Letter: Rules on masks, vaccines are draconian and wrong
By Letter to the Editor on November 5, 2021.
In response to Peter Mueller’s Oct. 27 letter to the editor, “No one has the freedom to break laws.” Dear editor, In the 1960s, hundreds of thousands of young Americans protested the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War and the undemocratic enforcement of the draft. I’m sure many compliant citizens thought of them as unpatriotic at the time, but they made their voices heard. The same could be said for the civil marches led by Martin Luther King. We Albertans have been living in such peaceful, almost complacent times, that we’ve never really had a reason to rise up and protect what used to be our fundamental rights. Until now. Now we’re being told whether or not we can get together with our families, go to a restaurant or movie theatre; or whether we have to wear a mask. Whether masks actually even work or not (especially the ones we are wearing), is debatable, let alone the way that people are wearing them. Wearing the same disposable mask over and over, or not laundering washable masks in a timely manner is unhygienic and a potential health risk. Furthermore, it is my understanding that we’re living under a mask mandate, not a law, which is why no one is handing out tickets. The way the public is waving around vaccine passports, like an 18-year-old flashing their driver’s licence to legally get into a pub or bar, is not only sad, but concerning. This draconian measure reeks horribly of the passports of Second World War Europe, and with Remembrance Day rolling around once again, perhaps we need to appreciate, more than ever, the sacrifices made by all the men and women so that we could enjoy life and liberty. As Canadian citizens, our Charter states that it is our right to make our own decisions about what we put into our bodies. Unfortunately, this has also resulted in a health-care system incapable of sufficiently treating patients presenting with multiple chronic diseases brought on by years of unhealthy lifestyles. Enter a pandemic, and an already crumbling system will fall like the Roman Empire. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians have chosen to remain unvaccinated, and when governments threaten to take away their livelihoods unless they comply, that spells coercion. Lastly, Mr. Mueller, during your career as a teacher, did you tell your students what to think, or did you encourage them to be critical thinkers? Because critical thinkers are what our society needs now more than ever. Judi Coombes Medicine Hat 12-11
