New York Times: Upon review, the real horror of 'Jaws' isn't the shark, it's President Trump and capitalism

Here’s an opinion piece from the New York Times we’d missed a couple of days ago but it’s worth a look. Writer Jennifer Weiner writes about the experience of seeing “Jaws” at a drive-in movie theater during the COVID-19 pandemic and decides that the real horror isn’t the shark, but “the leader who initially values capitalism over saving lives” — like President Trump and all of those Republican governors who are reopening beaches, encouraging adults to go back to work, and demanding that children go back to school.

"Instead of a boat on the water, we’ve got heads in the sand." @JenniferWeiner on rewatching "Jaws" during the coronavirus pandemic. https://t.co/CaAeTPicmp

— New York Times Opinion (@nytopinion) July 8, 2020

“I found myself bracing for a Trumpian response — for the police chief to say that he didn’t take responsibility, or to point out that almost all young people who do get attacked make complete recoveries.”
On seeing “Jaws” at a drive-in, mid-pandemic. https://t.co/WlTiCPwCmi

— Jennifer Weiner (@jenniferweiner) July 8, 2020

We understand that one of the symptoms of TDS is the inability to enjoy entertainment as escapism but only as an allegory for life under the Trump administration. Weiner writes:

“All I’m saying is that Amity is a summer town — we need summer dollars,” Mayor Larry Vaughn argues after the first attack, when the chief of police wants to close the beaches. It was a phrase that could have been ripped off for a speech by one of the Republican officials who initially refused to shut down his state’s beaches or insisted on reopening the bars.

…

Masks have been politicized to the point that donning one is akin to sporting a “Biden for President” bumper sticker on your face. And instead of a leader who steps up to do the right thing, we’ve got a president who delights in divisiveness and wallows in woe-is-me, while too many of his fellow Republicans, loath to cross him, seem to care more about those summer dollars than dead citizens or grieving families. Instead of a boat on the water, we’ve got heads in the sand.

…

… From the Ozarks to Fire Island to the Jersey Shore, we’ve all seen pictures of Americans who won’t deny themselves their summer pleasures, insisting they happen just as they always have.

But how can we be surprised? Our leader is standing knee-deep in the shallows, smiling and beckoning and telling us that the water’s fine.