Draconian Quarantine Now and Then

The Romans did not know about bacteria or what caused diseases such as malaria and dysentery, but they made sure that their soldiers were exposed to fresh, clean air and water, and the military castra were located far away from such sources of “miasmas.”

In the first century B.C., a writer named Varro spoke about the “minute creatures which cannot be seen by the eyes, float through the air, enter the body through the mouth and nose, causing diseases.” Vegetius suggested in the 4^th century A.D. that castra must be carefully located away from swamps and daily exercise does the body “more good than doctors.”

Through their health and engineering practices, scholars believe that the Romans probably prevented many deadly epidemics. On the battlefield the medici, with experience acquired from the Greeks who practiced far superior medical practices, tended to wounded soldiers.

A descriptive account survives of an officer who fought during the reign of Augustus (27 B.C.-14 A.D.). He wrote, “There was not one of us, not of those above or below rank, who fell ill without having his health and welfare taken care of by Tiberius [future emperor] with as much care as if this was his chief occupation despite his other weighty responsibilities. There was a horse-drawn vehicle for all who needed it, his own litter was at the disposal of all, and I among others have enjoyed its use.  Now his physician, now his kitchen, now his bathing brought for his personal use ministered to the comfort of all who were sick.”

Evidence dug up in Scotland, showed a hospital, valetudinaria, built during the Roman occupation, which had proper drainage, a sewage system and was divided into wards which indicate that the Romans were knowledgeable of the value of isolating the sick in order to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. It is important to note that the sick were isolated.

Putting people in quarantine, a word derived from Italian (via Latin) “quaranta giorni,” 40 days, started as a method to prevent the spread of the Black Death in fourteenth century Europe, protecting coastal cities. According to the CDC, “ships arriving in Venice from infected ports were required to sit at anchor for 40 days before landing.” http://cdc.gov/quarantine/historyquarantine.html

Despite such quarantine measures, 25 million people are said to have died in Europe within four years (1347-1351) of the plague, a quarter of Europe’s population.

Isolating the sick in places where the plague flared up or self-isolating healthy people from the public saved Pope Clement and large areas in Poland where quarantine was imposed. When the plague hit Milan, the archbishop ordered the first houses to be walled up and the dead, the sick, and the healthy, to be entombed within, halting the spread of the plague in his city.

But the plague recurred in 1665 London. The diary of Samuel Pepys describes the thousands of victims in this Black Death outbreak. Nobody understood how the disease spread until the twentieth century. The Londoners solution to dealing with their plague outbreak was to kill dogs and cats, the very animals who could have controlled the black rat (Rattus rattus) population that carried the plague-infested fleas with the bacillus Pasteurella pestis.

In 1967 when quarantine responsibility in the U.S. fell on the CDC, there were 55 quarantine stations and 500 staff members with quarantine stations located at every port, international airport, and major border crossings.

According to its website, by 1995 only seven quarantine locations remained but with the acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic of 2003, the CDC expanded to 18 stations with more than 90 field employees.

Quarantinable diseases listed in Executive Order 13295 were “cholera, diphtheria, infectious tuberculosis, plague, smallpox, yellow fever, viral hemorrhagic fevers (Lassa, Marburg, Ebola, and Crimean-Congo, South American, and others not yet isolated or named), and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which is a disease associated with fever and signs and symptoms of pneumonia or other respiratory illness, transmitted from person to person predominantly by the aerosolized or droplet route, and, if spread in the population, would have severe public health consequences.” Measles, mumps, rubella, and chicken pox were not included in the list. 03-8832.pdf (govinfo.gov)

The Executive Order 13375 of 2005 amended the list by adding “influenza caused by novel or reemergent influenza viruses that are causing, or have the potential to cause, a pandemic.” https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/executive-orders/2005.html#13375

Healthy people who were asked to wear a mask for 14 days (to flatten the curve) back in mid-March are finding themselves ten months later facing new draconian orders from some state governments to not only wear masks in perpetuity, but with more restrictions of small and medium size businesses, gyms, churches, schools, stadiums, cinemas, theaters, and any venues involving more than 10 people. Some states went as far as mandating fines for people having more than 6 family members in their homes.

Furthermore, there are cancellations of national holidays and the potential of being required to carry a vaccination passport for a vaccine that has been hurriedly developed at warp speed. The  media-anointed president-elect wants to lock down the entire country until such time that nobody will die of Covid-19. 

If we are to believe the inflated and manipulated statistics purveyed by the media, casualties have dropped significantly for many diseases but have sky-rocketed for Covid-19.

Nursing home patients, the first required to take the COVID-19 vaccine, are currently prisoners in their respective facilities, with no way to exit or see their families, get a haircut, or see their doctors outside of the facility unless they are moved each time into an isolation room with their personal belongings for 14 days, then moved back to their private rooms once the clear is given.

It does not matter that they have been tested numerous times and were proven COVID-19-negative, the imprisonment continues for their own good.

One can argue that jail inmates have more rights and freedom than the elderly in nursing homes ruled by draconian measures. One can also argue that this imprisonment is akin to the Archbishop of Milan entombing the healthy and the sick during the Black Plague. How else can one describe the total physical isolation and mental desperation of patients in nursing homes where even Face Time with loved ones on a cellular phone is restricted to 15 minutes a week unless they are in isolation in which case, even that is taken away?

 

Huge Berlin, Germany, Rally Against Mask Tyranny

August 29, 2020 – Millions across Germany converged in Berlin to protest the mask-wearing dictates of healthy individuals, six months after the government-imposed lockdown for the good of the ‘collective.’

“Germans are rising up against Bill Gates, demanding humanity wake up and reject the self-styled “world health dictator“, as well as corrupt Big Pharma and the elite who are driving the world towards “global totalitarianism” and “slavery.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke to an enormous crowd in Berlin on Saturday, as tens of thousands of Germans joined forces to protest what Kennedy Jr. referred to as Bill Gates’ “bio-security agenda, the rise of the authoritarian surveillance state and the Big Pharma sponsored coup d’etat against liberal democracy.”

“The pandemic is a crisis of convenience for the elite who are dictating these policies,” said Kennedy Jr., who praised the huge Berlin crowd for being on the frontline of the fight against global totalitarianism.”

A Muzzle, a Face Diaper, a Mask

Given my experience with communism, I call the mask a “muzzle,” not a “face diaper” like my friend A.J. does. Why would I call it a muzzle that is normally put on a dog to prevent him from biting someone treating him or if unsure whether he is rabid or not?

Every fall In high school we had to pick grapes for two weeks instead of studying. During that harvest time we had to wear a “muzzle” so we would not eat the precious grapes destined for expensive wine for export or for the communist party members' tables.  

The face mask was not exactly made the same way as a current dog muzzle, it was just a mask, but we felt that we were treated inhumanely like dogs. Perhaps they were trying to shield us from harmful chemicals? The grapes were sprayed with chemicals, probably DDT, and we had no way of washing them in the vineyard.

The communist party did not care to provide us with water, much less a sandwich, we were doing "volunteer" labor for the good of the country.  But we were very hungry and probably would have eaten a few grapes to quell the hunger pains.

We did not have water bottles or thermoses to carry water ourselves to the field. A thermos was hard to find and very expensive, the proletariat could not afford such a luxury.

Smile and Breathe When You Wear a Mask

A smile can bring a momentary sunshine in someone’s cloudy day. But, if you are wearing a mask, can you see the smile? Can you see the humanity behind the scared and sideways-darting eyes?

Perhaps the eyes express the irrational fear of death, the fear of physical contact. The human marionettes avoid physical contact, going out of their way to avoid other people, to the point of painful walking into thorny bushes and cactuses to prevent any possible proximity to other “infectious” and life-ending humans. 

What happened to our civilization? Why are formerly normal people yelling “stay away from me,” “don’t come near me,” “where is your mask, you are violating my civil rights,” “you are endangering my health,” etc. If you are wearing a mask and your mask works, why do you care if someone else is not? Where are their civil rights to breathe oxygen and not get headaches or pass out?

What happened to saying hello and smiling to a perfect stranger or to a customer? What happened to being polite and opening a door for someone instead of running away as if they have a body-snatching virus which is going to melt you away from existence if you just come too close to another human being?

Executive orders, “four months of state and local government malfeasance,” have turned the entire population into a mob of panicked and frightened Nazi maskers, aided and abetted by out of control businesses who refuse to serve customers who cannot wear a mask for medical reasons.

Recently, a federal building’s security booth in D.C. was checking I.D.s for those entering a secure facility yet nobody removed their masks. I suppose they were checking for expiration dates on those I.D.s because nobody could tell who the persons were behind the large masks covering faces and important features. What an opportunity for terrorists to force their way into a government building and cause destruction!

Masked people are curt and rude to everyone they encounter. Doctors and nurses treat their patients with total lack of interest and respect as if patients are an inconvenience they must tolerate.  

Pharmacists yell at customers if they dare to cross over an inch over the clearly marked and numerous yellow lines and demarcations of six feet.  Busybodies remind total strangers to cover their noses lest the mask wearing is worthless.

Who decided that six feet was the magical number of separations to avoid the flu? Why not 3 or 9 feet? And is “social distancing” a medical term and yard stick to measure the health or illness of a person? Were you “social distancing” when you had the asthma attack?

People look miserable, fashionably stupid, or politically insulting with their masks on everywhere, sweating and having a hard time breathing properly.

Stores refuse service to people who have asthma and other respiratory issues and cannot get enough oxygen with a mask.  Employees with a mandate to exert their draconian power lord over customers with an iron fist made of cheap cloth that lets all viruses fly through – “no shopping for you, leave our store immediately, “ you typhoid Mary you.

Surgical masks are made to be used in a sterile environment, not on the street, store, or at the mall. They must be replaced after 20 minutes of use and should not be reused. They allegedly trap bacteria and some allergens.

Dr. Fauci told us masks were useless against viruses https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRa6t_e7dgI but another time that they were helpful in preventing viral spread. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh1BeCpioSw&feature=youtu.be

The World Health Organization (W.H.O.) could not make up their minds either. They recommended that masks should be worn only if we are ill and caring for a sick family member. https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/30/world/coronavirus-who-masks-recommendation-trnd/index.htmlor Another time W.H.O. recommended that the public should wear a mask. https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200608/who-changes-stance-says-public-should-wear-masks 

With so much mass confusion and for my own breathing benefit I decided to get fresh air and sunshine on my face without a mask.

Thousands of medical doctors have advised not to wear the masks as they are not effective and can be harmful to the wearer, but the advice fell on deaf ears. Apparently non-stop “medical” advice from the media on the alphabet soup channels is more valuable than gold – they graduated from the “medical school” of journalism.

People who use beta blockers (receptors Beta-1 and Beta-2 are present in heart, eye, kidneys, lungs, GI tract, uterus, blood vessels, and skeletal muscles) know that such drugs block the beta cells in the heart but are not so discriminating that they ONLY block the beta cells in the heart, they also block beta cells in the lungs, often causing the patient to have decreased lung capacity. With a diminished lung capacity, such patients cannot breathe in adequate levels of oxygen resulting in headaches, dizziness, fainting, and other problems.  In the case of these patients, wearing a mask further exacerbates the problem. Some passed out while driving, walking, working, or shopping. http://www.learnscience.info/pharmacology-of-beta-blockers/

Daniel Bobinski explains the “mask fiasco” and the contradictory advice thus: “Neither CDC nor the W.H.O. suggest any Covid outpatient treatments. In other words, these agencies have zero suggested treatments for Covid UNTIL an infected person lands in the hospital.”  Doctors who follow the CDC guidelines tell their patients to self-isolate for 14 days if sick. https://uncoverdc.com/2020/07/15/a-scientific-look-at-the-mask-fallacy-and-why-were-told-to-wear-them/

New England Journal of Medicine said, “We know that wearing a mask outside health care facilities offers little, if any protection from infection.” https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2006372

One study in Clinical Infectious Diseases of December 2017 said, “Our analysis confirms the effectiveness of medical masks and respirators against SARS. Disposable, cotton, or paper masks are not recommended.” https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/65/11/1934/4068747

Why the mandate by governors and mayors to wear masks months after the first infection with Covid in the U.S.? If the virus has spread so rapidly as the experts claimed, has much of the population not been already exposed to it?

It all has to do with mass psychology and hysteria driven by the non-stop main stream media PSAs – make people believe that non-wearers are evil and spreading the disease hence the attacks in public; obey the all-knowing government and you will magically be protected; and wait for the expensive vaccine as the ONLY cure. This vaccine may or may not work and may have potentially dangerous side-effects. The fact that we already have a reported relatively cheap cure with hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, and zinc, is irrelevant.

In this false sense of security atmosphere driven to new hysterical heights by the media, let us wear the masks indefinitely until daddy government tells us to stop. In the meantime, the economy suffers across the board and more and more businesses are declaring bankruptcy. People are afraid to go back to work or are unwilling to work as the unemployment and the stimulus checks give them more income than they could make working.

The Modern Scarlet Letter "M" for Mask by Mimi Johnson

Wikipedia Photo

I am privileged, as liberals like to tout, that I live in a state, that for all intents and purposes, has remained somewhat sensible during this insane and what I consider, unnecessary lockdown.  In the beginning of this fiasco, my company was deemed “essential” and therefore have stayed open through all the insipid social changes.  Initially, we were not allowed to wear masks or gloves in the workplace, which was fine by me, as I found them cumbersome and infringing on my ability to breathe, however, about 4 weeks in, all of a sudden, they were mandatory.  I found this quite odd and in my rational mind, I had to ask questions and cause a “disturbance in the force.”

This new policy caused me more duress than the virus itself.  It became evident that the company was not interested in our safety by any means, but more so for their financial safety.  If anyone were to contract the virus, they would be open to various lawsuits. Since I often question everything, I asked if it were possible to avoid wearing a mask due to personal reasons, especially since in 4 weeks’ time, no one in my location had shown symptoms or been diagnosed with the virus.  The response was swift and unapologetically “no.” In fact, I was asked why I was being so “defensive” about wearing the masks. I felt judged because I questioned this decision, when two days prior, the items were vehemently not allowed.  Needless to say, I now don a mask that is ironically manufactured in China, have no choice over my own personal health, and in order to stay gainfully employed, must comply and not question it. 

So, I begrudgingly began wearing this ill-fitting, strange smelling mask, not for my protection but for “others.” Not only is it physically uncomfortable, but for someone who works in customer service, it does not allow you to communicate effectively with people in person and definitely not over the phone.  Day after day, customers come in and self-righteously comment on how we choose to wear the mask, mainly below the nose so we can breathe effectively, continually treated like a diseased pariah that is committing horrible crimes against humanity. Customers have even gone as far as complaining on surveys that my associates removed their mask momentarily to answer the phone.  Oh, the horror of attempting to communicate effectively with customers on the phone!  The injustice!

I think the pinnacle of my COVID-19 experience happened recently at Trader Joe’s.  Although NC does not require wearing masks in public, Durham County Mayor has put orders in place that you may not enter an establishment without a mask.  For this reason, I generally travel to the neighboring town of Chapel Hill, to do my shopping.  I always keep a spare mask in the car just in case the establishment requires one, but on this day, it was 85 degrees, and I was not interested in wearing a mask to buy vegetables.  I made my way to the door, which now has a stanchion maze in front of it, effectively putting each customer on parade in front of others.  As I walked past each of the masked faces, I felt the red-hot flush of judgment sweep across my body. It was a clothed Cersei Lannister moment, walking to my shame.  I immediately began checking myself for garment malfunctions, but deep down knew why I was getting the stares, I had committed social justice suicide and now might as well pin a scarlet M for mask on my shirt. 

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, “The Scarlet Letter” seems like such an apropos metaphor in this instance.  We currently follow and worship the CDC like they’ve been bestowed the divine right of Kings by the Catholic church, much like we revere Priests and Reverends, insert Reverend Dimmesdale, society is Hester Prynne, in a secret romance with liberal ideology and the guilt placed upon anyone disagreeing with their sentiments, and society’s chaos is the evil offspring of that dalliance.  As I continued my “walk of social shame,” I held my head high, and continued to the back of the line.  I was not going to bow to the ridiculous constructs of liberal puppets and be shamed into drone thinking.  As I am standing there in the brilliant and abundant sunlight, relishing in my freedom, I could not help but notice the social distancing stickers on the sidewalk.  Ironically, they were not even 6 feet apart.  I began laughing uncontrollably to myself thinking how ridiculous and asinine this entire debacle had become and how these managers either were not able to measure 6 feet accordingly or were just lazy, either way, the hypocrisy was on full display, but no one was paying attention. 

This seems to be the constant theme of our entire society: never paying close attention to details.  Social isolation has not only affected immunology and mental health, but has also seemed to digress our Evolution; everyone acting like savage Neanderthals, hoarding supplies and food, as if they’re in constant threat of a neighboring tribe coming to raid their findings. Our modern society took thousands of years to cultivate and develop, yet in a span of two months, we have managed to ruin infrastructures, like an episode of “Life without people.” I do not know whether to be impressed or frightened. 

I, for one, am ready to change the narrative, are you?

Saturday Lunch

Today we decided to have curbside pickup from Red Lobster for our weekend meal as we've done with other businesses since this lockdown began.

It was a nice, sunny day so we decided to sit upfront on the white benches and eat part of our food. As hubby was trying to juggle not dropping too much catchup, tartar sauce, or his soda on his white shorts, I was watching the noisy, multi-lane road full of cars, with anxious drivers speeding dangerously fast and reckless, like a bunch of convicts just out of lockup, who stole cars and tasted freedom after months in jail, and were eager to get away from the cops.

The traffic at the Target store nearby was heavier than usual and the same middle-aged panhandler was sitting in the shade with his homeless cardboard sign. He had been there for at least five years that I can remember. If he had built two bricks a day, I think at least one room and a bathroom might be finished by now.

We need the sun now more than ever but I have a sense of unease that I cannot shake. I am not going to wear the governor's soon to be mandated facemask and may have to pay a fine or go to jail, a prospect that gives me communism PTSD. Virginia has gone beyond socialism, it is on its way to a tyrannical communist government ruled by the Democrat Party.