Land of the Free (to infect yourself and others)

REUTERS/ALYSON MCCLARAN
Health care workers stand in the street in
counter-protest to hundreds of people
who gathered at the state Capitol to
demand the stay-at-home order 
be lifted in Denver.
Click to enlarge.

Let’s honor healthcare workers in Colorado with the courage of their convictions.
Protesters calling for an end to Stay-at-Home orders faced obdurate health careworkers who didn’t give an inch. Hooray!

Not to get bogged down in ideology but … in America, buzzwords “free” and “freedom” too often are used to batter thoughtfulness and to deny intellectual complexity and human capacity.
What would this woman hanging out the window of her RAM 1500 SUV (retail price -US$80K to US$90K / ZAR1,440K to ZAR1,620K) say about other, equally valid ways of expressing “free” and “freedom”? (The healthcare workers right not to be abused, for example?)
What about rapper Joey Bada$$’s musical version of Land of the Free? Joey's expression of creativity coupled with his point of view would, I’d bet, horrify that irate RAM passenger, protester, and Freedom-lover to the extent that she’d denigrate and diminish Bada$$’s right to freedom of expression.
Noam Chomsky’s view might addle her brain (it does mine…).
Living as a humane human is complex. Is negotiating humane humanity way too complex for too many of us humans?

***

Cancelled!

The second leg of next month's return flight from London to San Francisco was cancelled. No news about the first leg. If it’s not cancelled, I could choose to sit at Heathrow until another flight to California is scheduled. How long could that be?

Serendipitously, an email from the US Embassy in Pretoria arrived with news: “The repatriation flights organized by the U.S. government have departed and no further U.S. government-coordinated flights are planned.” But:

The High Commission of Canada in South Africa has notified the embassy of a planned repatriation flight that will depart Johannesburg on Friday, April 24 for London Heathrow Airport (via a stop in Cape Town to pick up additional passengers), and will allow U.S. citizens to join the flight, if space permits.

The email continues:
• This flight ends in London, U.K. and it will be up to you to book any onward flight. Neither the U.S. government nor the Canadian High Commission can assist with booking onward flights from London.
• You must be eligible to enter the United Kingdom to participate in this flight. The U.S. Mission to South Africa is unable to advise the United Kingdom’s entry eligibility criteria.
• The cost of the flight must be paid directly to the Canadian High Commission in order to reserve your seat. The estimated cost for the flight is $1,600 CAD (US$1,138/  ZAR20,484) for economy and $3,050 CAD (US$ 2,170/ZAR 40,771) for business class; however, this is subject to change.
• Seat allotment and boarding is at the discretion of the Canadian High Commission, not the U.S. Mission to South Africa.
• You must be eligible to enter the United Kingdom to participate in this flight. The U.S. Mission to South Africa is unable to advise the United Kingdom’s entry eligibility criteria. Please visit the country information page on travel.state.gov for guidance.

I’m tempted. But sit at Heathrow for the foreseeable future? Cheapest fish and chips cost £25 pounds there…and its ordered online from your table. On the trip to South Africa, crowds of people vying for fish and chips meant I couldn't get a table. I imagine that won't be a problem this time given how few passengers are transiting. Come to think of it, it's likely the restuarant would be shut, too.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

A WhatsApp voice message arrived today about Microsoft Patent 060606/Body interfaced digital currency. I noticed the semi-disguised 666 mark-of-the-beast in the patent number, listened to the first 30 seconds to ascertain I had the gist of where the 3-minute long harangue of whackadoodle-itude was headed, then deleted it.

Click to enlarge.

Worse news than that Bill Gates is trying to infiltrate my body with evil?
The message came from someone I consider a good friend and seemingly mentally balanced.
Is this a sign of pandemic stir-craziness? Or are hidden gems of my friend's personality shining through?



Read Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4