May 20, 2020 Issue, Page 4 of 8

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Page 4 The Elk City News, Elk City, Oklahoma Wednesday, May 20, 2020 To the senior class of 2020 Opinion Page “ElkCituNews In defense of brevity, Tomorrow could be the Year Serving Western Oklahoma since 1901 pragmatism and self-criticism of Wonders We need to act in By John Halpin, Inside- virtue. By Courtney Montgom- you or your loved one catch- a way that protects Sources.com There’s no need to pro- I'ma middle-age guy who duce a five-page discussion ery, InsideSources.com “In 1665, the University ing the virus. We haven’t all been quar- our elders from analyzes politics for a living. on the labor theory of value of Cambridge temporarily My wife and I have two kids and the sources of inequal- closed due to the bubonic antine and chilling. a little bit younger than you ity if what you really mean plague. Isaac Newton had By the way, even a ge- coronavirus all. One is in college and one is supposed to start this fall to say is, “Everyone should have a job and health care.” to work from home, and he nius like Isaac Newton had used this time to develop a troubled home life. His fa- (God willing). Don’t be super cringey. A calculus and the theory of By Nita Lelyveld, Los Angeles Times Since I’m an old codger little cringey-ness is to be gravity.” I’m sure your move ther passed away before he I want to go to the movies. I want to go to the beach. I who doesn’t use social me- expected in politics. to online instruction and re- was born, his mother remar- want to get my shaggy mane tamed by a professional. I want to enjoy a fine meal at a restaurant. dia, I asked them for theirPoliticians and other pro- mote learning has been just ried a man he came to dis- But I know I need to be patient about returning to the thoughts on what makes a love cliches, as productive. fessionals like and he was raised by his world at large, and not solely for my own safety. I need good graduation address. mixed metaphors and cor- Martin Kleppmann tweet- maternal grandmother. Like to be patient enough to ensure the safe return also of the Their response: “Keep it porate buzzwords. “A rising ed this out on March 9. Af- vibrant, life-savoring older people I’ve been on the phone short. Make it useful. Don’t tide lifts all boats. But we ter a little Googling, I found I said, there’s nothing new. with over the last week. be super cringey.” can’t put all our eggs in one the actual quote from New- Regardless of your per- Elaine Lubkin, who has been widowed for 10 years, Not exactly John Stuart basket and then misfire. We ton about what historians sonal situation, you’ ve made gets lonely cooped up alone in her 1 1th-floor apartment at Mill, but hey that sounds call “annus mirabilis” or must first kickstart innova- itto this day. Take a moment Park La Brea. She misses her classes, her club, her meals like pretty solid advice for tion and take a holistic ap- his “year of wonders.” The out with friends, the interesting speakers at her former anyone at any stage of life. proach to get new ideas into budding 23-year-old scien- to appreciate all you have temple’s wisdom circle, seeing her only grandchild in the Keep it short. Politics the bloodstream.” tist did indeed use this time accomplished and those who flesh. Don’t be this person. Lim- outside of the classroom to is the worst field ever, ex- have supported you through- At87, she’s experiencing this life pause with a particular cept for the law, academics, it yourselves to only one cli- discover many groundbreak- out this journey. poignancy that goes beyond her heightened coronavirus tisk. business, government, the che or corporate buzzword ing theories that went on to nonprofit sector and basi- per week, and you will go revolutionize science. As you learned in your Being out and about brings her joy, she says. New learn- far in life. English literature classes, ing experiences keep her sharp. cally any other professional Over the last few months, Avoiding excessive cring- “T don’t have that many days left, and I can’t afford to endeavor you might be em- ey-ness also requires self- we’ve heard the words “un- “no man is an island.” spend them being isolated from the rest of the world,” she barking on upon graduation. reflection and moderation. precedented,” “uncertain” ‘We don’t know what the told me. Politics is full of blowhards and “troubling” used more I've been angered a lot lately by the people who seem Tf you don’t have some- new normal is yet. We don’t and know-it-alls who have thing constructive to offer than we care to recall. [don’t to see our society’s elders as expendable. By their indif- ference to the crises in our nursing homes. By their blithe opinions on every issue un- in a meeting or debate, keep know about you, but ifI get know when we are going to cost-benefit analyses that imply that our older people der the sun often built on quiet. Not every thought in ‘one more email from (insert have a vaccine or effective might be acceptable sacrifices at the altar of economic re- shifting rationales and shaky your head needs to be said favorite retailer here) about treatment regimens. vival. By their eagerness to crowd onto beaches for their empirical foundations. And out loud. The world needs us all being in this together Your summer plans may own immediate pleasure, oblivious to the consequences they drone on forever using both introverts and extro- sure to ripple out to those who, because of their age, are dodgy language. verts, so be sure to ask the But seriously, if I get one be up in the air. Like many, more vulnerable. Don’t be political in this views of those who don’t more email ... your job or internship oppor- Vulnerable to the disease, that is, not in all ways. Life sense. always blurt out their opin- I tell you the Newton tunities may have drastically tends to makes you tougher over time, I think. Rather than piping off ions. And remember that in story to remind you that changed over the past few Lubkin has survived two bouts of cancer and the loss of politics, as in many fields, about things you know little there’s really “nothing new months. the husband she loved. She knows you get through things experts are constantly get- but that doing so takes work. She is trying to follow the about, using concepts and ting things wrong. They under the sun.” From the In times of uncertainty, rules and do the work right now. And for the sake of her theories that no one under- miss housing bubbles. They bubonic plague to the influ- and her friends, so will I. stands, be a normal person. launch wars based on bad in- enza epidemic of 1918, time go back to the basics and Older people always have enriched my world. They’ ve Speak clearly and concisely. tel. They tell people to go to and again society has been ground yourself by reaffirm- lived through things I haven’t. They’ve come to under- Master details before offer- restaurants during pandem- forced to deal with inexpli- ing your core values. stand things I still don’t. Understanding can take time, says Madonna Magee, ing opinions. Listen to oth- ics without a face mask. cable loss of life at alarming The education you have 73, an actress and former longtime acting teacher who ers. Use regular terminol- Be self-critical. Assume rates, widespread personal just recently - reminiscing alone in her North Hollywood ogy. you’ve made a mistake and financial turmoil, fear of received has empowered apartment - grasped her own mother’s behavior whenever As my first boss in politics somewhere in your work and the unknown and attempts you with tools and honed Magee and her four siblings got sick. Her mother would and ace speechwriter, Bob double check everything. to escape the effects of an your critical thinking skills. sterilize everything a sick child touched and keep that Don’t be afraid to ask people Boorstin, wisely proffered in invisible but deadly scourge. child separate, behind a closed door, warning the others for feedback. And if your These skills will serve you response to my windy writ- Our technologically ad- not to touch even the doorknob. theory doesn’t fit the facts, Magee’s mother, she says, was 8 when the 1918 flu pan- ing: “It’s not a long yellow update your theory rather vanced and globally inter- well in whatever field you demic hit. She saw whole families wiped out. fruit, John. It’s a banana.” connected eventually find yourself. society faces than dismissing the facts or “Now it’s hitting me. I just got the chills,” Magee told Make it useful. Politics, creating alternative ones. unique challenges due to More important than book me. “We're going through some of what she went through.” like many professions, is Like Lubkin, Magee is widowed. She lost her beloved Keep it short. Make it use- COVID-19. That same tech- knowledge and life skills is filled with endless meetings, ful. Don’t be super cringey. nology allows us to stay con- dog Bear one year, her husband Ken, to cancer, the next. who you fundamentally are They are “the ghosts of the place,” she told me. She still discussions and ideological Solid words to live by from nected in ways our ancestors sometimes leaves the TV on in the living room when she debates. And reports. Lots the youth of today. could never have imagined, as a person. goes to bed, imagining that Ken is out there, staying up of long, tedious and not Just remember, you don’t but the sheer volume of The coronavirus crisis has late. She sometimes thinks she still hears Bear’s heavy particularly helpful reports. want to end up a dollar late conflicting information we exposed us. breathing by her bed. It makes being alone inside a little Reports can be enlighten- and day short. receive can at times be para- more bearable, this feeling that they haven't left her. We've seen the dark side Like Lubkin, Magee’s very active. “I’m not used to just ing and even invigorating if Congratulations, class of lyzing. Against the backdrop of of human nature. After the sitting,” she said. you’re into this sort of thing. 2020! She misses her yoga classes and biking. She misses her But keep in mind that most John Halpin is a senior the novel coronavirus, you initial stories of toilet paper chiropractor and her grief group. She misses prepared food normal people really aren’t fellow and co-director of the have persevered. You over- hoarders subsided, we've on the go - although the pandemic finally got her over the into it and just want to know politics and elections pro- came the abrupt end to the witnessed extremism on both sad hump of avoiding cooking for one. what you’re proposing and gramat the Centerfor Amer- senior year you had envi- But after a recent bout of pneumonia, she stays inside sides of the “stay home” vs. to keep herself and others safe. She joins meditation and how you propose to do it. ican Progress. He wrote this sioned and the memories yoga and reiki sessions online. She sits on the balcony and Clarity is an underrated (for InsideSources.com. you expected to make. “reopen now” crowds. imagines the whoosh of traffic as ocean waves, rolling in You transitioned com- However, we have seen and out. She tries to face the moment bravely, at peace. let them closer. important,” he said. “Things pletely to online learning. the front-line workers rise to I think that a lot of people don’t clearly see their elders Kaufer’s old enough to re- happen. OK, this is another The struggle was real for because they equate advanced age with frailty. I don’t. member the polio epidemic, thing.” everyone, including your the challenge. We have seen Neither does John Sullivan, even though, just shy of 90, and visiting a close friend Back on the 11th floor at little kids sewing masks. in an iron lung. She never Park La Brea, when Lubkin teachers and professors who he has problems with his legs and now has to use a cane. Before the pandemic, though, he wouldn’t miss Tuesday forgot “the awful sound” of gets restless, she sometimes reinvented the wheel all We’ve read about the Italian trivia night at Sherman Oaks’ Robin Hood British Pub, that machine. She’s taking sticks her head out the win- while balancing their own priest who declined to use a where his team, the High Tops, regularly ranked high. this pandemic’s rules seri- dow and tries to take deep home lives. Take advantage ventilator so another patient The team includes someone in his 20s and others in their ously. breaths. of this downtime to let them 30s and 40s, who ace the pop culture of now. Sullivan So is Rodney Vaccaro, Sometimes she drives to know how much you appre- had a chance to live. aces the pop culture of yore. Being multigenerational is a 68-year-old screenwrit- Santa Monica and sits in her ciate their efforts. The pandemic has taken the team’s secret weapon. I think it’s essential to a healthy er, who remembers being daughter's backyard to get society. a small child when polio to see her, if from a distance. Someday you can tell your much from us, but what re- For now, Sullivan, who has been on his own since his closed schools and public When she can, she goes grandkids about how you mains is who we truly are at lost his wife, Gerda, five years ago, looks forward to swimming pools. His broth- outside for walks, although submitted your final group weekly trivia nights with his friends on Zoom. He wonders er got it and fully recovered, she’s wary of her building’s assignment at 11:59 p.m. our core. if he’ll ever again get to experience the joy of huddling though many didn’t. He small elevator. She recently even with bad Wi-Fi, a sib- As you start your next closely with his teammates in a crowded pub. I’d like to remembers the miraculous had to share it with a young do what I can to stem the tide of this virus, to help him get ling on asleep strike howling chapter, remember that hu- moment of standing in line man who wasn’t wearing a back there, even if it’s not quite the same. in the next room and never manity has been here before, to get the polio vaccine. mask. She turned away from It’s easier for some older people to face this sudden re- “T think it’s really impor- hearing from that one guy but you have not: Tomorrow treat because they’ re already comfortable with retreating. tant to try to listen to the him and faced the wall. on your team even though “[ was stepping back anyway. I'd already given up my voices that are trying to be She shouldn’t have had to. he apparently had plenty of still holds the potential to be car,” said Selma Kaufer, 85, whom I met writing a dif- reasonable right now,” Vac- He should have automati- your “year of wonders.” time to learn the latest dance ferent column and checked back with this week. She told caro told me. cally been doing his part to on TikTok. Courtney Montgomery is me she’s content to sit with a book or watch the world go He’s inclined to be re- protect her. by on the big balcony outside her apartment in Beverly clusive anyway. He writes, I know I will because I Some of you have had to a visiting fellow at Indepen- Grove. have more days to spare. face seemingly insurmount- paints, cooks and hangs out dent Women’s Forum. She She’s lucky to have found someone to shop for her - and with his dog, Giuseppe. Nita Lelyveld is a metro able obstacles - unexpected there’s room enough outside for her sons and her grand- “One of the gifts of age is columnist for the Los Ange- economic hardship, tough wrote this for InsideSources. sons to visit while staving at least six feet awav. She won't that nothing seems all that les Times. home situations. iob loss or com.