Protesters take their frustration to the streets

As the COVID-19 pandemic wears on and some countries begin to enforce curfews, shutdowns and other health mandates, some have taken to the streets to protest against it all.

In Brussels, the Belgian capital, tens of thousands of people have been marching to protest against the anti-COVID measures. Some of the protesters even threw fireworks at police who used water cannons and tear gas to intervene.

While most are unhappy with the restrictions being imposed on them once again, the biggest opposition is because of the COVID passes, which would keep the unvaccinated from entering bars, restaurants and other venues.

However, people in the Netherlands are faced with new lockdown rules and showed their frustration on Saturday by setting fire to bicycles in The Hague and hurling fireworks at police officers. This came one night after protests in Rotterdam turned violent and police there fired their guns.

It seems the protests are becoming widespread, as demonstrators also took to the streets in Italy, Austria and Croatia, as anger mounted over the new mandates.

Meanwhile, in Belgium, the rules regarding face masks have been tightened, which means Belgians will have to wear them in more places, to include restaurants, where COVID passes are already required. Most Belgians will also have to work from home four days a week until mid-December.

Much like some employers in the United States, Belgian healthcare workers will have to get mandatory vaccinations.

The tightened restrictions could not come at a worse time.

With the holidays upon us, strict restrictions could further harm businesses — especially if they are forced to shut down.

The global economy has already greatly suffered and we, in the United States are certainly feeling the fallout from that. Goods are beginning to move out of the port in Los Angeles, but it’s a very slow process, it seems, to get them where they need to go. The last thing we need is to face another Christmas season like we did in 2020.