Many states issuing shelter-in-place orders or the equivalent, number of infected growing exponentially, essentially the whole of Europe on total lockdown, and yet people are still going out on signings and risking infecting others, stupid kids are having Coronavirus parties, restaurant and supermarket workers are still not taking even the minimum precautions of wearing gloves and masks. And yet, Japan and South Korea are already flattening the curve of infections despite ultra-high population density?
Our society is so disjointed and everyone has developed such an immense "me, me, me" attitude that we are prolonging our own suffering. Our political class would be caught dead before letting the crisis at hand go to waste without slipping petty interest-group-goodies into bills that are supposed to be about providing relief to the beleaguered American people and their employers. Has our country really created such historically good living conditions that SO MANY people are unable to process the notion of accepting a minimal level of inconvenience and taking one for the team? Has our culture really fostered such an environment of self-important narcissism that we can't entertain the idea of sacrificing for the common good? Is there such an optimisim bias that people of our nation can't comprehend the risk they put everyone in by acting on the selfish belief that "It can never happen to me"? The utter lack of a sense of unity and shared trajectory is infuriating. And it is prolonging EVERYONE'S pain. Whether or not certain people like to hear it, it's true, and those that won't get with the program are the ones who are making it worse for everyone.
I simply cannot fathom why people won't take the near-term discomfort to prevent long-term suffering. It's like they don't see the long game and can't strategize past the here and now.
And for those who might say this doesn't belong in this board: Yes it does. This is a direct threat to our industry and way of life. The people who are accepting decreasing fees (as many have complained about) are already depressing fees for all of us. Now that they are willing to accept EVEN LOWER FEES because the SSs know they can take advantage of the crisis to set precedent for lower fees, what do you think will happen when the crisis subsides? What do you think is going to happen when the first crop of signers gets hospitalized in the ICU and the first reverse mortgage signers have that head stone put up and they are able to trace their last interactiong back to the notary who stepped into their home, virus in tow, two weeks before grandpa collapsed with lungs filling with blood? How long is it going to be before claims are made against us that we were a vector for the virus to spread to otherwise isolated homes? Do you think in our sue-happy society that it won't happen? How long before SSs whose hiring parties were unable to close loans due to delays caused by the virus turn around and don't pay the notaries? How long before they stand on the back of this crisis to force RON down the throats of those who oppose it by saying that mobile notaries were responsible for the spread of the virus?
This line of questioning can go on without end. But there should be no reason to bring it up in the first place. It should go entirely without saying that we need to step away.
In the age of technology and the internet there is zero reason why any of us should be threatening the stability of our industry and nation for 85 dollar refinances. If you are concerned about not being able to earn money, then sign up with any of the several dozen online-English teaching platforms (assuming you have a degree) and tutor Asian kids in Englsh to keep yourself afloat. Join UpWork or Fiverr or any of these other online freelancer communities and keep yourself afloat that way. Sell hand-made goods on Etsie or sell toilet paper on Amazon for Christ's sake! The avenues for keeping up your income are not few!
I don't know how many of you I've upset with this post, but seriously. It's time to stop floundering about as selfish individuals and do our part to ensure that this crisis passes. There will be plenty of time to be in it for yourself when this is over and our economy starts to limp back into motion. |
