Memphis Citizen On The News Wearing A Trash Bag To Prevent Coronavirus Is Proof We’re Not Ready


Similar to just about every person in my life, the COVID-19 coronavirus is living rent-free in my head all day right now, occupying my thoughts for pretty much 90% of my waking hours. The outbreak has even made its way into my dreams as recently as Sunday night.

The threat is growing, the news coverage is expanding, and it’s become abundantly clear that most people are 100% not ready for what could come next if we’re faced with a situation like what’s unfolding in Italy with hospitals operating at 200% capacity and a nationwide lockdown in place. And it’s not like Italy has some shitty healthcare system. The WHO has Italy ranked #2 in the world for healthcare. And the ENTIRE country is on lockdown. Even if we’d been preparing for months there’s still a huge swath of the American population that won’t be ready for that kind of life-altering event.

Case in point, the people in this clip. We’ve got one parent spraying down his kid with what appears to be Lysol disinfectant like that old Greek dad in My Big Fat Greek Wedding with his Windex. Another person is screaming into the camera. And there’s a third individual who thinks they’ve suited up for the apocalypse by wearing a trashcan to ward off the virus.

This clip from FOX13 Memphis is blowing up and it’s easy to see why. Make sure you watch the full thing because every moment gets increasingly more outrageous:

Can’t. Stop. Watching…

Part of me would think this is sketch comedy if it wasn’t 100% real and up on the FOX13 website:

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&npsp;
The dude who tweeted this out is calling it the new ‘Mobile Leprechaun’ moment which is timely given that St. Patrick’s Day is a week from today (next Tuesday). Meanwhile, large St. Patrick’s Day parades in Ireland have already been canceled as has Boston’s parade, all due to fears of the spreading coronavirus. NYC has yet to cancel its St. Patrick’s Day Parade despite the fucking head of Port Authority testing positive for COVID-19 yesterday and mounting evidence that the virus is spreading throughout the community.

At the end of the day, I’m not really worried about myself. I’m lucky to be healthy, have strong lungs, no pre-existing conditions, and I’m not elderly. According to these stats, the risk is low for me:

However, I’ve already lost my mom this year. She passed away suddenly just 10 days into 2020. The thought of losing any other family members is what’s keeping me up at night. So please, just wash your fucking hands. Don’t touch your face. If you’re feeling sick, keep your ass home. Check your temperature and if you have a fever, contact your doctor for instructions. Don’t just brush this off as ‘the flu’ because that’s simply the dumbest possible thing anyone can say right now.