Guest Essays

Welcome to week 17 of WWIII Biological Warfare.

Breaking all records, The U.S. took merely 3 months to reach

1,000,000 cases.

WWIII has killed 60,000 Americans in just 100 days. 

It took a decade in Vietnam to approach numbers like that.

I wonder where they will place the public memorial for this war?

Coronavirus Spring 2020.

Many can see the end of the war, without claiming victory.

Battlefront, by battlefront, they slowly return back to pseudo-normalcy. 

We are in Week 15 of WW III Bioterrorism.

By Steve Plotkin

There is talk of a unilateral, rolling, cease-fire among the 50 combat zone commanders, governors.  However, this involves 50 separate negotiations and certifications.

A decade of job growth has been destroyed in one month.  And there is rising impatience with the medically induced economic coma.  It boils down to balancing the financial threat, vs. the medical threat.  

But there is a major glitch.  There are very limited measurements available for a data-driven decision process.

Welcome to day 103 of WWIII - the Biological War. 

by Steve Plotkin

Sadly, we have reached the national level 2,074 dead per day, now the leading cause of death.  A vast number of citizens qualify for Purple Hearts, and this war has surpassed 9/11 as having a profound effect on our society.

The Virus

Coronavirus is a large family of viruses of which 7 can infect people.  Humans have been treated to one bad coronavirus every 10 years, since the turn of the century.

Think of SARS (2002) and MERS (2012). 

Welcome to the 14th week of WWIII's germ warfare.  Worldwide fatal casualties are marching toward the number of American deaths in Korea and Vietnam combined.  

By Steve Plotkin

Remember January 2020 when we started the decade with a hopeful bang?

But now we are in a different sort of place.

WAR

This is a peculiar war with no central command.

We are fighting on 50 battlefields, with 50 field commanders - governors, in charge of 50 fractured forces.  We are also fighting a quiet war of competition for resources among the 50.

We have all made it to the 14th week of WWIII, with no cease fire on the horizon.

By Steve Plotkin

Three themes are reverberating just now regarding the coronavirus, lack of testing, shortage of protective equipment, and shortage of medical ventilators.

Looking backwards, there is now sufficient evidence that the richest country in the world, with abundant scientific and medical specialists, simply squandered a full month in preparation for this devastating pandemic, which is now engulfing major sections of America.

With WWIII entering its 13th week, most of WE THE PEOPLE  are POWs in our own homes.    So let’s reflect on how we got here.

We have all committed to “flattening the outbreak curve”, a new moniker for hiding at home, and vegging out on Netflix.

This time, our Pearl Harbor occurred in China, and was so sneaky, we didn’t even realize there was a problem until weeks later on January 10th.  Since then “a state of war has existed”.  Haven’t we heard these words before?

Complexities of the Virus

by Steve Plotkin

You have been feasting on endless news, regarding the coronavirus pandemic, mostly scary statistics.  But there are other sides, some good, some bad.

Just look at how fragile the greatest country in the world is.  In 11 weeks some

unsee able threat has neutered and rendered our civilization inert with amazing speed.   And we are still just mobilizing to fight WWIII.

What makes a good marriage? Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes it is a combination of being one and yet a part.

The recent House impeachment and Senate acquittal of President Donald Trump has put some of the deficiencies in our constitutional structure on full display. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist Steve Plotkin writes that perhaps it is time for some soul searching by the American body politic.

We spend much of our golden years extending life. But Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes that we should also concentrate on its meaning.

It is easy to get irritated at the little things in life. But, Delmarva Public Radio Essayist found a little kindness can break the day's frustrations.

There are many doors in life. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes as we go through them we take their stories with us.

Courtesy is something that can get lost in these divisive days. But as Delmarva Public Radio Essay George Merrill writes it is not just a social gesture but can be a spiritual one.

As we age we put things away, save them, as part of a lifetime. But, Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes comes a time to give them up and to be left with the stories that they once told.

Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill recently went to check the shore line of his property as weather reports indicated it could be stormy day. It wasn't just the wind and rain but the rising water line produced by climate change that made him ponder the propsects for our the home we call earth.

The older we get birthdays become more and more a time of reflection. Delmarva Public Radio's George Merrill writes it is in those latter years that the meaning  of our lives take on a sharper focus.

When we come to the end of one's life we tend to reflect on our past. Delmarva Public Radio's George Merrill suggests that often times they are the firsts we remember.

What's in a K-Cup? Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes it symbolizes the instant gratification of the moment while leaving behind the trash it produces for generations to come.

The words Rest In Peace generally refers those who have died. But, for Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill they can also be words to live by.

It is said that sometimes we should stop and smell the roses. But for Delmarva Public Radio Essayist it was a field of sunflowers.

As the families and friends of those shot and killed in El Paso and Dayton say their last goodbyes Delmarva Public Radio Essayist Tom Hehman reflects on the shootings less than a year after killings at the synagogue in Pittsburgh.

Where might the soul be located? Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes it is where the mythical gods put it.

We may walk among the woods in silence but our neighbors are everywhere. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes he found such creatures one morning as he took a stroll.

Smart Phones are a constant companion carried everywhere we go, providing information in a stream flowing through digital hardware. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes that perhaps it's time to put them away to discover the wisdom not just data.

On Father's Day this weekend many will celebrate and remember. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist Tom Hehman says his father led him to the love of books and the library.

There are moments when we find ourselves experiencing something seemingly beyond day to day reality. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill calls this a "woo woo" moment.

We may have gone from the cozy neighborhood to the diverse community of the internet. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merill ponders the benefits and the perils of the modern age.

The Maryland Eastern Shore has been blessed with a host of birds some flying thousands of miles and making a pit stop before flying onto their final destigation. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill's attention has fastened onto - what has been called -- the Dipper Duck.

It is Good Friday. And, Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill writes that amidst the anger of our political environment, one should heed the admonition in the New Testament to love one another.

It seems we may always be looking for something we just can't seem to find. Delmarva Public Radio Essayist George Merrill ponders the story about Eeyore's search for his tail to discover his own tale.