"A sad soul can kill you quicker than a germ" John Steinbeck in his novel Travels with Charley. In search of America (1962)
Lockdowns a necessary evil?
The lockdown strategy used to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) has disrupted the global economy. In the UK there were reports in August of 2020 of over 730,000 job losses due to lockdown measures. The rate of unemployment appears to have stabilized since then as businesses have adjusted to new ways of trading. But concerns about the global economy and lockdowns remains a concern for many. The World Health Organization has asserted that full-scale lockdowns should be a “last resort” in fighting the novel coronavirus, even as several countries in Europe are seeking to introduce more public-health measures to limit the spread of the contagion. October 2020 Dr. Kluge , the WHO’s regional director for Europe, said lockdowns should be a very last resort. At the start of the apparent Covid-19 pandemic Dr. Ari Joffe a specialist in pediatric infectious diseases at the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton and a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at University of Alberta was a stalwart supporter of lockdowns. However, as the crisis developed his opinion of lockdowns changed as he observed the data relating to Covid-19 morbidity and mortality. "First, initial data falsely suggested that the infection fatality rate was up to 2-3%, that over 80% of the population would be infected, and modelling suggested repeated lockdowns would be necessary. But emerging data showed that the median infection fatality rate is 0.23%, that the median infection fatality rate in people under 70 years old is 0.05%, and that the high-risk group is older people especially those with severe co-morbidities. In addition, it is likely that in most situations only 20-40% of the population would be infected before ongoing transmission is limited (i.e., herd-immunity)." In his peer reviewed article he goes on to say, "The initial modeling predictions induced fear and crowd-effects." These assertions are supported by Michaéla C. Schippers who goes further than questioning the efficacy of lockdowns by speculating that misleading scientific data may have been used in respect to the side effects of the lockdowns. Neil Ferguson, the physicist at Imperial College London created the main epidemiology model behind the lockdowns. He and his team were less than truthful about the Swedish mortality predictions and results. This agnotology she argues is "more than just ignorance or the absence of knowledge. It is often the outcome of cultural and political struggles."
An example of this disinformation may well be this BBC article, "Covid-19 disruptions killed 228,000 children in South Asia, says UN report". Note the emphasis on blaming Covid-19 for the disruptions rather than suggesting that lockdowns etc might be to blame. Confinement has probably hit the elderly the hardest particularly those in nursing and rest homes. the diminished state of resilience in elderly people may have worsened. Mask Mandates The mask mandate was first introduced in the UK on the 24/07/2020 by the UK government. At the time we were told that masks would be a temporary
measure. The notion of the masks being temporary was reinforced by casual comments on social media. The alarming aspect to the mask mandate was the unquestionable acceptance of the policy when the research did not support it. UK officials and the American CDC flip flopped. A Reuters article even attempts to excuse the flip flop, suggesting that the early comments that masks were not required was to ensure that PPE supplies to health care workers were not disrupted. Is the real reason for the flip flops a conflict of political and economic ideologies using misinformation to create confusion and ignorance to hide the truth from the public while creating division.
For sure the research of the last 30 years questioning the efficacy of surgical masks has been swept aside by suppressing or dismissing it. At the same time there was a sudden influx of new research advocating the use of masks. People on twitter would post links to research suggesting masks work. Often they would highlight research conducted in laboratory settings, literature reviews, surveys and observational studies. What they failed to understand is that no one had actually conducted a large randomised control trial in a community setting. If you advocate or support mandatory mask wearing you need to understand human behaviour. People do not tend to adhere to the requirements of wearing masks correctly. They will reuse them far too often or adjust them inappropriately. Safe disposal of masks has also become a concern. Clearly the WEF have become aware of these concerns and addressed some in this video. So the mask tells you when to wash it, how to breathe and how to wear it. Clearly masks are no longer intended to be temporary. Perhaps you are still happy to follow the guidance and recommendations of an unelected forum? In some countries the wearing of masks has been normalised for many years. One such country is Japan, yet in 2019 it experienced its worst ever influenza outbreak. Of course no one mentions this when recommending masks, or the research that indicates that masks may well be harmful. Vaccine Passports The introduction of vaccine passports are being considered and the need for them hotly debated. It would appear that many people favour them for activities that are optional but less inclined if imposed for activities integral to everyday life. A passport system would essentially penalise people with health, religious, and philosophical objections to getting vaccinated. It would also penalise people who just don't want to get vaccinated. Many see the introduction of passports as a backdoor strategy to enforce vaccinations.
Lockdown Protests London 24/04/2021 saw what was probably the largest UK protest against lockdowns, mask mandates and vaccine passports.
The protest certainly divided the social media community. Many seeing the protest as a positive stance against infringements of personal rights and expression. Others considered it an affront to health care workers and a potential threat to the health of others.
Smears and insults were thrown in great abundance at the protestors on social media. Comments such as "Fascists, Q-Anon, Anti-Vaxxers and Covididiots were thrown like confetti on Twitter.
At least two people in attendance were reportedly seen with yellow stars pinned to their shirts, which read “No Covid Certificates,”
