Coverage of all things Covid has been shockingly partisan and biased, with the major media gleefully presenting what it considers the politically-correct version of facts. You have to dig to see beyond the distortions, and I thought I would share sources that give you “the rest of the story,” to quote the late radio commentator Paul Harvey.
Most of what we see in mainstream publications, such as The Atlantic, apparently believe the pandemic will last forever and that individual responsibility should be quashed in favor of public health mandates and rules that whole communities must follow.
“Throughout the pandemic, American leaders have given individuals more responsibility for keeping themselves safe than might be ideal,” reporter Katherine Wu writes. In her article saying the Biden administration has “killed America’s collective pandemic approach,” Wu laments that “these revised guidelines codify that [individual responsibility] approach more openly than ever before.”
For refreshing real-world facts, we follow instead Health Care News, a joint publication of The Heartland Institute and The Goodman Institute most-ably edited by AnneMarie Schieber.
The latest issue reports on a survey showing the huge partisan divide on Covid. The Heartland/Rasmussen poll finds:
- 55% of likely Democrat voters want to fine unvaccinated Americans (vs 19% of Republicans who hold that view)
- 48% of Democrat voters want to “fine or imprison Americans” who publicly question the efficacy of the shots (14% of Republicans)
- 29% of Democrats want to “remove custody of children from parents who refuse Covid-19 shots.” 7% of Republicans favor the draconian action.
Meanwhile, we are learning how damaging and counterproductive most of the public health experts’ rulings have been.
“Lockdowns had near-zero impact on Covid-19 deaths,” Schieber reports on a study from Johns Hopkins economists who find that the harsh restrictions had little or no effect and instead caused more damage by imposing “enormous economic and social costs.”
That may be why the U.S. Senate voted this week to end the two-year-long national Covid emergency. The bill has little chance of passage in the Pelosi-controlled House and being signed by the president. But it’s still progress.
The Health Care News issue also reports on the CDC acknowledging that natural immunity can be more protective than vaccination; that 78% of those who died with a Covid diagnosis had at least four comorbidities; religious freedom is under threat, especially among health professionals; and we need to separate science and state given the abysmal record of government public health authorities. (You can subscribe here for free to the monthly e-publication.)
Other excellent articles you won’t read elsewhere are in RealClearInvestigations, starting with today’s lead article, “Correction Mr. President: This is a pandemic of the vaccinated too” by reporter Clayton Fox.
And to close, former Florida governor and now Sen. Rick Scott has developed a positive agenda to “take on the real problems America faces.” He writes about his plan in The Wall Street Journal today, but if you don’t have a subscription, you can access his report about how “to rescue America” here.
He writes that Americans see no point in giving Republicans “control of Congress if we are simply going to return to business as usual.” His 11-point plan has 128 “bold ideas” on education, safety and crime, immigration, and more—but no specific ideas on overall health reform.
Never fear. Health Policy Consensus Group participants are on to that and soon will be releasing a new and improved “HealthCareChoices 2024.” Stay tuned.
