People of the United States of America, we are under a crisis. A crisis we’ve never seen before, and one that nobody could’ve predicted the previous year. So what crisis is this exactly? The COVID-19 virus (or simply coronavirus) first appeared in Wuhan, China in December 2019. It spread all across Wuhan and the rest of China throughout January and into February.

Unfortunately, since then, other countries have felt the struggle of this. The coronavirus has since spread to South Korea, Japan, Iran, Europe, and even the United States. The first case was reported in Seattle, Washington, with more following suit in that state as well as nearby California.

While at first this was a situation in China, this is now a situation that’s affecting the whole world. The stock market is trending downward. High-profile movies like Mulan are being delayed. Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and the other Disney parks across the globe are being shut down until further notice, as well as Universal parks too. I myself was going on a high school band trip to Universal in mid-April, and now that’s obviously not going to happen anymore. My parents even cancelled a planned trip to Laurel because a coronavirus case was confirmed nearby in Hattiesburg. 

This is no joke. There have been cases so far in 45 out of the 50 states. Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Alabama, and West Virginia are the only states that don’t have cases yet, but that won’t likely last long. This isn’t the common cold or even the flu. There’s currently no vaccine or cure for this virus, but supposedly companies are working on a vaccine.

Now, what exactly is the problem here? Well, the virus is rapidly spreading, to the point where, as I mentioned before, theme parks like Disney and Universal are closing. The NBA suspenders its season, and March Madness is also suspended. Large gatherings are being advised against. The ENTIRE country of Italy is on lockdown. President Donald Trump also suspended all travel from Europe to the United States, with the exception of the United Kingdom. Not to mention, actor Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson have tested positive for the virus while they were in Australia for the filming of an Elvis Presley biopic. Schools are also closing in multiple states.

How did the virus rapidly spread in the states, you wonder? Well, it’s simple. The testing here has been absolutely sluggish compared to other countries. China seems to have gotten the situation there under control, but we are falling behind and some have said we are long past containment. South Korea has tested 10,000 a day compared to our 2,000 TOTAL. This is something that should be at the forefront of the Government’s agenda. There’s obviously a clear sense of incompetence within the Government. We could have potentially limited the spread a while ago if we had more testing available to the public.

Trump claims testing has been going smoothly. But, has it really been going smoothly? No. No it most certainly has not. As I said before, South Korea has tested 10,000 people in a SINGLE DAY, which is more than we have tested IN TOTAL. Not only that though, Trump claims people are to blame if they can’t get a test. What kind of bullshit logic is this? The real reason many Americans can’t get tested is because our incompetent government chose not to prepare ahead for this, and now we are facing the consequences. This is just pure incompetence at its finest. I don’t fully hate Trump nor do I support him either, but I like what he’s done for our economy, which is now being affected. But this, this is just unacceptable. Not to mention, he’s been around people that have been exposed to the virus, and what’s worse is he could have the virus and could be covering it up. If he didn’t have it, then there likely would’ve already been a statement released that he’s tested negative. Ted Cruz was exposed to a patient and even shook hands with the patient, but he acknowledged his missteps and chose to self-quarantine. But has Trump self-quarantined after being around people exposed to COVID-19? No. No he has not. I understand that he’s the president, but the health of our country’s people is at risk now.

We the people of the United States of America need to stand up and speak out against our government for failing to properly handle the spread of the coronavirus. They likely knew a vaccine wasn’t going to be ready for months, and what they should’ve done was find other ways to help contain it before it worsened, such as get lots of testing kits for the people and get people tested on a daily basis. But they haven’t done enough and that is why the number of cases in our beloved country is rising by the minute. I understand many doctors are trying to stop this, and I appreciate their efforts. But we need more testing and should’ve had more testing ready. So I urge you Americans to speak out and help stop the spread of the coronavirus if our incompetent government won’t.