About those ‘experts’

The coronavirus has elucidated the left/right divide as so many other aspects of life do.

The left would like to listen to “the experts” and close the entire country. Better safe than sorry. This view was championed by John Brummett last Sunday. The right, however, would like to keep social, medical and financial aspects of the virus in perspective and dictate public policy accordingly. The left claims to be science-driven. But so far, scientists can’t tell us with any certainty how this virus will spread or how virulent it is. We don’t have any idea how many people have been infected and are symptom-free or nearly so.

Some “scientists” have posited that as much as 50 percent of the population might be, have become or have been carriers. Furthermore, when deaths from covid-19 are reported, we don’t know how many died from the virus as opposed to how many died with the virus. It should be clear that many medically compromised patients would have died regardless.

A while back New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that with all the restrictions and rules he has put into place, if even one life would be saved, he would be happy. That is one of the single most idiotic public policy statements I have ever heard.

In the meantime, statistics that we await are how many of our fellow citizens will succumb to suicide, opioid abuse, alcoholism, domestic violence, etc. How many lives will be financially ruined? Public policy should never be dictated by “experts.” I would prefer publicly accountable local and regional authorities to make these decisions.

Perhaps John Brummett would like to change the last line of the Star-Spangled Banner from “o’er the land of the free, and the home of the brave” to “o’er the land of the free, better safe than sorry.”

MICHAEL TOPPEN

Bella Vista