Opening Insights: Protected Opinion?
We cannot let the cure be worse than the problem itself.
DONALD TRUMP
The United States faces an event of historical proportions with the outbreak of the coronavirus which causes the COVID-19 disease. As a result of the coronavirus and COVID-19 challenge facing nations across the world a real state of fear has begun to take hold.
Lives are in danger as a result of the outbreak. Employment for many is at risk as a result of the halted commerce due to enforced quarantines. These are frightening prospects, but the most terrifying thought is that our freedom of speech and expression have been compromised as well.
NOTE: coronavirus and COVID-19 are not interchangeable terms. Coronavirus describes a family of viruses that cause illnesses that range from sever diseases to the common cold. COVID-19 is a specific disease that may occur as a result of contracting the coronavirus. This relationship is similar to how HIV (virus) causes the AIDs disease and how rubeola (virus) causes the measles disease.
The proper name of COVID-19 is, "severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2" – or SARS-CoV-2. However, due to the alarm that would come from using the name "SARS," WHO chose a less auspicious title (disambiguation provided by Health24.com).
https://www.health24.com/Medical/Infectious-diseases/Coronavirus/what-is-the-difference-between-covid-19-and-coronavirus-20200303
Informational Insights: Be Careful What You Say
Fox News severed ties with one of their anchors as a result of her commentary regarding politics and the COVID-19 outbreak. Additionally, a Seattle emergency room doctor was terminated after speaking up about his hospital's readiness for increasing numbers of infected patients.
The following Fox News video clip was featured in an article from The Blaze, "one of the nation's largest independent media companies." The article was written by Carlos Garcia, staff writer for The Blaze.
This video appeared on March 27, 2020 in an article by THE BLAZE: Fox Business parts ways with Trish Regan after controversy over 'scam' coronavirus commentary
The following article was published by the Associated Press, "an independent, not-for-profit news cooperative headquartered in New York City." It was written by Gene Johnson, "Seattle-based writer for The Associated Press."
SEATTLE (AP) — An emergency room doctor who publicly criticized the coronavirus preparations at his hospital in Washington state has lost his job.
Dr. Ming Lin, a ER doctor at PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham for the past 17 years, told The Associated Press on Friday night he had been fired.
He said that 20 minutes before his shift Friday he was told it had been covered and that his direct director told him he had been terminated. However, TeamHealth, the national health care staffing company that does hiring for the hospital, insisted in an emailed statement Saturday it had not fired him but would try to find him somewhere else to work.
On Facebook and in media interviews Lin has repeatedly criticized what he saw as a sluggish response to the threat by the hospital’s administration. Lin insisted that the hospital was slow to screen visitors, negligent in not testing staff, wrong to rely on a company that was taking 10 days to process COVID-19 test results, and derelict in obtaining protective equipment for staff.
He described taking steps to help the hospital obtain cots and personal protective gear being offered by local companies — efforts that garnered him a loyal local following, but, he said, also brought warnings from superiors to stop speaking out.
...
This article originally appeared on March 28, 2020 on APNEWS: Doctor loses job after criticizing hospital’s virus response
Possibilities for Consideration: A Precedence
Moving back through history's timeline there are many examples of how the subjugation of a people began with the silencing of their voices, usually as a result of an announced threat to their own well being. Think of Nazi Germany or the USSR under Stalin as examples. The truth didn't suit the agenda of either regime and public information was carefully controlled.
The United States of America was founded by a system of government created to prevent individuals like Hitler or Stalin from taking over. A system of checks and balances has kept us free and safe for over 250 years. That protection has allowed the U.S. to rise as a global leader in self-regulation and in commerce.
There's no question that the COVID-19 disease is a dangerous problem, and we should all pitch in to do what we can to end its out-of-control spread, but what happens to us in the aftermath if freedom is destroyed in the process?
Add Your Insight
Take a moment and examine…
- As you reviewed the material above, what stood out to you?
- What is the potential impact, economically and/or socially?
- What action is needed to stop or support this idea?
- You may want to consider whether you:
- want to be aware of,
- should become supportive of,
- would want to be active in this topic?
I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Being willing is not enough; we must do.
LEONARDO DA VINCI