If I needed to summarize the philosophical cluster fuck that had been the last two years, it might go like this.

Radical Left: Fifteen days to flatten the curve!

Me: Okay. Well, I'm a freelancer and I don't have anything scheduled in the next two weeks. I'm not gonna fight this too hard

(One month later)

Radical Left: Stay at home and wear a mask or you wanna kill grandma.

Me: Okay, we're a little past the fifteen days. My grandma has been dead for almost twenty years. I've got a gig coming up. Can you show me some data?

Radical Right: I refuse to wear a mask!

Me: Okay, I'm not entirely read up on the data and I respect your decisions; but, I don't mind masking if I'm entering a private property that requires it.

(Two months later)

Radical Left: Abolish the police! But, also, throw people in jail who violate the lockdown orders!

Me: Ummm...what?

(Five months later)

Radical Left: You're doing your duty as a citizen by staying home.

Radical Right: I'm going to cough within six feet of people.

Me: Ummm, okay, you guys have all cost me about $20,000 worth of contract gigs.

(One month after that)

Radical Left: Okay, it's safe to get on planes; but, it's not okay to go to a sporting event in an open air stadium.

Me: Are you high? That makes literally no sense.

(Skip ahead a bit)

Radical Left: Large social gatherings are dangerous and spreading the disease and should be banned; but, if it's a BLM march, the virus won't care and we shouldn't enforce any restrictions for mass gatherings.

Me: Okay, this is going off the rails.

Radical Right: Private citizens should pick up their guns and defend people's homes and businesses if the cops won't. Anybody who does is a hero.

Radical Left: It's all just property. Let angry people steal or destroy it and the cops should stay out of it and private citizen should prevent damage or theft.

Me: People, can we slow down and think about the implications?

(A few months later)

Government: There are vaccines!

Me: Great!

Radical Left: Mandate them!

Radical Right: I'll never take the shot and you're a lemming if you do!

Me: Well, most vaccines have worked. I won't force anybody to put anything into his or her body that he or she doesn't want; but, I'll get it.

Radical Right: Lemming!

Radical Left: "He or she" is assuming a binary gender construct that excludes people who identify neither as male or female. You are a bigot. Also, you're an anti-vaxxer.

(One month later)

Radical Right: We should have stayed in Afghanistan.

Radical Left: Biden didn't fuck up the withdraw. It was always going to suck.

Me: I mean, we should have pulled out of Afghanistan a long time ago; but, Biden clearly fucked this up.

Both the Radical Right and Left...mostly Left attack me.

(Fast forward)

Average people: There's a new variant that we should be concerned about; but, it really isn't killing anybody.

Radical Left: Make like Australia and lock everybody in their homes again until this goes away!

Radical Right: Seriously, now you're literally trying to combat the flu with fascism.

Me: I actually have to agree with the radical Right on this one.