Pride Goes Before

I thought the quote from the King James Bible was, “Pride goeth before a fall”

The actual quote is: “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”

It characterizes the attitude prevalent in Washington DC and adherents of the current resident of the white house.

Agent Orange and his minions turned a deaf ear when the CDC warned of COVID-19.

The President of the United States lied and then did not retract his comments when confronted directly by knowledgeable health officials in the same briefing. He should be ashamed and apologize.

The President of the United States said this pandemic was caused by the Chinese. That blatant racist comment was picked up and repeated by media that fawns on his stupidity. He should be ashamed and apologize.

The President of the United States repeatedly said his administration was in control and responding to every need of the citizens of this country. He should be ashamed and apologize.

I pray that those words are not prophetic.

The initial lack of action may have led to the destruction of many innocent lives. The total ineptitude of a congress hamstrung by partisan politics and the limited intelligence of some members, particularly the republicans that put religion before science, will destroy our economy as well as lives that could have been saved by simply listening.

All of it can be laid at the doorstep of the haughty spirit of partisanship.

The states and cities have had to take the lead. They found the ways to coordinate the efforts to segregate those infected. The federal government initially said a lot and did damn little. Yes, they have picked up the pace but now are threatening to go too far and in part that is caused by the left putting too great a value on government control. That could lead to a fall none of us wants.

Yes, there is a pandemic.

People are going to die. The government in the USA is playing catch up. We have no swabs to do testing because they are not manufactured here but have been ordered from Italy. Last I looked, Italy had significant virus problems of their own. But, as reported this morning they may have found a way to significantly reduce new infections. I doubt that the US Government will learn from them.

We can avert some of the health problems.

The advice to hunker down, avoid crowds, use good medical hygiene and monitor yourself for symptoms is all helpful and just might slow the infection rate. But until everyone can be tested to assure that those who have it can be isolated, it is a crapshoot.

We cannot avoid the economic disaster.

The entertainment industry, restaurants, bars, theaters, museums, libraries, exhibits of all kinds may never recover. The travel industry will come back but how long can the skills necessary to make all the elements function continue without practice? Most of us are jesting now over TV and radio shows being done without audiences. But as a professional speaker I can tell you that the audience is a part of every performance and very quickly we will find the attempts to entertain in this unconventional way will prove wanting.

Our government is on the brink of sending out checks. Who will pay for them? The apparent expectation is that the people out of work will be able to “get back to normal” within 6 months. I will not hold my breath regarding that eventuality.

We will be faced with a new world

This happened around the world not just in the USA. Others felt the full impact before we did here in the USA. We didn’t help and for that we should all be ashamed. Perhaps it will help all of us to understand that this is one world and though we have differences we are all connected.

I detested this phrase when I first heard it, but I believe as a result of this pandemic that it will be fitting as we go into 2021: Welcome to the new normal.

And so it goes.

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His consulting practice, founded in 1990, is known for on and off-line Trust-based Consultant Marketing advice that builds businesses, brands and lives of joy.

Consulting: www.JerryFletcher.com
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