## 55 Did the SARS-CoV2 teach us something ?

Last month I wasn't careful: I didn't wear a mask when I went to the chemist's, even though there were people around me with colds. The result: I was sick the next day. I wonder what the COVID crisis has taught us. The answer is very simple: Absolutely nothing. Around me, on the train or the metro, I saw no one with a mask over their mouth and nose. No one in chemist, even if someone comes for a test on SARS-CoV2. It's like a social pressure not to wear a mask because it's a sign of submission. Not wearing a mask is not even a rebellion, it's like avoiding the past, the memory of a cursed time when millions died.

But the mask is not the only thing we could have learned during that damned time of our lives. Before SARS-CoV2, I only had 25 days a year to work remotely from home. I used it... But during SARS-CoV2 I was very happy to have more than 3 days a week. My work is better because I'm not disturbed by other people in the open space or calls for help. I have developed a good organization of my work, with days where I do some tasks on the site and others at home, because I need time and peace to do that. I'm lucky because not everyone can do that. My employer saw improvements with remote working: less office space, less property, less heating costs, etc. Everyone seemed happy. And everyone was looking for jobs with remote working. But some people cannot work from home. I saw this with people who did not have a secure place to work, who had problems with their family life, with their children. And also with loneliness. I don't have that problem because I'm an only son and I'm used to a certain amount of loneliness.
So remote working was not only positive, and because everything comes from the US, big companies started to avoid remote working because of supposed productivity problems. I think it's more about toxic management and global surveillance and even a kind of paranoia. Remote work will go away, but these jobs will always be in demand for many workers.

One good thing during the SARS-CoV2 "era" was the decline in human activity. Good news for the planet, for the animals and... for the people because there was less pollution in the air. I saw animals in the streets and on the roads again. There was no air traffic, no over-tourism and everyone was happy to discover their own landscape again. I did my shopping right next to my house, on foot. I still do that today, but it's not for everyone. I've used online websites to buy some goods, and that's not true for everything today. Those who developed websites for their business at that time are not happy today because not everyone is a winner. And it was a time when growth was an idea of the past. Now it's the comeback of growth with all the stupidity that comes with it when you live on a sphere like our Earth. Our planet is a finite universe with limits and exploitation that cannot continue. Even if we share our resources better, it's not possible to grow infinitely. Air traffic is back. There are more and more p
lanes carrying goods and tourists. It's the same on the seas and oceans. Pollution is not decreasing today, it is only slowing down in the most virtuous countries. It won't be enough for the timid goals of COP21... We can see the consequences in the climate today. I think I have changed a lot, but not enough myself.

I don't use my feet enough. I'm using too much energy, even though, as a vegan and a climate-conscious person, I look for more efficient goods, recycle and buy used things... like the PC I'm writing this article on. I'm not ready to work like I used to, but I'm not ready to live completely differently either. I find excuses, of course, because it's dangerous to walk or cycle on the streets around me. It's still a car city. I'm not ready to buy everything locally ... because there aren't enough shops or sometimes I'm not able to find something coming from a factory or shop near me with an EV truck. There's so much to do to change our lives, but I like challenges. This is the most important challenge of our life and we forget it!

Another thing we have forgotten is why SARS-CoV2 came into our lives. We'll never know the whole truth, but what we can learn is that it's because of intensive livestock farming, because of uncontrolled trade between countries, because of the risks we take... see paragraph 1. Has anything changed? Not enough...or maybe it's getting worse for animals in larger farms everywhere. New viruses are appearing everywhere, sometimes with mutations in humans. Have we learned anything about contamination through global trade, travel? I don't think so, and air travel is getting bigger and bigger, with no health controls of course. Luckily, Ebola or other viruses are not growing. And the risk we take? Are we aware of it? I'm not talking about being paranoid about everything, but about avoiding certain risks. For example, wearing a mask in certain circumstances, like when you visit the elderly with a cold... Or making sure you are vaccinated or protected. Vaccine hesitancy is old, but it's growing again with climate chang
e denial. There's so much to learn, but we're bad students!

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