Kathryn Jean Lopez: The Value of Life, During the Corona Crisis and Always

The Value of Human Life

(NRO) – Andrew Cuomo the other day reminded me how much I miss people-watching. Early on in this quarantine season, you would see people describing the introvert’s paradise being ushered in.

First of all, don’t make assumptions. Your favorite introvert may very well benefit from a check-in. And this introvert unexpectedly misses crowds — literally one of the last things I would have ever thought I had a fondness for.

But think for a moment — maybe this is your experience, too — what a day in New York City looks like. A midday walk from Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral to National Review’s offices only a few blocks away, off Fifth Avenue, brings constant encounters with all kinds of humanity.

There are people carrying bags from stores that many of us wouldn’t even bother walking into, knowing there’s nothing we could afford. There are people rushing. There are counterterrorism police patrolling (including in the church). There are tourists stopping in the middle of the street to take selfies. CONTINUE