lewrockwell--2020-04-16--Death in Slow Motion

Death in Slow Motion

During the past month , as Americans have been terrified of the coronavirus , another demon has been lurking ready to pounce .
It is a demon of our own creation .
It is the now amply manifested inability of elected officials to resist the temptation of totalitarianism .
And it is slowly bringing about the death of personal liberty in our once free society .
It is one thing for public officials to use a bully pulpit to educate and even intimidate the populace into a prudent awareness of basic sanitary behaviors — even those which go against our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus .
It is quite another to contend that their suggestions and intimidations and guidelines somehow have the force of the law behind them .
They don ’ t .
Suicide Pact : The Radi ... Napolitano , Andrew P. Best Price : $ 0.25 Buy New $ 2.84 The government in America — at both the federal and state levels — is divided into three branches : legislative , executive and judicial .
This separation of powers was crafted at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 after heated debate .
The essence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to establish a government strong enough to protect individual liberty but not so strong as to enable the government to destroy it .
James Madison and his colleagues devised the separation of powers to keep power from accumulating in one branch .
The legislative branch writes the laws , and the executive enforces them , and the judiciary interprets them and articulates what they mean .
The president can not write laws .
The courts can not enforce them .
And Congress can not interpret them .
When Congress has gotten lazy or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ve seen presidential lawmaking , the courts have struck it down .
Stated differently , the separation of powers is core to our freedoms and the courts have consistently ruled that core functions assigned by the Constitution to each branch can not be ceded away to another branch .
The same is the case for the states , as each state ’ s constitution mimics the U.S. Constitution and mandates separation .
The separation is not mandated to protect the prerogatives of each branch .
It is mandated to protect individual liberty by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the others .
This has been Madison ’ s genius .
It has become Madison ’ s sorrow .
These “ orders ” — stay at home , close your business , don ’ t run in the park , don ’ t go to Mass , practice social distancing — are not laws that can carry a criminal penalty for violation .
They are guidelines , without the force of law .
A governor or mayor can no more craft a law and assign a punishment for its noncompliance than the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Even if legislative bodies did order churches and businesses closed , and governors and mayors were just enforcing those laws , the laws would be profoundly unconstitutional .
The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment firmly establishes freedom of religion as a fundamental liberty and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment firmly establishes your right to purchase a lawful product in interstate commerce from a willing seller as fundamental .
Fundamental liberties are in the highest category of liberty , akin to freedom of conscience and speech and press @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s say you are at a big-box store looking for groceries and other items .
The government can not constitutionally limit your choices to food and paper towels if you prefer to buy grass seed and a garden hose .
These are intimate personal decisions .
You need not explain or justify them to the government and you don ’ t need a government permission slip to exercise your free will and make those choices .
Until now .
Constitutional Chaos : ... Best Price : $ 2.87 Buy New $ 10.62 Now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sheep .
We have elected officials with constitutionally assigned duties — and constitutionally imposed limitations — who have assumed to themselves dictatorial powers and have falsely claimed that they can interfere with our personal choices .
Who are the governors to decide which human activities are essential ?
Abortion is essential but Mass is not ?
No constitution gave them that power .
There are two schools of thought on the impairment of fundamental liberties .
One requires strict scrutiny and the other requires due process .
The strict scrutiny standard mandates the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the least restrictive means .
The procedural due process standard mandates a trial at which the state must prove fault or guilt .
The substantive due process standard puts certain personal decisions beyond governmental reach .
Closing churches meets no constitutional standard .
There is no question that fighting a pandemic is a compelling state interest , yet there are far less restrictive ways to address it than preventing worship .
Wearing masks and gloves , staying 10 feet apart , holding Mass outdoors , even taking a personal risk and then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offensive than closing churches .
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio violated his oath to uphold the Constitution when he threatened to use force to close permanently all houses of worship that defied his guidelines .
And a small-town police department in northern New Jersey exquisitely violated the constitutional rights of Catholics — while enforcing the ever-changing whims of Gov .
Phil Murphy .
The police claimed they were following the governor ’ s orders when they barred a priest on Palm Sunday from distributing palms in sealed plastic bags while he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and were six feet apart in the fresh outdoors .
Enough is enough .
The employment of government power to assault personal liberty and cut constitutional corners is never justified in a free society , no matter the exigency .
The Constitution protects our rights in good times and in bad .
Those in power who steal freedom are unworthy of office .
But don ’ t expect them to give us our freedoms back .
We will need to pry it away from their cold and covetous hands .
The Best of @ @ @

Shop all books by Judge Napolitano
During the past month, as Americans have been terrified of the coronavirus, another demon has been lurking ready to pounce. It is a demon of our own creation. It is the now amply manifested inability of elected officials to resist the temptation of totalitarianism. And it is slowly bringing about the death of personal liberty in our once free society.
It is one thing for public officials to use a bully pulpit to educate and even intimidate the populace into a prudent awareness of basic sanitary behaviors — even those which go against our nature — to impede the spread of the virus. It is quite another to contend that their suggestions and intimidations and guidelines somehow have the force of the law behind them.
They don’t. Suicide Pact: The Radi... Napolitano, Andrew P. Best Price: $0.25 Buy New $2.84 (as of 04:15 UTC - Details)
The government in America — at both the federal and state levels — is divided into three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. This separation of powers was crafted at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 after heated debate. The essence of the debate was this: how to establish a government strong enough to protect individual liberty but not so strong as to enable the government to destroy it. James Madison and his colleagues devised the separation of powers to keep power from accumulating in one branch.
The legislative branch writes the laws, and the executive enforces them, and the judiciary interprets them and articulates what they mean. The president cannot write laws. The courts cannot enforce them. And Congress cannot interpret them. When Congress has gotten lazy or presidents have gotten ambitious and we’ve seen presidential lawmaking, the courts have struck it down. Stated differently, the separation of powers is core to our freedoms and the courts have consistently ruled that core functions assigned by the Constitution to each branch cannot be ceded away to another branch.
The same is the case for the states, as each state’s constitution mimics the U.S. Constitution and mandates separation. The separation is not mandated to protect the prerogatives of each branch. It is mandated to protect individual liberty by preventing any branch from accumulating power assigned to the others.
This has been Madison’s genius. It has become Madison’s sorrow.
These “orders” — stay at home, close your business, don’t run in the park, don’t go to Mass, practice social distancing — are not laws that can carry a criminal penalty for violation. They are guidelines, without the force of law. A governor or mayor can no more craft a law and assign a punishment for its noncompliance than the courts could command the military or police.
Even if legislative bodies did order churches and businesses closed, and governors and mayors were just enforcing those laws, the laws would be profoundly unconstitutional. The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment firmly establishes freedom of religion as a fundamental liberty and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment firmly establishes your right to purchase a lawful product in interstate commerce from a willing seller as fundamental.
Fundamental liberties are in the highest category of liberty, akin to freedom of conscience and speech and press and privacy and travel.
Let’s say you are at a big-box store looking for groceries and other items. The government cannot constitutionally limit your choices to food and paper towels if you prefer to buy grass seed and a garden hose. These are intimate personal decisions. You need not explain or justify them to the government and you don’t need a government permission slip to exercise your free will and make those choices.
Until now. Constitutional Chaos: ... Best Price: $2.87 Buy New $10.62 (as of 03:05 UTC - Details)
Now, we have become a nation of sheep. We have elected officials with constitutionally assigned duties — and constitutionally imposed limitations — who have assumed to themselves dictatorial powers and have falsely claimed that they can interfere with our personal choices. Who are the governors to decide which human activities are essential? Abortion is essential but Mass is not? No constitution gave them that power.
There are two schools of thought on the impairment of fundamental liberties. One requires strict scrutiny and the other requires due process. The strict scrutiny standard mandates the existence of a compelling state interest addressed by the least restrictive means. The procedural due process standard mandates a trial at which the state must prove fault or guilt. The substantive due process standard puts certain personal decisions beyond governmental reach.
Closing churches meets no constitutional standard. There is no question that fighting a pandemic is a compelling state interest, yet there are far less restrictive ways to address it than preventing worship. Wearing masks and gloves, staying 10 feet apart, holding Mass outdoors, even taking a personal risk and then self-quarantining are far less restrictive and constitutionally offensive than closing churches.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio violated his oath to uphold the Constitution when he threatened to use force to close permanently all houses of worship that defied his guidelines. And a small-town police department in northern New Jersey exquisitely violated the constitutional rights of Catholics — while enforcing the ever-changing whims of Gov. Phil Murphy. The police claimed they were following the governor’s orders when they barred a priest on Palm Sunday from distributing palms in sealed plastic bags while he and each parishioner wore masks and gloves and were six feet apart in the fresh outdoors.
Enough is enough.
The employment of government power to assault personal liberty and cut constitutional corners is never justified in a free society, no matter the exigency. The Constitution protects our rights in good times and in bad. Those in power who steal freedom are unworthy of office. But don’t expect them to give us our freedoms back. We will need to pry it away from their cold and covetous hands.
Reprinted with the author’s permission.
The Best of Andrew P. Napolitano


lewrockwell--2020-04-16--Coronavirus Silence Is Not Golden: The Pathetic Truth About Americans

“ The world is a dangerous place to live ; not because of the people who are evil , but because of the people who don ’ t do anything about it.
” ~ Albert Einstein– “ The Harper Book of Quotations Revised Edition ” .
Book by Robert I. Fitzhenry , p. 356 , 1993 .
There is only one cure for apathy , and that cure is knowledge in the form of education about matters not before understood .
But that is not enough , because any new understanding or truth must be accepted , and then acted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , failure is guaranteed , and any underlying indifference can only bring about a new and deeper root of totalitarianism .
Evil is something that has been all to evident throughout human history , so evident in fact that any study of these matters will bring even the strongest and most enlightened men to their knees in sorrow .
This has always been difficult for me to accept , because although all of us have the capability of evil thoughts or actions , most of us do not physically act on those deep-seated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ innate desires , while some thrive on wickedness ?
This has troubled me for a lifetime , but I have never been able to answer this question in my own mind .
THE DOSADI EXPERIMENT HERBERT , FRANK Best Price : $ 5.50 Buy New $ 14.73 What is worse is that the solution to this dilemma is right in front of our eyes , but is rarely seen .
You see , most of the extreme evil is accomplished by the few , the few being those that are consumed by a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ individuals , those in power such as governments , those elites controlling governments , warmongers , and all those that use deceit to gain nefarious agendas whether for personal gain or for a group bent on societal destruction .
Because this evil is relegated to the few , it should be obvious that it could be defeated by the bulk of society .
All that is necessary is for the larger mass of people to not remain silent .
This appears to be a simple matter due to the fact that there are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of them , so why does evil seem to win out in almost every aspect of life and reality ?
It is because of the silence of the individual , and the constant indifference that consumes the average among us .
If they only knew of the strength they possess ; if they understood the power of numbers , and the influence wielded by the courageous efforts of those fighting for right .
Yes , in this case , silence is deadly , especially now when we are facing the ultimate threat to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our very existence .
We are in the middle of the single biggest takeover of humanity that has ever been attempted , and it is being prosecuted by the few due to the extreme fear evident amongst the general population .
This takeover is due to a fraudulent virus scare cooked up by those seeking world domination , and whose agenda is evil .
The only reason this fakery can be successful in destroying the mass of mankind is if the people allow it to happen .
Is the fear of a flu-like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ masses to give up life as they know it ?
Is it enough for most of society to give up everything they have worked for throughout their lives ?
Is it enough that they will accept a future for their children and grandchildren that is devoid of love , contact , family , travel , knowledge , and beauty ?
Is it enough to cause an acceptance of life without meaning and freedom , a life dependent on the very masters that purposely brought about this crisis for their own rapacious needs ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Brett Best Price : $ 13.02 Buy New $ 13.05 Pathetic does not nearly begin to describe the slave-like behavior of the American population today .
People of this country have long bragged about how free they are , while claiming superiority over all others on earth by yelling loudly that they are “ exceptional.
” What is exceptional about hiding in their own homes fearful of doing anything normal , while taking orders from so-called experts that have only one agenda in mind ?
What is exceptional about not going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that are required to protect and support your families ?
What could possibly cause the “ exceptional ” to bow down and beg for the state they claim to control , to protect them from a common cold by destroying every liberty and right they allege to have .
Where are those tens of millions of “ exceptional ” that scream out that they live in the “ land of the free and the home of the brave , ” while waving their flag of allegiance to the same government that has them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” or brave about hiding under your bed because some politician demands that you do as you are told ?
Is the American dream only a farce ?
Is this the best that the so-called “ exceptional ’ can muster ?
What has happened to this country is nothing short of a travesty .
A fake virus pandemic long planned by the evil among us has brought this country to its knees .
And the people who act so proud have done nothing but whine and complain , and beg for protection .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
All that seems left of this country is shame .
Any that refuse to speak out , to go to work , to help their neighbors , to protect their families from poverty , to take charge of a government gone mad , and to eliminate a tyranny that has become unconscionable , should be ashamed of themselves , and should in the future keep silent and say no more unless they stand up to this coronavirus monster purposely created by their rulers .
The Miraculous Results ... Jeff T Bowles Best @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 9.99 Sadly , I do not expect much courage or intelligent thought from the people in this country , as they have forgotten that freedom is not free , it must be protected at all costs .
I do not mean war or aggression , as that steals freedom and has never protected it .
It is time to shun the government , the military , the mainstream media , and all agents of force in this country .
Mass dissent is necessary in order to reverse this horrendous governing oligarchy , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apparatus .
Where are all the brave men who talk a good game , but when it comes time to resist , they run and hide ?
Refuse to close your businesses and go back to work .
Refuse to take orders .
Refuse to be banned from travel .
Refuse to abide by any “ social distancing ” nonsense .
Refuse to self-isolate , and force the state to play its hand .
Refuse to vaccinate , and help destroy those like the evil Bill Gates and his pawns at the CDC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ governor that only seeks more power and notoriety .
Refuse to accept a king , for mass disobedience will destroy the beast that is tyranny .
“ If you think of yourselves as helpless and ineffectual , it is certain that you will create a despotic government to be your master .
The wise despot , therefore , maintains among his subjects a popular sense that they are helpless and ineffectual.
” Frank Herbert ( 2017 ) .
“ The Dosadi Experiment and The Eyes of Heisenberg : Two Classic Works of Science @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fiction The Best of Gary D. Barnett

“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”
~ Albert Einstein–“The Harper Book of Quotations Revised Edition”. Book by Robert I. Fitzhenry, p. 356, 1993.
There is only one cure for apathy, and that cure is knowledge in the form of education about matters not before understood. But that is not enough, because any new understanding or truth must be accepted, and then acted upon, for without both these measures, failure is guaranteed, and any underlying indifference can only bring about a new and deeper root of totalitarianism.
Evil is something that has been all to evident throughout human history, so evident in fact that any study of these matters will bring even the strongest and most enlightened men to their knees in sorrow. This has always been difficult for me to accept, because although all of us have the capability of evil thoughts or actions, most of us do not physically act on those deep-seated emotions. Why do most suppress these innate desires, while some thrive on wickedness? This has troubled me for a lifetime, but I have never been able to answer this question in my own mind.
THE DOSADI EXPERIMENT HERBERT, FRANK Best Price: $5.50 Buy New $14.73 (as of 03:06 UTC - Details) What is worse is that the solution to this dilemma is right in front of our eyes, but is rarely seen. You see, most of the extreme evil is accomplished by the few, the few being those that are consumed by a severe psychopathic nature, which includes certain individuals, those in power such as governments, those elites controlling governments, warmongers, and all those that use deceit to gain nefarious agendas whether for personal gain or for a group bent on societal destruction. Because this evil is relegated to the few, it should be obvious that it could be defeated by the bulk of society. All that is necessary is for the larger mass of people to not remain silent.
This appears to be a simple matter due to the fact that there are many more of us than there are of them, so why does evil seem to win out in almost every aspect of life and reality? It is because of the silence of the individual, and the constant indifference that consumes the average among us. If they only knew of the strength they possess; if they understood the power of numbers, and the influence wielded by the courageous efforts of those fighting for right. Yes, in this case, silence is deadly, especially now when we are facing the ultimate threat to not only our freedom, but to our very existence.
We are in the middle of the single biggest takeover of humanity that has ever been attempted, and it is being prosecuted by the few due to the extreme fear evident amongst the general population. This takeover is due to a fraudulent virus scare cooked up by those seeking world domination, and whose agenda is evil. The only reason this fakery can be successful in destroying the mass of mankind is if the people allow it to happen. Is the fear of a flu-like illness all that is necessary for the masses to give up life as they know it? Is it enough for most of society to give up everything they have worked for throughout their lives? Is it enough that they will accept a future for their children and grandchildren that is devoid of love, contact, family, travel, knowledge, and beauty? Is it enough to cause an acceptance of life without meaning and freedom, a life dependent on the very masters that purposely brought about this crisis for their own rapacious needs? Jabbed: How the Vaccin... Wilcox, Brett Best Price: $13.02 Buy New $13.05 (as of 03:50 UTC - Details)
Pathetic does not nearly begin to describe the slave-like behavior of the American population today. People of this country have long bragged about how free they are, while claiming superiority over all others on earth by yelling loudly that they are “exceptional.” What is exceptional about hiding in their own homes fearful of doing anything normal, while taking orders from so-called experts that have only one agenda in mind? What is exceptional about not going to work and closing down all your businesses that are required to protect and support your families? What could possibly cause the “exceptional” to bow down and beg for the state they claim to control, to protect them from a common cold by destroying every liberty and right they allege to have. Where are those tens of millions of “exceptional” that scream out that they live in the “land of the free and the home of the brave,” while waving their flag of allegiance to the same government that has them imprisoned?” What is “exceptional” or brave about hiding under your bed because some politician demands that you do as you are told? Is the American dream only a farce? Is this the best that the so-called “exceptional’ can muster?
What has happened to this country is nothing short of a travesty. A fake virus pandemic long planned by the evil among us has brought this country to its knees. And the people who act so proud have done nothing but whine and complain, and beg for protection. What if a real threat was evident? All that seems left of this country is shame. Any that refuse to speak out, to go to work, to help their neighbors, to protect their families from poverty, to take charge of a government gone mad, and to eliminate a tyranny that has become unconscionable, should be ashamed of themselves, and should in the future keep silent and say no more unless they stand up to this coronavirus monster purposely created by their rulers.
The Miraculous Results... Bowles, Jeff T Best Price: $4.25 Buy New $6.99 (as of 01:50 UTC - Details) Sadly, I do not expect much courage or intelligent thought from the people in this country, as they have forgotten that freedom is not free, it must be protected at all costs. I do not mean war or aggression, as that steals freedom and has never protected it. It is time to shun the government, the military, the mainstream media, and all agents of force in this country. Mass dissent is necessary in order to reverse this horrendous governing oligarchy, and to eliminate any orders from the state apparatus. Where are all the brave men who talk a good game, but when it comes time to resist, they run and hide?
Refuse to close your businesses and go back to work. Refuse to take orders. Refuse to be banned from travel. Refuse to abide by any “social distancing” nonsense. Refuse to self-isolate, and force the state to play its hand. Refuse to vaccinate, and help destroy those like the evil Bill Gates and his pawns at the CDC. Refuse to listen to any impotent governor that only seeks more power and notoriety. Refuse to accept a king, for mass disobedience will destroy the beast that is tyranny.
“If you think of yourselves as helpless and ineffectual, it is certain that you will create a despotic government to be your master. The wise despot, therefore, maintains among his subjects a popular sense that they are helpless and ineffectual.”
Frank Herbert (2017). “The Dosadi Experiment and The Eyes of Heisenberg: Two Classic Works of Science Fiction”, p.107, Tor Science Fiction
The Best of Gary D. Barnett


lewrockwell--2020-04-16--The Resistance Has Begun! 24 Examples of Americans Resisting

Neil Ferguson has called for an 18-month rolling quarantine .
Many government officials have cited his Imperial College paper as defense of the corona lockdowns .
Like every other algorithm , this too has turned out to be based on the mere guess of an academic .
Algorithm is another word for “ guess.
” Model is another word for “ guess.
” It turns out that those guesses aren ’ t actually panning out .
We have wagered a lot on those guesses , and taken unprecedented anti-social action .
New York , for example , has needed some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 73,000 , or 136,000 that some predicted .
Data from Oregon shows the lockdown to be unnecessary .
A professor there demonstrated more than a week ago that lockdowns are not working .
Though there are severely inflates death counts , only 150 healthy individuals are believed to have died of Covid-19 with no pre-existing conditions .
The BBC describes the American death count with this problematic sentence : “ At present in the US , any death of a Covid-19 patient , no matter what the physician believes to be the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reporting as a Covid-19 death.
” How to Win America for ... Stevo , Allan J Best Price : $ 23.33 Buy New $ 17.95 These lockdowns aren ’ t working ?
That ’ s some pretty big news too .
What are officials doing in response ?
Doubling down on lockdowns .
What are people across the country starting to do in response to that ?
Saying they ’ ve had enough .
The resistance is here .
The Face Mask Resistance – If You ’ re Gon na Wear A Mask @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 75 people showed up outside the Ohio State House to protest the lockdown .
Some came masked , not in the obligatory fear mask mandated by the national top-down fear mask movement , but in Guy Fawkes masks !
Video footage of Ohio state house protests can be found here and here .
Photos here .
If they make you wear a mask , send a message .
If you think face masks work , please read this pre-politicization of face masks ( 2016 ) piece .
They certainly don ’ t work @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with those not wearing them .
People were being pulled off busses in Philadelphia for not wearing face masks , some of the thugs doing the enforcing weren ’ t wearing face masks themselves .
Fortitude : American Re ... Crenshaw , Dan Buy New $ 24.26 Philadelphia ‘ s SEPTA public transportation system required passengers to wear a face mask as of Thursday , April 9 .
Passengers refused and stood their ground .
In the exact opposite of social distancing , passengers were violently pulled off buses by gangs of cops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ After these shameful displays of police violently removing unmasked passengers were captured by bystanders on social media , the face mask requirement was rescinded .
In our heavily charged political climate , somehow the willingness to not wear a face mask has itself become a potent sign of civil disobedience in some corridors of America .
Principal Derrick Bravo at Outside Creek Elementary in California ’ s San Joaquin Valley has kept his school open .
It is the only public school in California that remains open .
In his essays these past @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Arizona sheriff candidate David Hathaway has predicted that , just as the prohibition on alcohol caused speakeasies to form , speakeasies and other informal arrangements will open around restaurants .
Daniel McAdams proves him right .
Religious freedom has been an important theme since America ’ s European settlement began .
It can be no surprise that some of the most active resistance to corona communism is taking place among the religious .
The Ultimate Work From ... Henderson , Michael Buy New $ 9.00 Temple Baptist Church of Greenville , Mississippi had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Police raided , ticketing the congregants $ 500 each , saying the mayor wanted to make an example of the congregation .
How did the pastor respond ?
Did he cower ?
Did he apologize ?
Did he admit he was wrong to worship against the will of the local officials ?
In his words “ I told them to get some more tickets ready because we will be preaching Sunday morning and Sunday night.
” A pastor in Baton Rouge said of the members of his congregation “ They would rather @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people than live like prisoners in their homes.
” Pastor Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle Church , vowed to hold an Easter celebration .
The media in the weeks preceding Easter was vocal about the need to shut down the church , but was afterward surprisingly silent about whether the Easter service took place .
When I called the church to verify that they held an Easter service , the most distinguished sounding Southern gentleman picked up the phone and said to me matter-of-factly , “ We ’ re Christians , we hold @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Legal ” To Go To Church Again ( Sort Of ) Laws are made by legislatures .
Laws are not made by governors .
Rights are granted by God , or some would say by nature of being a human , but not by constitutions .
Any governor who thinks he makes the law is a fool .
A few governors have gotten the message .
Easter services were made “ legal ” again in Wisconsin ( sort of ) , as long as the service is held outdoors .
Mueller 64179 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Buy New $ 27.57 Church was made legal again in Texas too , before Holy Week got under way , with the Governor being reminded that he ’ s only a visitor in the governor ’ s mansion .
A handful of other governors have gotten the same message .
In Colorado churches are now “ exempt ” from the lockdown after a Baptist group threatened a First Amendment lawsuit .
Standing Up To Police Intimidation In Kentucky Kentucky ’ s Governor vowed to track down Easter worshipers by using license plates : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of people expected to worship there on Easter , otherwise there would be no need to even make such a policy .
Good on you Kentucky !
Despite finding nails on the ground , meant to harm and deter them , and police in their parking lots , meant to intimidate them , Christians in Kentucky met on Easter Sunday 2020 .
When encountered with intimidation , Thomas DiLorenzo points to the “ Sonny method ” for dealing with cops and media hacks attempting to interfere in a religious ceremony .
Rather than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Washington DC commits to remains open throughout the day , each day , for prayer .
This Serbian Bishop refused to comply with the orders to shutter the churches and boldly said mass .
Parishioners of Bethany Slavic Missionary Church are said to be meeting in small groups in private homes for worship .
Some would consider this admirable .
The church , perhaps tiring of the legal attention , tiring of the media publicity , and wanting to be left alone , denies this .
Even though Facebook removed his post for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Locke , lead pastor of Global Vision Bible Church in Tennessee , says he will keep his church open during the coronavirus panic .
The Most Inspiring Use Of A U-Haul From the back of a U-Haul in a parking lot , this priest refused to abandon his flock .
In contrast to some of the many cowardly clergy out there , the image of the U-Haul and the sea of cars is something to behold .
Stop Giving – Let The Obedient Churches Go Broke Some American pastors are shocked that their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to do nothing when they are most needed .
Churches are being hit hard by the lack of collection .
If your pastor won ’ t re-open the church doors , let the church go broke .
Speaking of do-nothing pastors , Laurence Vance calls on all Christians to socially distance from milquetoast pastors in our age of corona communism .
Have Your Own Service If your church still refuses to open , have your own service .
Here ’ s how one LRC reader started his Easter .
Have Your Own Service @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a step further than having your own Easter celebration .
You can invite others and welcome them to bring their guns .
Ammon Bundy invited hundreds for Easter in Idaho and got a decent turnout .
The corona bans demonstrate the point that without the Second Amendment , there really is no First Amendment .
Republican Idaho State Representative Heather Scott has spoken against the Republican Governor ’ s corona ban , as has Bonner County Sheriff Daryl Wheeler .
Wheeler has called for a meeting of the full Idaho State Legislature to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actions .
In defiance of an order to stay off the streets , a doctor and a team of volunteers has provided Covid-19 testing to homeless in Miami .
Keep Minding Your Own Business In a hilarious video , a police officer came after a man running down what was ostensibly a closed beach .
The guy ’ s response : he just kept on running .
Pulling out a camera is a potent statement to someone in power that they are being put on the record .
This gentleman called out an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the officer .
A freedom cell in San Francisco responded to lockdown orders with some disruptive entrepreneurship .
They opened an underground night club .
Police responded by confiscating the booze and arresting no one .
There Are Even Examples Of Government Coming To Its Senses ( Very Slowly ) Recognizing that Covid-19 is not turning into the catastrophe some experts predicted it might be , Seattle sent back a 250-bed army field hospital after 9 days .
It never saw any patients .
Republican Tennessee Mayor Glenn Jacobs calls out Republican Tennessee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in issuing a statewide stay-at-home order .
The president of Brazil is snubbing social distancing .
Thomas Massie , will go down as a hero during this chapter in American history , for his bold stand against corona communism .
If this collection of notes from the resistance inspired you , please pass it along to others .
Courage , after all , is contagious .
Resistance thrives on courage .
If you have inspiring tales from the resistance to share , shoot me an email .
The Best of Allan Stevo

Neil Ferguson has called for an 18-month rolling quarantine. Many government officials have cited his Imperial College paper as defense of the corona lockdowns. Like every other algorithm, this too has turned out to be based on the mere guess of an academic. Algorithm is another word for “guess.” Model is another word for “guess.”
It turns out that those guesses aren’t actually panning out. We have wagered a lot on those guesses, and taken unprecedented anti-social action. New York, for example, has needed some 18,000 hospital beds, not the 55,000, 73,000, or 136,000 that some predicted.
Data from Oregon shows the lockdown to be unnecessary. A professor there demonstrated more than a week ago that lockdowns are not working.
Though there are severely inflates death counts, only 150 healthy individuals are believed to have died of Covid-19 with no pre-existing conditions. The BBC describes the American death count with this problematic sentence: “At present in the US, any death of a Covid-19 patient, no matter what the physician believes to be the direct cause, is counted for public reporting as a Covid-19 death.” How to Win America for... Stevo, Allan J Best Price: $14.36 Buy New $17.95 (as of 04:37 UTC - Details)
Wow. Corona wasn’t that big of a deal? That’s great news.
These lockdowns aren’t working? That’s some pretty big news too.
What are officials doing in response? Doubling down on lockdowns.
What are people across the country starting to do in response to that? Saying they’ve had enough. The resistance is here.
The Face Mask Resistance – If You’re Gonna Wear A Mask, Make It A Guy Fawkes Mask
75 people showed up outside the Ohio State House to protest the lockdown. Some came masked, not in the obligatory fear mask mandated by the national top-down fear mask movement, but in Guy Fawkes masks!
Video footage of Ohio state house protests can be found here and here. Photos here.
If they make you wear a mask, send a message. If you think face masks work, please read this pre-politicization of face masks (2016) piece. They certainly don’t work well enough for people to get violent with those not wearing them.
Early Victory: Philadelphia Fear Mask Resistance Forced The Hands Of Pols
People were being pulled off busses in Philadelphia for not wearing face masks, some of the thugs doing the enforcing weren’t wearing face masks themselves. Fortitude: American Re... Crenshaw, Dan Buy New $24.26 (as of 02:51 UTC - Details)
Philadelphia‘s SEPTA public transportation system required passengers to wear a face mask as of Thursday, April 9. Passengers refused and stood their ground.
In the exact opposite of social distancing, passengers were violently pulled off buses by gangs of cops in Philadelphia for not wearing masks. After these shameful displays of police violently removing unmasked passengers were captured by bystanders on social media, the face mask requirement was rescinded.
In our heavily charged political climate, somehow the willingness to not wear a face mask has itself become a potent sign of civil disobedience in some corridors of America.
The Bravest Principal In California
Principal Derrick Bravo at Outside Creek Elementary in California’s San Joaquin Valley has kept his school open. It is the only public school in California that remains open.
A Gulag California Restaurant Owner Has Quietly Stayed Open
In his essays these past weeks on black markets and corona, Arizona sheriff candidate David Hathaway has predicted that, just as the prohibition on alcohol caused speakeasies to form, speakeasies and other informal arrangements will open around restaurants. Daniel McAdams proves him right.
America Was Founded In Religion
Religious freedom has been an important theme since America’s European settlement began. It can be no surprise that some of the most active resistance to corona communism is taking place among the religious. The Ultimate Work From... Henderson, Michael Buy New $9.00 (as of 03:00 UTC - Details)
Mississippi Preacher Taunting The Police
Temple Baptist Church of Greenville, Mississippi had a drive-in prayer service this past week. Police raided, ticketing the congregants $500 each, saying the mayor wanted to make an example of the congregation.
How did the pastor respond? Did he cower? Did he apologize? Did he admit he was wrong to worship against the will of the local officials? In his words “I told them to get some more tickets ready because we will be preaching Sunday morning and Sunday night.”
Church Bravery In Louisiana
A pastor in Baton Rouge said of the members of his congregation “They would rather come to church and worship like free people than live like prisoners in their homes.” Pastor Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle Church, vowed to hold an Easter celebration.
The media in the weeks preceding Easter was vocal about the need to shut down the church, but was afterward surprisingly silent about whether the Easter service took place.
When I called the church to verify that they held an Easter service, the most distinguished sounding Southern gentleman picked up the phone and said to me matter-of-factly, “We’re Christians, we hold church every Sunday.”
It’s “Legal” To Go To Church Again (Sort Of)
Laws are made by legislatures. Laws are not made by governors. Rights are granted by God, or some would say by nature of being a human, but not by constitutions. Any governor who thinks he makes the law is a fool. A few governors have gotten the message.
Easter services were made “legal” again in Wisconsin (sort of), as long as the service is held outdoors. Mueller 64179 Adjustab... Best Price: $25.36 Buy New $27.57 (as of 03:14 UTC - Details)
Church was made legal again in Texas too, before Holy Week got under way, with the Governor being reminded that he’s only a visitor in the governor’s mansion. A handful of other governors have gotten the same message.
In Colorado churches are now “exempt” from the lockdown after a Baptist group threatened a First Amendment lawsuit.
Standing Up To Police Intimidation In Kentucky
Kentucky’s Governor vowed to track down Easter worshipers by using license plates: which certainly means there were a lot of people expected to worship there on Easter, otherwise there would be no need to even make such a policy. Good on you Kentucky!
Despite finding nails on the ground, meant to harm and deter them, and police in their parking lots, meant to intimidate them, Christians in Kentucky met on Easter Sunday 2020.
The Sonny Method
When encountered with intimidation, Thomas DiLorenzo points to the “Sonny method” for dealing with cops and media hacks attempting to interfere in a religious ceremony.
Courageous Christians Even in DC
Rather than shutting its doors, St. Cyprian in Washington DC commits to remains open throughout the day, each day, for prayer.
Courageous Serbians
This Serbian Bishop refused to comply with the orders to shutter the churches and boldly said mass.
More Courageous Californians
Parishioners of Bethany Slavic Missionary Church are said to be meeting in small groups in private homes for worship. Some would consider this admirable. The church, perhaps tiring of the legal attention, tiring of the media publicity, and wanting to be left alone, denies this.
Tennessee Resistance
Even though Facebook removed his post for “promoting a crime,” Greg Locke, lead pastor of Global Vision Bible Church in Tennessee, says he will keep his church open during the coronavirus panic.
The Most Inspiring Use Of A U-Haul
From the back of a U-Haul in a parking lot, this priest refused to abandon his flock. In contrast to some of the many cowardly clergy out there, the image of the U-Haul and the sea of cars is something to behold.
Stop Giving – Let The Obedient Churches Go Broke
Some American pastors are shocked that their congregations won’t pay for them to do nothing when they are most needed. Churches are being hit hard by the lack of collection. If your pastor won’t re-open the church doors, let the church go broke.
Social Distance From Compliant Pastors
Speaking of do-nothing pastors, Laurence Vance calls on all Christians to socially distance from milquetoast pastors in our age of corona communism.
Have Your Own Service
If your church still refuses to open, have your own service. Here’s how one LRC reader started his Easter.
Have Your Own Service 2.0
And one can also take it a step further than having your own Easter celebration. You can invite others and welcome them to bring their guns. Ammon Bundy invited hundreds for Easter in Idaho and got a decent turnout. The corona bans demonstrate the point that without the Second Amendment, there really is no First Amendment.
Republican Idaho State Representative Heather Scott has spoken against the Republican Governor’s corona ban, as has Bonner County Sheriff Daryl Wheeler. Wheeler has called for a meeting of the full Idaho State Legislature to discuss the Governor Brad Little’s actions.
Bravely Helping Others
In defiance of an order to stay off the streets, a doctor and a team of volunteers has provided Covid-19 testing to homeless in Miami.
Keep Minding Your Own Business
In a hilarious video, a police officer came after a man running down what was ostensibly a closed beach. The guy’s response: he just kept on running.
Power To The People
Pulling out a camera is a potent statement to someone in power that they are being put on the record. This gentleman called out an officer’s arbitrary rules and filmed the officer.
San Francisco Style Corona Response
A freedom cell in San Francisco responded to lockdown orders with some disruptive entrepreneurship. They opened an underground night club. Police responded by confiscating the booze and arresting no one.
There Are Even Examples Of Government Coming To Its Senses (Very Slowly)
Recognizing that Covid-19 is not turning into the catastrophe some experts predicted it might be, Seattle sent back a 250-bed army field hospital after 9 days. It never saw any patients.
Republican Tennessee Mayor Glenn Jacobs calls out Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Lee for his bad decisions in issuing a statewide stay-at-home order.
The president of Brazil is snubbing social distancing.
Thomas Massie, will go down as a hero during this chapter in American history, for his bold stand against corona communism.
Courage Is Contagious
If this collection of notes from the resistance inspired you, please pass it along to others. Courage, after all, is contagious. Resistance thrives on courage.
If you have inspiring tales from the resistance to share, shoot me an email.
The Best of Allan Stevo


lewrockwell--2020-04-16--#FireFauci Should be the Rallying Cry for a Generation

I ’ m done mincing words .
I ’ m done giving people the benefit of the doubt .
Whenever I do that The Davos Crowd and their highly placed agents make me look like a virtue-signaling fool .
For weeks I ’ ve been careful to separate the threat of the disease , COVID-19 , from the political response .
I ’ ve felt strongly that one can respect the virus while at the same time be wary of the political response and the panic engineered over it .
But that ’ s come to an end .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the beginning was to allow this virus to run wild in high profile places like New York and Italy to create fear .
It is also clear that people like Dr. Anthony Fauci were activated to ensure the worst possible response to the crisis would be implemented in the U.S. Fauci : The Bernie Mado ... Ortleb , Charles Buy New $ 5.99 And now , after more than a month after shutting down whole swaths of our economy and locking people in their homes under effective house arrest it ’ s also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overblown and unnecessary .
And here in the U.S. the point man on this insanity has been Dr. Anthony Fauci , director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ( NIAID ) whose ties to all the worst people you can imagine run very , very deep .
Lastly , it ’ s also very clear that President Trump was the target the entire time .
He finally hit his breaking point yesterday because he realizes that he was advised poorly .
First that tweet then there was the presser where @ @ @ @ @ @ @ morning , the Surgeon General Jerome Adams has effectively announced the U.S. has dumped the models created by the CDC and the WHO — models backed by Bill Gates and forced on the scene by his gatekeeper Fauci .
From Breitbart and Fort Russ on Adams ’ radio interview : He explained on the Sirius XM ’ s Breitbart News Daily host Alex Marlow , that given the new data , businesses will begin to re-open as early as May , others in June .
This runs contrary to the out-and-out fear-mongering of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made a media tour , threatening the public that businesses may not re-open for six months to a year , or until and unless governments purchase their conveniently patented , big-pharma vaccination .
“ What the American people need to know now is we actually have data , and so we ’ re tracking that data , ” Before this about-face , which appears to have come as an order from the Trump administration in consultation with the findings of Dr. Adams , the task force was working with ’ predictive models ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bill Gates dominated WHO and CDC .
Dr. Fausti ’ s control over the CDC has been criticized in the past for its for-profit motive in handling a range of illnesses from HIV to H1NI .
The lock down orders hopefully will be lifted soon , likely May 1st , but yesterday is a better date .
The models have been dumped and the actual data are now in use .
And the data are clear .
There is no pandemic .
The WHO/CDC/Gates models have been horrifically inaccurate , catastrophically so .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ... Posner , Gerald Best Price : $ 26.77 Buy New $ 21.49 If I didn ’ t know better I ’ d think these guys were economists for the Fed or the IMF .
I thought this was supposed to be about science ( SCIENCE ! )
?
If so I have a couple of questions for the so-called experts : So why wasn ’ t the CDC advocating widespread testing while monitoring the data from Wuhan ?
Why were the media roasting President Trump over his travel ban from China ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ late as early March , saying this wasn ’ t a big deal when he knew otherwise ?
Why is no one roasting New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio ’ s chesnuts over an open fire for not shutting down the biggest transmission vector in the entire country , its mass transit system ?
Why is every death in the U.S. a COVID-19 ‘ related ’ death ?
Why was everyone locked down and not just the high risk people ?
It turns out , like everything else today , the answer to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And the worst kind of politics .
Meanwhile , Fauci keeps trying to upstage Trump , thinking he could continue to command the heights because he ’ s the chosen expert .
While I ’ m not Trump ’ s biggest fan , I have to say eventually he puts his foot down and when he does it then goes up the ass of some bureaucrat who richly deserves it .
And Fauci deserves far more than just the boot , as it were .
He deserves all of our scorn and derision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ m off base here , that somehow Fauci ’ s experience and credentials count for more than my vitriol I ’ m going to ask my last question .
Why should we listen to the word of any doctor that recommends people huddle in their homes afraid of a cousin to the common cold versus building up our immune systems and our herd immunity ?
Fauci shouldn ’ t be leading a Presidential Task Force he should have his medical licence revoked for violating his Hippocratic Oath .
China Rx : Exposing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New $ 13.99 So , is he going to reimburse personally the billions lost by small businesses around the country ?
The destroyed supply chains , the spilled milk , the spoiled food , the people who weren ’ t treated for non-COVID illnesses as our hospitals were overrun with his political experiment in mass hysteria ?
He ’ s no more a credible source for medical advice regardless of his resume than I am .
Nearly everyone knows that strengthening the immune system is how you fight a cold .
Vitamin D @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and sunshine .
You don ’ t need a medical degree from Holy Cross to know this .
But somehow Fauci never seems to approve or green light treatments that do that .
It doesn ’ t matter if we ’ re talking cancer , AIDS , or COVID-19 , the man is a walking death sentence .
He ’ s the very essence of regulatory capture and prima facia evidence that power and corruption go together like peanut butter and jelly .
If you squint hard enough he really does look like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that this pandemic has exposed , along with the concomitant economic dislocation it is that ‘ experts ’ better run for cover .
Fauci , Gates and George Soros ( who ’ s right on time with a new op-ed in the L.A. Times telling everyone we need UBI from the Magic Money Tree ) are trying to create a medically-based transnational superstructure in the same way that The Davos Crowd failed to do it through trade deals like TTIP and TPP , which Trump nixed .
And it ’ s time that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eyes and not the rose-colored glasses of what we want our government officials to be .
Because if we don ’ t we ’ ll lose what ’ s left of our dignity .
Forget the republic , folks .
That ’ s gone .
This lock down is about whether or not we ’ re willing to actually walk the walk versus just whine about them ‘ taking our freedoms.
’ They are in the last stages of doing that right now , there ’ s no future tense anymore .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Retevis RT20 Wearable ... Buy New $ 46.99 Men like Fauci shouldn ’ t just be fired , they should be tried and convicted for gross incompetence for the harm they are doing and the harm they ’ ve done .
Knowingly promoting mathematical models of disease transmission that were never intended to be accurate is FRAUD , not an honest error .
He ’ s not the only doctor in the world with an opinion on COVID-19 .
Many of them are incensed with how this has been handled .
When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world its soul it is incumbent on the person making those recommendations to get them right , not run cover for evil oligarchs intent on shepherding humanity to their own private Mordor .
Because if they don ’ t then they are liable for results .
But government operates in a true vacuum , immune to the effects of its bad decisions through sovereign immunity .
This is the fundamental problem with creating government agencies that have these powers .
They are staffed by people who can be corrupted , and like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ controls over our lives that they have 1 ) not earned and 2 ) should never have .
And it ’ s why it ’ s time for us to stand up and no longer accept these men and women as any more wise and insouciant than we are .
It ’ s truly time for the kind of intellectual revolt against the Progressive ideal of the wise engineer .
The palpable disappointment on the part of Gates , Fauci , the media and the Democrats at the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine is all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to finally let the scales fall and see them for what they are .
These are megalomaniacs without conscience .
They are Bond villians without the charisma .
And we need to strip them of their legitimacy first in our minds and then in practice .
Because if it were up to them there would never be a cure for COVID-19 , just an endless series of treatments that make us sicker and more dependent on them .
# FireFauci isn ’ t just a meme , it ’ s a metaphor for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ society .
It ’ s time to go outside , leave our homes and get back to work .
They know that if they keep your business closed for more than three months it ’ ll be gone forever .
Bill Gates is obsessed with killing off billions of people and having the rest of us on residual poison waiting for the next vaccination for COVID-20 or COVID-21 .
And while for Gates it ’ s not about making more money , it ’ s about the control , he motivates those around @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that sweet , sweet money they couldn ’ t ever earn for themselves honestly .
After destroying these small businesses and printing trillions will allow vultures allied with them to come in and pick the bones of our gutted society clean .
This is what they are setting up while Soros , cyborg that he is , apes the empathy we humans actually feel to demand the government print more trillions to support the common man hurting because of him .
If I didn ’ t have a soul , I ’ d @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Frankly , it ’ s beyond sick and it has to end .
If we don ’ t see this lock down and attempted coup to allow doctors to run the country for what it is , then we deserve everything that ’ s coming to us .
The Best of Thomas Luongo

I’m done mincing words. I’m done giving people the benefit of the doubt. Whenever I do that The Davos Crowd and their highly placed agents make me look like a virtue-signaling fool.
Fire Anthony Fauci now.
For weeks I’ve been careful to separate the threat of the disease, COVID-19, from the political response. I’ve felt strongly that one can respect the virus while at the same time be wary of the political response and the panic engineered over it.
But that’s come to an end. It’s clear that the plan from the beginning was to allow this virus to run wild in high profile places like New York and Italy to create fear. It is also clear that people like Dr. Anthony Fauci were activated to ensure the worst possible response to the crisis would be implemented in the U.S. Fauci: The Bernie Mado... Ortleb, Charles Buy New $5.99 (as of 02:55 UTC - Details)
And now, after more than a month after shutting down whole swaths of our economy and locking people in their homes under effective house arrest it’s also clear that most of this response was overblown and unnecessary.
And here in the U.S. the point man on this insanity has been Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) whose ties to all the worst people you can imagine run very, very deep.
Lastly, it’s also very clear that President Trump was the target the entire time. He finally hit his breaking point yesterday because he realizes that he was advised poorly.
Sorry Fake News, it’s all on tape. I banned China long before people spoke up. Thank you @OANN https://t.co/d40JQkUZg5 — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 12, 2020
First that tweet then there was the presser where he roasted the media.
This is the supercut video President Trump just played during the coronavirus briefing. It includes clips of MSNBC and CNN pundits downplaying coronavirus, @maggieNYT defending his China travel ban, and Govs. Cuomo and Newsom praising his administration’s response. pic.twitter.com/W6O1oEQuso — Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) April 13, 2020
Now this morning, the Surgeon General Jerome Adams has effectively announced the U.S. has dumped the models created by the CDC and the WHO — models backed by Bill Gates and forced on the scene by his gatekeeper Fauci. From Breitbart and Fort Russ on Adams’ radio interview:
Data vs. Models: The Coronavirus Task Force is now working with real-time data about the country, Adams said, instead of the predictive models that were criticized for being overblown and exaggerated. — Breitbart
From Fort Russ:
He explained on the Sirius XM’s Breitbart News Daily host Alex Marlow, that given the new data, businesses will begin to re-open as early as May, others in June. This runs contrary to the out-and-out fear-mongering of Dr. Fauci and Bill Gates who have made a media tour, threatening the public that businesses may not re-open for six months to a year, or until and unless governments purchase their conveniently patented, big-pharma vaccination. According to Dr. Adams: “What the American people need to know now is we actually have data, and so we’re tracking that data,” Before this about-face, which appears to have come as an order from the Trump administration in consultation with the findings of Dr. Adams, the task force was working with’predictive models’, which had been created by the Bill Gates dominated WHO and CDC. Dr. Fausti’s control over the CDC has been criticized in the past for its for-profit motive in handling a range of illnesses from HIV to H1NI.
The lock down orders hopefully will be lifted soon, likely May 1st, but yesterday is a better date. The models have been dumped and the actual data are now in use. And the data are clear. There is no pandemic.
The WHO/CDC/Gates models have been horrifically inaccurate, catastrophically so. Pharma: Greed, Lies, a... Posner, Gerald Best Price: $26.77 Buy New $21.49 (as of 02:57 UTC - Details)
If I didn’t know better I’d think these guys were economists for the Fed or the IMF. I thought this was supposed to be about science (SCIENCE!)?
If so I have a couple of questions for the so-called experts:
So why wasn’t the CDC advocating widespread testing while monitoring the data from Wuhan?
Why were the media roasting President Trump over his travel ban from China?
Why were people like Fauci, as late as early March, saying this wasn’t a big deal when he knew otherwise?
Why is no one roasting New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio’s chesnuts over an open fire for not shutting down the biggest transmission vector in the entire country, its mass transit system?
Why is every death in the U.S. a COVID-19 ‘related’ death?
Why was everyone locked down and not just the high risk people?
It turns out, like everything else today, the answer to all these questions is simple… politics. And the worst kind of politics.
Meanwhile, Fauci keeps trying to upstage Trump, thinking he could continue to command the heights because he’s the chosen expert.
While I’m not Trump’s biggest fan, I have to say eventually he puts his foot down and when he does it then goes up the ass of some bureaucrat who richly deserves it.
And Fauci deserves far more than just the boot, as it were. He deserves all of our scorn and derision.
For all of you thinking I’m off base here, that somehow Fauci’s experience and credentials count for more than my vitriol I’m going to ask my last question.
Why should we listen to the word of any doctor that recommends people huddle in their homes afraid of a cousin to the common cold versus building up our immune systems and our herd immunity?
Fauci shouldn’t be leading a Presidential Task Force he should have his medical licence revoked for violating his Hippocratic Oath. China Rx: Exposing the... Singh, Janardan Prasad Buy New $13.99 (as of 04:38 UTC - Details)
Do. No. Harm.
So, is he going to reimburse personally the billions lost by small businesses around the country? The destroyed supply chains, the spilled milk, the spoiled food, the people who weren’t treated for non-COVID illnesses as our hospitals were overrun with his political experiment in mass hysteria?
He’s no more a credible source for medical advice regardless of his resume than I am.
Nearly everyone knows that strengthening the immune system is how you fight a cold. Vitamin D, C, bone broth, rest and sunshine.
You don’t need a medical degree from Holy Cross to know this. But somehow Fauci never seems to approve or green light treatments that do that. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking cancer, AIDS, or COVID-19, the man is a walking death sentence. He’s the very essence of regulatory capture and prima facia evidence that power and corruption go together like peanut butter and jelly.
If you squint hard enough he really does look like Gollum.
If there is one thing that this pandemic has exposed, along with the concomitant economic dislocation it is that ‘experts’ better run for cover.
Fauci, Gates and George Soros (who’s right on time with a new op-ed in the L.A. Times telling everyone we need UBI from the Magic Money Tree) are trying to create a medically-based transnational superstructure in the same way that The Davos Crowd failed to do it through trade deals like TTIP and TPP, which Trump nixed.
And it’s time that we looked at this situation with clear eyes and not the rose-colored glasses of what we want our government officials to be. Because if we don’t we’ll lose what’s left of our dignity. Forget the republic, folks. That’s gone.
This lock down is about whether or not we’re willing to actually walk the walk versus just whine about them ‘taking our freedoms.’ They are in the last stages of doing that right now, there’s no future tense anymore.
This is the present. This is real. Retevis RT20 Wearable ... Buy New $46.99 (as of 03:08 UTC - Details)
Men like Fauci shouldn’t just be fired, they should be tried and convicted for gross incompetence for the harm they are doing and the harm they’ve done.
Knowingly promoting mathematical models of disease transmission that were never intended to be accurate is FRAUD, not an honest error. He’s not the only doctor in the world with an opinion on COVID-19. Many of them are incensed with how this has been handled.
When issuing commands and recommendations that could cost the world its soul it is incumbent on the person making those recommendations to get them right, not run cover for evil oligarchs intent on shepherding humanity to their own private Mordor.
Because if they don’t then they are liable for results. But government operates in a true vacuum, immune to the effects of its bad decisions through sovereign immunity.
This is the fundamental problem with creating government agencies that have these powers. They are staffed by people who can be corrupted, and like Fauci are easy to corrupt to command controls over our lives that they have 1) not earned and 2) should never have.
And it’s why it’s time for us to stand up and no longer accept these men and women as any more wise and insouciant than we are. It’s truly time for the kind of intellectual revolt against the Progressive ideal of the wise engineer.
The palpable disappointment on the part of Gates, Fauci, the media and the Democrats at the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine is all the indictment of these people you need to finally let the scales fall and see them for what they are.
These are megalomaniacs without conscience. They are Bond villians without the charisma. And we need to strip them of their legitimacy first in our minds and then in practice.
Because if it were up to them there would never be a cure for COVID-19, just an endless series of treatments that make us sicker and more dependent on them.
#FireFauci isn’t just a meme, it’s a metaphor for taking control over our lives and our society. It’s time to go outside, leave our homes and get back to work.
They know that if they keep your business closed for more than three months it’ll be gone forever. Bill Gates is obsessed with killing off billions of people and having the rest of us on residual poison waiting for the next vaccination for COVID-20 or COVID-21.
And while for Gates it’s not about making more money, it’s about the control, he motivates those around him with the promise of some of that sweet, sweet money they couldn’t ever earn for themselves honestly.
After destroying these small businesses and printing trillions will allow vultures allied with them to come in and pick the bones of our gutted society clean.
This is what they are setting up while Soros, cyborg that he is, apes the empathy we humans actually feel to demand the government print more trillions to support the common man hurting because of him.
If I didn’t have a soul, I’d actually appreciate the irony of it.
Frankly, it’s beyond sick and it has to end. If we don’t see this lock down and attempted coup to allow doctors to run the country for what it is, then we deserve everything that’s coming to us.
Reprinted with permission from Gold Goats ‘n Guns.
The Best of Tom Luongo


lewrockwell--2020-04-16--The Libertarian Case for Bernie

The Libertarian Case for Bernie

There are several reasons for my stance .
Bernie has the courage of his convictions , something not all that prevalent amongst our politicians .
He has never “ run away from ” any of his heartfelt principles .
He didn ’ t “ run away from ” the economic philosophy of Socialism , in 2016 and before , when it was far less acceptable than it is now , thanks in no small part to his own advocacy of this system .
He never “ ran away from ” his backing , not for allowing ex-convicts to vote in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , despite the extreme unpopularity of this viewpoint .
Nor has he shrunk from his positions on any number of other issues which are extremely out of favor in many quarters : abortion , taxing the wealthy , labor unions , $ 15 minimum wage , Medicare for all , free college tuition , etc .
Senator Sanders knows full well that if he garners the Democratic nomination he will have to face an electorate a large part of which vociferously disagrees with him on these issues .
Does he pull his punches @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : of course not .
Defending the Undefend ... Walter Block Best Price : $ 1.99 Buy New $ 10.80 In fact , I can think of only one thing , well , person , from whom he does indeed “ run away from ” : me .
We were both members of Brooklyn ’ s James Madison High School track team a few decades ago and ran in the same long distance events .
Senator Sanders was one of the best track athletes in the entire city at the time , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began every race at the same starting line , but when the gun sounded , he soon “ ran away from ” me .
I don ’ t say my old buddy Bernie deserves to become President of the United States .
But he certainly warrants the nomination of the Democratic Party .
Why ?
In a word : Hillary .
The leaders of this party in the 2015 run-off pressed their big fat thumbs on the balance wheel of justice in her favor until they blistered .
If Bernie had enjoyed fair @ @ @ @ @ @ @ might well have beaten Hillary .
In the event , she won , but there will always be an asterisk placed next to her victory in this regard .
Fair is fair .
If there are any reparations for this unseemly practice , it would be to award Bernie the nomination .
Of all the major candidates , Bernie has by far the best policies in terms of U.S. relations with other countries .
Everyone else acts almost as if you don ’ t want to risk a nuclear exchange with Russia , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nation .
Not Bernie .
This Vermont Senator has also .
voted to end U.S. funding for the Saudi war in Yemen .
voted to decrease U.S. military aid to Israel The Privatization of R ... Walter Block Best Price : $ 1.94 Buy New $ 20.00 .
inveighed against U.S. efforts to topple the Maduro regime in Venezuela .
come out against our “ long history of inappropriately intervening in Latin American countries Speaking in 2017 at Westminster College , he opposed U.S. interventions in Iran , Chile , El Salvador , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a policy predicated on “ partnership rather than dominance.
” He challenged the notion of “ American exceptionalism.
” Here ’ s Bernie on Hillary : “ I do question her judgement .
I question a judgement which voted for the war in Iraq ; the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of the country.
” More from Bernie on this crucially important issue : .
“ A sensible effective foreign policy recognizes that our safety and welfare is bound up with the safety and welfare of others around the world.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shares a common humanity .
We all want our children to … live in peace.
” He descried The Church and the Lib ... Christopher A. Ferrara Best Price : $ 55.00 Buy New $ 851.90 .
“ … almost 7,000 young Americans being killed in Iraq and Afghanistan and tens of thousands coming home wounded in body and spirit from a war we should never have started.
” .
“ … hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq and Afghanistan dying in the same war.
” .
The fact that “ … @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the next 12 nations combined… ” He supported Eisenhower ’ s warning about the takeover of the “ military industrial complex.
” Bernie is not a radical libertarian on this issue .
He favors the United Nations .
My old high school buddy never quite calls for bringing all the U.S. troops home , every last one of them , but of all the major Democratic contenders , he is clearly closest to the libertarian ideal of non-interventionism , anti-colonialism , opposition to imperialism .
The U.S. has almost 700 military bases in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ senator would sharply move us in the direction of sanity .
No libertarian can support Bernie ’ s economic policy .
Socialism will cost our country hundreds of billions in terms of lost productivity .
But his foreign policy prescriptions will likely save trillions .
Not only in the cost of weapons , but also in terms of lives saved .
Go , Bernie !
Well , compared to Biden , in any case .
The Best of Walter E. Block

There are several reasons for my stance.
1. Courage
Bernie has the courage of his convictions, something not all that prevalent amongst our politicians. He has never “run away from” any of his heartfelt principles. He didn’t “run away from” the economic philosophy of Socialism, in 2016 and before, when it was far less acceptable than it is now, thanks in no small part to his own advocacy of this system. He never “ran away from” his backing, not for allowing ex-convicts to vote in elections, but also prisoners now incarcerated, despite the extreme unpopularity of this viewpoint. Nor has he shrunk from his positions on any number of other issues which are extremely out of favor in many quarters: abortion, taxing the wealthy, labor unions, $15 minimum wage, Medicare for all, free college tuition, etc. Senator Sanders knows full well that if he garners the Democratic nomination he will have to face an electorate a large part of which vociferously disagrees with him on these issues. Does he pull his punches? To ask this to answer it: of course not.
Defending the Undefend... Walter Block Best Price: $1.99 Buy New $10.80 (as of 07:55 UTC - Details) In fact, I can think of only one thing, well, person, from whom he does indeed “run away from”: me. We were both members of Brooklyn’s James Madison High School track team a few decades ago and ran in the same long distance events. Senator Sanders was one of the best track athletes in the entire city at the time, I was a mediocre runner. We both began every race at the same starting line, but when the gun sounded, he soon “ran away from” me.
2. Desert
I don’t say my old buddy Bernie deserves to become President of the United States. But he certainly warrants the nomination of the Democratic Party. Why? In a word: Hillary. The leaders of this party in the 2015 run-off pressed their big fat thumbs on the balance wheel of justice in her favor until they blistered. If Bernie had enjoyed fair treatment in this nomination race, he might well have beaten Hillary. In the event, she won, but there will always be an asterisk placed next to her victory in this regard. Fair is fair. If there are any reparations for this unseemly practice, it would be to award Bernie the nomination.
3. Foreign policy
Of all the major candidates, Bernie has by far the best policies in terms of U.S. relations with other countries. Everyone else acts almost as if you don’t want to risk a nuclear exchange with Russia, you are practically an agent of that nation. Not Bernie. This Vermont Senator has also
. voted to end U.S. funding for the Saudi war in Yemen
. voted to decrease U.S. military aid to Israel The Privatization of R... Walter Block Best Price: $1.94 Buy New $20.00 (as of 07:45 UTC - Details)
. inveighed against U.S. efforts to topple the Maduro regime in Venezuela
. come out against our “long history of inappropriately intervening in Latin American countries
Speaking in 2017 at Westminster College, he opposed U.S. interventions in Iran, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala, Vietnam. He advocated adopting a policy predicated on “partnership rather than dominance.” He challenged the notion of “American exceptionalism.”
Here’s Bernie on Hillary: “I do question her judgement. I question a judgement which voted for the war in Iraq; the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of the country.”
More from Bernie on this crucially important issue:
. “A sensible effective foreign policy recognizes that our safety and welfare is bound up with the safety and welfare of others around the world.”
. “Every person on this planet shares a common humanity. We all want our children to … live in peace.”
He descried The Church and the Lib... Christopher A. Ferrara Best Price: $55.00 Buy New $851.90 (as of 03:13 UTC - Details)
. “… almost 7,000 young Americans being killed in Iraq and Afghanistan and tens of thousands coming home wounded in body and spirit from a war we should never have started.”
. “… hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq and Afghanistan dying in the same war.”
. The fact that “… we already spend more on defense than the next 12 nations combined…”
He supported Eisenhower’s warning about the takeover of the “military industrial complex.”
Bernie is not a radical libertarian on this issue. He favors the United Nations. My old high school buddy never quite calls for bringing all the U.S. troops home, every last one of them, but of all the major Democratic contenders, he is clearly closest to the libertarian ideal of non-interventionism, anti-colonialism, opposition to imperialism. The U.S. has almost 700 military bases in almost 130 foreign nations. The Vermont senator would sharply move us in the direction of sanity.
4. Economics
No libertarian can support Bernie’s economic policy. Socialism will cost our country hundreds of billions in terms of lost productivity. But his foreign policy prescriptions will likely save trillions. Not only in the cost of weapons, but also in terms of lives saved.
Go, Bernie! Well, compared to Biden, in any case.
The Best of Walter E. Block


lewrockwell--2020-04-16--Time To Re-Examine the Coronavirus

Time To Re-Examine the Coronavirus

A waggish friend of mine suggested recently that if we had been wise and prescient , we should have invested in toilet tissue stocks—not the paper kind , but the Wall Street kind ( although the paper kind is certainly good to have in these times ! )
.
I went him one better , declaring that practically speaking I was well-stocked with the real thing ; my experience with the devastation wrought by Hurricane Fran back in 1996 having taught me a lesson : to keep a supply of “ essentials ” at hand for just such crises and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I were to run out , well , since I had an estimated supply that could possibly last the rest of 2020 , then—to quote the late George H. W. Bush—we “ would really be in deep do-do !
” I don ’ t think it will come to that .
In fact , increasingly I am coming to the conclusion that despite the actions by the president and various states , some things about this crisis—this national emergency—are just not right , don ’ t pass the proverbial “ smell test.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ First , there is the almost total reliance on human-created “ models ” —models that depend entirely on the data entered into the computer by fallible human beings .
You recall that when Dr. Fauci and Dr. Berx first appeared at those regular late afternoon briefings with the president , they cited models ( as did the president ) indicating that because of this outbreak the United States might have as many of 240,000 deaths .
Now that figure—the newest model—is down to less than 60,000 and continues to drop .
In other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deaths annually as deaths due to the complications of the influenza virus .
Dr.Jino Iodim High Pot ... Buy New $ 30.00 ( $ 0.25 / Count ) It has been those various models over time that have dictated our approach , nationally and regionally by state , to this pestilence .
Indeed , mitigation was factored into those guestimates originally… .
Of course , that is all we had , we are told .
But given what has transpired we are indeed justified in asking : “ what went wrong ?
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
” Certainly , severe mitigation measures—business closings and shutdowns , suspensions of travel and immigration , “ stay-at-home ” orders , personal safety measures ( e.g .
face masks , distancing , frequent hand washing , etc . )
—have all had an effect .
But is that all ?
Have we followed the right path in this ?
Have we taken the correct steps ?
Indeed , the percentage of deaths for those infected is actually around 1 to 2 % , approximately the same as for the flu annually… .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ is more contagious than regular flu , that it spreads more quickly , and , yes , there is no vaccine yet available to counter it ( although there are some very promising drugs readily available , including hydrochloroquine , despite the shrill complaints of Democrats ) .
All true .
We also know that the vast majority of cases and resultant deaths have occurred with the elderly who already have other health issues or compromised immune systems and who live clustered in assisted living centers , retirement homes , and in nursing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ population areas where people congregate and come into professional contact very closely on a daily basis .
What has been the solution to this outbreak ?
Based on dubious and ever-changing models our governors and local officialdom have effectively shut down wide sectors of our economy dead in its tracks .
Indeed , our economy has been effectively crippled .
And some of those actions , while certainly understandable , raise more questions than they would seem to answer .
Let me offer an example , a glaring one .
I shop for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; I like their merchandise .
They also have other items , bedding , appliances , whatever .
The local Walmart , not more than a mile from Kohls , offers the same kinds of items—clothes , bedding , appliances , whatever .
But the Walmart is open ( with new capacity regulations ) , while the Kohls is completely shut down , its employees laid off ( including a desperate neighbor of mine , now reduced to unemployment payments to survive ) .
What ’ s the difference ?
Walmart has a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is open on Sundays ) and a grocery department , and both are considered by the state of North Carolina as “ essential , ” but Kohls has neither of those .
Thus , the local Kohls is shuttered and sixty people are laid off .
And that situation is multiplied thousands of time across both North Carolina and the United States .
Quit Smoking Aid - Lun ... Buy New $ 26.99 ( $ 26.99 / Count ) For a month anyone—without a safety mask—could enter Walmart , browse its aisles , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all .
Now , of course , there are certain limitations , but you can still ramble down the long aisles .
Not so at Kohls , its lights are dark .
My query , then , is this : at the beginning of this shut down , why didn ’ t we allow the same policies for Kohls ?
If there was to be a limit on the number of customers in the store , well and good .
If there had to be 6-foot distancing , well and good .
All @ @ @ @ @ @ @ good .
But that ’ s not what happened , and to me it seems grossly unfair .
And we can think of dozens of other stores and businesses—deemed by North Carolina ’ s governor to be “ non-essential ” —where this would equally apply .
It has been economically devastating .
Think of the differences economically , and with—I would suggest—no appreciable difference in risk .
Restaurants and the food service industry present another problem , as by their very nature restaurants , especially those that are sit-down affairs with no take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hard by the virus and the resultant closure directives .
And many of that industry ’ s employees are hourly wage earners , only a paycheck away from “ going on the dole.
” Yet , could there not have been a reasonable course of action , say , temporarily limiting the number of occupants , intense cleaning of surfaces , staff with face masks , perhaps even spacing tables a bit further apart—while keeping the businesses open and employees working ?
Could that not have been tried ?
Hard to implement , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so .
But let me suggest—let me offer the view—that good and reasonable alternative precautions might well achieved similar results compared to what we increasingly see now .
Such approaches would have necessarily varied from county to county , city to city , and from state to state .
Obviously , New York State would have enacted far more stringent limitations .
But the result , overall , is not or should not have been , to strangle our economy , but to reasonably and rationally curb the infection , with the least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being without a job , unemployed , without income is arguably a greater pain than risking infection when reasonable—underline “ reasonable ” —precautions can be taken .
Life Extension Vitamin ... Buy New $ 15.00 ( $ 0.25 / Count ) It is beyond doubt now—given the frenetic response by the media and certain politicians—that there is a decidedly political aspect in all this .
We see this every day : only take a peak , if you can stomach it without retching , at the coverage by CNN or even by some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ manufacturing hysteria…who trumpet COVID-19 as “ the end of the world as we have known it , ” and , of course , the ultimate fault of Donald Trump , who either acted too quickly ( the media template back in January and early February ) or too slowly ( their narrative currently ) .
And , of course , we are reminded , there is a deeply and darkly “ racist ” bugaboo in this whole business—it kills more black and helpless minorities .
Again , the fault no doubt of President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ go to waste , ” Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago once presciently said .
He was profoundly correct , as every foul Never Trumper , “ woke ” social justice warrior type , and Democrat Party apparatchik knows fully well .
Rather to destroy the economy and send us into Depression than see that hated “ man with the yellow hair ” get credit for any success… .
And no doubt , the political aspects of this virus , for it does present an inescapable political face , has influenced actions to counter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Coronavirus rise in that country about the same time as here , has now begun to “ re-open ” for business , progressively and prudently , in stages .
It is time now for the United States to begin a similar process , reasonably , prudently , and progressively…the sooner the better for all concerned .
Vigilant Supply Co. Qu ... Buy New $ 22.95 Weekly Pill Organizer ... Buy New $ 9.99

A waggish friend of mine suggested recently that if we had been wise and prescient, we should have invested in toilet tissue stocks—not the paper kind, but the Wall Street kind (although the paper kind is certainly good to have in these times!). I went him one better, declaring that practically speaking I was well-stocked with the real thing; my experience with the devastation wrought by Hurricane Fran back in 1996 having taught me a lesson: to keep a supply of “essentials” at hand for just such crises and emergency situations. I added that if I were to run out, well, since I had an estimated supply that could possibly last the rest of 2020, then—to quote the late George H. W. Bush—we “would really be in deep do-do!”
I don’t think it will come to that. In fact, increasingly I am coming to the conclusion that despite the actions by the president and various states, some things about this crisis—this national emergency—are just not right, don’t pass the proverbial “smell test.”
Let me offer some cautionary examples. First, there is the almost total reliance on human-created “models”—models that depend entirely on the data entered into the computer by fallible human beings. You recall that when Dr. Fauci and Dr. Berx first appeared at those regular late afternoon briefings with the president, they cited models (as did the president) indicating that because of this outbreak the United States might have as many of 240,000 deaths. Now that figure—the newest model—is down to less than 60,000 and continues to drop. In other words, about the same number of deaths annually as deaths due to the complications of the influenza virus. Dr.Jino Iodim High Pot... Buy New $30.00 ($0.25 / Count) (as of 09:29 UTC - Details)
It has been those various models over time that have dictated our approach, nationally and regionally by state, to this pestilence. Indeed, mitigation was factored into those guestimates originally….
Of course, that is all we had, we are told. But given what has transpired we are indeed justified in asking: “what went wrong?” or rather, “what went right?” Certainly, severe mitigation measures—business closings and shutdowns, suspensions of travel and immigration, “stay-at-home” orders, personal safety measures (e.g. face masks, distancing, frequent hand washing, etc.)—have all had an effect. But is that all? Have we followed the right path in this? Have we taken the correct steps? Indeed, the percentage of deaths for those infected is actually around 1 to 2%, approximately the same as for the flu annually….
Certainly, we are told that COVID-19 is more contagious than regular flu, that it spreads more quickly, and, yes, there is no vaccine yet available to counter it (although there are some very promising drugs readily available, including hydrochloroquine, despite the shrill complaints of Democrats ). All true. We also know that the vast majority of cases and resultant deaths have occurred with the elderly who already have other health issues or compromised immune systems and who live clustered in assisted living centers, retirement homes, and in nursing homes; or with folks in dense population areas where people congregate and come into professional contact very closely on a daily basis.
What has been the solution to this outbreak? Based on dubious and ever-changing models our governors and local officialdom have effectively shut down wide sectors of our economy dead in its tracks. Indeed, our economy has been effectively crippled. And some of those actions, while certainly understandable, raise more questions than they would seem to answer.
Let me offer an example, a glaring one.
I shop for clothes many times at a local Kohls; I like their merchandise. They also have other items, bedding, appliances, whatever. The local Walmart, not more than a mile from Kohls, offers the same kinds of items—clothes, bedding, appliances, whatever. But the Walmart is open (with new capacity regulations), while the Kohls is completely shut down, its employees laid off (including a desperate neighbor of mine, now reduced to unemployment payments to survive).
What’s the difference? Walmart has a pharmacy (I go there as it is open on Sundays) and a grocery department, and both are considered by the state of North Carolina as “essential,” but Kohls has neither of those. Thus, the local Kohls is shuttered and sixty people are laid off. And that situation is multiplied thousands of time across both North Carolina and the United States. Quit Smoking Aid - Lun... Buy New $26.99 ($26.99 / Count) (as of 02:46 UTC - Details)
For a month anyone—without a safety mask—could enter Walmart, browse its aisles, and purchase anything, no problem at all. Now, of course, there are certain limitations, but you can still ramble down the long aisles. Not so at Kohls, its lights are dark.
My query, then, is this: at the beginning of this shut down, why didn’t we allow the same policies for Kohls? If there was to be a limit on the number of customers in the store, well and good. If there had to be 6-foot distancing, well and good. All employees wearing safety masks, well and good. But that’s not what happened, and to me it seems grossly unfair. And we can think of dozens of other stores and businesses—deemed by North Carolina’s governor to be “non-essential”—where this would equally apply. It has been economically devastating.
Think of the differences economically, and with—I would suggest—no appreciable difference in risk.
Restaurants and the food service industry present another problem, as by their very nature restaurants, especially those that are sit-down affairs with no take out service, have been hit extremely hard by the virus and the resultant closure directives. And many of that industry’s employees are hourly wage earners, only a paycheck away from “going on the dole.” Yet, could there not have been a reasonable course of action, say, temporarily limiting the number of occupants, intense cleaning of surfaces, staff with face masks, perhaps even spacing tables a bit further apart—while keeping the businesses open and employees working? Could that not have been tried?
Hard to implement, difficult to achieve? Yes, admittedly so. But let me suggest—let me offer the view—that good and reasonable alternative precautions might well achieved similar results compared to what we increasingly see now. Such approaches would have necessarily varied from county to county, city to city, and from state to state. Obviously, New York State would have enacted far more stringent limitations. But the result, overall, is not or should not have been, to strangle our economy, but to reasonably and rationally curb the infection, with the least pain to the most people. And being without a job, unemployed, without income is arguably a greater pain than risking infection when reasonable—underline “reasonable”—precautions can be taken. Life Extension Vitamin... Buy New $15.00 ($0.25 / Count) (as of 03:13 UTC - Details)
It is beyond doubt now—given the frenetic response by the media and certain politicians—that there is a decidedly political aspect in all this. We see this every day: only take a peak, if you can stomach it without retching, at the coverage by CNN or even by some of the ideologically obscene local television stations manufacturing hysteria…who trumpet COVID-19 as “the end of the world as we have known it,” and, of course, the ultimate fault of Donald Trump, who either acted too quickly (the media template back in January and early February) or too slowly (their narrative currently). And, of course, we are reminded, there is a deeply and darkly “racist” bugaboo in this whole business—it kills more black and helpless minorities. Again, the fault no doubt of President Trump. “Never let a crisis go to waste,” Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago once presciently said. He was profoundly correct, as every foul Never Trumper, “woke” social justice warrior type, and Democrat Party apparatchik knows fully well. Rather to destroy the economy and send us into Depression than see that hated “man with the yellow hair” get credit for any success….
And no doubt, the political aspects of this virus, for it does present an inescapable political face, has influenced actions to counter it.
Austria, which saw the Coronavirus rise in that country about the same time as here, has now begun to “re-open” for business, progressively and prudently, in stages. It is time now for the United States to begin a similar process, reasonably, prudently, and progressively…the sooner the better for all concerned.
Reprinted with the author’s permission.
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