My understanding of deer catching back in the days of old is that pens were constructed out in the bush, trap wires and doors set and when deer were in these huge pens, they realised too late they were caught.
A fence is built one post at a time, with little concern at first as an animal simply moves round this object and continues on its way. As more and more posts are put in, and wires start to link them, walking round them becomes harder and takes longer.
Such fencing strategies can be seen today. Socialism and social control has been slowly but steadily building a pen around us. We ignored the first posts, the liberal laws and walked round them in the name of tolerance. We bought into the argument of the greater good. We allowed choice and freedom but forgot that the choices of others can affect our own freedom.
Unless you’ve been in a submarine for the last 6 months or unconscious, you would know the world is a very different place to what it was when we welcomed the year 2020. A previously unfamiliar flu-like illness which is a type of coronavirus (the common cold is also) is in our midst, and between it and measures to stop it, society and economies world wide are in serious trouble. The policies and lockdowns are wreaking much more havoc than the virus.
We shifted from flattening the curve to elimination; our borders were supposedly closed; since then over 60,000 people have come in and been quarantined right around the country, with numerous reports of people breaking out or being allowed out earlier on compassionate grounds. Where is the kindness if community transmission occurs again? Will the government and PM step up and apologise for letting down their team of 5 million who so blindly followed them during this time? Will the public stand for another lockdown, even if regional?
At the time of NZ’s lockdown I posted the following:
So I am trying to figure something out. ‘Be kind’, ‘stay home’ are the two mottos of the day. When have New Zealanders ever needed to be told to be kind? Surely at times like this anyone could work that out? Anyway, I digress. The people most likely to die of coronavirus are those who are elderly and wth multiple health issues and compromises. On 19 Sept we are voting not only for a new government but also a referendum on euthanasia- a bill to allow for the elderly who are terminally ill to die- the very people we are now trying to protect. Where is the kindness? What is the logic and reasoning?
I appreciate all the comments people made and those who raised the issue of choice- perhaps an obvious difference I hadn’t thought of. We all have different worldviews and experiences which shape our ideas and beliefs and I respect that and ask you do as well. I know these are highly sensitive and emotive topics hence why I’ll respect other’s views but I want to understand the many facets around these debates. 😊
Having said that, I do have a miniature essay here as I seek to understand where people are coming from and how we juggle the idea of choice- my choice vs another’s choice can be in direct contradiction and one of us can’t exercise their choice if the other exercises theirs. Follow that?
So we can choose euthanasia if we are terminally ill, in serious pain and only have 3 months to live (I think that’s what the Bill covers anyway) and I concede it is very compelling. My concern with euthanasia lies in what has happened numerous times overseas- very tight and well-thought out laws are relaxed and it becomes easier for people to choose death regardless of whether they’ll recover or even if they are ill- think of an 18yr old girl who chose euthanasia during a period of depression.
Choice and coronavirus:
No one can choose whether they get the virus or not, we all get that it is an air-born virus that spreads in various ways. If we have the virus we can choose to stay away from others until we’re recovered- and should do that! But right now lockdown has been forced on us, even if short-term it seems best. However none of us had a choice about the huge economic disruption, the loss of jobs and businesses. NZ and the world will never be the same again, our levels of freedom and prosperity will be unlikely to return, if they ever do. Tourism will never rise to the high it was before- and the jobs associated with it will by and large be gone forever. Yes lockdown won’t last forever but the consequences of however many weeks of it will be felt for as many years. When we look back on this in 10yrs time as past history, we’ll figure out which countries and politicians got their response right and which didn’t. Right now I’d say it is 50/50 for any given country and their response. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but living in the midst of a fog without that visibility or the full big picture makes for a lot of speculation.
In staying home during this enforced lockdown we reduce the spread and allow time to develop a vaccine- although hydroxychloroquine has been found to be a very good cure for those not already seriously ill and likely to die. Taking a slight step then, is it reasonable to suggest that where people are seriously ill we use their illness to try and develop cures, giving them as much love and care as possible to support them in their discomfort, and use medication to relieve pain?
Let me reiterate again- all life is valuable and people are worthy of respect, love and dignity. But we also live in a messed-up world where death is common. Thousands die every day from age, hunger, cancer, smoking, alcohol, accidents, flu etc. – where there is life there is also death. How do we balance the dignity and choice of those suffering with the dignity and choice of those who are very much alive and want their own health and comfort met as well as the economic security of themselves, family and/or country? We can choose to save lives over the economy – but only to a point because as the economy collapses and more businesses collapse more lives are lost through suicide and lack of medical care as hospitals remain closed for those with the virus or the most seriously ill. How can we all get the choice we want, and when we can’t, whose choice is more important? I haven’t worked out the answer to that yet.
Sometimes it feels like we are all part of a great big experiment to see how much can be rushed through parliament, how much fear can be used to control and subdue, how much the truth can be covered before people wake up. Like strands of a net we let our freedoms go willingly; they came back to a degree but nevertheless a dangerous precedent has been set. Next time we won’t have a choice. Thanks to the COVID-19 Public Response Health Act we will be like deer who walked into a safe and healthy environment and didn’t see the fence being erected, the gate swinging shut with finality.
Thanks for reading. I don’t think any answer is clear cut, there is always the life vs economic vs social vs health debates balanced by what we do or don’t know and great diversity of study that seek to answer small parts of that. I’m not going to debate on this, but I do welcome people’s viewpoints. 😊
Country Girl at Heart 