“It’s strange to believe that society’s problems can only be solved through direct government control of citizens; to downgrade the potential of personal responsibility, free choice and the sensible management of one’s own life…” writes Mark Latham’s Outsiders
Covid bedwetters have run out of beds to wet
In Australia we haven’t got a Punxsutawney Phil but nevertheless, our long tortuous experience with Covid has hit Groundhog Day. We are back to April 2020 when, in the early days of Covid, it was clear that the strongest predictor of death from the virus was old age and pre-existing health conditions. Squillions of statements from politicians and epidemiologists have done nothing to change this.
Lockdowns were counter-productive. They failed to kill off the virus, while closing down businesses and schools, causing distress and other medical issues for young people in particular. Melbourne became the most locked-down city in the world while Sydney’s three-week lockdown lasted 107 days. Our governments promised freedom for all through mass vaccination, saying this was the pathway to ‘living with Covid’. But now, at 95 per cent vaccination rates, there are tens of thousands of daily cases. Last year Gladys Berejiklian declared a ‘national emergency’ at just 150 cases – part of the panic of the political class. Between 10 and 30 January this year, of the 625 people who died with Covid in NSW, 71.2 per cent were fully vaccinated. This is well below public expectations about the life-saving potential of vaccines. By contrast, among the 625 deaths, 85 per cent were aged 70 and over. Only 14 (or 2.2 percent) were younger than 50. Mass vaccination hasn’t stopped the spread of Covid, nor prevented a higher death rate in 2022 than 2020 or 2021. Its positive role has been in holding down hospital and ICU numbers. But it hasn’t been the miracle weapon for ‘returning to normal’, as state and federal leaders promised. Vaccine mandates have backfired badly, causing staff shortages in hospitals, schools and the private sector. Supply chain problems have inevitably followed. So here we are, waking up each morning in the same hotel room to Sonny and Cher’s I Got You, Babe. Nothing has changed in 22 months. From the beginning, our Covid response should have been to isolate the old and sick until they were vaccinated, while the rest of society got on with life, work and education.
Continue reading Remember when our governments promised freedom for all through mass vaccination?
