Ġeneralissimu Bob and his Super(intendent) shield
Published in the Times of Malta (06.04.20)
Get the hint?
Cartoon Published in the Times of Malta (23.03.20)
Get the hint?
No?
COVID-19 for Earth, is like Chemo for us.
Still nothing? Must I spell it out?
I’m not saying anything new here, we are the cancer, our way of life is killing Earth and this New Corona Virus is Earth’s way of getting better. We can already see its affect on our tiny island, 70% drop in air pollution.
Now it is ample clear in what I have written, that I do not particularly cherish our current way of life, nor the way we have violated our home. It sometimes crosses my mind that “Heq, we sure had it coming” (Shrug emoji)
Yet this does not mean that I would like your Nanna to contract COVID-19, and die from it due to underlying medical conditions. And I believe that you do not want that either, nor for anybody else’s Nanna to suffer that same end. So why the fuck are you still not staying home? A forced and complete lockdown?
Most of you that are reading this are doing just that, staying home and washing your hands and resisting the urge to pick your nose. Trying to follow everything that the good Professor Charmaine Gauci has taught us. We have all realised, these simple measures, do come at a personal cost. Thank you for staying home. Even though sitting down on our asses in the comforts of our own homes (some admittedly more comfortable than others) should be easy, it has forced us to face some hard realities, about ourselves and the way we live. So once again thank you, it isn’t easy.
To Professor Charmaine Gauci, a standing ovation of gratitude, thank you for showing us great strength in uncertain times, and thank you for speaking to us not as a nation but as a people. The first person to speak to us without political want or personal intent, bar us washing our hands well and maintaining a socially acceptable distance of one metre (preferably more) and to cough in our elbow crease.
To Premier Bobby and Deputy Chris, you seem like you’re doing a good enough job with the limited tools at your disposal. Slightly better than your Italian counterparts (I hope). But do you finally see what happens when people’s trust in their institutions has been so dangerously eroded? Think Azur Window, and look how everybody reacted when the inevitable happened.
Haven’t you been telling us how rich the state has become, L-aqwa żmien and all that? How supposedly socialist your politics are? So then show it and show it now. There are a number of small enterprises and self-employed that desperately need and deserve your support. And please keep Professor Edward Scicluna at home, isn’t he one of the old and vulnerable?
Now that I have your attention, and if you’ll permit me to abuse of it some more, I believe there are other people deserved of thanks; all the medical and health care professionals and staff, from Mater Dei to St. Vincent de Paul, working tirelessly to ready themselves for what is to come. If we truly want to show them our gratitude and respect, apart from cheering them on from the comfort of our windows and balconies, we must listen to them and follow their lead. It is heartening to see the people’s response and initiative, whether it is providing food, accommodation, or fulfilling any needs of theirs that may arise. Thank you to these people who have risen to the occasion and lead by example.
Let me extend this thanks and gratitude to pharmacists and supermarket workers, farmers and fishermen, grocers and butchers and fish mungers, our teachers and journalists and delivery personnel, our police, army and civil protection and service, people working in the importation industry, desperately making sure food and medical supplies reach our islands and homes. A hearty thank you. You have become a life line to normality, whatever that may mean.
We know that supermarkets and pharmacies have become focal points of people gathering – not for fun, but out of necessity. This creates, as we now clearly know, an ideal situation for the spreading of COVID-19 and pasta aisle stand-offs. Not a safe working environment for any employee or customer. It is evident that supermarkets big and small need to up their delivery game. Your service must become predominantly, if not totally delivery based, that gives your staff breathing room to work, you can begin employing more stackers, pickers and delivery drivers – people will soon become desperate for casual labour. If your current supermarket infrastructure does not have enough vans to meet the demand, I am sure there other businesses with vans and trucks and drivers, simply sitting around, eating away at their company’s finances. Work together. We are small enough to mobilise and do this. And thanks to our very own doctor of Transport Dr. Ian Borg, most of the roads are really wide and freshly tarmacked. And thanks to Corona, those roads are virtually empty, making it a delivery-service-wet-dream come true.
To the supermarket fat-cats: get off your plush leather cushions. Just imagine, one of your staff members gets sick because a customer, who would have other wise ordered his shopping online, was forced to enter your store, was unwittingly carrying the virus alongside his Euros that you so desperately want, and unwillingly transmitted it to the woman working behind the cheese counter, while purchasing his Ġobon tal-Ħakk. Well then, you’ve got a fucking problem. It won’t be your client’s fault, it will be yours.
Large supermarkets can deliver to the entire archipelago, while smaller supermarkets and grocers can provide delivery to their villages. Whenever possible try source local produce, support your neighbourhood vendors, set up a network between neighbours and your local shops. Your needs will be met and you’ll be meeting other’s needs.
While we’re at it, seeing that you – supermarket fat-cats – are making bank, up your staff’s pay and security. They are clearly working in adverse and tense conditions. We are discovering heroes in the most unlikely of places and they need all the support we can give.
Really, if all the fat-cats on this island got together and pooled their resources for the common good of the island, with a little governmental stimulus, then we should all be peachy. And yes fat-cats, you will still make money.
It is unbecoming to hear these haughty hoteliers bitch and moan that no tourists are coming to stay at their hapless hotels. It was pretty evident that was going to happen once the virus spread, and the fact that you were caught with your pants around your ankles (like many other luminary business leaders) goes to show what a bunch of wank stains you really are. We see you using your employees as bargaining chips – don’t. They have been having financial issues far longer than you, and we know that most of your cash flow problems stem from the fact that you are midway through building those additional three floors J.M. gifted you. Oh, also the berthing fees for your power boat – it must be hard, I wonder if you’re getting a discount on that during these hard times. Vultures.
All we have to do is sit down and avoid each other, for each other’s sake. It is easier said than done, but if you do care about your Nanna and anybody else’s Nanna, stay home, listen to Professor Gauci. If we fail to flatten the infamous curve and inundate our health services, get ready to say bye to that vulnerable loved one of yours, you may not be able to give them a funeral. As the infection rate rises, the bodies will begin to pile.
We are told that this too shall pass, but when and how it shall pass and what will come next, is solely up to us. Not only as Maltese but as a species.
Till we dance together again.
P.S. Silvio - Charity begins where ever charity is needed.