Source: New York Times
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Yesterday Wisconsin experienced its largest single-day tally of COVID cases: 502. Saturday was also the fourth day in a row of a significant increase in cases. It’s too early, of course, to blame the 4 GOP lapdogs on the Wisconsin Supreme Court for this uptick, although they are certainly responsible for the recent outbreak of reckless behavior. And as a number of out-of-state Facebook posts has confirmed, Wisconsinites crowding into bars has become a national news story.
Ironically, the current face of this story is not from Wisconsin. Katie Koutsky, an Illinois resident, works as a nurse for a health care system. She had the misfortune of being interviewed on WTMJ, a Milwaukee television station, while helping her sister reopen the
bar she owns in suburban West Allis. The video shows her among a large group of people, none of them social distancing, none of them wearing masks. The reporter asks her if she was concerned about putting herself at risk of getting the virus.
“Um...no, I don’t think the risk is any higher than me going to a grocery store,” she replied indifferently.
As expected, the video went viral, placing her uncomfortably in spotlight for her selfish and behavior and forcing her to issue a mea culpa. Or what she thought passes on contrite behavior.
“I’d like to express my regret for not wearing a mask or social distancing while there.”
This inapt statement is included in a response issued by her employer, according to an Associated Press article in the Wisconsin State Journal. What about Katie’s serious lapse in judgement for being there in the first place?
Out of an abundance of caution – one of the most overworked phrases of the COVID era – her employer reports that Katie is self-quarantining for 14 days and will need to undergo screening before she returns to work . I’m curious to learn if she’ll still have a job then.
In another quote from the TV interview, Katie creates an even more unsympathetic picture of herself.
“I have a toddler at home and I’m a fulltime nurse. It’s been very stressful and hard not to go out and be with my family and friends at the bars.”
Maybe she should focus on her two most important responsibilities: being a mother and a health care worker.
Were Americans this whiny and self-absorbed during the months immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor? I’m no expert on that period of history, but I suspect most Americans accepted the privations and separations — rationing, lack of travel, family members leaving home to fight a war — for the greater good.
What’s different now is a lack of leadership, a president whose only concern is himself, his re-election. His irrational behavior and nutty observations make it seem as though he’s determined to wish away the virus.
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