Veteran Journalist Releases Touching COVID Message

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Tens of thousands of Americans have died due to the Coronavirus pandemic, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the total U.S. death toll could hit 100,000 by June 1. Yet, most of President Donald Trump’s public commentary amidst the crisis has centered on belittling his political opponents while simultaneously congratulating himself for a supposed job well done in responding to the pandemic. This weekend, legendary news host Dan Rather stepped in to help pick up the slack of the president’s moral leadership failings. He posted a reminder on Facebook for observers to remember the human toll of the pandemic and invited his followers to share stories of loved ones.

He wrote:

‘So. Many. Dead. Each number had a name. Let us not forget or minimize pain and loss. Children without parents. Empty seats at Thanksgiving dinners. Laughter, smiles and hugs that will never be. Please share stories here and elsewhere. Death on this scale mustn’t be normalized.’

So. Many. Dead. Each number had a name. Let us not forget or minimize pain and loss. Children without parents. Empty…

Posted by Dan Rather on Saturday, May 16, 2020

Rather got numerous replies containing the kinds of stories that he was seeking to help be told. One Facebook user, for example, shared:

‘Thank you. My dad Arnold Kronfeld died April 3 in NJ. We watched you every night, Dan. He was a passionate social dancer and prided himself in being an amazing dancer in every form from Latin to Balkan to country western to swing to Israeli to ballroom and beyond. He is missed.’

As of Saturday afternoon, over 89,000 people had died due to the Coronavirus in the U.S. alone. In the U.K., which has the second highest confirmed death toll of any individual nation, more than 34,000 people had died from the virus by the same point. In Italy, one of the early epicenters of the pandemic, the total death toll as of early Saturday stood at 31,763, and the grim numbers go well on from there.

While this situation continued to develop, Trump’s focus was anywhere but with the suffering. In fact, he tweeted threats against Democrats over the weekend that sounded like he was trying to depict himself as some wannabe mob boss. This is the ridiculousness to which Trump has brought the presidency.

Check out replies to Rather:

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