[Storyteller.]

Originally Posted by Proud90sKid

Also: why the fuck is everyone blaming Trump while at the same time insisting we not call this the Chinese disease?

Because there is a huge difference between rightfully criticising a nation's government and throwing an entire group of people under the bus to save face. The virus and the disease it causes already have a name, and it's really not common custom to name new diseases after their country of origin; if you look back at recent epidemics, at most they've been named for the region or a geographical feature nearby. Referring to the virus by the country where it was first recorded, especially in this political climate, is careless at best and intentionally inflammatory at worst. If you look at press releases from a couple of weeks back you'll notice that Trump's attitude is quite retaliatory and accusatory, and then self-aggrandising when he decided not to use a term he shouldn't have been using to begin with.

Part of the reason WHO chose the name it did was to avoid placing blame and being divisive, and, honestly, I've yet to come across a single instance of someone calling it "the Chinese virus" that wasn't then followed by something racist or xenophobic. It's not the government that's going to feel the heat from this, it's the ordinary people just trying to live their lives who will now be dealing with heightened levels of racism (including actual physical violence) for something they have absolutely no control over. Is that really something you want to defend?