The end of the beginning

Finally, there is some good news about the coronavirus. New infections are dropping and fatalities have leveled off.

Even so, there are still hot spots and families in mourning. I don’t see this as the beginning of the end, but I hope it is the end of the beginning.

As the medical crisis lessens, we can expect the financial crisis to become more and more the matter of greatest concern. Already, there are folks complaining that closures went too far.

Maybe so. But they worked. As hoped, the rate of increase was decreased and deaths were less than expected. I am not a big fan of politicians, but I believe they did it right this time. Both Democrats and Republicans followed the advice of the medical community and did what was best for all Americans. I don’t think they acted lightly. Closing down the economy was a complex, difficult decision.

Of course, with the threat dropping we can expect all the special interests to speak up. I find it interesting that Democrats are now whining about what Republicans did and Republicans are unhappy with what Democrats did.

Why can’t we admit that both Democrats and Republicans acted to protect America and now we must act carefully to revitalize our economy without reactivating the epidemic.

It seems obvious that each state is different. Certainly we can agree there is still much greater risk in New York where 20,000 people have died and thousands are still sick and Montana, with only 433 cases and less than 10 dead. To me, that means that restrictions can be lifted in Montana faster than in New York. It does not mean we should not seek advice from our medical community. And follow it. Lifting all restrictions at once could be disastrous and put right back where we were in March. Then we could really jump on the politicians.

Maintaining social distancing, I spent one day on the North Fork this week enjoying a fine sunny day and handing out cinnamon rolls from the Polebridge Mercantile. They are open and if you drive up and honk your horn they come out and take your order. To top it off, Katarina is as pleasant to look at as the carhops at A&W were years ago.

The road is excellent for this time of year and the only icy stretch was just south of Secrest’s driveway. There are frost boils in the usual spots so it is wiser to drive like an old guy than a teenager. Saw eight mule deer at Caldwell’s drive and a total of 15 whitetail deer in small groups all over. No elk or other large animals and only met 11 cars from Columbia Falls to Trail Creek and 30 coming down from Trail Creek. Most folks are tired of the virus but no one has it. So far.

Larry Wilson’s North fork Views appears weekly in the Hungry Horse News.