another, abusing one another, tormenting one another, and taking pleasure in humiliating other people. We are hateful beings, the only hateful beings in all of nature. And in this, we are in conflict with nature, completely opposite from it.

While all of nature functions as an integral system whose elements are connected and dependent on each other, we act as if we are separate beings, apart from the rest of humanity and the rest of nature, when the truth is the exact opposite. And because we feel this way, we are wrecking our home.

The coronavirus is forcing us to behave more responsibly. It is forcing us to stay apart, restrict our consumption, limit our exploitation, and diminish the damages we’re inflicting on the planet. If we stopped doing these damages voluntarily, we wouldn’t need the virus to limit us. We would limit ourselves, which would preclude the appearance of the virus from the get go.

Think about it, the measures we are required to take in order to defeat the virus are the same measures we are required to take in order to save the planet and stop exploitation of others. It turns out that if we changed the way we treat each other and the planet, we would eliminate the virus without even trying.

In all likelihood, there will be no vaccine to Covid-19. Even if one is found, epidemiologists already warn that we are bound to see more and more of these bugs infecting humanity in the coming years, so fighting it is a lost cause. Our only way out of the maze is through changing our attitude from exploitative to cooperative, from alienation to connection. Today, it is clearer than ever.