The moment we learn of a positive case of COVID-19 in a building or housing society, we tell ourselves to be extra careful and avoid all human contact as much as possible. We hardly bother to think about the infected person, their family and the problems they have to face. At most we ask about the age of the person: if it turns out that they are an older person, we, at much younger ages, feel a kind of relief or if that person had many comorbidities, we, with lower risks, feel that another arises kind of relief. Is this a deadly extension of modern-day nuclear family living standards? Or will this be the climax of a digital or virtual life accelerated by the Coronavirus pandemic? The basic preventative approach to this highly contagious disease has been to avoid physical human contact with individuals, groups, or crowds, and slowly, coughs and sneezes began to scare us: We cared to death if someone in an elevator or hallway or just being nearby does one of those very human actions. From a health perspective, there’s nothing wrong with that; we are advised to observe all social distancing and hygiene regulations; and therein lies the problem that concerns us. Now we tend to keep all humans away except our family and relatives and don’t give a damn about any human subject.
Even becoming infected with the fast-spreading virus was considered something of a criminal act, often leading to furious objections to having infected people in the same building, and woefully inhumane obstructions regarding cremation rites for a dead patient. Families have also become accustomed to a member dying in hospital and allowing local authorities to cremate the person without family involvement; or members of a family located in remote places who remain in their homes after one of their closest members dies in a different place, due to COVID or any other illness. Again, from a technical point of view, there is nothing seriously wrong with having these stoic responses. However, authorities in several countries had to issue warnings to people not to regard infected people as criminals or to obstruct funeral rites.
We are getting used to being totally immersed in our cell phones, laptops, desktops and all other forms of virtual life. We continue to scrutinize the screens of our mobile phones, computers or televisions, and work from home, participating in all virtual meetings and conferences. To socialize with our loved ones and close ones, well, there are social networks. Again, this new normal life is a must if we want to beat the virus. The point of concern here is that even personal phone calls are less and less: well, I’ve messaged and chatted with him/her, why call then, we thought. Also, we are already used to not having social gatherings or parties or anything like that.
Although we have been relying almost exclusively on online shopping, we cannot avoid going to supermarkets, and possibly malls that may reopen, for occasional physical purchases. Once there, we see other customers as unwanted physical obstacles: in a frenzy to keep a safe distance, we become intolerant if someone gets closer than we think is right; masked and with disinfected hands, we act like robots that move in programmed mechanics; deprived of the traditional handshake or informal hug, we seem to have lost all ability to greet fellow human beings; and once we have all our required rations stacked in cars or otherwise, we feel complete and victorious. Technically, again, we cannot find fault with such approaches to counter the spread of the pandemic.
An older adult has recounted an alarming experience. That night he had to urgently visit the local grocery store for a personal purchase, and had to cross the busy highway to fulfill his mission. At the pedestrian crossing the traffic light did not work and there were no traffic police to control it; it was a completely different question why such an important signal was left unattended. The old man waited and waited at the crossroads, with a group of other men and women. Vehicles kept zooming by despite his continual gestures with his tired hands. And when, finally, the vehicles slowed down a bit, the youngsters on their bikes made hay as they made their shortcut crossings, almost brushing past pedestrians. His experience was even worse when he came back and crossed the hurdle again. A fellow pedestrian complained bitterly to him about the uncaring, brutal and zombielike behavior of car owners or drivers, refusing to instill any lessons from the greatest crisis humanity has ever faced.
Are we, in fact, losing all of our human values of compassion, empathy, and emotions in this hectic new virtual existence? Or as we said is this the highlight thanks to the pandemic?
In the early stage of the pandemic, NGOs, organizations, and even individuals set many examples to feed the hungry unemployed and provide shelter for the homeless. There was also a wave of donation drives for worthy humanitarian causes. However, the bonhomie slowly died down, possibly due to the fact that people could not continue to donate forever, as many lost their regular income while millions more lost their salaried jobs. Except for the limited have everyone else I do not have they have become severely stifled and depressed with their suppressed emotions growing within the four walls. Sociocultural-economic deprivation worsened the scenario. Also, what are those without access to even a virtual life supposed to do?
Since the COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented crisis for humanity, the long-term consequences will be enormous. If we were ever to go back to the old normal, the moot question would be how people reacted to other people at the time. An endless saga of socio-cultural-economic distancing could spell real doom when it comes to normal human emotions, compassion and empathy or sympathy. Meanwhile, we must keep the spirit of hope alive and we must keep the values of the brotherhood of humanity very dear and burning in our hearts.
