Posted by The world that I grew up in was not as politically correctin the use of terminology as the world is today. People were not as sensitive to the words that people used for things there were not meant to be political. At that time, leading brands had names that are offensiveto many people today. Some of these terms include the brands (Aunt Jemima, Uncle Bens and Land O’Lakes, Redman tobacco, Sambo’s restaurant).
Likewise, sports teams that were once named to show fierce fighters (Braves, Chiefs, Redskins etc.) and sporting events with names in common with events that the world does not want to honor by naming an event after like the – Civil War rivalries between Oregon State University (OSU) and University of Oregon (UofO), and Columbus Day. Many of these events have changed names to reflect today’s environment and perspective. In many areas Columbus Day is now referred to as Indigenous Peoples’ Days. For the OSU vs. UO Civil War series a new name has yet to be announced but the change reflects the movement to readdress systemics racismthat the use of these names and terms perpetuate.
In 2019 the Berkeley City Council unanimously approved a measure that scrapping all “gendered” words from its municipal code and replacing them with politically correct alternativesincluding changing “manhole” to “maintenance hole” and replaced “manpower with “human effort” and “man-made” objects to be described as “artificial,” “manufactured,” “machine-made” or “synthetic.”
While these changes occur,and debate goes on for many more, one change that needs to occur is that we need a new reference to time. When I was a child the calendar that most scientists and academics followed referred to dates based upon BC/AD terms. BC meaning Before Christ and AD meaning Anno Domini, the year of our lord.This system was developed in A.D. 525, by a Catholic monk named Dionysius Exiguus of Scythia Minor who used the AD system to count the years since the birth of Christ. These terms were used in the development of the Julian and Gregorian calendars which were standards for academic and social life for centuries as a universal reference of date.BC and AD were utilized at the time most academic scholars’ documents were written in Latin and therefore using Latin terminology seemed like a natural reference.
Thischanged over time to reflect a world that is diverse and encompassing of multiple religions. Only Christianity recognizes Jesus Christ as a savior worthy of being a global reference to time. The terms BC and AD utilized a reference to time that was specific to believers of one religion, Christianity (31.5% of the world’s population in 2020 https://thecountriesof.com/largest-religions-in-the-world/. Therefore, the term used to refer to time of mankind (humankind) needs to address the other 64% of the world’s population.
To reflect changes in the world occurring in the sixth center (AD) scientists began to use BCE to reflect the term Before the Common Era and CE for the Common Era. These “new” terms were first brought into use to show sensitivity to those who are not Christians. The terms adjusted with changes in society.
Today, more than 8 months into the Covid-19 era I think it is time to launch the use of new time reference terms as BCE2 (Before Covid Era) and AC – After Covid or perhaps more descriptive as ADC – to reference the term After Damn Covid. (As I set here in November 2020, I can only dream of AC!
Covid-19 has caused a paradigm shifting in society. Prior to the interconnected world we have today an event in one part of the world (a war, political unrest, disease and even an invention) was often limited to a geographic area. Prior to CE2 the world had become transparent and flat (as Thomas Friedman’s popular book The World is Flat efficiently explains the pre-Covid 21st world). The butterfly effect ((in chaos theory) the phenomenon whereby a minute localized change in a complex system can have large effects elsewhere) has come into play to show how a disease in one country can spread to the world in a short period of time.
CE2 has impacted all levels of society and the world will never be back to where things were BCE2. I could go on and on about changes that Covid-19 has forced upon us but we all know how our shopping has changed, our family dynamics, education system, dating, sports, politics and even casual social events have changed – if they occur at all.
Hopefully, we can soon begin the ADC (After Damn Covid) era and adjust to the new normal, whatever that may be.
In the meantime, and in the future, I recommend we have a new reference to time, let’s use BCE2 and ADC. Covid-19 impacted the entire world, let’s use it as a reference point in time. Afterall, we have time in isolation to think about it!
