Thoughts for Living in a Bizarre Year for the History Books…
It’s really difficult to try to satirize any current situation with how bizarrely crazy it already is.
At times, it feels like the world is in the middle of the classic Juvenalian satire, South Park.
The world is still dangerously riddled with a newly-mutated virus to which no one has any immunity, and after many months since its discovery, there may be a little hope in the recently tested nucleoside analogue Remdesivir, used as a broad-spectrum antiviral… We’re nowhere near out of the woods with this…
Too many politicians behave like caricatures of flaming garbage…. unironically.
This pandemic has also highlighted economic disparities, and especially with respect to race. Black Lives Matter. America is not truly a great place until there is justice for all under the law.
Despite feeling somewhat trapped in a shit-storm for months, my mood has actually been better in the last few days than in quite some time, possibly since last November? Starting back to work full time amidst a world on fire has somehow helped my head clear and my thinking is more sharp in focus: what do I want out of life, what is actually important to me in life, what are the best ways to help others?
I, like so many others, need more options and economic opportunity. When even access to education, including incurring debt, is not nearly enough to have security or stability in over 10 years, we have to question what is wrong with the economy, and perhaps most importantly, cui bono? or, to who’s benefit is the economy working? I’m sure many of my fellow scientists AND artists see things the same way…
The best ways for me to help others was through research, but since I no longer have access to such a position, I have to focus harder on spreading awareness to change public policy in meaningful, equalizing, and reparative ways. Spreading awareness on gerrymandering, voter suppression via different means, redlining and reinforcing disparity including to the extent of not removing asbestos and lead from public housing, lack of funding towards schools, the school-to-prison pipeline, profiling, unnecessary use of excessive and deadly force, and near-complete lack of police accountability, and SO MUCH MORE.
My only real purpose in life is to better the lives of those around me; to hopefully leave the world a little better than when I came in… however I can.