The Exodus
Posted by delta on April 26th, 2020
I drive around the island everyday from j0b to job and see no fear from those of us working or from my customers (most of them greet me with no mask or gloves or anything – I tend to wear them simply for their comfort level). The consensus amongst all these folks (after many conversations with customers and other folks I talk with throughout the day) is that COVID19 went through Maui in January (that is when we all remember being sick)…
The picture changes when I look online. News is full of fear and my “Facebook Friends” are completely fear-bound (well, at least the ones posting). Fear is always loudest – of course, the only fear based voices I’ve heard are those who have someone high risk in the house (I totally get it – my parents are high risk and living with us, so I get it), independently wealthy folks (who do not have to work) or those without kids (they don’t have other mouths to feed)…
Why are all the numbers being put out the numbers of folks who have been tested? Of that, who has tested positive? Of that, who has died? That makes no sense to anyone with a brain – this is the worst case of fear-based marketing I have ever seen in my life…
Do you realize that these are much lower numbers than a regular flu season? Do you realize that those dying are the same who would die from the regular flu? What is different this time? Ask yourself that next time you drive by, or go to, Maui Memorial and it’s empty parking lot…
The real data is, what is the population of the U.S.? Of that, how many have died? Now, of the U.S. population, how many are out of work due to the lockdown? When I ask how many are out of work, I am not talking about those who put in for government assistance – I mean the actual number of folks out of work.
So, of the U.S. population, how many jobs were lost (which are not coming back in the near future)? Of the U.S. population, what percentage has died from COVID19? Those are the two numbers to dwell on… Here’s another number: of those out of work, how many have children to feed?
But there’s no antibody testing – none – what sense does that make? Coronavirus’ mutate – that’s why you can get a flu shot every year but still get the flu (you got the shot for the strain they were guesstimating would occur that year). Why not put the money for that into antibody testing? If this thing mutates then an immunity shot is worthless anyway…
The island wants to get back to work. Problem is, but for those of us working right now, there are no jobs for them to return to. The island has been devastated economically and there’s really no getting around the fact that 70%-90% of the business which were open on March 1st are “OUT OF BUSINESS” already. There is no job to go back to here on Maui…
The only reason they’re letting the home builders, construction crews, cleaners and gardeners go to work everyday is because they are assuming we are low risk (most of us are younger and healthier – because we work outdoors) and they need SOMEONE to have money to keep Walmart, Costco, Target, Home Depot, Lowes, Safeway and Foodland here on the island…
The governor just extended the lockdown for another month – this actually makes more sense than you can imagine. The economy is already gone so the issue is no longer the virus , the issue is about how to save face in this election cycle because no one has a job to get back to – they have to figure out what to say or do about that. Even if we open up today there will be no tourist, there will be no corporate conferences, there will be no concerts, there will be very few restaurants to service those who service these people and there will be even fewer businesses open to service the rest. As this continues, as more businesses close, there will be more people out of work – there will be less people going shopping, so more stores will close and more people will be out of work. This is a terrible downward spiral we have gotten ourselves into…
Our economy is predicated on people spending money – if half the population is out of work and the other half is setting money aside for when the moment comes that they have no work, where does that leave us?
Do people honestly think a hotel with 1,000 employees is going to just open up and bring everyone back to work with no customers booked? How many such hotels do we have here in Hawaii? Do people really think the restaurants and shops who service these individuals are going to open if the hotels don’t open? Do people really think the folks who supply those restaurants and shops are going to stay open if the restaurants which support the hotels are not open? That entire supply chain is closed down (or has been disrupted to a trickle) right now… Think about that! Why would they open? To throw money out the window?!?
Biking down the mountain, sunset cruises, scuba tours, snorkeling tours, smaller live music venues (bars/restaurants), helicopter tours, adventure tours (rappelling and such) – they are part of that chain as well. Why would they open if there’s no customers?
The list goes on…
Here’s where we sit right now. Everyone up for re-election is going to keep a lid on what is actually going on behind the scenes. The press will do what they do (mostly blame the conservatives and praise the liberals), but even the politicians won’t blame each other because they all share in the blame and they can’t afford for the truth to get out until they have their little ounce of power. So nothing will be said or done until after the election cycle. No numbers will come out, no antibody testing, no apologies, no reality whatsoever…
Here in Hawaii, specifically on Maui, if the “powers that be” had any balls and/or brains they would be straight up and tell people this. After telling us the “truth of the matter” they would open up the airports on the 5th, 15th and 25th for those who wanted to leave the islands – and they would make that flight a free one…
Even then, those of us left after the EXODUS are going to face some tough times… It’s going to get much worse before it gets better… but, in a few years there will be a lot of empty houses/properties and those of us still here will probably be able to get the property of our dreams for 50% of what it’s worth today – looking on the bright side… The flip side of that is that we’ll be making 50% of what we are making today, but I digress…
Let me be clear, we are on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. We can not simply drive to a new job. If there are no jobs here, there simply are no jobs here… What I am saying above does not apply to the U.S. as a whole, just our little island out here in the deep blue sea…
I’d also like to be clear about one other thing – we should force no one to go back to work if they are uncomfortable with it, are high risk or live with someone who is high risk. Some folks are really afraid – true fear – allow them to stay home…