Whether it’s terrorism, war, natural disaster, economic depression, or a pandemic, a crisis creates fear, which gives government the opportunity to increase its power.

There are many things about viruses that are still unknown, but predicting infection and death rates of this new virus is where public health bureaucrats leave the realm of “science” and just start “inventing” likely outcomes by cobbling together computer algorithms that are heavily biased by their desire to fashion the most frightening predictions possible. In addition, they are only working with a few months of incomplete data, and yet they claim a high degree of “certainty” for their dire forecasts. Their resulting authoritarian policies are based on these dubious “forecasts,” not facts!

800 independent medical professionals just signed a letter questioning these draconian policies, but their opinions are ignored!

The public finds itself under a constant barrage of fear-mongering by these public health bureaucrats. Their narrative is that if severe restrictions are not implemented, the results will be catastrophic; lives will be lost. However, shutting down the economy will lead to the certain financial ruin of millions of people. Many lives will also be lost from this economic shutdown! The resulting stress will surely cause a spike in deaths from heart attack, stroke, suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, and poverty.

No one knows whether the virus or the economic shutdown will cause more death and disaster, but there is much greater certainty of how much damage the shutdown will produce.

Unfortunately, most state and local politicians seem incapable of consulting independent experts on critical public policy issues and just blindly follow the edicts of “government authorities.” They fail to recognize how painless it is for public health bureaucrats to recommend shutdowns because they will continue to receive their salaries and benefits while the private sector collapses.

Would governors and mayors so quickly acquiesce to these public health bureaucrats if their primary source of income and wealth came from the “non-essential” businesses they so cavalierly shut down? But, why question the “advice” from public health agencies when following their lead gives them authoritarian power, too?

What psychological and spiritual harm does it inflict on us if we submissively cower in our homes, silently accepting the government’s latest encroachment on our rights? After the passive acceptance of the Patriot Act, this scale of government intrusion was inevitable.

The fear of infectious diseases has emerged as the ideal vehicle to acquire Orwellian levels of control over our population.

The politicians who have seized upon this opportunity to implement “martial law” hope to create a “new world” where social distancing becomes a way of life; where most public gatherings are no longer allowed; where the yearly “cold and flu” season includes mandatory quarantines and lockdowns; where those over 60 or with “underlying conditions” are subject to “special controls”; where “health passports,” listing our compliance with their unending demands to be tested and vaccinated, will determine our ability to leave our homes, visit people, go to work, and travel.

Will many even object? Will anyone stop them?

This commentary was submitted and published with the author’s permission. If you wish to submit a commentary to Texas Scorecard, please submit your article to submission@texasscorecard.com.

David Stanowski

David Stanowski is the President of the Galveston Open Government Project, Inc.

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