COVID-19 leaves lots of us feeling as if time is frozen. Businesses closing, restrictions, face coverings, and more might have people thinking we won’t ever get back to normal. And for now, things are pretty much the same as they have been these past few months, the same as things will be for the next few months.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in September that America should be prepared to “hunker down” again. And Canada’s prime minister seems to agree with that sentiment. Justin Trudeau said our northern neighbor will keep all 5,525 miles of its border closed until America gets covid-19 under control.
Here’s what he told Canada’s Global Television Network: “The U.S. is not in a place where we would feel comfortable reopening those borders. We will continue to make sure that Canadian safety is top of mind when we move forward. We see the cases in the United States and elsewhere around the world, and we need to continue to keep these border controls in place.”
The man makes a point.
“In the past week, 13 states—including Alaska, Minnesota, Montana and North Dakota, which border Canada—topped their own records for new cases in a seven-day period. North Dakota, which shares a 310-mile-long border with its northern neighbor, reports cases at a speed one-third faster on a per capita basis than any U.S. state experienced in the worst of the spring or summer surges,” USA Today reports.
With statistics like that, it’s no wonder our neighbors to the north hung a “Closed” sign on the border. (This doesn’t bode well for all the Americans who will inevitably Google “How to move to Canada” on election night.)
The list of countries that say “No thanks” to Americans is long. The European Union reopened for travel in June, but only to 14 countries. America didn’t make the cut. Talk about exclusive.
So look west, look east, look north and look south. Each of those directions has countries telling Americans to “Stay put.” Do not pass Go.
One day the world will have vaccines to beat this thing. For now, wash your hands, wear a mask, stand six feet apart, and if you’re missing international travel that badly, pop in a James Bond flick. They always are set in the coolest places.