Boating ban goes too far

Dear Editor:

I have had some personal difficulty in addressing the social loneliness that comes with social distancing and isolation. I have had even greater difficulty in understanding how some would fail to unify in our fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and refuse to understand the greater good of community guidelines by crying selfishly about a “nanny state.” Yet, I now see some substance for rebellion.

Note the article headlined, “B.C. wants boat-free long weekend” (Courier, May 15). Because why? Apparently, “Each call search- andrescue specialist puts them at risk to exposure…” How ridiculous! All boaters are diseased? Our caregivers have no protective equipment?

Now I understand that not all rebellion is being led by ‘nutbars’ and contrarians. Getting out on the water is an essential recreational pleasure and stress reliever, particularly in the Okanagan. Assuming that one in a 1,000 may be a COVID19 carrier and calculating the actuarial rate of risk of that person having a mishap needing rescue, amounts to an infinitesimal risk of almost zero. Yet, a total closure on boating recreation amounts to thousands being forced into harmful social isolation to protect against the vaguest of uncertainties.

By and large, I do commend our community leadership in the setting of reasonable and necessary guidelines. Unfortunately, this guideline is not one of them.

Ian Royce Sisett, Kelowna