I haven't written about the coronavirus in a while. Maybe I was hoping it would magically disappear or maybe we would actually have a vaccine by now, but it hasn't and we don't. I get encouraged when I see people out wearing masks and social distancing, but that disappears when I see video and pictures of people crammed into bars and restaurants without masks. Until we take this virus seriously, it is going to continue to spread taking more and more lives.
In sports arenas, I will admit things have been handled much better than I anticipated, though I still have a hard time watching games played in empty or near-empty venues.
I applaud the NBA for what it accomplished during the summer down in that "bubble" in Orlando. And Major League Baseball will crown a new World Champion this week, following a 60-game season and modified playoffs. And I really have to give kudos to the folks running the youth sports leagues. We made it through a whole summer and fall season without anybody I know ever being exposed to COVID-19. But what happens next?
In the spring of 2021 we will have some college football to add to the list of regular spring sports.....if they get off the ground at all. If the virus continues to spread in the winter months as it is now, it's doubtful we will have anything to watch at all. Maybe by then we'll have a vaccine in place or maybe Americans will come to their senses and take this thing more seriously. Some people are going to say, "Well, he wants us to close everything down again and that will completely ruin what's left of our economy." That's not what I want at all. We have proven that we can reopen businesses safely if we follow proper guidelines. However, that only works when everyone follows them - not just a portion of the population.
I've heard more than one person say, when November 4th comes around, the day after the election, we won't hear anything about this virus. I can state without a doubt, that statement is totally incorrect. It's not going away at all no matter who gets elected. The only difference is how it's handled and currently, it's not being handled at all.
Think if we had done what the scientists and experts had suggested in the beginning. Wash your hands, wear a mask when you leave your home, stay at least six feet away from anyone when you're out and don't go places you really don't need to go. We have had a few "mask mandates" in place in a few cities and counties but they weren't enforced. In fact, they were openly defied by many.
I saw this morning that President Putin has placed a mandatory mask mandate for all citizens in Russia to try and slow down the spread of the virus. Maybe that will be enough for our president to be motivated to do the same thing.
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Randy Smith can be reached at rsmithsports@epbfi.com