Unpopular opinion

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Let’s get this straight! You can joke about anything. Make fun of anyone. Criticize any creed/doctrine. That’s what freedom of speech means. Your feelings don’t matter when it comes to setting a limit on the freedom of speech. It shouldn’t matter.

That means that ‘pasher bashar aunty’ can bitch about you, ‘desher apamor jonoshadharon’ can question Mithila, Charlie Hebdo can draw a cartoon of Mohammad, comedians can joke about rape, citizens can criticize govts and I can make fun of my friend for being fat.

“Well hold on a second Abdullah, you chauvinistic SOB. Rape is a horrible act. Why should anyone make jokes about it?”
They shouldn’t. Don’t mean they shouldn’t be allowed to.

If rape jokes hurt your feelings and you feel sad when Charlie Hebdo journalists get murdered then it is paradoxical. Rape jokes hurt your feelings and drawing a cartoon might hurt someone else. Why should either one of your viewpoints trump the other?

“But, if you let these kind of violent thoughts get expressed, it will spread violence.”

Yeah. Sure. Don’t mind me asking, “Why do you watch game of thrones and not meena cartoon, hmm?”

Hitler and Nazism didn’t rise because Sturmabteilung and Schutzstaffel members were the champions of freedom of speech. They brutalized critics and threatened any opposition. If Europe had a strong sentiment in defending freedom of thoughts than we might have had a different scenario. Nobody listened to Winston Churchill when he criticized Neville Chamberlain’s appeasement strategy. Why? Because Churchill made a blunder in the battle of Gallipoli twenty years before and it hurt British ego.

So stop acting like a Waffen-SS member of Hiter’s Nazi party. Let the people speak. At-least you will know who is the lamb and who is the fox, wearing a facade. Who to avoid and who to be friends with. I mean really. You don’t wanna end up like the grandma of red riding hood once the chips are down, do you?

(It’s an opinion. Open to criticism. Me saying that doesn’t make it a fact. You berating in the comment section will not make yours either. But hopefully we will be able to learn something new from that conversation and exchange ideas. Criticism hurts. I mean I don’t like it when my so called friends bitch about me. But I don’t go out there and stop them from bitching. That’s how the society functions. Through gossips.)

Covid – 19 and mental health

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I am not an epidemiologist, virologist or expert in knowing how infectious diseases are spread. I am not claiming to be. But I see German chancellor, UK prime minister, US health officials saying that 60-70% of their population will be infected, and at least 1-2% of them will die, I cannot say it will be any different in our country. As of this moment, Bergamo, Italy has run out of intensive care facilities.

‘A death probably signifies circulation of the virus has been going on for at least weeks, perhaps more than a month. Because it takes time for people to get sick, it takes time for them to go to the hospital and it takes time for them to expire.’ (1)

We are in the exponential phase now. Social distancing will only slow it down. Without any intervention, the world would have reached 1 billion cases within 81 days. (2) South East Asia, Europe and the US are taking matters seriously one by one. The level of inaction in South Asia is heartbreaking. Governments are helpless if the population is not taking matters into their own hands.

Now, why am I throwing all this info at you? To create panic? No sir. I want you to be ready. Be ready for what’s about to happen. We are only learning about social distancing right now. We should have done that 1 month ago. Now we need to brace ourselves for what’s coming. Brace for what?

Google Spanish Flu of 1918. (3)

H1N1 had two pandemics, one in 1918, and it spread into a population with no immunity to it. It did it again in 2009, known as Swine flu pandemic, but it had a fatality rate of >1%. COVID – 19 has that of 3.4% but it will vary across regions. Now apply all these numbers into the population of our country. You’ll get the picture.

It will take an emotional toll on us. Cooped up in our homes, we will have nothing to do except read stories after stories of people. My friend who laughed at me three months ago for worrying too much back in mid-January, when the cases were just 291 in China, texted me today, “I don’t care about the fatalities but I want this to be over as soon as possible, in a blink of an eye if possible. I can’t deal with gradual losses!! It’s excruciating!”

“It will be a slow process. A painful year.” _ I had to reply. The group message thread has been silent ever since….

If you are reading this line, then thank you. I am sorry for telling you all this. I hope I am wrong about this. Please take care of your mental health from now on. I am listing the WHO guidelines for mental health below. Read them. I beg you. You will need this. We all will. It is hope that keeps us alive. Keep hope alive!

WHO guidelines: (4)

Minimize watching, reading or listening to news that causes you to feel anxious or distressed

Seek information updates at specific times during the day, once or twice

Seek information only from trusted sources and mainly to take practical steps to prepare your plans and protect yourself and loved ones

The sudden and near-constant stream of news reports about an outbreak can cause anyone to feel worried. Get the facts; not the rumors and misinformation.

Protect yourself and be supportive to others. Assisting others in their time of need can benefit the person receiving support as well as the helper. For example, check-in by phone on neighbors or people in your community who may need some extra assistance. Working together as one community can help to create solidarity in addressing Covid-19 together.

Find opportunities to amplify positive and hopeful stories and positive images of local people who have experienced COVID-19. For example, stories of people who have recovered or who have supported a loved one and are willing to share their experience.

Honor caretakers and healthcare workers supporting people affected with COVID-19 in your community. Acknowledge the role they play to save lives and keep your loved ones safe.

References:

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcJDpV-igjs

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kas0tIxDvrg

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu

4. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/mental-health-considerations.pdf

Godspeed, my friends!

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Three weeks ago Italy had 3 cases.
“Two weeks ago Italy had 322 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. At that point, doctors in the country’s hospitals could lavish significant attention on each stricken patient.

One week ago, Italy had 2,502 cases of the virus, which causes the disease known as COVID-19. At that point, doctors in the country’s hospitals could still perform the most lifesaving functions by artificially ventilating patients who experienced acute breathing difficulties.

Today, Italy has 10,149 cases of the coronavirus. There are now simply too many patients for each one of them to receive adequate care. Doctors and nurses are unable to tend to everybody. They lack machines to ventilate all those gasping for air.”

Cases will double every 5-10 days from now on. Same thing with death rates. They are 2-3 months away from reaching the peak.
Singapore has one of the best healthcare system in the world. Yet they are throwing everything at this virus. We lack even the basic necessities. Still I see people roaming around the streets. Young people of my generation, those who can grab enough information with the push of a button are not even maintaining the proper social distancing norms. I don’t know what it will take for them to do this. A celebrity’s death? Death of a loved one? Or to see bodies pile up?

I am at my home right now. Just graduated from my universities with a master’s degree. Got full funding from a Canadian university and waiting for fellowship from two universities from the US. Still it took me 12 hours to share this good news with my parents. My parents have cardiovascular problems and diabetes.
I am genuinely scared for my country and its people now. My parents have started to listen to me now. And no. It was not my incessent warnings that made them do that. They saw 15 khadims of Kaa’ba get infected with Covid-19 and other khadims spraying disinfectant on hajre aswad. That’s when they started listening.

I have read article after article on holocaust. I have read how brutally Hutus murdered Tutsi in Rwandan genocide. I have seen the brutality of Syrian war. I have seen three year old Alan Kurdi lying on the beaches of Mediterranean Sea. I never cried. Yet I couldn’t keep my tears from running down my cheek on a public bus two days ago when I was reading about what is happening in Italy.

My dear friends who are working in the health sector. My heart aches for you. Please stay safe and take precautions. Treat every patient with respiratory problems and fever seriously. You guys will lead the fight against this. I wish I was with you in this difficult time.

Hopefully I am just overreacting to this. Hopefully every epidemiologist is wrong about this virus. Hopefully we will survive this pandemic. Keep hope alive. Godspeed!

Chaos is here!

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This is war now! The only way to defeat this Covid – 19 is to apply overwhelming force with maximum speed! Otherwise we will have to endure something that is going to be very very painful.
We all have to mobilize our collective strengths to fight this virus. The biggest strength of our country has to be us, THE PEOPLE!

Three types of people are in grave danger.

1. Medical professionals: They need to be prepared in case there is an outbreak. They will be badly in need of protective equipments to treat patients.
2. Elderly and people with underlying conditions: They are the most vulnarable population.
3. Young Adults and Children: Yes. We can be in harms way too. We can have mild symptoms and act as a super spreader. If any of us need a respirator and the healthcare system is overwhelmed, then we might not get it if there is bilateral interstitial pneumonia in our lungs.

সাহস দেখান।
সাহস দেখান নিজের হাত অযথা মুখে না দেওয়ার।
সাহস দেখান হাত কমপক্ষে ২০সেকেন্ড সাবান দিয়ে ধোয়ার।
সাহস দেখান ভিড় এড়িয়ে চলার।
সাহস দেখান আপনার পাশে বসে থাকা মানুষটি যখন ঠিকমতো হাচি-কাশি না দেয়। তাকে বুঝিয়ে বলুন। ঝগড়া করার মানে হয় না। নিজের কাছে থাকা টিস্যুটি তাকে দেওয়ার সাহস দেখান। জমিয়ে রাখা মাস্ক, সাবান, স্যানিটাইজার প্রয়োজন আছে এমন লোকদের সেটা দেওয়ার সাহস দেখান।
সাহস দেখান আপনি বা আপনার পরিবারের কেউ যদি জ্বর-কাশি থাকে তাহলে সে যেন বাসায় নিজেকে একঘরে রাখে সেটা বলার।
সাহস দেখান আপনার পরিবারের বৃদ্ধ আত্বীয়কে বাইরে বের হতে নিষেধ করতে।
সাহস দেখান নিজে যদি তরুণ হয়ে থাকেন তাহলে একে অপর থেকে কমপক্ষে এক মিটার দূরত্ব বজায় রাখতে।
সাহস দেখান যদি আউটব্রেক হয় তাহলে একে অপরকে সহায়তা করার।
সাহস দেখান ডাক্তার-নার্সদের। ওরা এই যুদ্ধে আমাদের সৈনিক হতে যাচ্ছে। ওদের পাশে আমাদের থাকতে হবে। ঘরে বসে ১০ টা মাস্ক নিয়ে রাখলে কিছু হবে না। ডাক্তারদের ওই মাস্কগুলো লাগবে।
সাহস দেখান চীন, দক্ষিণ কোরিয়া, সিংগাপুর এর জনগণের মতো সচেতন হবার। নাহলে ইতালি-ইরানের মতো অবস্থা এই দেশেও হবে।
সাহস দেখান সঠিক তথ্যটি বিশেষজ্ঞদের কাছ থেকে জেনে নেওয়ার।
সাহস দেখান যেখানে-সেখানে পাওয়া তথ্য পরিহার করার।
সাহস দেখান সরকার এবং বিশ্ব স্বাস্থ্য সংস্থার কথাবার্তা মেনে চলার।

ঠাট্টা-মশকরার দিন শেষ। ১৯৭১ সালের মার্চ মাসে ধীরে ধীরে আমাদের দেশে ঢুকেছিলো হানাদার বাহিনী। অপ্রস্তুত বাঙালিদের উপর ঝাপিয়ে পড়েছিলো। এইবারও অপ্রস্তুত থাকার কোনো মানে হয় না। এই ভাইরাস কোনো জাত-ধর্ম মানে না। এই ভাইরাস আপনাকে জিজ্ঞেস করবে না আপনি কোন রাজনৈতিক দলের। এই ভাইরাস আপনাকে জিজ্ঞেস করবে না আপনি কি মুসলিম, হিন্দু, বৌদ্ধ, খ্রিষ্টান নাকি নাস্তিক? আমাদের সবাইকে একসাথে হয়ে এর মোকাবেলা করতে হবে। একে-অপরকে সহায়তা করতে হবে। সময় হয়েছে আবার যুদ্ধে যাবার। সময় হয়েছে আবার সাহস দেখাবার।

সাহস দেখান!

রেফারেন্স:
১।
https://www.who.int/…/novel-coronavirus-2…/advice-for-public

২। https://www.who.int/emergen…/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019