Thanking and Blaming

This is an enemy that has no ideals. It is not discriminatory. It does not care what color, sex, or sexual orientation you are. It does not care whether you are rich or poor; Democrat or Republican; Jew of gentile… It attacks without warning. And as of yet there is no effective defense against it except for retreat.

Retreat - unless you are one of the above mentioned heroes. They - like all first responders - do NOT retreat. They charge forward into ‘live fire’ as the brave dedicated warriors they are.

Health care professionals are a special breed of people. I have said this many times before about doctors. But it is of course equally true of all people serving in ancillary positions. They are people that  risk their lives to care for the sick. Exposing themselves to the same deadly disease.

Even though they wear protective gear, it is not foolproof. Some of those health workers have caught the virus from the people they are treating. Some have even died! And yet I do not know of any that are retreating. Not only do they put themselves at risk, they bring increased risk to their families when they go home.

I do not believe it is even possible to thank them enough. All the justifiable thanks and praise I keep hearing about these heroes seems feeble in light of their amazing sacrifice. Nevertheless let me add my own feeble words of praise and thanks to these exceptional human beings.

As many others have noted, there are a lot of  people besides health care professionals that are serving the public need. They too do not have the luxury of self isolation. 

We all need to survive even under these conditions. 

We need police and firefighters to protect us; we need sanitation workers to keep the environment safe; we need food to eat, medicine to treat a variety of health conditions; people to operate grocery stores and pharmacies; truck drivers and mail carriers to deliver vital products; farmers, dairy and meat producers; factory workers in industries that produce life saving medical equipment like ventilators and masks... and probably a lot more people I can’t think of at the moment to operate the vital services we all need. They all deserve our utmost thanks for being out in the trenches risking their health and the health of their families so that the rest of us can feel safe in our homes.

Not to be forgotten or overlooked are government officials and their epidemiological teems. At all levels of government. While some have been more on top of things than others, there is not a doubt in my mind that all of them –top to bottom federal, state, and local - have been working hard in the fight to rid the world of this scourge. (Appreciation should also be expressed to medical researchers currently working hard to find effective treatment and a vaccine. And the FDA for fast-tracking that research by cutting red tape.)

It is easy to criticize some government officials for not doing enough or coming late to the party. There are those who say with some justification that had they done more a lot sooner, lives could have been saved. 

To that I say - 20/20 hindsight is hardly useful in situations like this. It is easy to say that had some other politician been in their place we would be faring better now. There is, however, no real way of knowing what others would have done in similar situations - knowing only what they knew then versus what we all know now.

It’s easy to complain. But useless and counterproductive. It is far better to thank all of our political leaders for the hard work they are doing instead of complaining about what they could  or should have done.

Same thing can be said of the vast majority of our rabbinic leaders. (At least here in America. Can't speak for Israel) For the most part they have been listening to the advice of health professionals on the front lines and supporting their guidelines. They have been urging us all to follow those guidelines. 

Whether one or another faction came aboard a day or so late, they are mostly all pretty much on the same page now – urging us to self isolate until further notice. They have been issuing almost daily updates.

Under normal circumstances we would be immersed in pre Pesach activity - and practically oblivious to everything else. Tasks that used to be taken for granted are now virtually impossible to do under these horrible conditions. The rabbinic establishment has been modifying the usual requirements for Pesach so that we don’t have to leave our homes. 

One of the bright spots (if one can even fathom a bright spot under these conditions) is that the CRC and Agudah of Illinois are working together as one. It was heartening to see an Agudah directive in my inbox that informed people about a CRC website option that can be utilized for purposes of Pesach preparation. If that kind of cooperation becomes permanent, it will be a major change for the better.

I wish I could just end there – on a positive note. But when I heard the President say yesterday that the next two weeks will be the most difficult yet… with predictions of between 100,000 to 250,000 deaths possible in the US, it is pretty hard to stay positive. And those numbers are optimistic. They are based on the current level of mitigation. Which means as long as we stay home  and practice good hygiene, and social distancing (when the need arises to leave the home) we can keep those relatively optimistic numbers low. If that commitment in any way weakens or wanes, the death toll could be much higher. I have heard figures like over a million deaths!

A final thanks goes to those of us that have been following those guidelines. We too are in this fight and staying home is the way we are doing it.

And yet, there are some people that are ignoring these directives. They are going out and mingling with others in a variety of circumstances. As recently as yesterday, I saw images on TV of a beach in Florida that was packed with people. There are some pastorsthat have been holding public services in their churches. And some rabbis that have been having Minyanim in their shuls. It is sad that a Chasidic Rav in Monsey that was recently seen as a hero by the entire world - is now seen as a dangerous fool.                                  

People like that are risking their own lives as well as those around them. And worse they are spreading the disease with their irresponsible behavior.

There is nothing I can do about the sunbathers on a Florida Beach or  non Jewish clergy. But I can speak to a co-coreligionist who to defies the will of God with his Frumkiet. Any Rav that keeps his Shul open during these times is almost like a Rodef! About which the Torah says one may pursue and kill before he kills. 

Of course he is not an actual Rodef and I  do not God forbid recommend killing him. I do, however, recommend the next best thing. He ought to be placed in the modern day version of a Cherem (excommunication) and be reported immediately to the police! And then forbidden from ever operating a Shul again.  That Rav may think he is being Frum by keeping his Shul open. But he is violating one of the most basic Halachos of the Torah - saving lives. 

The people that attended his Shul under current circumstances are victims. They might not be blamed listening to their Rav. But they were stupid - risking their lives in doing so.

Stupidity may not be a crime. But stupidity in this instance might be responsible for not only their own sickness but the sickness and possible death of others. They need to reprimanded and educated about their folly. And made to realize that  what they did was criminally negligent. And then sent home until this pandemic is over.