For most of the COVID pandemic, my northwest Ohio county has been a safe place to be, with low numbers of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. But the rural areas of the state are being hit hard now too, and tomorrow grades 7 through 12 of our local school will go to remote learning. There is concern that our hospitals will not have enough beds and health care staff, and the governor has imposed a statewide curfew, with businesses closed and citizens grounded at home between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
So how do I feel now that we actually have reason to be especially cautious in my area? Not much different. I have always taken this seriously and will continue to do so. At the same time, I don't think lock downs, curfews, masks, etc. have had any positive effect, and the cure of draconian government protocols has certainly been worse than the disease. The toll on people's livelihoods and mental health and the loss of constitutional freedom that we may never get back are too high a price to pay for the illusion of "staying safe" and "slowing the spread."
The CDC itself presented a study showing that the vast majority of people who got COVID always wore masks (over 70%), and that under 4% of those who got sick did not wear masks. Read about it here: https://thefederalist.com/2020/10/12/cdc-study-finds-overwhelming-majority-of-people-getting-coronavirus-wore-masks/?fbclid=IwAR3Zsbj39hbyxYjLU0HSJ2iEkZ-zkREkEe7w2FbemM-sNwYcNXN5pSLuN_c.
Yet another distinguished doctor in the field came out recently saying that the masks and distancing are useless, and all that can effectively be done is to protect the most vulnerable (https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/breaking-youtube-censors-lifesite?fbclid=IwAR1w7WZTYFg0Lak7f4Nv0slGfofjp15By0tl7MoCbDrJIx73IjVXdSA6MOM). The audio recording of his statements on YouTube was removed, with Life Site News, which had posted it, having their channel closed down for a week, with the threat of permanent deletion.
So why are we still wearing masks? Why have we been robbed for the past 9 months of our 1st Ammendment rights and our ability to make the best decisions for ourselves, our families, and our local communities that we can? Why is big tech allowed such prevalent censorship? Perhaps our government leaders are simply power hungry. Some clearly are. I think others are in denial. They are being told by a very limited number of "experts" that these safety protocols work, and that the only reason we still have a problem is that citizens aren't being responsible.
I suppose a small minority of folks have thrown caution to the wind, ironically, the most draconian government leaders being among the most personally irresponsible. But the great majority of folks have done their very best to follow the mandates, and if these measures were going to work, they would have done so long before now.
My local school had all staff and students wearing masks even during gym and recess, which should have been exempt according to Gov. DeWine's own orders. So even with precautions above and beyond, we still had a significant breakout. Everywhere I have gone in the two largest towns in the county, I have seen very few people not wearing masks. I assumed that they, like myself, had health exemptions.
As I suspected months ago and feel I have seen confirmed to be true, nothing can be done to stop this airborne virus, and the widespread use of masks and social distancing has likely lowered our immune responses and harmed our respiratory function. We have made it all that much worse for ourselves, and between disagreements over COVID and the election (which are no doubt connected issues), many have lost their support and connection with family and friends--an emotional loss on top of the physical separation.
We have to stop this magical thinking, this grand illusion of control. Businesses and schools should stay open, most of us should toss the masks aside, and while being prudent and protecting our most vulnerable, we should control what we actually can and make steps forward to return to our normal lives and a free society. Going backward is not the answer and will result in nothing but increased devastation. If people don't start standing up and demanding their due sovereignty, we may never get to the point of being able to again. Especially if we are facing a Biden presidency, which I pray to God we are not, there is the very real and terrifying possibility of a Communist United States.
