Heroes rise during pandemic

In the 1970s, I listened as a lecturer explained that in police work it seemed as though 20 percent of the population hated the police no matter how well they performed, 20 percent loved them no matter how poorly they did and the remaining 60 percent stayed on the fence to gather facts before reacting. I realized how true that is the older I got.

In today’s political world, 40 percent of the population is anti-Trump regardless of how well he performs, 40 percent is pro-Trump regardless of how well or how poorly he performs and the remaining 20 percent can’t wait until early voting starts. Inside that 40 percent anti-Trump cadre is a broad spectrum of national news media and numerous career politicians.

With drill team precision, the media has marched in lockstep from the two-year special prosecution, to the impeachment hearings, to the impeachment trial, and now, without missing a step, to the current pandemic. Americans outsource a lot of work to China, but I never imagined some media folks would import Chinese propaganda and blame America for China’s fatal errors.

While President Donald Trump was restricting international travel to and from China months ago, Congress was too busy criticizing his decisions and stayed laser-focused on the impeachment process.

We are now at war with an invisible, but lethal enemy — COVID-19 — and all of us have been drafted into action.

In any war or conflict, cowards and saboteurs abound.

The cowards are those hiding underneath a golden boulder inside their comfortable, air-conditioned ivory tower foxholes lobbing pandemic impeachment grenades at President Trump. One would hope for a victory before an after-action report is published.

The saboteurs in this emergency are those Chihuahua-barking, fear-mongering, ankle-snarling nitpickers who played volleyball on the beach despite tsunami warnings.

While President Trump was heeding his advisers’ warnings and restricting travel from China and directing other courses of action, Nancy Pelosi and her camp followers in Congress were conjuring up articles of impeachment based on a failed, two-year investigation founded in part upon perjured testimony and spurious documents.

As the tsunami neared shore, the same folks encouraged people to virtue signal their racial tolerance by visiting Chinatown in San Francisco and participating in the Lunar New Year festivities in New York.

MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow smugly claimed that the Navy’s hospital ships would not arrive for several weeks to help the coastal metropolises of New York City and Los Angeles. Ten days later, the USNS Comfort arrived in New York City and began treating non-COVID patients.

A virus is Mother Nature’s way of telling us we are not in charge and we are not invincible.

Our nation is the best country in the world because of our collective sacrifices and our teamwork during this wartime-footing pandemic. However, we will emerge victorious and more determined to be less reliant on a communist regime and its circle of media and political allies.

In any war or conflict, heroes and acts of valor occur at every socioeconomic level.

The heroes in Boulder City are many and include those mentioned in Mayor Kiernan McManus’ commentary of last week. Also, Cindy Ford’s Southwest Diner is providing free meals for schoolchildren while school is closed.

The other heroes include peace officers, firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, dispatchers, doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and numerous other health care professionals in every town, city, village and state.

I pray that by the time this commentary is published the casualty rate will be in decline.

We have plenty to be thankful for this Easter holiday. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not the lamp of an oncoming train. For those who know the story and for those who don’t, it’s a promise of eternal life via the resurrection of Jesus Christ some 2,000 years ago.

Dan Jennings is a retired Army captain and a retired BCPD lieutenant. He can be reached at bcpd267@cox.net.