THINK FOR YOURSELVES

Re: “On liberty, conspiracies and vaccinations”, (Opinion, July 8).

I agree with the author that is not beneficial to stifle the ability of individuals to voice their opinion, even if conspiracy theories are way out of what most of us call reality. Who would be the arbitrator and what opinions are the correct ones allowed to be voiced? On the other side of the spectrum of vaccine conspiracies we have another group of people who I would say are over-righteous, I guess a branch of the woke train.

They typically want harder Covid measures, longer lockdowns, and anyone opposed is labelled detractors and should not be able to express their opinions even as it is apparent that in most cases none of this works — at least not for long. Unfortunately, the author will run into problems with these groups as direct harm will be argued as “we are not safe until everyone is safe” and those anti-vaxxers will harm others by not achieving “herd” immunity (a word I do not particularly like as it is a very low hanging fruit for anti-vaccine conspiracies).

If someone had told me two years ago that within half a year almost all so-called democracies around the world would copy a totalitarian state’s approach and apparently succeed in handling the spread of Covid, I would not even consider it a conspiracy theory but just a bad joke. Shutting down whole countries, shattering small businesses and restaurants, prohibiting older people seeing their close ones and letting them die alone, incarcerating people and children in their homes and criminalising going to work.

So, let us provide as much accurate information as possible and have an open discussion where everyone can have an opinion, even loonies. I have full confidence that people can make up their minds of what is right or wrong and that we do not need someone above to do the thinking for us.

Dr Hansson