Parochial thoughts on the 10 Day Sturgis Motorcycle Rally

… in which 250 thousand people are expected to converge on a small South Dakota town…whose residents, by the way, were against this taking place this year https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/10/us/sturgis-motorcycle-rally-residents-decision/index.html

While I’d love to reside in a self-constructed bubble of Nihilism and meaningless existence, I still have to come out into the world and deal with the reality of its opposite.

Shit matters. Leadership matters.

To a great extent, I get it. I get that the boredom, the cabin fever, and the isolation is real and very crippling (ask anyone in solitary confinement). But this is an opportunity to get out in the fresh air and enjoy the company of other people.

But…

This is where leadership should kick in. Having someone above you setting an example, setting guidelines and enforcing the rules is very important. It matters.

Now…The Governor of South Dakota is a rabid Trump supporter who not only doesn’t advocate wearing masks but actually opposes them. So, 250 thousand people are free to come from out of state and infect people back in their home states.

• What if someone in leadership had said “sorry folks, come back next year”? (I get the feeling people would have shown up anyway.)
• What about enforcing a mask policy? (Enforcement only seems to go so far when the people outnumber the violators.)
• What about (at the very least) coming out to the rally in a mask and setting an example? (I know, I know. What am I, crazy?)

The genie is out the bottle. It’s happening. I think I know some people who are there.

I don’t blame the people for doing what people do. Failure of leadership on all levels has left people angry and defiant and if I’ve learned anything it’s that nobody learns anything until it happens to them. And even then, it’s not foolproof.

It’s why I’m not going anywhere but work or outdoor facilities within driving distance until at least 2021.

I will continue to be Parochial.