(Photo Credits: Screengrab from Inside Edition’s Official YouTube Account)
Coronavirus pandemic is not a “scamdemic.”
This is the gist of the story of a gay man from Texas named Tony Green who took to Dallas Voice to tell his share of devastating coronavirus pandemic experience. Take a look at his story below which he calls “a harsh lesson in the reality of COVID-19.”
Green, 43, says he is a gay conservative; he voted for Donald Trump in 2016. He admitted he traveled “deep into the conspiracy trap over COVID-19” and that he participated in “all the defiant behavior of Trump’s more radical and rowdy cult followers.”
Green described himself as “a hard-ass that stood up for my ‘God-given rights.'”
“I believed the virus to be a hoax.” He added, “I believed the mainstream media and the Democrats were using it to create panic, crash the economy and destroy Trump’s chances at re-election.”
It is with this kind of belief that Green and his partner hosted a party for family members at their house on Saturday, June 13 only to wake up sick the next day. None of them wore a mask at the gathering and so, by Monday, June 15, his partner and his parents had also fallen ill.
Unfortunately, Green’s in-laws—along with his father-in-law’s mother and one of his partner’s sisters—arrived that same day for the birth of their first grandchild. Come nighttime, his father-in-law’s already sick while his mother-in-law and sister-in-law had begun feeling sick. Two days later, it was his father-in-law’s mother and then the new parents.
Further, Green related that he and his father-in-law were hospitalized on June 24 while the latter’s mother was admitted the next day.
In the end, a total of 14 family members tested positive for COVID-19. “Only the newborn was spared,” Green said.
He added that his father-in-law’s mother passed away of COVID-19/pneumonia on July 1 while his father-in-law himself has contracted pneumonia and is now currently on life support. The remaining twelve family members on the other hand, have “either recovered or are in various stages of recovery,” as of July 28.
Green wrote on his op-ed article with Dallas Voice:
You cannot imagine the guilt I feel, knowing that I hosted the gathering that led to so much suffering. You cannot imagine my guilt at having been a denier, carelessly shuffling through this pandemic, making fun of those wearing masks and social distancing. You cannot imagine my guilt at knowing that my actions convinced both our families it was safe when it wasn’t.For those who deny the virus exists or who downplay its severity, let me assure you: The coronavirus is very real and extremely contagious. Before you even know you have it, you’ve passed it along to your friends, family, coworkers and neighbors.
And now, husbands, wives and children are being separated. The sick are taking care of the sick while those without symptoms are self-quarantining. I am aware of how my bias could discredit me with some, but trust me, you do not want this virus. And you do not want your loved ones suffering and dying from this because you are taking a “political stand” or protecting the economy over their lives.
Green ended his op-ed by reminding fellow Americans:
America, this is not going to go away without sacrifice. Either way, we are going to pay a price. Governments are faced with making difficult decisions, and they cannot appease and satisfy everyone.But to do nothing is to be foolish. To ignore or question the validity of this virus, its contagiousness or the consequences of selfish attitudes is — at this stage — completely stupid.
I am calling myself out first, but now this is personal, and I fell on my sword. And I promise you, if we continue being more worried about the disruption to our lives than we are about stopping this virus, not one American will be spared.
Not one.
Read his op-ed in full here. To know more about Tony Green’s story, read here and here.
As of this writing, the United States already has a total of 4,535,577 confirmed coronavirus cases and 153,100 total deaths attributed to COVID-19.
“. . . not one American will be spared. ” How’s that for some trumpian rhetoric? Now let’s talk about how ashamed you should be for voting the f***er into office.
Say that again Eric!! The guy in the article says the Dems/media made it all up to discredit #45. Who does that shit. Smdh
You think he’s ashamed? . . .He’s not ashamed. And neither are the numerous Republicans I came up against at a GAY campground, ……way back in 2004 ! I was a minority.
So my message to the foolish gays who think they wanna support BLM and de-funding the police,. . . you better hope it doesn’t come down to a voter referendum.
Hmm… I do sympathize with his family who are now ill, and having to take care of other ill family members. But I’m also wondering if he’ll ever connect the dots between being a “gay conservative” and still voting for Drumpf, with that old right wingnut line about “you reap what you sow”. If you vote for an ignorant, incompetent, self-serving grifter to be President, you can’t really expect intelligence, a sense of civic responsibility and intelligent leadership to suddenly flower if/when something terrible finally does happen to the nation.
You really need to do your homework DeLuca. For starters, it was not the president who began this journey of the COVID, but those like you will pretend it was. I guess you think Joe Biden (Mr. Gaffe himself) can actually lead this country? You must either be on crack, or you are like Biden and senile. If you think Trump is doing such a bad job, then perhaps you need to return the $1200 stimulus check you got. Oh…that’s many like you complain, but give you a handout and you’re all in. Typical complainer…want handouts by the government so… Read more »
This virus is real. It will spare no one if we keep not following some very simple rules. Wear mask. social distance and wash your hands. What this virus does to one body’s systems is not a pretty site. As an front line observer it is painful to watch.
One of the biggest reasons to deny the virus , is ignorance. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. That applies to people who aren’t informed, nor given truth, as well as those who think they know it all and refuse to accept full truth. One of the biggest arguments I heard was from somebody who said he had a relative in the medical field, who said a lot of deaths were due to other things and blamed on the virus. I replied that I had experience in the medical field, and their reasoning was flawed because it ignored cause… Read more »
I’m not commenting on his political beliefs or his family members being sick. I just cannot understand why people still believe that a world wide pandemic is a hoax it is impossible to think that world governments would band together just too create a lie
Ignorance and arrogance is killing people every day. Put on a damn mask.
typical naysayer that the virus isn’t real!!! sorry for your family members dying, however you WERE IGNORNAT over the fact that is IS REAL and put the family members through this!!!! too bad you didn’t get sicker from it!! from those that think the virus is hoax—go ahead, hope you get it and suffer from it. perhaps next time, if you live, you will think twice about virus hoaxes…..side note: you should be held LIABLE for your family members deaths!!!
There’s no such thing as a gay Republican. Everyone knows all Republicans hate gays. This guy isn’t gay. He’s a straight guy in denial.
LOL @ You, Lesson Learned!!! That’s What You Get For Being In The Shadow Of A P.O.S.P.O.T.U.S. Who Doesn’t Give A Shit About Gays… Hard Heads Makes Soft Asses!!!
Have no pity for this Trumptard one fucking bit.
Bottom line, you can thank tRump for this, Obama and his team had everything in place for viruses/pandemics, tRump dismantled all of it! Then, he denied the info., received on top of it all, and to this very day, he’s ‘still’ complaining about Obama.
Good. Sorry, not sorry. How’s it feel to be a martyr to the cause?
Mark Twain was right when he said “No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot” Wearing a mask IS A Choice, as is social distancing a choice. One can chose to wear a mask and Social distance oneself by Six feet horizontally. OR One can make the Choice not to wear a mask and not to social distance, only to have a family member, a loved one or themselves being social distance by Six feet Vertically, when they, a family member or a loved one are laid to rest to join the 154,980 souls who have lost their lives… Read more »
Clearly, Green is an idiot. Or, maybe a half-idiot. Obviously, the virus is not a hoax. And, for all you generalizers out there, just because somebody voted for Trump that doesn’t mean they think the virus is a hoax, OK? Green is about half right in that the Democrats are indeed utilizing the emergence of this particular virus for political reasons. Where was their angst when Obama didn’t do anything about H1N1 or SARS, whichever one it was? Where is their angst over the common flu that kills many, many more every year than covid 19? Nobody shut down the… Read more »
As a first responder from New York, I’ve seen firsthand how much more serious COVID-19 is compared to the various flu strains that we get from year to year. Normally during flu season we get a fair amount of calls, and see some deaths from it, but nothing approaching what I’ve seen with COVID-19. Not only that, but COVID-19 is significantly more contagious, and as a result several months ago we had to start triaging cases so that only the most severe were brought to hospitals for treatment, which was a major departure from our normal operating policy under which… Read more »
How many times do you have to repeat your alleged credentials as a first responder? It’s getting old. Look, anybody can inflate the numbers and they have been by counting anybody who happened to die who was suspected to have or proven to have covid 19. Died of blunt trauma in a car wreck but tested poz for covid 19? Frail with COPD at 85 years old and die suspected of having covid 19? Got a weakened immune system from cancer issues and died? Those are all a covid 19 deaths according to the political alarmists running the show. When… Read more »
Furthermore, Obama did take immediate action regarding the 2009 strain of H1N1 colloquially known as “swine flu”. (For future reference, H1N1 is a subtype of virus strain, and SARS is an acronym for severe acute respiratory syndrome, the class of illness caused by strains of the coronavirus, with COVID-19 being one strain.) Obama declared a public health emergency when there were only 20 confirmed cases in the country, and not yet a single death from the virus. His administration immediately began supplying hospitals with anti-influenza drugs from the national stockpile to hospitals, and also took swift action to get testing… Read more »
LQ, you must have failed math.About 35,000,000 influenza cases were reported in the United States in the 2018-19 flu season. About 34,000 died. About 4,600,000 of covid in the United States and 154,000 dead. I have worked with people over 75 years of age for near 40 years…. I have never seen one pass away from the flu. I have had 6 pass away in the past 4 months of covid-19. Trump saw how Denmark, South Korea, and many other countries flattened the curve with strict precautions put into place. Even Italy as bad as it was in March flattened… Read more »
And in response to your claims that his administration has had any actions against the gay community, here is a list of just some of the anti-LGBT actions he has taken: The Justice Department reversed a federal policy that said transgender workers were protected from discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Justice Department also stepped into in a major federal lawsuit to argue the Civil Rights Act of 1964 doesn’t protect gay workers from discrimination. The Bureau of Prisons rolled back rules May 11 that had allowed transgender inmates to use facilities, including cellblocks… Read more »
LQ, you must have failed math. Look at the numbers. H1N1 and the recent flu can not compare to the severity of Covid-19. H1N1 reported over 60,000,000 cases with 12,450 deaths. About 35,000,000 influenza cases were reported in the United States in the 2018-19 flu season. About 34,000 died. About 4,600,000 of covid in the United States and 154,000 dead. I have worked with people over 75 years of age for near 40 years…. I have never seen one pass away from the flu. I have had 6 pass away in the past 4 months of covid-19. Trump saw how… Read more »
LMAO! Still complaining about Obama, ah? Was there a problem in our country concerning H1N1 or SARS, that republicans COULD complain about as far as Obama’s handling of? No. Because ‘he’ was not in denial of the situation/s at hand then, he was on it, problem/s solved. “Orange man,” is bad, lmao; sick-hell, he’s certifiably-insane, I call him the Anti-Christ-he’s evil as all hell. “Anti-Christ,” is now utilizing this pandemic, as he wants to remain in the white house; hasn’t any thing to do with any sense of humanity. . . he cares not! It’s too simple, to see the… Read more »
I see multiple down votes on my comments, but not a single refutation of any of the points I made.
I had left a comment here earlier pointing out how I noticed that my other responses to Libertarian Queer’s original comment had received dislikes, but that nobody had refuted any of the things I had specified in those responses. For some reason it’s no longer here. Just for the sake of clarity, I hadn’t meant it to antagonize anyone, but just as an observation that clearly people disagree with what I had posted, but hadn’t given any reason for why. With that comment, I was trying to imply that if anyone does disagree, I would appreciate more information about what… Read more »
I think the more-valuable lesson to take from this is that there are gay Republicans. Gay Democrats have ZERO stronghold over the “gay” vote. We’re 50-50!
I’m a volunteer first responder with my town’s fire department in New York state. When the pandemic hit here, and the state enacted strict stay-at-home orders, I was furloughed from my actual job. I ended up in a tense situation where I was essentially unemployed, while on the metaphorical frontlines in the fight against COVID-19, as not having a job freed me up to respond 24-hours a day to emergency calls. I serve in my department as an EMT, and am in training as a firefighter, though that training was also halted due to covid. Further intensifying my situation, only… Read more »
Life is hard and death is always near. It always has been but apparently you’re only now coming to that realization in stark terms. Get used to it. There are no panaceas. There will never be a Utopia. Maybe you’re not cut out to be a firefighter or EMT if the emotions grind on you. It’s OK. You seem intelligent enough to do something else with your life that might be less crushing on your mind if you wanted to. Good job on stopping watching the news. It’s all biased these days and it rots your brain just about as… Read more »
He thought it was a hoax despite tens of thousands of people dying…every damn day. This man is a regretful moron: he should have known better but would rather be loyal to a racist homophobe who lies every time he speaks.
In red states it’s common to find many conservative gays with very basic and thoughtless views. They have a complex on being normal or no different than their dysfunctional, closed minded straight counterparts to the point they view other gays as negative. It’s one of the saddest things to experience because they’re suppressing their true selves and constantly trying to make being gay as inoffensive and Christian as possible.
Oh, really? You got it all wrong. I feel normal to me. Sure, I suck dick and like them in my ass and sometimes like to stick mine in a guy’s ass. I’ve even had live-ins, hook ups, and just plain gay friends. The problem with your line of thinking is that you think all gay people feel like being gay should define them and it’s simply not true. Being attracted to other guys is just a part of me. My character, integrity, personal convictions, and how others including friends and family see me strike me as more important than… Read more »
The lack of civility, compassion, and tolerance is absolutely sickening.
Sorry for the lost of your family member. It’s never easy to lose a “love one.” With that being said, I fail to understand, will never understand, your stupidity, ignorance, and lack of common sense. It took someone close to you, a love one, for you to realize COVID 19 IS NOT A HOAX!!!!!!!!
Same thing applies to Herman Cain. Trump got u guys all F–K UP!!!!!!!
I’ll assume that this man is just a stupid stupid person,gay or not ,he is just a stupid stupid man. Why did he believe it was a hoax? Because his lord and master DT told him to. So not only is he just plain dumb he is also a fool. I guess if Donny told him he was straight he’d starting sniffing out the gash.
I’ve already had the virus, so I’m not going to stop sucking dick.
First he believed it to be a hoax, because he can’t think for himself, then once he is impacted he starts to panic. Then of course they go to the hospital for care. Oh yeah, then they start a go-fund-me campaign…..I’m surprised this story is even on this board. Sickening!
Sadly there is no sympathy or empathy from me. Why these idiots insist that covid is a hoax or the flu still baffles me. It has been on every tv and radio channel and in print for 6 months. Yet fools still believe the moron in the white house that will lie, cheat, steal and do anything for his ego and financial gain. If you do not like wearing a mask, you will hate wearing a ventilator.
And the comments prove how politized this has become on both sides. Those blaming Trump seem to forget what the liberal Democrats Pelosi, Hillary, Cuomo, Schumer, Schiff, Waters, etc. said that Trump was “creating a crisis”, being “xenophobic”, making the virus “worse than it is”. Suddenly those same liberals are denouncing Trump for the way this is being handled while idiot millennials and Alphabet Geners insist on partying at the beach, the lake, and where ever, but when they contract the virus because of their own stupidity it’s Trumps fault? See how stupid that actually sounds?
Sure the virus is real, but it’s not near as bad as the media and politics are making it. People die and get sick every day from all kinds of things from accidents to illness. I don’t believe that there was or should be any reason to ruin the economy, or wear masks or social distance. This bug will run it’s course just like every virus that comes along. I hate wearing masks, and don’t unless I absolutely have to. (And the government now is trying to force us to do so). I don’t worry much about distancing either. And… Read more »