“Hubris is the characteristic of excessive confidence or arrogance, which leads a person to believe that he or she may do no wrong. The overwhelming pride caused by hubris is often considered a flaw in character.”
Americans aren’t the only people who think we’re the crown of creation, who somehow think we don’t have to live by the same rules lesser parts of humanity too.
But we sure are good at it.
As of this morning, 262,757 Americans are dead of Covid-19, and the curve is bending in the wrong direction. This week we may see the ultimate super-spreader events as millions of Americans crowd into airports to get home for the Thanksgiving holiday and then crowd into stores for Black Friday sales.
This picture is from Orlando. It’s got to be from a previous year because even in Florida, I cannot imagine an airport this week in which no one is wearing a mask, but imagine that scene but with masks on every face and it still looks appalling.
Americans just can’t stand to be told what to do. I’m reminded of a story making the rounds just after World War II:
“The English walk the earth as if they own it. Americans walk the earth as if they don’t care who owns it.”
Some countries have done well. South Korea has more than 51 million people and has behaved aggressively to limit the spread of the virus. With a population about one sixth as the U.S., its death toll is about one-five-hundredth of ours.
Yeah. America kicking butt as if it were 1492.
So what do we — the butt-kickers of the world — do this week to celebrate Thanksgiving?
What do you think? We stay home with our immediate family on Thursday and we stay as far away as possible from those wonderful Black Friday sales this weekend.
Our reward?
We don’t kill anyone we love, and we might even get to live till next year.