One of the great lessons of the recent pandemic, was the realization that the average American can be as cowed by the authorities as anyone else in the world. The image of the rugged, individualistic American has been severely damaged, and it shall be difficult to regain. It appears that most Americans are as sheep like as the typical Europeans who have left their individual sense of worth in the hands of the bureaucracy generations ago in exchange for the welfare state.
I fully realize that Covid was a new virus and that consequently, there were destined to be many errors in attacking it. That is to be expected and anyone who expects politicians, scientists, doctors, other self-proclaimed experts to be on target with every decision is foolish; we are all human and subject to pressures, politics and pre-conceived notions as we move through the challenges of life. But we should be able to expect those who are in positions of power to act in a relatively rational manner. Remember the Governor who decreed that consumers could purchase certain products at a store but not others? Did she have insight that Covid was attracted to certain products or activities than others? What about another Governor who distained the emergency services provided by the Federal government because he did not want to give credit to a President he disliked? How does that square with the deaths of thousands due to his decision? The list goes on and on, especially of politicians who made medical and policy decisions for which they had little if any training.
Perhaps the single individual who did more to destroy that iconic image more than anyone was Dr. Anthony Fauci. As the pandemic went on, he spoke increasingly Ex-Cathedra finally stating that “If you attack me, you attack science.” The problem was that his version of “science” had little in common with traditional science. Clink the link below for a review of the five mistakes Dr. Fauci made which brought about terrible results. What makes those errors even worse, is that even today, he holds some of the same views despite the proven costliness of those policies. As time goes on, those who were pushed out of the decision-making process because they dared to disagree with him and his policies are being seen in a new light, for they represented “science” as we traditionally think of it as a realm of questioning as opposed to an area of dogma.
Perhaps, just perhaps, more Americans will be a bit more skeptical next time and so easily bullied into giving up so much freedom to self-proclaimed “experts.”
https://nypost.com/2022/07/23/dr-anthony-faucis-5-disastrous-covid-mistakes/
