2/n 4x fewer children have access to full-time, in-person learning in the most repressive 50% of the country, relative to the least repressive states.
2.5x are learning 100% virtually in the most repressive, compared to the least repressive.
Unemployment is 30% higher.
3/n At the poles the difference is greater yet
In the least repressive states, 9x more children have access to 100% in-person learning than in the most repressive
In the most repressive states, 6X more children are “learning” 100% virtually. Unemployment is 50% higher
4/n Put another way, there are more children w/access to 5-day/week, in-person learning IN FLORIDA
than there are in the 19 most repressive states: CA, VA, MA, DE, NM, WA,VT, NC, HI, IL, CT, ME, NY, CO, OR, RI, PA, NJ, & DC
NEARLY 50% of the country.
5/n Sadly, this has become a democratic problem.
Nationally, 64% of children have access to any kind of in-person instruction. In states w/Democrat govs, it is only 49.9% vs. 82.8% for those w/Republican govs.
6/n When it comes to full-time, in-person, only 19% of children of states w/Democrat govs have access, vs. 62% for those w/Republican govs.
17% of children in states w/Republican govs are learning 100% virtually, compared to 50% w/Dem govs.
5/n The UN human rights council has said that public health measures must be as non-disruptive as possible.
Considering the manifest harm, & the total lack of positive impact from these measures, it is incumbent on us that we relax them immediately.
6/n Comparing Florida with states of similar demographics & latitudes, but higher restrictions, the argument is nearly moot.
After removing all restrictions on 9/16, FL moved from the middle of these states to the bottom—despite the oldest pop of the group.
7/n If we look at states based on their total excess death, divided by size of their senior population, a very different picture emerges. We see much less variation among states, & Florida is among the least deadly of all states--unquestionably the least deadly among large states
8/n Florida has the highest median age by far (it is the 3rd oldest state) of its peer states, the 47th lowest stringency, yet has had consistently lower deaths and hospitalizations since adopting the #FocusedProtection advocated by @gbdeclaration
9/n Even for states where this virus is now endemic (MA, NY, NJ) but still with incredibly harsh COVID measures, FL continues to perform better w/fewer restrictions and a larger elderly population.
11/n Based on this understanding, @MartinKulldorff attempted to publish this work, to save lives. He was not able to get it published, despite being an extremely well-respected, senior epidemiologist at Harvard.
12/n These measures are causing acute harm, both to our children through lack of access to schooling, and to the rest of the populace by decreased employment.
13/n The harm does not stop there. Approximately 2/3rd of the country is suffering across every possible metric. The 1/3 that are not suffering are driving policy, policies that benefit them and harm others less well-off than them.
14/n These measures are not normal. Even for a flu of a magnitude similar to the 1918 flu, the CDC pandemic plan, only recommended “suggested home quarantine of sick individuals.”
16/n Beyond that, there is little question that these harsh measures not only keep kids out of school and increase unemployment, they very appear to have significantly increased deaths in all cohorts, but especially the young. thepragmatist.co/post/bad-publi…
17/n Note how in FL, after restrictions were removed, deaths for under 45 have remained below flu levels. Even 45-64 have only slightly exceeded. In CA, deaths in all of these age groups are significantly elevated.
18/n In FL, in the 65+ age group, where deaths are certainly above flu levels, the % increase is nowhere near as high as was seen in California.
19/n Again, this was all to be expected based on prior research. Harsh restrictions drive the virus to the weakest among us, increasing the mortality rate. In Boston, there is a clear link b/n level of education, and exposure.
20/n Some will say that it is not my place to demand that we abandon these harsh, harmful measures, because I am not an epidemiologist.
I disagree.
21/n As someone upon whom these repressive public health dictates have been forced, I believe I have a right to dissent
—particularly when the measures are manifestly useless for their desired end, and causing significant additional harm.
22/n Surely public health ought to be responsive to the will of those whom it claims to help. If not, it is without merit or purpose.
23/n The public health measures in place for the last year to not deserve the name.
They have robbed more than 50% of the nation’s children of a years’ worth of education.
They have increased unemployment. AND they have increased mortality.
24/n The Biden administration is currently doubling down on these disastrous measures.
25/n @CDCDirector Wallensky has provided recommendations that mirror her work in MA—and which have resulted in only 3.5% of MA students w/access to 100% in-person learning.
26/n We deserve better. We deserve that our public health community admit the utter failure—and outright harm—of their measures.
27/n Public health is founded on mutual trust. This is why it is broken. Our public health officials do not trust we are capable of processing information. They continue to treat us like children, to lie to us, to exaggerate, to claim certainty where none exists.
28/n The results speak for themselves. It is time for this medical tyranny to stop, to empower us to make our decisions for ourselves.
We could not possibly do worse than they have done for us—and where allowed to, we are doing far better.
We are doing a #SmileSummit tomorrow, for people looking
a) to find others in their areas and
b) ways to organize to put pressure on local governments to remove these repressions.
In her home town (also mine, Newton, MA), she was unable to have any impact on schools (she wrote a letter).
If she can’t open our schools in our wealthy near-Covid-free town, she sure isn’t going to be able to do it elsewhere.
When you select for failure, you get more of it.
When the CDC stops misconstruing everything about COVID to hide its role in using the pandemic as a political tool, kids in blue states will return to schools, and people will return to work. Not before.
COVID has been politicized. Children and families in blue states are paying the price. On average, in red states, 3x as many children have access to 100%, 5-day/week in-person learning as in blue. Nearly 4x as many children in blue states are 100% remote (sources @ end)
2/n This politicization is not saving lives. The average deaths/million in red states is only slightly higher than those in blue states, despite measures that are nearly twice as strict. Follow me for state-by-state data…
3/n 11 states have fewer than 10% of students w/access to 5-day per week in-person learning. All are blue save 1. 10 states have 70% or more children w/access to 100% in-person learning. All are red states.
Do not show #NormPorn where people are defying local rules. This will only emboldens those who say the infection is driven by small pockets of recalcitrant anti-maskers.
3/n
When posting photos or videos of businesses, do not allow the businesses to be recognizable, as the mask mafia is everywhere, even in sane places.
Do use video if at all possible, and start with video, as it captures people.
1/many
Last weekend I escaped to Florida from Massachusetts, the fascist hellhole I am cursed to call home.
Everything you have heard is true. They have real people there, not the zombies that people the blue wastelands.
People smile, they laugh, they acknowledge you. Join me
2/n
I was in Miami, where there is a mask mandate which is mercifully unenforceable. On the boardwalk, 75% of people were un-masked. In town 50% of people on the sidewalks were un-masked. Miami has lower activity than much of the state, at 60% of normal cai.burbio.com/countyoverview/
3/n It was enough for humanity-starved soul like me.
The restaurants were packed, no plexi-glass in sight, and only those catering to the most affluent (and hence “liberal”) appeared to have any reduced capacity at all.
@DLeonhardt 1/n
Don’t you find it even a little odd lecturing other states on how to handle COVID, when NYC, where your publisher resides, has the highest death count in the world 3170/million? That is almost 3x the national average of 1271.
@DLeonhardt 2/n
It is more than every single state. In fact, it is more than double every single state except, NJ, NY, MA, RI, MS, CT, SD, ND, LA, AZ, and IL. It is 3x higher than 20 states.
@DLeonhardt 3/n
It is 4x higher than 10 states: NC, OK, KY, NH, VA, WA,UT, OR, MA, AL, VT, and HI. It is more than double every single country in Europe—and NYC has a larger population than 28 out of 48 countries.
1/n Over the weekend, I experienced a truly amazing thing—a functioning society. I left dystopian Massachusetts for Utah, and in Utah I found a packed airport and the closest thing to normal I have experienced in 10 months.
2/n I went to busy restaurants every night, and two of the three nights got to listen to live music, including—gasp—live singing and a band! After skiing, we sat around a firepit drinking, and met new people.
3/n I met a friend whom I haven’t seen in a year and gave her a hug, without either of us giving a second thought. I met family and extended family; all greeted us with a warm embrace, a wide smile, and quickly ushered us inside.