1
6A Viewpoints Tampa Bay Newspapers, April 9, 2020 S o here we are, millions of us from around the world, sitting in our living rooms or other forms of habitation, waiting for COVID-19 to run its course. If we’re lucky, we’ll be able to pass the time by using TV, the web, books, Kindle or old-fashioned conversation. But what shall we talk about? Your guess is as good as anyone’s. My suggestion: This is a scary time for most of us, so let’s tell each other the time in our life when we were the most fright- ened. Having done that, let’s rank that experience against the current onset of our buddy Corona. If your reaction to my idea is “How depress- ing!” you’re pretty much on target. However, we can quickly summon a vastly more cheerful flip side. It’s this: The reminder that whatever we were scared of back then, we lived through it. We survived and here we are, right? As Winston Churchill once said, “Nothing is more uplifting than to feel the bullets whizzing past you and to know that they missed you.” May I be the first volunteer in this new parlor game? I’m highly qualified. I’ve been scared spit- less many times in my life. My earliest and worst moment came in the late 1930s, as Nazi storm troopers rolled almost unopposed into Holland, Belgium, France and other nations. One eve- ning, as my parents entertained some guests, I overheard my father say, “I’m afraid those Ger- mans will take over all of Europe and then come over and get US!” That’s all it took to turn my guts into jelly. At age 8 or 9, I wasn’t quite ready for paralyzing foreign policy lessons. I was a wreck for weeks. Years later, the 1962 Cuban missile crisis didn’t trigger half the fears as that one remark by my father. Although it probably should have. Revealing and sharing our past times of terror can help blunt the ones that now may seem to await us. Likewise, so can a word game I call “Would I rather...” It goes this way: As the latest corona statistics are unveiled and your heart sinks, don’t panic. Instead, ask yourself “Would I rather cope with a viral pan- demic (that will, early or late, be defeated) or watch a rampaging forest fire burn down a home I’ve lived in for 30 years?” This is called compar- ison thinking, or putting yourself in the other guy’s shoes. It can be a source of comfort and courage in frightening times. If you happen to play the parlor game I’m suggesting, the most important part won’t be to remember the frightening circumstances you hear described. The pearl to take home will be the answers to the question, “How did you sur- vive? What did you do?” Let’s all take good notes, shall we? Today, as my cat Ellie and I sit at home in shared isolation, I find myself thinking of Roost- er Cogburn. You may remember him as the western marshal portrayed by John Wayne in the 1969 movie “True Grit.” In the showdown scene at the film’s end, Rooster sat on his horse on one side of an open field. He was (if need be) ready to die at the hands of a quartet of armed desperadoes across the meadow, who awaited Rooster’s next move. He could have fled. But he was not a runner. He was an angry, defiant cop. As the moment of truth arrived, Rooster checked his side-arms and the rifle he held in his free hand, and shout- ed at the leader of the waiting death squad, “Fill your hand, you s.o.b.!” And then he charged. And somehow he survived. Wouldn’t it be a desirable and satisfying con- trast, today, if COVID-19 was a visible band of outlaws that we could march against with our guns drawn, even at the risk of our own lives? But that would be a Hollywood production, wouldn’t it? And what lies ahead for us in the months to come will have little glamour or grease paint to offer. Instead, our chief weapons may have to be patience, sustained fortitude, compassion and other less dramatic elements of humanity. But our ultimate victory should be as resounding and glorious as any that Rooster Cogburn could have imagined. Bob Driver’s email address is tralee71@ comcast.net. I dle minds are the devil’s laboratory At least that’s the saying — or something like that. I’ve learned that one of the side effects of being semi-retired is that I may have too much time on my hands. I’m opening junk mail. Memorizing AARP tips. Learning how to dust. Watching more fringe sports on TV and reading everything in the Tampa Bay Times, including the Downs Stakes Schedule and the weather forecasts for Kabul. Having retreated from the ranks of the working stiffs for more than two months, here are some of my other observations and thoughts about retirement: • I seem to be more sensitive to noise. I eagerly looked forward to the first Monday morning that I wouldn’t have to set my alarm clock and be able to sleep peacefully. But I was awakened by the loud thud of a waste bin being slammed on the concrete at the end of my condo complex’s parking lot. Hell of a wake-up call to get for the next 30 years. • Noise ordinances should be enforced. Songbirds violate it all day. • Ambulances rushing past my unit are frequent occurrences when I’m trying to sleep. Guess it could be worse. They could be coming for me. • I seem to be spending more time lately — make that too much time — on the internet. I’m sure that’s not good for one’s health. Can a person get the coronavirus from being on Facebook too long? Just thinking out loud — and I’m not book-faced. • Because I can’t cook, I’m flirting with the idea of taking a culinary class. But to be honest, I’ve been flirting with the idea for 30 years. Guess I just have more time now to flirt with the idea. • I’m walking more often. Especially to bathroom at night. At least it’s the one place where I don’t hear songbirds. • I plan to take up pickleball, since I live in walking distance of a recreation center that offers the sports several times a week. I think I’m still in pretty good shape. Or at least I hope I am. Ambulance rides aren’t my idea of enjoyable public transportation. • I’m going to get rid of things, including scratched albums I rarely listen to, such as “Music to Scare the Hell out of Your Neighbors,” which my dad bought in the 1960s, if memory serves me right. I kept it for sentimental purposes. Time to part with it. It’s in such bad shape, I’d rather hear my alarm clock. • I also plan to get rid of a new, inexpensive barbecue grill that I’m too lazy to assemble. Instead, I just replaced the grate on my old grill for about $11. I’m dangerous with tools in my hand and get easily annoyed. Hearing me try to put together a grill would surely scare the hell of my neighbors. • Retirement allows me more time to spend with my mother, who lives in Lakeland. She’s always happy to see me, and I take her places, such as a lake in the center of town where hundreds of ducks and other waterfowl dwell and get free handouts. It’s one of the few places I can go without hearing about the coronavirus, toilet paper or hand sanitizers. • Speaking of coronavirus, can we call it something else? The beer jokes are wearing thin and leaving a bad taste in my mouth. And COVID-19 sounds like a poisonous gas. • All in all, retirement, or semi-retirement, isn’t overrated. Still get to do some freelance writing and photography and occasionally visit the office in hopes of getting a free doughnut. It’s one of the few places I go where nobody is wearing a mask. Today’s a beautiful day in April. Just wish the inconsiderate mockingbird living in the bushes under my bedroom window would quit chirping before sunrise. Damn bird has no conception of social distancing. Tom Germond is a freelance writer for Tampa Bay Newspapers. Email tgermond@tampabay. rr.com. Driver’s Seat Bob Driver 9911 Seminole Blvd., Seminole, FL 33772 727-397-5563 • Fax: 727-397-5900 • www.TBNweekly.com Publisher/President: Dan Autrey [email protected] Associate Publisher: Jay Rey [email protected] Accounting Manager: Andrea Marcarelli [email protected] Classified Advertising Manager: Wendy Edwards [email protected] Executive Editor: Chris George [email protected] Production Manager: David Brown [email protected] Online editor: Suzette Porter [email protected] Beach Beacon: Chris George [email protected] Belleair/Beach Bee: Chris George [email protected] Clearwater Beacon: Logan Mosby [email protected] Dunedin Beacon: Chris George [email protected] Largo Leader: Chris George [email protected] Palm Harbor Beacon: Chris George [email protected] Seminole Beacon: Tiffany Razzano [email protected] Entertainment Editor: Lee Zumpe [email protected] General Editorial [email protected] Circulation Phone: 727-397-5563 A game & memories of Rooster Cogburn Retirement isn’t overrated — so he says We are proud to offer a forum to our readers. Please type letters to the editor (or print legibly) and include your name, town of residence, phone number and signature and mail to Tampa Bay Newspapers, 9911 Seminole Blvd., Seminole, FL 33772. Please do not use all capital letters. Emails should include town of residence and telephone and be sent to [email protected]. We will not print the letter writer’s phone number. Here are some more guidelines for letters: • Letters are printed on a first-come, first-served basis. They may be edited to correct grammar, spelling and factual errors. They also may be edited for clarity. • Please keep letters to editor to 450 words. Longer letters may be cut due to space limitations. • Letters should address issues or current events. Please refrain from making unsubstantiated allegations. The newspaper will not print letters that contain slanderous or racial statements. • Please do not use profanity. • We do not publish poetry or songs in letters to the editor. • Each writer may submit one letter per month. • We can’t return letters to the editor. • We won’t print anonymous letters. YOUR VOICE Bob Matthews made mark on region Longtime Seminole City Council member Bob Matthews, who passed away in March, will certainly be missed by the residents of the city. But he’ll also be missed by the entire region, given his significant contribu- tions as a longtime board member of the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. Bob provided steady, thoughtful leadership on the council’s board for decades as the organiza- tion’s longest-serving member, and most recently as vice chair. He did his homework, asked insight- ful questions, and enthusiastically supported tak- ing a regional approach to the area’s challenges. The council provides research and data to local governments and the public on a variety of issues such as transportation, the economy, resiliency, and the environment. Bob was a role model in having the patience and tenacity to address tough, complicated challenges. And just as he was always proud to share the progress of the city of Seminole, Bob was eager to hear about best practices and lessons learned from around Tampa Bay and Florida. Over the past several years, Bob was a leader in the creation of the Tampa Bay Regional Resiliency Coalition, which is working to help the area become more resilient to severe weather and flooding. He encour- aged the city of Seminole to join, and was a steadfast advocate as the coalition began its work. In nearly 30 years of public service, Bob was involved in a wide range of initiatives for the council. He served on the Florida Regional Council’s Association Policy Board, and served as chair of the TBRPC nominating committee for more than 10 years, playing a major role in determining the council’s leadership. Perhaps most of all, Bob was known to all of us at the council as a caring, compassionate person who embodied the best in a public ser- vant. We will greatly miss him on the council board, and our condolenc- es go out to his family. Patrick Roff Bradenton Chair, Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council Virus not Trump’s fault, but he deserves blame Re: Crisis not Trump’s fault (March 26) This is a red herring. We are rightfully concerned about Mr. Trump’s response to this pandemic and I believe it’s fair to characterize it as a series of failures punctuated by the occasional federal agency success. In his letter, Mr. Farling wrote “There’s no way our government could have been prepared for such a pandemic.” The whole point of having Centers for Disease Control, Health and Human Services, National Security Council and Federal Emergency Management Agency is exactly for them to be prepared for and respond to precisely these kinds of disease outbreaks. America’s first diagnosed case of COVID-19 happened on the same day as South Korea’s. Two months later, South Korea has the virus under control while new infections in America are skyrocketing. Mr. Trump tried to cut funding to the CDC, NSC, HHS and/or DHS in his FY2017-FY2020 budgets. Trump eliminated the entire U.S. Pan- demic Response Team and the CDC point person stationed in Beijing who monitored infectious disease outbreaks in China in 2018. The World Health Organization immediately began distributing the million or so SARS test kits to 120 different countries. The Trump ad- ministration did not request the WHO test kits. End of February, Trump told a rally of his supporters in South Car- olina that the Democrats were politicizing the virus by sounding the alarm and demanding federal action. “And this is their new hoax.” Then he accused the media reporting on the virus of bias and hysteria. March 21: Trump tweets “HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE & AZITHRO- MYCIN, taken together, have a real chance to be one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine.” March 25: Arizona man dies after ingesting Dr. Trump’s miracle cure. We just now have ready access to testing, emergency room treatment is prohibitively expensive for those still uninsured, the death toll is ris- ing faster every day. I don’t want to turn a blind eye to Mr. Trump’s positive actions, but I’m finding it difficult to turn away from his train wreck of missteps and deliberate deceptions. It’s true that this SARS-CoV2 virus pan- demic is not Mr. Trump’s fault, but nor is it ours. The difference is, he bears the ethical responsibility and constitutional duty to deploy the resources of the federal agencies to protect the population. And we have the right if not obligation to critique our ultimate public servant’s management and handling of this crisis to avoid a future repeat of his failures. Kevin Quillen Seminole Socialism is not the answer Re: Answering criticisms of Bernie Sanders (March 26) There is no single definition that encapsulates the many forms, and types, of socialism. However, names such as Stalin, Marx, Lenin, and, as the author of this March 26 Beacon letter also alludes to, Fidel Castro were all “so- cialist!” A socialist theory “is” the overthrow of capitalism, and ultimately the realization of communism. Shame on Vermont voters for electing him! This author puzzled me by stating that our government “should” pay for our American college educations. The government does. It payed completely for mine, and millions of other college degrees, and other ed- ucations. That’s right, after serving in the American military, our gov- ernment completely paid for it! It’s called the “GI Bill.” It means earning it, not getting it without investing yourself in it! The author further states politicians have one thing in common, “... their preference of profit over people.” The author, once again, missed his own point. Bernie Sanders “is” himself such the very politician. He owns three homes. As such, I am sure he is also quite wealthy through the very capitalism he apparently dismisses as a capitalistic “faux pas.” As a 10-year-old child in civics class, I once stated that, “capitalism is its own worst enemy.” When my teacher asked why I would say such a thing, my reply: “because it gives people the freedom to speak openly against the very form of government that allows them to do so.” I am quite sure most Americans feel as I. Phil Collins Treasure Island Letters to the Editor Tom Germond Matthews
