Usually in times of crisis people look to their leaders in government for guidance and comfort. But that hasn’t necessarily always been the case during the COVID-19 pandemic. (And really, when it comes to certain leaders that’s been for the best.) The former governor of one of our largest states is doing his part to help out. He’s spreading a message we all need to hear: stay home! Of course, not all of us have our own pony and donkey to help pass the time with. But that doesn’t change how correct Arnold Schwarzenegger is in a new video he shared. It’s not only full of sage advice from a former government official, it’s also really freaking adorable.
The Governator shared a video on Twitter and YouTube he made from his own kitchen. In it he implores folks to listen to the MEDICAL experts about how to help stem the tide against the coronavirus. And he did it with a little help from his cute friends: Whiskey the pony and Lulu the donkey. They both love carrots and we love both of them. And we also love someone with 4.4 million followers and fans around the globe using his platform to hammer home a message some people are refusing to listen to.
“See, the important thing is that you stay at home, because there’s a curfew now. No one is allowed out, especially someone who is, like, 72 years old,” Schwarzenegger said, poking fun at his own age in the video. “After you’re 65 you aren’t allowed out of the house anymore in California. So we stay at home and we eat here.” He then introduced his little animal buddies, making him the envy of all other quarantined people.
But even if you don’t have a pony and donkey to help keep you company, we all need to heed his advice. “We don’t go out, we don’t go to restaurants. We don’t do anything like that anymore here.” This might seem obvious to anyone who is rightfully taking the threat of COVID-19 seriously. Unfortunately, this past weekend proved that some aren’t. Restaurants and bars in major cities around the U.S. were jam-packed the last couple of days. In response, some current governors have announced restaurants and bars either need to cut capacity in half or have outright banned all on-site dining.
Also, the CDC now recommends no public gatherings of more than 50 people.
New: Starting immediately and for the next 8 weeks, CDC recommends cancelling all events of 50 or more people. Full recommendation here: https://t.co/LrjUt4rl7B #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/OroIqhTYJo
— CDC (@CDCgov) March 16, 2020
Clearly drastic steps must be taken immediately and not after you get in “one last” night out with friends. As Arnold Schwarzenegger said, “No more restaurants, okay? No more restaurants, forget all that. Public gatherings, restaurants, and all those gymnasiums, out the window. We stay home.”
And since we’ll all be home with our close family for the foreseeable future, we shouldn’t ignore his other advice. “No biting. We have to get along.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Sure, he meant that for Whiskey and Lulu. But that’s good advice for all of us. Things are tense—biting our loved ones might seem reasonable soon—and we don’t all have a pony and a donkey to help us stay calm. At least we have this image.
Featured Image: Arnold Schwarzenegger