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This past weekend, a Beverly Hills auction house put nearly 1100 lots from the estate of Doris Day under the hammer. Among the highlights were her four Golden Globe awards (one sold for $25,000), gold records, jewelry, costumes, furnishings and ephemera. Enthusiastic fans also bid on several Rock Hudson related lots including an autographed “Pillow Talk” Doris Day and Rock Hudson set of commemorative Barbie Dolls in their original package. The pair fetched $7,680.
The Hudson items provided an oddly coincidental moment of nostalgia. Doris Day’s good friend and Hollywood heartthrob was among the first celebrities to die of AIDS. His death gave the HIV pandemic a familiar and beloved face and helped change the public perception of the disease. In turn, a concerted effort to discover a treatment followed.
Today, of course, we’re observing parallels between the HIV and the COVID-19 pandemics. Most obvious is the government’s dithering at their outbreaks. Like the opening salvo of HIV/AIDS when jokes made the rounds about gays deserving to die of AIDS, I read social media posts by Republicans yucking it up over those earliest COVID-19 infections concentrated in Democratic “blue” states. Now, as then, reality has set in—the pandemic is universal and indiscriminate. But now, to deflect from the regime’s inadequate and incompetent response, comes the blame game and scapegoating.
Promoting Hatred
Of course, the Chinese were on the hook with the regime’s reiteration of “China Virus” references until asked to stop by health officials. The message had already been delivered, however, and is still inspiring a spike in anti-Asian hate crimes. At least one Milwaukee restaurant closed due to death threats. Jews have also been blamed. But, not surprisingly, LGBTQs have been targeted as the culpable culprit. God, it seems, delivered COVID-19 as punishment for “gays.” Fine. It would just another eye-roll moment, were it not for the fact that regime animus towards the community has resulted in a 43% spike in anti-LGBTQ hate groups.
Adding fuel to the fire of a panicked segment of our society that thrives on faith-based fact-avoidance only serves to distract from the implementation of an effective public policy strategy to confront the pandemic. In Arizona, for example, a Republican Christian conservative state representative voted against a Coronavirus relief bill because it included aid to gay people. One wonders what impact recent regime moves to deny LGBTQ protections from discrimination may trickle down to emergency aid and health care.
Meanwhile, as Governor Evers declared Wisconsin’s “safer at home” order, Wisconsin lawmaker David Craig (R-Big Bend), pushed back, insisting the ban restricted religious freedom. Then, with COVID-19 continuing to spread and kill throughout the state, Republicans called on Evers to allow in-person Easter and Passover services. That sort of lunacy would have created exactly that environment “stay at home” intends to avoid, namely one that provides opportunity for the easily transmitted virus to infect a large group. Potentially, not only congregations would be exposed but, through extended contact, also the general population. Evers nixed the request but now has provided fodder for Republicans to claim Evers is anti-religion. Still, elsewhere in the country, like in Florida and pandemic hot spot Louisiana, houses of worship have been excluded from “safer at home” social distancing mandates or are simply ignoring them. To be fair, empty churches mean empty donation baskets.
Oh, and the nation’s top expert on the pandemic, the only honest and reliable source of information, Dr. Anthony Fauci, has received death threats.
I hope you voted.
