One of the hallmarks of tragic figures in literature and art is that they have a flaw that makes their demise, and the demise of those around them, inevitable. The coronavirus pandemic is the tragic result of the Republican Party’s shortsighted greed. Besides the threat to human mortality, the economic fallout that will result from this pandemic—whether we close down and social distance or not—will be as intense as anything most of us have ever experienced in our lifetimes. We are living in interesting times, and how people respond to this crisis will be telling. Conservatives, taking their marching orders from Trump (and possibly Jared Kushner), have laid down their meager hand and that hand includes nothing but another last-second payout to the wealthiest among us.

Republicans like Donald Trump and Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are already talking about the need to sacrifice hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of American lives in some jingoistic suicide mission to save our economy. Democratic officials, on the other hand, along with most Americans, don’t believe that grandma and grandpa need to run like lemmings into the invisible hand of a conservative God.* As America’s orange and racist blunt object continued to offer up no good plan for how this country needs to proceed for both our public health and our shared economy, #DieForTheDow began to trend on Twitter.