Power During a Pandemic

Samantha Cruz, Staff Writer

 The pandemic has brought attention to many concerns, mainly about public safety. The main question, however, is what kind of approaches are being taken by the government in order to ensure care for each of its citizens. With that in mind, there has been an overwhelming effort made by politicians to keep towns informed of not only how the world is doing, but also of their own community.

  Every action is created to ensure the safety of the citizens. Nobody is fully prepared for this pandemic, yet it’s something that’s caused so many to adapt as we slowly overcome each hurdle. Senior Isabel Lara believes that the actions taken have been a good change and have helped to advocate for safety. “A couple of things I know about is they put a lot of money towards making more COVID-19 tests available in various parts of the state[,] so if you are worried you might have the virus you can drive down and get tested. I also know they are giving money to small businesses so they can somewhat stay open during the pandemic and not have to fully shut down. Lastly, [and this is obvious,] everyone is on quarantine and most businesses are closed unless the state goes 14 days straight without a new case.” Even though there is an unsure future for when our city will be opening up, there is always help through these times of need.

  Some, however, believe that the government should have been more prepared for this to come. There was a small timeframe where we were able to prepare for the worse and yet the delay of action may have caused a drawback to many. Senior Scott Coleman said, “The government is doing the best they can at the moment with this virus that being said I feel as though they should have had an emergency plan for this kind of pandemic I think it’s good that the governors get to decide when to open back up their states and businesses and such, […] but [the government] should have been more prepared for this kind of problem because now it’s affecting everyone and there are people who live paycheck to paycheck who need to work to survive.” Several people are left to question if there will be anything that the government can do for small businesses as communication for the virus seems to fall short.

  Everyone’s main priority is safety. It’s what is keeping us together and helping us to have a strong sense of community. Politicians are trying to keep up with the changing times, and with that, there are changing situations for people. All that is left to do is wait and see.