COVID: The after times

 

At American Thinker, Alex Lekas takes a thoughtful look at the aftermath of the COVID “pandemic” – and some readers here will surely relate to his frame of reference.  He starts off:

The Covidian orthodoxy is beginning to crumble. Some governments have discovered that their approach did not improve anything. On the contrary, at least one study shows that the myriad restrictions on normal life have had the opposite effect. That confirms what many people said 18 months ago when challenging the official dogma was considered an act of heresy.

Now what? There is going to be a clear delineation of human interactions in the aftermath when compared to the before times. It is almost impossible to expect otherwise.

Like many of you, I have learned things about people I thought I knew that were hard to believe. It has been quite the learning curve to find out who would happily serve as an enforcer to push the state's dictates, who would just as happily shut people out of society, celebrate their firing, or deny them healthcare for the sake of making a political point. Once you have seen the true measure of a person, one who would support steps that harm friends and relatives and justify that support [without] hesitation or regret, how can you see such people in the same light again?

You can't trust them. You can’t discuss anything of substance with them. You can’t pretend that none of this happened. It is impossible to once again respect or like people whose inner tyrant rose to the surface so easily, and that will be among the lasting legacies of this sorry spectacle, one that should sadden us all. The friendships forever tarnished, the family ties that are irreparably broken, the neighbors you no longer recognize; for many people, those will be the most tangible results of their COVID experience.

There is no joy in saying "I told you so" as the narrative starts falling apart. The same people and publications who dismissively, if not derisively, hand-waved warnings of second-order effects from mandates and lockdowns as so much conspiracy babble, are now reporting on the second-order effects of mandates and lockdowns. But worse, they are doing so without the faintest hint of humility or self-awareness, without the slightest acknowledgment of their complicity in pushing fear while stifling open, honest discussion. Then again, why would they?

Mr. Lekas concludes:

The path forward is not likely to be pleasant. It is going to be difficult to watch the various divisions of the Karenwaffe pivot and claim that they knew all along the assaults on freedom would not work. Of all the lies people can tell, the worst are the ones they tell themselves. This is where the truth about character is revealed. The old saying holds that tough times build character. That is not true. Tough times reveal character. What many of us have seen cannot be unseen and it will resonate for some time.

Full article is here.   

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