I flip some more channels and everywhere it’s coronavirus this, coronavirus that. I turn off the TV.
“Yo, Covid-19, I'mma let you finish,” I say loudly, mocking Kanye West. “But the Black Death was the most devastating pandemic of all time!”
And it was. It wiped out a third of Europe’s population. Perhaps this is just the beginning for Covid-19. I get my laptop out and start to write an article for my magazine. I know I’m not meant to be working, but I have a lot to say and my magazine, known for controversy, is the place to say it.
I title the piece ‘Who’s going to say it?’
I type away furiously.
Who’s going to say it? That if Covid-19 turns out to be the pandemic that will shake the earth and take out half its population, it might not be the worst thing? It’s terrible of course, to all that it will affect and their families, but for the human race and the planet earth as a whole, it could be a great thing. We’re too many. Fact.
Many scientists believe the earth has a maximum carrying capacity of 9-10 billion people. We are 7.7 billion. Who’s going to say it? That the human population continues to grow exponentially. As the population grows, so, too, does the amount of resources needed to keep so many people alive.
Overpopulation directly brings about the issues we have been having with climate change. Nations like China and the US continue to develop their industrial capacities, ranking as two of the largest contributors of emissions in the world. Who’s going to say it? That if they don’t stop, Mother Nature will need pandemics like this one to cull the human race. According to the UN, we will hit 9.8 billion people by 2050.
My phone rings. It’s my mom checking on me. I assure her I’m fine, and yes, getting some rest. After she hangs up, I continue typing.
One of the reasons the population has boomed is because people are living longer. People over 60 years old are predicted to be 2.1 billion by 2050. It’s interesting that Covid-19 is killing this age group, whereas the younger generation seems more resistant to succumbing to it. Who’s going to say it? That Covid-19 almost seems like an engineered virus that is even targeting specific age groups?
My phone rings again. This time it’s the last person I expected to hear from. I double-check to make sure I’m seeing right. It’s Chris. I let it ring, unsure whether to answer or not.
What could he want? My heart pounding, I push aside my laptop and stand up. Then I press the answer button.
“Hello…?”
I let it ring too long. He’s gone. Do I call back? I’m transported to the last time I saw him. Fortunately for me, he was more concerned about his missing penis than tearing my head off. He held his hands across his wound to stop the bleeding. I should have felt bad. I didn’t. Instead, I was back in dissociation mode, hovering in the ceiling, watching the scene unfold like it was happening to someone else.
“Mommy,” he cried like a whimpering child, reaching for his severed trumpet.
Ok, now I started to feel some type of way. Really bad. A grown man reduced to this. What he did was shady, yes, but I had a choice. It was not sexual assault. I could have walked out. The punishment did not fit the crime. And that’s an understatement. The man had lost his penis.
“Which healthcare provider do you use?” I asked him.
He said nothing.
“Tell me! I’ll call for help,” I told him.
And I did. Then I passed out.