The other day, one of my millennial sons exclaimed to me that this coronavirus outbreak is the most harrowing experience of his lifetime to date. He asked if that were true for me as well?
It didn’t take me long to say, “No.” I told him that for me, the Vietnam War caused more anxiety, domestic angst, and personal distress — at least up to now. Not having been alive during World War II and the Holocaust, nor during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918, I could not consider those periods as positive answers to his specific question.
I must confess, however, that just hearing stories from my parents and their friends and from reading books about these and other disasters that human beings have endured, I’m sure that those who had lived through their respective horrors suffered a great deal as well.
Day after day I read in the newspapers and hear on TV about this ongoing and growing crisis that threatens our country and the world. I am told repeatedly that I belong to the most vulnerable group on several counts — age, preexisting condition, recent travel history, geographical area, etc. — and that I should be careful, prudent and vigilant, whatever that means.
If I took all the advice that is being slung at me from various “experts” around the globe, I would have to look for an old 1950s-era nuclear bomb shelter and hunker down in there for a year, maybe two. I actually heard that some of these are being refurbished now and being sold for millions of dollars — location, location, location.
The old saying goes that, “Every cloud has a silver lining.” I have lately found myself being able to find time to catch up on chores and projects around the house as well as being able to read a few books that have been piling up next to my reading chair. I have also been able to find more time to just be able to sit back, think and clear my mind in order to let random thoughts come flying by.
Some of man’s greatest insights have come while the scientists or inventors were at rest. Isaac Newton reportedly came up with his law of gravity while relaxing under an apple tree and an apple fell on his head. Archimedes discovered the phenomenon of displacement while he was relaxing in the bathtub and noticed water spilling over the edge as he submerged — eureka!
Sure enough, two very interesting recollections recently flew into my consciousness which I wanted to share. Since I am unable to do that with friends face to face, I thought the Gazette might serve as a good platform to do so without putting myself and others at risk.
To introduce these topics, I wish to state at the outset that I am not a science fiction enthusiast, yet interestingly enough these two ideas belong to that genre. I am currently reading (and desperately trying to understand) the last of Stephen Hawking’s books, “Brief Answers to the Big Questions.” I am able to process about half of what I read.
Halfway through his book, where he is talking about the possibility of time travel, he makes a statement that many of us have heard before and have noticed some truth in it: “But today’s science fiction is often tomorrow’s science fact.”
The first memory I want to share is the classic sci-fi thriller, “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” I’m referring to the original 1956 version with Kevin McCarthy, not the second rate 1978 remake. For those who have never seen it or forgotten it (though it’s hard for me to conceive of anyone who saw this film forgetting it) invaders from outer space come to Earth and capture earthlings, one by one.
They envelop them in pods. When the gestation period is over, the “person” emerges from the pod sans emotion. Kevin McCarthy and his girlfriend try to warn everyone of the impending danger, but alas, when the woman is “podded,” it’s too late.
The slow reaction by our country and the world to mobilize against this coronavirus “pod” invading our bodies resulting in a dearth of testing kits and a trivializing of the threat is just too similar to the story of the film to be ignored.
Please notice how I stated the above. I did not politicize the problem, though I’m sure some of you reading this were tempted to do so. Our wonderful politicians are trying to turn this pandemic into another political football, and it is unconscionable.
This leads to my second memory trace, which is a bit fuzzier, but please give me some slack here as I’m 75. Many sci-fi authors have used the theme of alien invaders attacking Earth and describing how we might respond to the threat. I seem to recall Kurt Vonnegut using this theme on several occasions. I may be melding some of his work with others here. The storyline goes that Earth is in the process of destroying itself. This country hates that country, this religion hates that religion, this race hates that race and “so it goes.”
To save Earth from destruction, the protagonist begins to slowly kidnap earthlings and transport them to another planet — Tralfamadore. There he will form an invasion force to attack Earth. Surely when Earth notices the invasion, the inhabitants will put aside their petty differences, band together and fight off the invaders. Unfortunately, Earth is deteriorating too quickly, and the invasion has to begin before a large enough force can be launched to pose a realistic threat.
Alas, the largest concentration of invaders (30) landed in Boca Raton and the entire U.S. Marine Corps was waiting for them. The Battle of Boca Raton ensued. The only “victory” the invaders could claim was when one of them took a over a bakery in Pittsburgh. As I said, my memory may have distorted some of the particulars, but the essence of the message is there.
The politicizing of this current threat to our planet, as well as the politicizing of other threats such as climate change, prejudice, energy sources and more has to stop. If our leaders and politicians are unable to put aside their differences when it comes to finding solutions to threats to civilization, then we should do as the famous poster told us to do while we were in grade school during the Cold War and the nuclear threat: Kneel down, crouch under your desk, cover your head with your arms, place your head between your knees, then kiss your a– goodbye.
Jonathan Kahane lives in Westhampton.