The Covid Conundrum

How the coronavirus is transforming America

A global pandemic is upon us, and like every other component of globalization, it is having a unique impact on the United States. For America, the coronavirus epidemic has exposed some truths, as well as created new ones. Unlike other major crises in US history, we are not coming together politically as a nation. More directly, coronavirus has brought to the forefront a culture of regionalism that has historically separated Americans. It has forced us to change our understandings of how we view enemies and threats, as well as our national response to them. And all of this is taking place as we prepare for the most important election in recent memory. The United States will eventually recover from this epidemic and move forward. But it will not be the same country we knew just a short time ago.

“Americans love a good fight”

America has always been at its best when it has a clearly defined enemy. The very foundations of American culture rest on competition and conflict be it economic, political, or military. One of the problems for the United States in combating coronavirus is it is an enemy we have never fought before. It lacks the physical or psychological components that normally allow the United States to clearly identify who or what we are fighting. Because of this, we have slowly engaged in ad hoc responses as…