The spring economic shutdown “to slow the spread” of COVID-19 almost destroyed us. But the United States is resilient, and the country is slowly—if sometimes shakily—getting back on its feet. Millions have returned to work and the unemployment rate is ticking back down. The stock market has regained much of its lost value. It isn’t a straight road back, to be sure, but there seems good cause for optimism.
But not everyone is cheering.
Because COVID-19 cases have also increased as the country opened, as we knew they would, some of the nation’s health care and other “experts” want to shut us back down again. And this time, they want to impose a harder, and perhaps longer, societal lockdown.
Obamacare architect, bioethicist Ezekiel Emanuel is the most influential voice urging a return to the bad old days of April. We shouldn’t be surprised. Back when the country was closed for business, Emanuel—who, it’s worth noting, is now Joe Biden’s lead COVID-19 health care adviser—urged that the country be kept in that artificially induced coma for 18 months, the time it was expected then for a COVID-19 vaccine to be found. Thankfully, President Donald Trump paid no heed.
Now, Emanuel is back, again calling for a shutdown as the lead signatory of an open letter to “Decision Makers” signed by some 150 other “experts” in health care. From the letter:
“Non-essential businesses should be closed. Restaurant service should be limited to take-out. People should stay home, going out only to get food and medicine or to exercise and get fresh air. Masks should be mandatory in all situations, indoors and outdoors, where we interact with others.
“You should bar non-essential interstate travel. … If you don’t take these actions, the consequences will be measured in widespread suffering and death.”
Bar most interstate travel? That’s never been done in our history; not during the Civil War, the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic—which was much worse than COVID-19 because it primarily killed the young—or during periodic polio epidemics.
Media Campaign
Emanuel and his fellow letter signers aren’t alone. Infectious disease expert Dr. Michael T. Osterholm of the University of Minnesota, along with the head of the Minnesota Federal Bank and former Obama administration member Neel Kashkari, have launched a joint media campaign to convince America to return into societal hibernation.
Their most recent call for panicked self-destruction came in the form of a New York Times op-ed, in which they write:
“To successfully drive down our case rate to less than one per 100,000 people per day, we should mandate sheltering in place for everyone but the truly essential workers. By that, we mean people must stay at home and leave only for essential reasons: food shopping and visits to doctors and pharmacies while wearing masks and washing hands frequently.”
Didn’t we already do that at great economic cost to tens of millions of Americans—but not, it is worth noting, the technocratic and chattering classes? According to Oserhgolm and Kashkari, the former lockdown failed because it wasn’t nearly harsh enough:
“According to the Economic Policy Institute, 39 percent of workers in the United States are in essential categories. The problem with the March-to-May lockdown was that it was not uniformly stringent across the country. For example, Minnesota deemed 78 percent of its workers essential. To be effective, the lockdown has to be as comprehensive and strict as possible.”
Funny, Sweden didn’t impose a hard lock down. Its economy certainly took a hit, but not as bad as many EU countries. And while its mortality rate has been worse than some of its European neighbors that did shut down, it’s also better than others.
Besides, we’ve been told that universal masking holds the key! One study found that 80 percent mask compliance would do more to stop the spread than another lockdown.
Oh, pshaw, write Osterholm and Kashkari:
“Some have claimed that the widespread use of masks is enough to control the pandemic, but let us face reality: Gov. Gavin Newsom of California issued a public masking mandate on June 18, a day when 3,700 cases were reported in the state. On July 25, the seven-day daily case average was 10,231. We support the wearing of masks by all Americans, but masking mandates and soft limitations on indoor crowds in places such as bars and restaurants are not enough to control this pandemic.”
Good grief, our nation’s “experts” need to get their stories straight.
Second Great Depression
Snark aside, consider the consequences of reimposing another Draconian lockdown: The country would plummet into a second Great Depression (just in time for the election) that could take a decade or more to overcome. Millions of restaurants and shops would be shuttered, never to reopen. Life savings would be lost. The real estate market would plummet. We would add many trillions more to the national debt than we are already are incurring now, as half the country would become totally dependent on government checks. Millions of children would be kept out of school, forever stunting their education.
The predictable results: increased suicides, increased opioid deaths, increased domestic violence, increased political divisions, and increased loss of trust in our political institutions. In short, another lockdown would cause a cultural catastrophe.
No, no, the authors write. Totally shutting down will be better for the economy. If we don’t shut down, they write, “the path of the virus will determine the path of the economy. There won’t be a robust economic recovery until we get control of the virus.”
I find this abject terror among our technocratic class very odd. The Wuhan virus isn’t smallpox, after all. Most people who contract the infection experience relatively mild symptoms and fully recover.
Yes, of course, it can also be a wicked, and sometimes unpredictable disease. But we know who are most acutely in danger of serious illness and death (people like me), and we can take strong steps to protect them. Surely, we can accomplish that important public health goal without destroying the country to save it.
Which leads us to the one intractable problem that Emanuel, Osterholm, Kashkari, and their ilk fail to consider. If the government did again order a total lockdown, I believe that millions of Americans would simply refuse to obey. Indeed, it would take tyrannical measures of the kind imposed by China on its imprisoned people—perhaps even soldiers in the streets—to effectively impose house arrest on us all.
I cannot imagine that happening. Trump and most governors would surely never go along. But if they did, it would tear the country apart.
Award-winning author Wesley J. Smith is the chairman of the Discovery Institute’s Center on Human Exceptionalism and author of “Culture of Death: The Age of ‘Do Harm’ Medicine.”
I think the Corvid-19 is total BS started by China and probably the rest of Comminist countries;
and the communist/Socialist/progressive politicians,K1 – K12 teachers, college professors.
We not forget WHO,FDA,CDC,Doctors,Hospitals,who lie on death certificates, etc etc etc
Firstly the flu still out kills coved19 in the same time span. Second by the mask mandate many people are getting upper respiratory infections that are then called coved19, a self proclaimed proficiency. Third we can’t sustain the rights of a free nation under the governing for the governing, it has to be we the people! Terinie is at hand and America won’t stand for it!
First of all, the flu that the states have that goes around every fall, people die from that.. but that is not televised and the flu shot does not always work either. Sometimes you get sick from the shot! Now thanks to the Chinese that smuggled in the new virus, USA now has it, we are just going to have to deal with it.. I think people fair better at home with the virus than at the hospital. I was in the hospital recently, not virus related wasn’t there no more than 6 hours and my bill was over $8,000! So if these people ever recover from this virus they are truly going to be ill, when they get the bill from the hospitals! Now the question was about the shut down.. no we don’t need to do another.. its dumb.. masks are dumb.. but all need to wear masks that say “Trump 2020” and masks will no longer be mandatory! The shut down hurt too many people that are just trying to make it.. I say NO to another. I am sure others do as well. Our children need to be in school and need American history.. no sugar coating!
People who do not live in the real world no absolutely nothing ABOUT the real world. That pretty much describes the vast majority of Liberal Democrats, and their RINO cohorts.
Please stop this nonsense. Not wearing a forced compliance muzzle, not ever. They have been proven to be largely ineffective. Masks are not about safety, they’re about control.
New York Governor Cuomo stated over and over again that the lockdown was only going to be to flatten the curve well the curve was flattened and we’re in August and we still have a partial lockdown in New York. Our politicians continually lie to us just to push their radical agendas.
Am I the only one that believes the rise in the virus after it had started to go down has to be from all of the so called “Peaceful Protesting” that involved major violence, destruction? Where all of these so called peaceful people were gathering in enormous crowds ignoring safe distancing or wearing masks? Or how about the many virus tests that have given false positive results? This pandemic thing is a political thing to make President Trump look bad. The CDC should be under investigation for fraud… there have been medical assistants that sent in untested swabs to be tested under random names … and they came back as positive. People are getting phone calls wanting to know when they will be checking in to get medical attention because they tested positive for the virus when they haven’t been tested at all. Deaths from cancer, heart failure or other illnesses that cause death are being reported as “Death by Coronavirus” because each positive result gets paid thousands of dollars. Do these morons think all of us citizens are stupid?
How dangerous is it really, when we have Nancy Pelosi marching down the street without a mask telling people to come on out and join her because the virus was something the Pres. Trump was making up to scare people… and then it really got out of control… but no one seems to remember her doing that. Or so they act like they don’t. They won’t bring it up because then it makes her and her minions look stupid. Coronavirus has been around for years. A friend of mine pulled a bottle of Lysol she had under her cabinet for close to 10 years… the label was yellowing it was so old… but in very fine print it listed all of the viruses it would kill, and the very 1st one mentioned was Coronavirus.
This whole thing is not just political. It is Biblical. These are the days of Tribulation. I believe that God sent us Pres.Trump to direct us and save us. It’s time to pray and pray hard for Pres.Trump’s safety, for our country’s life. And time to be prepared for anything the evil Dems throw our way.
Those “experts” along with Emanuel need to be “locked down” in a closet in their offices with no means of outside contact, that would be the best lock down with which to deal with the virus.
I cannot for the life of me imagine how Emmanuel and other “experts” could see wisdom in reducing our blood flow by 60% and expect us to be recognizable when it was over. Which… leads one to start entertaining conspiracy theories.
Our national debt will kill us. And, that may be what they want. Combined with the Left’s approval of the violence by “peaceful” protesters, and punishing victims rather than their assailants, and the connected dots paint a really sick picture: This is a plot to force “progressivism” (communism, fascism by any other name) onto the population, since free elections are not getting the job done.
I don’t believe a bit of it!! And I work in health care. Thank you for the article. I love AMAC.
Good article except for one thing: N-95 and N-99 masks only filter down to 0.3 microns. The Kung Flu is 0.1 microns.
Any effect that supposedly ‘shows’ a decrease in the spread of the Kung Flu is more likely due to more people having antibodies, plus a decrease in the number of cases as the virus follows the typical peak and ebb patter seen with all viral infections. Wearing a mask does absolutely nothing to prevent infection. Additionally, there is overwhelming evidence that mask-wearing will MAKE you sick; in fact, it could exacerbate the symptoms of the Kung Flu and make you more susceptible. Don’t believe me? I don’t care – look it up.
People, do what you should ALWAYS do to avoid ANY infectious illness:
1) Wash your hands frequently, especially before touching any part of your face and eating;
2) Keep your distance from people who are obviously ill;
3) DON’T touch your eyes, nose, or mouth without FIRST washing your hands;
4) Good nutrition is essential, along with regular exercise, sunlight acquisition for Vitamin D, and taking both Vitamin C and Zinc to stimulate your immune response against illness;
5) Cover your mouth when coughing; wash your hands afterwards;
6) Don’t do any stupid s&%t like licking toilets.
I PROMISE you that you will be much healthier overall. And IF you have the misfortune of contracting a viral illness, chances are that you will do much better if you treat your body well to begin with. Even people with autoimmune diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc. have survived after getting sick from viral illnesses of any kind. Yes, some people do succumb, but it’s survival of the fittest…no matter what your age is.
I see a massive control to shut the country down. There are not more cases. There are very few people in the hospital only for Covid flu, they are in for other reasons but the staff are being told to mark them all as Covid regardless of the reason for admission. I hear of labs sending positive results to people who were never tested. Two labs in Florida were investigated for sending out 100% positive results when in fact there were only 5% positive results. Someone is manipulating the numbers so they can take away our freedoms. We need to stand up and let our voice of opposition be heard. As a healthcare worker, I read the scientific studies and know that the masks are not doing anything, but keeping people in fear. The vaccines are not going to help anything either. Please people, don’t listen to the main stream media. They are lying to you!
This flu is about done. Very few people are getting sick from it now.
Search for the interview on Fox with Dr. Phil, he says the shut down and the mental and emotional harm is destructive; and loss of jobs is much more harmful than the flu. We are seeing higher child abuse, sexual abuse, suicides and other worse things than the flu. Enough is enough. Let us tell our Governors to open up the country and let us go back to normal. NOT a “new normal”!!
We the People can NEVER again bow down to lying, manipulative officials with evil intentions. This is AMERICA, and as Americans, we are FREE to choose how we will respond to difficulties,whether it be invasion by illegals, or whether or not to wear a mask or close our businesses. It is OUR voices that decide the course of actions “suggested” or “recommended” by government. THEY have no right or power to decide FOR us, or to FORCE their will upon us! Every American has the RIGHT to decide whether to wear a mask or not, with NO punishment from government or other citizens who disagree. The numbers being given to the People by mainstream, Liberal Media, are LIES! This is simply a matter of Democrat Tyrant Governors and Mayors who have enjoyed months of unchecked powers, and will do whatever it takes to KEEP it! Enough is ENOUGH! END Emergency Powers for ALL officials and unchain the people. We will NEVER go back to the Communist Leadership we have witnessed in 2020 thus far!
Today, I saw that WH is thinking of barring foreign travelers for coming back to US. Assume they will be tested & quarantine for 14-days ?? Good, now just have to worry about community spread already here.
Trump appointed new guy in USPS in June & now service has slowed down & big cutbacks. Looks a little bit like it might be tied to Trump comments on mail-in ballots , but probably just coincidence. Some call USPS snail mail, but I am one of the old dinos that still like mail & use it. It has been around a lot longer than all of us, so must have done something right since Pony Express.
Dictators abound! Time to live and move on. Americans will do the right thing!!
I live in Texas and my husband is the county judge….I told him the other day that I WILL NOT be locked in my house again.
Let’s get real (for a change). The “number of cases” is statistically irrelevent. We have known for some months that there were far more cases (on the order of 50X) than were confirmed by testing. So we started to test more and, oh shock of shockers, we found more cases. The “second wave” is nonsense. Great stat for the purvayers of fear porn, but statistically irrelevant. The only way to have statistically relevent numbers would be if the whole population were tested every week. Then we would have real numbers to work with. Never gonna happen. Although the Corona virus is real and it has killed a lot of people and will kill more (although we also know that these numbers are likely inflated as well) the virus is going to spread regardless of what we do. We can lock down everyone forever and the virus will still find a way. So what’s the point? We know what it is, get Trump out of office regardless of how much damage it causes; and for leftists, more damage and chaos works in their favor anyway. It is past time to get things back to somewhat normal with a few common sense proceedures in place. And by the way, there is no such thing as a “nonessential” business. We know this because nonessential businesses go out of business (regardless of how “essential” or “nonessential” they appear to be).
If you hate The United States of America, vote for Democrats.
What effect has the SHUT DOWN had on the rate of SUICIDES?
I work in an assisted living building. What this “lock down” has done to our residents is horrible! We are slowly killing them even though we have not had the virus in our building. Our residents are so depressed. The confusion has increased, their body strength has decreased, cognitively they have declined. They cry and they have given up on life. They had told me that they do not care anymore. They want to be with their families and want to come out of their small apts. They have to stay in their rooms so there is no socialization which hurts their well being. They have said that they feel that they are in prison. This has to stop! Remember, Hitler’s Army “just” followed their orders. This is exactly what we are doing, “following orders”. Sad but true! It is time to fight back and stop this madness!
Why did President Trump shut down the country in the first place? He took advice from Dr. Fauci, the presumed “expert” on infections.
Why did Dr. Fauci go to Wuhan last year? Who is he connected with?
of course the eveil ones waht to shut down the country again…to completely destroy the economy as the election approaches…I still to this day do not know anyone who has contacted the virus..we stay at home except to go to shop as needed or for doc appt. or meds…most days tho..home…I just today went out and stocked up on tp and paper towels..I don’t trust them…especially with schools opening…I hope the president fights this tooth and nail…don’t want it to happen…
Death, death, and MORE death! The Dems/globalists would love it, it is their goal for us. Population control and misery so they can finally overthrow our government and have their way with us. Dems are a death cult and their leader is Satan, Mr. Death, himself.
Follow the science…. NOT THE POLITICAL SCIENCE FICTION!!!
Breathing in one’s own carbon dioxide all day long IS NOT A GOOD, HEALTHY OR SCIENTIFIC PRACTICE!!!
Besides, this “elite” Dr. A. Faucci, in more than 50 years of experience in the field, has not ever treated a patient for CoVID. And he’s supposed to be the elite of the elites within the industry as far as infectious viruses goes.
You must understand this is what most Dem’s want a total collaps of the system so they can install their own system AKA socialisum
Harry Truman is quoted as saying: “Never pay attention to the experts.” This is particularly true in the current biased political environment. The experts do not indicate that this coronavirus in a man-made laboratory creation. The experts do not mention the success Sweden has had with not panicking and not shutting down the Swedish economy. Sweden has adjusted and is close to “herd immunity.” The experts refuse to recommend hydroxychloroquine and zinc to help combat the virus, particular when symptoms first appear. The American Medical Association, Anthony Fauci, the major media networks all are guilty of playing politics and have blood on their hands from the senseless deaths caused by their actions. We should not prevent frontline doctors who have been successful in treating coronavirus cases by restricting the use of medicines such as hydroxychloroquine and zinc. The AMA and Fauci have violated the Hippocratic Oath of ethics by causing great harm all in the name of hating Trump. Need I say more!
I know of 2 persons who scheduled covid tests and were unable to keep their appointments for various reasons. Both received notice that they had tested positive in spite of the fact that they did not get tested. There goes my tryst in any figures showing how terrible the case rate is. My area just missed the mark to allow p=in person visits at nursing homes. I think accurate figures would remedy this travesty against our elderly population, but I don’t trust our health officials to do it.
Maybe if we hadn’t had so much protesting, rioting and all the situation would be improving. Funny that they only want to control some of us! The others have the right to do as they please. If you want to go to church or a local business you are banned. The whole pandemic seems to be controlled by the left and its cronies! Their plan so far it to make us totally dependent on government (stimulus), rig an election (mail in ballots), the Dems must not have too much faith in their candidate!
It’s all about control. The leftists have already started to get what they want. They’ve changed our world in a short few months. Limited religion, social gatherings, instilled fear and started to restrict interstate travel with some states requiring mandatory quarantine if you leave and come back to state you live in.
AMAC: Thank you for the great article in August 2020 magazine starting page 48 on FEDERAL DEBT. This was interesting & informative and one more thing that could have been included is the percent of debt owned by some foreign countries. It is hard to believe how fast this has grown, and how WH worried about this debt in the 1950’s vs the last thirty years.
Don’t let’em get away with it! It was the democrats who said in the early stages of Covid-19 that President Trump was overreacting! When the president moved to restrict travel from China, the rotten communist democrats said this was too extreme! The rotten news media and the rest of the democrat party condemned the president! Now, these same rotten democrat communists are telling us a different story – the president, they say, didn’t act quick enough! Democrats are also trying to compound the misery of the American people by helping destroy Trump’s prosperous economy! Don’t be deceived by these evil bast_rds!
AMAC: There appears to be a lot of people on this board that think coronavirus is just a hoax. Suggest you run a poll on how many people think a hoax or not ?? With choices of why or why not?
Sean Hannity was on CBN this morning & he said ” Social Security & Medicare is going bankrupt”. This has been red flag for years & needs to be addressed by POTUS & legislative bodies. This is the most or only monthly that some of retirees have to live on. I suggest take the limit off SS wages that pay taxes & also to raise percent of Medicare taxes. This is not an entitlement but payback of dollars that the taxpayer has paid in on his wages since 1938.
In the news this week, “New Zealand reaches 100-days without a case of coronavirus”. What did they do & can we do something similar ???
Pshaw! more fear-mongering!
As an older AMERICAN I can not believe some citizens are willing to destroy the USA to get Trump out of office. Please be careful what you wish for.
The Democrats love to place blame on President Trump but our real pandemic, our real problem is with the House and the Senate not doing what is in the best interest of this country which would be to support the President!
Well first, I do not need anyone to protect me. I am fairly skilled at taking care of myself, and I certainly know what precautions to take as regards the flu. I’m an introvert so I am a big fan of social distancing anyway. I appreciate being given a lot of personal space & I naturally return the courtesy.
What I would really appreciate is for everyone to do the following: ALWAYS cover your coughs & sneezes (don’t tell me it’s OK that you just coughed on me because it’s allergies or asthma – you have no idea what’s coming out of your body that may negatively affect me), wash your hands, & for heaven’s sake STAY HOME when you are sick. Those are the normal, ordinary, customary things we have always been told to do to protect ourselves from colds & flu.
I’m guessing VSGPDJT is well aware that the left will continue to use the China Flu against us. That may be why he had Dr. Scott Atlas at his press conference yesterday. I hope Dr. Atlas continues to appear & has many opportunities to speak & answer questions.
In the meantime, here’s some food for thought: If the masks work, then why are we social distancing? If social distancing works, then why are we wearing masks? If masks & social distancing work, then why are our businesses closed? If we can stand in line at the grocery store, then why can’t we stand in line to vote?
You know the answer to these questions. Because it’s not about the virus & it never was.
WE NEED TO PRAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For a virus with a morbidity rate under or at 0.1% leftists want to complete the annihilation of America’s free market, very stable, maybe the most stable globally… economy. What kind of traitors could possibly more deserve charging trial by peers, conviction for treason than the near entirety of the new socialist DNC ?!!!
Open America back up! We deal with viruses every day and learn to cope. Shutting down is just the democrats way of trying to destroy America and try to get another rats elected into office.
What is this “waiting for approval? Why is my comment being held up? I thought AMAC was about our constitutional rights, I make a legitimate statement and it is blocked? Clean up your sight AMAC.
To Ezekiel Emanuel and all of his ilk, there is nothing stopping you from quarantining yourself and hiding in your basement for the next 18 months. So please, be like Joe and let the rest of us continue with our lives.
The only reason this chinaflu is so widespread is because elitist, socialist/dems REFUSED TO COOPERATE with anything PRESIDENT TRUMP SUGGESTED, same thing with the RIOTS, the dem state and city officials refused to do anything UNTIL the looters hit the rich then all of a sudden they took notice and now “threaten” to take action, unless the thugs go back to the working class nieghborhoods then they again will not care anymore. VOTE REPUBLICAN, VOTE TRUMP.
We need to stop listening to these “experts” whose only aim is to cripple America! Stop giving them air and ink time! If their voices aren’t heard, no one will follow!
This is the guy, that during the Obamacare discussions, said that rather than give older people health care it would be cheaper tp give grandma a pill.
Stupidity and fear mongering, thy name is Democrat/ Communist/ Socialist.
Let us say for the sake of argument that these depraved communists succeed in their goal to “shut down” the country. What system do they plan to replace it with?
Communist never built anything of value, they attack an existing system and destroy it.
Look at the examples of their paradise ; Communist China, the former Soviet Union, Cuba and Venezuela, oppressive “progressive” concentration camps, they are literally a Culture of Death run by the likes of a satanist bioethicist Ezekiel Emanuel who cannot justify his existence.
This communist hoax is so transparent, yes the Chinese virus can cause death in those with chronic illness and the immuno-compromised, especially when the only super effective drug that cures it, Hydroxychloroquine, with a proven safe track record of over 65 years fighting malaria, is bedeviled by the DNC propaganda arm left stream media, but it does not reach the death toll of the flu, TB, or malaria, and we don’t shut down the country, or the global economy for these. Now Ezekiel Emanuel, Rahm “Dead Fish” Emanuel’s brother, another of Obama’s “fundamentally transforming” unholy crew of America destroying organizers wants to give the U.S. the Chinese assisted coup de grace, quickly, and before the next election because they know Joe Biden has a snowball’s chance in hell of winning without an epic scale of voter fraud, from every cemetery in the nation voting Democrat, to voting machines and mail in ballots being rigged, to now shipments of 20,000 fake U.S. driver’s licenses from China which can be used by illegals to vote.The DNC is an organized crime syndicate, when is AG Barr going to finally indict them under the RICO act?
No shutdown!! Its a Democrat plot to turn this country to socialism!!