AusGeoff wrote on Oct 29
th, 2022 at 2:34am:
Sorry, but I'd have to disagree with this. You appear to be against
a specific government-imposed mandate—whilst ignoring a lot of others.
Seat belts and bicycle helmets, speed limits and drink driving limits are
some of the obvious ones. Do you comply with those? Or do you consider
them overly authoritarian?
I think you can see the false analogy and equivalence in making these comparisons. We have laws that tell people not to murder anyone. Does this mean we should also follow laws that tell us how we should dress, or what we should eat?
I am against the Covid-19 mandates because they are NOT VOLUNTARY. This would open the door for even more stringent mandates, and more government intrusions into my privacy. We saw this happening, in the form of lockdowns, fines and arrests, curfews, border closures, turning Australians into a nation of dobbers, locator apps, Covid-19 ID cards and passports, and the closures of small businesses.
Wearing seatbelts and helmets, are both supported by established scientific causal links. The physics is sound and easily verifiable. The science supporting the rules for speeding and drink driving, is also sound and verifiable.
But, it is my commonsense that tells me to comply with these mechanical mandates. Because they will prevent death and serious injuries. This is NOT Authoritarianism. This is the government's duty of care.
But there is NO verifiable, reproducible causal links, that can demonstrate that wearing masks, distancing, or even being vaccinated, WILL prevent anyone from becoming infected, transmitting, or even dying from this virus. In fact, the stats have proven the opposite. It was a not-so-well thought out knee-jerk reaction, by children in power. They too, became the victims of their own disinformation narrative/rhetoric. They became image-orientated, rather than society-orientated.
They were willing to go to any lengths, to stop a microorganism smaller than the visible spectrum of light. This fight was lost from the very beginning. But the media kept telling you that it could be won. They lied. This fight has always been between our immune system, and the pathogen. Vaccinated or not.
reggie1963 wrote on Oct 29
th, 2022 at 12:11pm:
Bear in mind each involves limiting your movements and behaviour at a
personal level. But each is for the greater good of our society. I know it's
a fine line between personal sovereignty and state mandates, but I for one
could see no ulterior motives at the time for compulsory mask wearing.
Every time I hear, "It's for the greater good", I begin to cringe. It can mean anything you want it to mean. It is just another meaningless political soundbite like, "National security", or "In the public interest", or, "A viable threat", or, "In our national interests". All are meaningless expressions that sound meaningful. They are called "Deepities", coined by Dennett.
I agree that our personal sovereignty is not absolute. But a virus less lethal than the measles, does NOT justify these draconian mandates. Maybe for an Ebola epidemic, or even a war. But not for a flu virus. The motives of the government are irrelevant. Only their actions are relevant.
reggie1963 wrote on Oct 29
th, 2022 at 12:11pm:
It's very easy to be wise after the event, but in the very early days of the
COVID pandemic, it was better to be safe than sorry. And even if mask
wearing was ultimately abandoned officially, it did no harm—even if it did
no good.
This is an argument from ignorance. We could see what the mortality rate was, even back then. We could see that the media was only spreading fear and anxiety. They blanketed the airway with deaths, number of infected, and the dangers of hospitals becoming overrun(none were). All lies and disinformation by omitting context and perspective.
This was a simply psychological maneuver by the government's media. People will believe anything. Just as long as you keep it simple, short, and repeat it often enough. And, it worked.
Unfortunately, the stats did not support the hype. And the backpedaling started. Eventually, the cracks became obvious. Think about it. If you had never heard of Covid-19 in the last 3 years, and there were no mandates, what changes would you have noticed different in your life? More people in your life dying from this virus?
It is best to just suck it up, and learn from this experience.