Dress Rehearsal – A full, uninterrupted rehearsal of a play or performance with costumes and stage props.
Yes, it has been a kind of dress rehearsal now for the recent 15 months or so. And it has turned out to be a disaster.
Covid-19, the Corona Virus pandemic is the title of the play and it is not over yet.
And it is obvious that we, the human species, has been unable to find a worldwide unified response to this pandemic – the first one in the 21. century – threatening the world population.
To this date today the virus has officially infected almost 200 Million people and killed more than 4 Million.
Our shortcomings are glaringly visible far and near, from irresponsible behavior of individuals and groups to the haphazard back-and-forth of lockdowns by cities, countries and states, by uncoordinated travel restrictions and lagging vaccination campaigns and further up the chain of decision-making to the toothless guidelines of the WHO, World Health Organization and the UN, the United Nations.
Well, not so united actually.
Rather than a unified plan of action, every country more or less acts for itself or in a chaotic and confusing collaboration at best.
The glorious Social Networks have done their very best to spread disinformation and divisive info-loops to everyone on their feeding-drip.
Obviously there are exceptions to that in the response to this disaster and a lot of good willed efforts too.
But now we are one and a half years into the melee and no end in sight.
Why would i call the pandemic a dress rehearsal?
Well, i am certain that in the close future the big punches will be coming in quickly and unavoidably and humanity is not ready to prepare for the second act. And the third and the forth. And the fifth!
I suppose that those wake-up-punches will be even harder to swallow.
1) The Covid-19 Pandemic continuing indefinitely because of virus mutations (due to unvaccinated folks and the illusion of herd immunity)
2) Mass Extinction
The so called Fifth Mass Extinction of living species of this Earth is under way right now. After 4 mass extinction that happened long long time ago, this one is predominantly cause by one of Earth’s (Gaia’s) species itself – us human beings.
In our ignorance and greed and unceasing population expansion we have already pushed Nature to the brink. It is so sad and depressing that i can’t even talk about it without being in tears.
But read for yourself, from the people who know best: National Geographic
– What are Mass Extinctions and what causes them
– One Million Species at risk of Extinction
3) Overpopulation / Food & Water Shortage / Mass Immigration
The world’s population increased from 1.6 billion in 1900 to a mind-blowing 7.9 billion by 2021
This has many reasons, not necessarily bad ones.
But it has consequences that are pretty disastrous and quietly accelerating beyond the radar of daily news and TV coverage.
Many NGOs worldwide are working to distribute information and practical projects to mitigate or at least slowing this trend, but the fact is obvious – We are just too many folks, too many mouths to feed and house and do business.
Something has to give.
And as usual, it is Gaia, our beautiful Earth and Nature that is exploited as long as there is something there to take.
4) Climate Change / Global Warming
A picture is saying more than a 1000 words.
And here are a few.
What would it cost to end Climate Change?