I’m no expert in science, not even close, so I can’t attest to whatever physical effects coronavirus has on people. But just at a quick glance, I can tell you that the issue is far overblown. Yes, it will affect travel for sure, and possibly impact both the US economy and the world economy. It is more deadly than the flu, and should be taken seriously to an extent. But this does not call for hoarding supplies, xenophobia, or mass hysteria. A quick look at statistics shows that as of yesterday March 5^th  at approximately 11:30am, there were 96,954 cases worldwide, 53,983 of whom had recovered and were released. There is currently no vaccine for this virus, but that doesn’t mean there is cause for distress, we’re looking at a 55.6% recovery rate after all. As of April 2019, there are now approximately 7.7 billion humans inhabiting the earth. That is an insanely huge number. To make it clear how large that number is, let’s write it out: 7,700,000,000. 7.7 billion. We have 96,000 cases worldwide. Let’s just do some quick math here, and compare the numbers. We’re looking at between 0.0000125% and 0.0000126% of the Earth’s population. I fully expect the number of cases to grow by the thousands and the tens of thousands in the next few weeks. But there is little reason for extreme concern. I don’t know about you, but I’ll start worrying once that incredibly small fraction of a percentage becomes an actual number. Remember what they told you in elementary school during cold & flu season? Wash your hands, cover your mouth when you sneeze and cough, use hand sanitizer, take your vitamins, stay clean. The same things apply.

I don’t mean to always be negative and judgmental, but sometimes I can’t help it. This is just the cynic and the sceptic in me. I’m doing better with it, I swear I am. That being said, I think you know where I’m going with this. Let’s talk about my mom. She is freaking out about the coronavirus. She bought a special mask for me, she keeps texting me with all sorts of safety tips, and she’s loaded up on cleaning supplies and canned foods. I realize she cares for and loves people in her own way, but I also understand the full breadth of her worrying. It goes high & low, big & small. She’s been this way as long as I can remember, prone to excessive worry. I remember back in my “scene” days she was deeply concerned with some band t-shirts that I bought, because she was worried about the images depicted on them. One of the shirts had an octopus on it, I don’t remember what exactly the other ones had, but I suspect they were equally as harmless. Her biggest qualm was with the brash art style used. When all was said and done, I wasn’t struck down or possessed by demons. I don’t want to know what she thinks about my tattoos, but that’s a different story. I understand that the issue with the virus is something entirely different, but the way that she is handling news of this outbreak seems very Y2Kish to me. Preparing for the apocalypse. Overreacting and then some. She’s not the only one, far from. On Facebook, I’ve seen people say things such as, “be prepared to stay home or work from home for an extended period.” On Instagram I’ve seen posts comparing Coronavirus to The Black Death. Slow your roll. Chill out. It will not be the end of the world. Humankind is resilient. In recent days, swine flu has come and gone, avian flu has come and gone, SARS has come and gone. COVID-19 Coronavirus will come and go. Stay wary, stay safe, stay healthy.

Let me let you in on a little secret. Maybe this will change your life. Maybe this will open your eyes. Maybe this will cleanse you of the brainwash that is mainstream media. All major news networks tell you what the man in charge wants you to hear. You think Fox and CBS are different? They’re not. Not really. All major news outlets are owned by six media conglomerates. Six companies tell you what’s on their agenda. Six companies control what you learn about current events. News is biased. Once you understand this, I hope you will take everything with a grain of salt. Don’t believe everything you see or hear.

I have not watched the nightly news in years. I refuse to. Nothing good comes from it. This was my biggest takeaway from multiple classes that I took in college. Sometimes I forget that I majored in sociology. It seems like so long ago. I have two degrees. How much am I doing with my business degree? Couldn’t really tell you. But I can tell you I’m doing almost nothing with sociology. But I have to say, the lessons I learned in these various sociology classes made a more significant impact on me than business ever did. These classes molded me, and shaped me into the person I am today. They don’t like to tell you this, but that’s the primary purpose of college, the molding & the shaping. College is one of the corporate lies that deprive you of your money. Having a degree doesn’t necessarily mean you will earn more money. Job listings will require you to have a college degree and experience, but pay you minimum wage. Higher education in the United States costs a fortune compared to many places in Europe. But middle-class parents near and far will push their kids towards college. Which is a reasonable and commendable endeavor. But not everyone is cut out for college. Earning a degree for the sake of earning a degree doesn’t mean much anymore. Trade school is a reasonable option. Joining the military is a respectable cause. College isn’t the be all and end all that it’s made out to be. Nevertheless, I don’t regret my time there. I learned a lot about myself, and I matured in leaps and bounds. I took what I learned and I applied it to my life. That being said, I made a conscious effort to take these lessons, and internalize them. So I guess I did in fact make use of my sociology degree.

I remember vividly the moment when I learned that the news is controlled by only six companies. This was in a class called Social Deviance. It was so insane, that I immediately had to look it up. And sure enough, my professor wasn’t lying. At that moment I took a step back, and thought about it. I really took a deep and thorough look. The news programs on all the major networks really are all the same. They’re exaggeratory pieces that center on negativity, and violence. The networks are the predator, and the American public is the prey. They feed on your fear. Fear pays the big bucks. Fear makes corporate America richer. Fear runs the world.

Fear mongering is the world’s most profitable industry. When people are scared, people are rash. When they’re rash, they make startling decisions. When people overreact you see runs on products, and it drives demand. When the dust clears, corporations profit and the economy flourishes. They want you to be scared, because it brings in the moolah. Have you noticed that they never talk about anything positive on the news? Your news program consists of segments about murders, burglaries, epidemics, government smear campaigns, war. How long is the bit about the good Samaritan or the company that’s making a difference? That’s just it. It really is just a bit. Time it next time it comes on. I guarantee it won’t be longer than 30 seconds, and it will either be placed in between two crazy segments (say a robbery and a natural disaster?), or at the end of the program as an underwhelming feel-good valediction to send you off into your night. A scared individual is one who isn’t thinking straight, someone who is liable to make irrational decisions. The perfect target for exploitation.

Many urban areas in the US are safer than you think. Some natural disasters aren’t as destructive as they’re portrayed. Yes, there’s crime; yes people are fucked up; yes bad shit happens, but look at the statistics, look at the percentages. They are heavily skewed. The media only shows you the parts of the story that benefits them. Putting the numbers into perspective is not high on their list of priorities. Numbers without context don’t mean much. It’s better for the establishment, if folks are left ignorant and in the dark. If people know all the secrets, then they’re not going to fall for the scheme, or stay in line with the regime. Stay woke. Don’t trust everything you see, don’t trust everything you hear.

Stephen King knows this. He’s known this. He’s known this since 1982, if not earlier. He finds a way to sneak the things he cares about into his works. Last week, I was reading one of his Bachman books, The Running Man. There were many themes, many motifs running through the book. But the critique flowing in the backdrop of this dystopian drama was something he named Free-Vee. In the story it is a form of public access television that the American people are conditioned to tune into every night. There were multiple instances where he would say something along the lines of, “seeing it on Free-Vee means that it’s true.” It seems a bit absurd when you put it that way, but it’s not far off. We, as a society, generally understand that the majority of movies and TV shows are works of fiction. We see only what the directors and the actors want us to see. The same thing applies to news media. Please understand this. These segments and programs are not works of fiction, please don’t misconstrue my intention. But they do not necessarily show the entire truth. Everything and everyone has an agenda. The corporate agenda thrives on ignorance, because ignorance pays top dollar.

Look at instances of new war or new outbreak. Fear and ignorance reign supreme. It’s an endless spiral down to the heart of darkness. Fear and ignorance open the door for paranoia. Paranoia ushers in scapegoating. Scapegoating clears the path for xenophobia. Racism was, and is, and is to come. Sorry to break it to you. Racism is deeply rooted in the collective consciousness of society. Racism is centered upon fear and superiority. There is always going to be someone who is “less than,” when there is a group in charge. There will always be a new people group to hate. The hive mind runs deep, and strong. It tells you who and what to hate, where and when. The aftermath of 9-11 showed us so. The War on Terror may have been justified, but the distrust, disapproval, and dismissal of brown individuals was not; not to mention acts of violence or words of hatred. These behaviors and mindsets are not acceptable. But they are rinsed and repeated through time. They’re painted with a slightly different veneer, so we view them as completely new phenomena. But they’re not new. Racism, prejudice, and hatred are the same regardless of who’s at the bottom.

Unfortunately, this nation is severely mired in its racism. It started with the subjugation of the Native Americans, and continued on with Irish immigration. We’ve seen it with Jews & Arabs, Africans & Asians, Southern European & Eastern European. Those at the bottom change through the decades, the one at the top is the only constant. Sorry to say, but we can’t change society. We can only change ourselves, and hope to influence those around us. Purge the hive from your mind. Think on your own. Snap out of groupthink. Brush the scales from your eyes. Take off your tinfoil hat. Think before you act, think before you believe. Find the numbers, find the context, find the facts. Follow the story, and follow your nose. What you see at the forefront is usually not the entirety. Don’t stay comfortable in your ignorance. Don’t fall into the trap. That’s what they want you to do. The country wants chaos. The country thrives on chaos. Get outta the stampede, and take the bull by the horns. It’s easy to find the truth, if you just know where to look. It’s not what they’re blasting on the TV, I can tell you that. That’s just noise. Don’t believe me? Think I’m just making up numbers? Here are the facts: Worldometer Coronavirus Statistics.