Ripple Effects

When panic grabs hold reason is the first casualty. It is why hindsight oftentimes makes us wonder what we were thinking, and how we could have bungled up a situation to such an extent. There is a naturally occurring ripple effect to panic that makes people do things they would have adamantly denounced only a few days prior.

Even if we contain this, even if we flatten the curve, even if social distancing, or whatever new buzzword they come up with has the desired effect, the fallout, repercussions, and collateral damage of the panic we’ve allowed ourselves to descend into will be felt for years to come.

As should be the case with most thinking adults, the first question that must be asked and answered is whether the global panic we are seeing is warranted.  In the United States, there have been under 100 deaths to date, most of which occurred at a senior care facility in Seattle. Granted, that number is likely to rise, but it’s a long road from under 100 to over a million as some of the more vocal doomsayers have been prognosticating.

Since everyone is fond of pointing to Italy which tops out at circa 2200 dead since this ordeal began, let us also take into account that over 90% of those deaths occurred among individuals who are 70 or older, at least half of which would have likely been felled by a bout of the run of the mill flu. It is undeniable at this juncture that this virus affects the elderly and those with compromised immune systems most profoundly.

As of the last count, this virus has contributed to 7,332 deaths globally. Obesity kills 2.8 million annually!

Currently, you are more likely to win the Powerball Lottery than you are to die of the Coronavirus. Let that sink in for a spell before making another run to the supermarket for more toilet tissue even though you can’t fit any more of it in your garage.

No, this isn’t fun facts with Mike time. Still, in order to understand what we’ve given up as far as liberties are concerned over the course of just a handful of days, without a coup, without a shot being fired, and without any protesters in the streets, we must contextualize the situation for what it is.

We are seeing governors, mayors, and all manner of paper-pushing bureaucrats use this pandemic to waylay people’s constitutional rights using the virus outbreak as a cover. From declaring prohibitions on everything from church services to public gatherings to sales of ammunition, to sales of firearms, these people feel emboldened because they saw this as an opportunity to exploit people’s fears.

How much freedom are you willing to give up in order to mitigate catching something that to most folks is no worse than the common flu? That is the question before us, and it’s a thorny one because drowning people usually don’t look to see who is attached to the arm offering to pull them out of the drink.

My concern isn’t so much this virus, but the precedent it sets vis-à-vis the actions government feels within its rights to carry out. There are cities in these United States where the local government has ordered its citizens to stay home, and are prohibited from gathering outside even if they happen to live in the same complex or home.

It’s scary how readily we’ve allowed ourselves to be culled without a whimper or a protest of any kind. We assume, for some unexplained reason, that the bureaucrats coming up with these restrictions are smarter than us somehow, forgetting that government work, for the most part, has the lowest barrier to entry of any field.

We are become sheeple, and it’s a tragic thing to behold. If, as some have said, this was a dry run to test individual compliance, well, we either failed miserably or passed with flying colors depending on what side of the power structure you find yourself. One thing is sure; the next time panic is induced, stoked, and fanned, it may be for something far less, and the freedoms they strip from the average citizen far more.  

Be wary of anyone trying to sell you on taking away your freedoms for your own good. It never is!

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea Jr.