Friends, while many have compared the coronavirus pandemic to the Spanish Flu of 1918-19, this article makes an intriguing case that the "Asian Flu" of 1957-58 is a more apt parallel. See if you agree. Horowitz points out that our response in 1957-58 was a lot less hyperbolic than it is today, despite the fact that the toll was arguably higher. But then no one would accuse the architects of public policy in 2020 of being detached and judicious, would they? Tsk tsk.
Thanks for this article. Very informative. It seems somewhat clear that the current pandemic has been used as a political weapon, by both of our "ruling" parties. Needless to say this is morally and ethically wrong.
ReplyDeleteQuite right, Ray, but as always we can't be sure that the manipulation of circumstances is premeditated or even intentional. In this case, our elites are pouncing on an opportunity, and, while they may be captive to some massive delusions, I give them the benefit of the doubt insofar as I tend to think that they believe their own propaganda about COVID-19... Does that make them merely naive rather than wicked? When the end result is hugely hurtful to tens of millions of people, I'm not sure it matters. And I'm just talking about the short- and medium-term hurt. The long-term problem is the growth of centralized power, which this fiasco is only making worse.
ReplyDeleteTHE "GROWTH OF CENTRALIZED POWER" ARE THE KEY WORDS. I think that 9/11 helped that along also, don't you?
DeleteFor sure, Ray, but truth be told there hasn't been much that's happened in, oh, the last thousand years or so that HASN'T helped government to grow. That goes double for the last hundred years. "Never let a good crisis go to waste," as the saying goes, and when a crisis is lacking all you have to do is manufacture one. It's not so hard. I often wonder when the tide will turn...and whether it even CAN turn, or whether we've passed the point of no return. No, that's silly. Nothing lasts forever. Not even big government. Still, I feel as though we're in for a long spell of it!
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