Holy shit. Reading this felt like turning on the light in a dark room. Incredible work. 👏👏👏 I'm going to try to extrapolate a one-sentence version that can become my new overarching covid narrative...
The Death Panel podcast has absolutely articulated these things! I recommend it (as it’s clear from this piece that it isn’t one of your leftist podcasts of choice). It deserved to be said in print, though, too, so thank you for that.
I love that podcast they have kept me sane through all of this.
I go back and listen to the episode “How Liberals Killed Masking” (or maybe the title is how they killed public health) every once in a while. The gaslighting is so strong sometimes I forget how bad the dems made everything.
Thank you for articulating this and contextualizing this. I’ve seen so much conversation from “leftist” on twitter calling covid smart ppl covidtelpro, or calling ppl mental unwell. Most leftists have indeed ceded ground when it comes to the pandemic and it has been disheartening seeing ppl adopt eugenics instead.
I didn’t vote for Trump but I knew that if he won at least the people who pretend to be good people would go back to trying not to spread disease again.
It’s only been a month and one of the major healthcare centers near me is asking people to wear masks again if they are symptomatic and encouraging their staff to wear them. One month to the day. It makes it all look like a silly game doesn’t it?
It’s so frustrating and there are so many layers. I feel like because legacy media has gamified politics, ppl feel like they have to do what they can so their side could win. COVID got politicized and mitigation was a loser issue for the Dems? Cool. Let’s pretend that everything is fine. What ppl don’t understand is that they’re playing with their own lives for the ruling class.
Yeah it’s sad a whole bunch of people got scammed into simping for capitalism.
I couldn’t believe it in 2020 when I was watching people scream about how they wanted to go back to work even though they were making more money on unemployment than they did at their job. I wouldn’t have believed they were real people except I knew them personally they were on my Facebook. Then I deleted facebook so I’m not sure if they were actually happy they had to go back to the work in the middle of a pandemic. But they sure acted like they were going to die if they didn’t. It was especially weird after watching them tell me for years that it must be nice that I get to sit home all the time as a disabled person. Now all of a sudden they acknowledge that it’s not all fun? Wild.
I live in New Hampshire and yesterday the legislature heard a house bill that would prohibit mandatory masks in schools (HB361) and this morning I woke up to an email from Dartmouth health that was all about the bird flu, symptomatic people are required to wear masks and they are encouraging the staff to wear a masks again.
I knew once we didn’t have to pretend Biden ended airborne diseases we would get the resistance back. I just didn’t expect it to be so fast. One month from inauguration day and masks are back at Dartmouth. I hesitate to call it winning since the only reason they’re doing it is because the bird flu is spreading. But the acknowledgment that people don’t want diseases is a win. At least there’s that in 2025.
Thank you for saying this. I feel incredibly guilty even typing this because it was such a horrible period for so many people, but there's a part of me that misses the fact that during the covid years for the first time in my life the world made sense to me. Everyone agreed that our first priority was taking care of one another. It was suddenly socially acceptable to prioritise that over money or status or possessions. And I felt like I was using my time and my skills usefully for the first time in my life, setting up systems that allowed people to do important research remotely, instead of feeling like I had to give away five days out of my week to survive in order to do what the world needed with what time and energy I had left.
And I know I was incredibly privileged in that I didn't lose my income and could work from home and had a stable living situation, and many people didn't. And it was an incredibly scary time, and the isolation from loved ones was hard, and I did lose someone close to me not directly to covid but because his compromised immune system meant he didn't get the timely care he needed. So I feel ashamed to say it, but there is a part of me that misses that shared purpose and understanding and I wish we had been able to take that forward out of the pandemic.
Bravo...So incredibly well said...Thank you...I am going to print this and read it several times so if it comes up in conversation ie the demand that workers return to work place, I will have my response ready...Such an excellent analysis...Thank you again...
“Eugenics ~handshake~ capitalism.” I think people need to read up on the eugenics origin story (early 1900s) to understand a lot of what is going on now politically, as well as with RFK and his “wellness farms”. People tend to associate eugenics with race, but it was way more than that. Mad in America is a book I’d recommend too, historical roots of treating mental health. I’m just waiting for that shoe to drop too…
I highly recommend following WSWS.org, the most widely read truly socialist website in the world. The site has covered various features of Nate’s post and much more since the beginning of the pandemic, trying to present as wide an audience as possible with an objective scientific understanding of the virus, the pandemic and its place within the history of capitalism. https://www.wsws.org/en/topics/event/coronavirus See also their latest article ‘1 month of the Trump administration.’ https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/02/20/pers-f20.html
FYI those free food boxes were shit. Those were given out during the Trump administration, most of the help you listed was started in 2020 I’m not sure why they accused Biden of giving out all that free money when it was actually Trump.
But those food boxes were shit. The way the food pantry near me works is more like a store, you go in and you can have three proteins for example, but you pick them and if you don’t eat meat you just leave them for someone else.
When you get a food box they put whatever they think you should have in the box and then you take it and if you can’t eat half of it it’s technically illegal for you to give it away, but of course we do because we’re not gonna put it in the trash. The food pantry wouldn’t take it back as a donation so people either had to break the law and give it away or throw it away if it was stuff they didn’t want to eat.
It was also supposed to come with some printout from Donald Trump talking about how awesome he is but the food pantry near me did not do that. And I appreciate that I would have just left that behind too.
Thanks for this piece. I’m a career consultant and it’s been obvious to me that this is absolutely retribution for Covid protections. Everyone seems to forget the whole “Nobody wants to work anymore” narrative, too, which feels like part of this initial pushback.
Lip service seems to be the among the many casualties tossed aside by the Musk Administration.
In my view, Jimmy Dore has been talking his book. Mask requirements would put a good sized dent on alcohol sales at his concerts. It amazes me that policies to the benefit of wealthy corporate executives get wrapped in Dore's act and marketed as 'taking it to the man!"
It is lonely for those who adhere to the precautionary principle, so I have found ...
Thanks you. The silence around the pandemic from all circles has been deafening. It feels like we're all suffering some kind of trauma and unwilling or unable to discuss it rationally and intelligently.
Holy shit. Reading this felt like turning on the light in a dark room. Incredible work. 👏👏👏 I'm going to try to extrapolate a one-sentence version that can become my new overarching covid narrative...
Thanks high praise!
Report back with that one-liner if you can 👀
The Death Panel podcast has absolutely articulated these things! I recommend it (as it’s clear from this piece that it isn’t one of your leftist podcasts of choice). It deserved to be said in print, though, too, so thank you for that.
Thanks yes of course! I have listened to a couple and they were great but they aren't the huge discourse setting ones I'm really talking about
I love that podcast they have kept me sane through all of this.
I go back and listen to the episode “How Liberals Killed Masking” (or maybe the title is how they killed public health) every once in a while. The gaslighting is so strong sometimes I forget how bad the dems made everything.
Dammit I came here to add Death Panel to the list too; Solidarity 🖤
Thank you for articulating this and contextualizing this. I’ve seen so much conversation from “leftist” on twitter calling covid smart ppl covidtelpro, or calling ppl mental unwell. Most leftists have indeed ceded ground when it comes to the pandemic and it has been disheartening seeing ppl adopt eugenics instead.
I didn’t vote for Trump but I knew that if he won at least the people who pretend to be good people would go back to trying not to spread disease again.
It’s only been a month and one of the major healthcare centers near me is asking people to wear masks again if they are symptomatic and encouraging their staff to wear them. One month to the day. It makes it all look like a silly game doesn’t it?
It’s so frustrating and there are so many layers. I feel like because legacy media has gamified politics, ppl feel like they have to do what they can so their side could win. COVID got politicized and mitigation was a loser issue for the Dems? Cool. Let’s pretend that everything is fine. What ppl don’t understand is that they’re playing with their own lives for the ruling class.
Yeah it’s sad a whole bunch of people got scammed into simping for capitalism.
I couldn’t believe it in 2020 when I was watching people scream about how they wanted to go back to work even though they were making more money on unemployment than they did at their job. I wouldn’t have believed they were real people except I knew them personally they were on my Facebook. Then I deleted facebook so I’m not sure if they were actually happy they had to go back to the work in the middle of a pandemic. But they sure acted like they were going to die if they didn’t. It was especially weird after watching them tell me for years that it must be nice that I get to sit home all the time as a disabled person. Now all of a sudden they acknowledge that it’s not all fun? Wild.
I live in New Hampshire and yesterday the legislature heard a house bill that would prohibit mandatory masks in schools (HB361) and this morning I woke up to an email from Dartmouth health that was all about the bird flu, symptomatic people are required to wear masks and they are encouraging the staff to wear a masks again.
I knew once we didn’t have to pretend Biden ended airborne diseases we would get the resistance back. I just didn’t expect it to be so fast. One month from inauguration day and masks are back at Dartmouth. I hesitate to call it winning since the only reason they’re doing it is because the bird flu is spreading. But the acknowledgment that people don’t want diseases is a win. At least there’s that in 2025.
I'm in NH and didn't hear anything about that bill!
Thank you for speaking the truth. COVID aided this burgeoning fascism by culling the dependent herd. Your eugenics handshake capitalism was spot on.
Thank you for saying this. I feel incredibly guilty even typing this because it was such a horrible period for so many people, but there's a part of me that misses the fact that during the covid years for the first time in my life the world made sense to me. Everyone agreed that our first priority was taking care of one another. It was suddenly socially acceptable to prioritise that over money or status or possessions. And I felt like I was using my time and my skills usefully for the first time in my life, setting up systems that allowed people to do important research remotely, instead of feeling like I had to give away five days out of my week to survive in order to do what the world needed with what time and energy I had left.
And I know I was incredibly privileged in that I didn't lose my income and could work from home and had a stable living situation, and many people didn't. And it was an incredibly scary time, and the isolation from loved ones was hard, and I did lose someone close to me not directly to covid but because his compromised immune system meant he didn't get the timely care he needed. So I feel ashamed to say it, but there is a part of me that misses that shared purpose and understanding and I wish we had been able to take that forward out of the pandemic.
Bravo...So incredibly well said...Thank you...I am going to print this and read it several times so if it comes up in conversation ie the demand that workers return to work place, I will have my response ready...Such an excellent analysis...Thank you again...
Very perceptive and beautifully / heartbreakingly articulated:
IMO you’ve described Vulture capitalism vs collaborative capitalism
“Eugenics ~handshake~ capitalism.” I think people need to read up on the eugenics origin story (early 1900s) to understand a lot of what is going on now politically, as well as with RFK and his “wellness farms”. People tend to associate eugenics with race, but it was way more than that. Mad in America is a book I’d recommend too, historical roots of treating mental health. I’m just waiting for that shoe to drop too…
Great piece as always, Nate.
The ReSisters (Christine Cooper and I) DID speak about this a lot! Not a big enough platform, but we have tried just the same.
Thanks and I know you did!
Hey is this a podcast? I would listen to a podcast made by women about resisting.
Where can I find you I’m searching through Apple podcasts right now, I may have found you there but I’m not sure if that’s you.
I highly recommend following WSWS.org, the most widely read truly socialist website in the world. The site has covered various features of Nate’s post and much more since the beginning of the pandemic, trying to present as wide an audience as possible with an objective scientific understanding of the virus, the pandemic and its place within the history of capitalism. https://www.wsws.org/en/topics/event/coronavirus See also their latest article ‘1 month of the Trump administration.’ https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/02/20/pers-f20.html
FYI those free food boxes were shit. Those were given out during the Trump administration, most of the help you listed was started in 2020 I’m not sure why they accused Biden of giving out all that free money when it was actually Trump.
But those food boxes were shit. The way the food pantry near me works is more like a store, you go in and you can have three proteins for example, but you pick them and if you don’t eat meat you just leave them for someone else.
When you get a food box they put whatever they think you should have in the box and then you take it and if you can’t eat half of it it’s technically illegal for you to give it away, but of course we do because we’re not gonna put it in the trash. The food pantry wouldn’t take it back as a donation so people either had to break the law and give it away or throw it away if it was stuff they didn’t want to eat.
It was also supposed to come with some printout from Donald Trump talking about how awesome he is but the food pantry near me did not do that. And I appreciate that I would have just left that behind too.
Thanks for this piece. I’m a career consultant and it’s been obvious to me that this is absolutely retribution for Covid protections. Everyone seems to forget the whole “Nobody wants to work anymore” narrative, too, which feels like part of this initial pushback.
Right now, "Long Covid" is trending on my media feed that is owned by a rich punk billionaire from South Africa. https://x.com/CounsellingSam/status/1892572673051328683
Lip service seems to be the among the many casualties tossed aside by the Musk Administration.
In my view, Jimmy Dore has been talking his book. Mask requirements would put a good sized dent on alcohol sales at his concerts. It amazes me that policies to the benefit of wealthy corporate executives get wrapped in Dore's act and marketed as 'taking it to the man!"
It is lonely for those who adhere to the precautionary principle, so I have found ...
I'm angry.
Thanks you. The silence around the pandemic from all circles has been deafening. It feels like we're all suffering some kind of trauma and unwilling or unable to discuss it rationally and intelligently.