The Coronavirus Issue
TV channels are flooded with information on the novel coronavirus. My parents watching TV every day are now specialists and use some technical terms. There are few people in the streets. People wear masks everywhere. Some of them look like terrorists hiding their faces. (inappropriate comment)
Personally, this pandemic is beneficial for me so far. I came to have a shift job and don’t have to work overtime, as measures against the virus. I have free time temporarily. I have time to communicate with our cats. I started taking walks and got a tan. (I don’t like to exercise.) I started reading books. I started studying languages and taking lessons at an online school for the first time in a long time. (I see many familiar faces of old instructors on the school website. They’re all alive!)
I don’t want to be swallowed up by the waves of repeated information on TV, but I’m interested in how other countries are tackling the worldwide problem. China, the epicenter of the pandemic, controlled the people with a smartphone application. South Korea performed the PCR tests thoroughly. The Philippines shot the people who violated the curfew. (They also released many prisoners to prevent overcrowding.) Sweden takes no measures intentionally so that people acquire herd immunity. Many European countries and the United States have the movement to restart economic activities after the lockdowns of cities as the number of infections seems to have passed its peak.
As a Japanese living in Japan, I’m worried about the situation in this country. Japan didn’t ban the influx of people flying from abroad in the early stages. Some Japanese got infected after traveling to Europe. Japan doesn’t perform PCR tests even to those with suspected symptoms. Japan lacks emergency rooms and doctors in hospitals.
The Prime Minister declared a state of emergency and asked people to stay home, but there is no punishment for violations. (Luckily, the Japanese are obedient) Japan started passing out two masks to each household to counter the lack of supply. (How should the household with many members share only two masks? The distribution is going on at a snail’s pace anyway.) Japan decided to support everyone with 100 thousand yen, but the process is likely to take ages. Japan also decided to pay cooperation money to the store owners who suspend their businesses, but it’s just a drop in the bucket.
This pandemic will end sooner or later, but the way of life will have changed. People are so shocked that they might keep avoiding contact with others even after the vaccine against this virus is introduced. I wonder when I can restart my old way of relaxing, traveling abroad. It might be dangerous to travel to Europe, my favorite destination, because I’m often mistaken for Chinese and they must have a grudge against them.
※この文章はアメリカ人の先生の添削を受けて修正済みです。
