People In Kentucky Threw A “Coronavirus Party” & It Didn’t End Well
In Kentucky, at least 160 people have tested positive for COVD-19 — including one person who attended a “coronavirus party.” Yes, shockingly, someone who attended a party mocking the virus causing the current pandemic has contracted said virus.
Shortly after news broke of the truly chaotic coronavirus party, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear called for an end
to all gatherings of this sort. “This is something that no one should
be doing across the commonwealth,” Beshear said. “We are battling for
the health and even the lives of our parents and grandparents. Don’t be so callous as to intentionally go to something and expose yourself to something that can kill other people.”
The
Kentucky coronavirus party was reportedly composed of young adults in
their 20s, and more people who attended are expected to test positive as
well, as large gatherings in close quarters are a hotbed
for transmission. The aim of the party was to reject instructions of
social distancing and refute the severity of the coronavirus, which is
clearly not ending well for party goers.
But
unfortunately, Kentucky isn’t the only coronavirus hub dealing with
this kind of outright protest that is spreading the virus. In
Connecticut, after a large farewell party
in early March, the town of Westport experienced a massive spike in
COVID-19 cases. The party is being referred to as “party zero” because
the 40 attendees scattered across the county when they left, carrying
the virus with them. In South Korea, one churchgoer — known as Patient
31 — can be tied to over 60 percent of the country’s cases.
Gov.
Beshear speculated that the young adults attending the party probably
thought “they are indestructible” or believed they were “invincible
flaunting the mass gathering prohibition.” Many people have expressed
frustration over millennials not adhering to social distancing
recommendations after photos of crowded Spring Break beaches in Florida went viral.
But the reckless 20-somethings at the party (and the ones on Spring Break) may be the exception rather than the norm. In fact, experts say young people actually seem more likely
to take quarantine and isolation recommendations seriously than their
parents, for a variety of reasons that include older folks having lived
through many things and therefore assuming this won’t be so bad and
younger people having a lot more years ahead of them that could be
negatively affected by this pandemic.
Either
way, many young people think COVID-19 is only dangerous for older
people when data is showing that’s not true. A report from the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week found that 20 percent of the people hospitalized with the virus were between the ages of 20 and 44. But as Michael Arceneaux wrote for NBC News, young people hadn’t heeded the warnings because the government failed to properly convey the risk.
“The
disease is spreading because the people in power — largely old white
men — have failed the nation by not properly preparing for its effects
in spite of dire warnings,” writes Arceneaux. “They did not sound the
alarm for Americans to start worrying and getting ready, so of course
young people are on beaches risking it all; the people in charge have
given them no real reason to give a damn.”
.
