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Nothing about any of this, from the very beginning, has seemed as though we were heading in a direction that led to a point at which our lives would be given back to us. Nothing about it has ever felt temporary. None of the logic, the moral justification, 'the science' has made
any sense unless it represents a permanent and radical overturning of the way we have lived previously. The idea that the advent of a vaccine would herald a return to normal has kept a lot of people going. But what have you actually heard, since the announcement, to suggest
that's what's going to happen? I've heard nothing but indications that the vaccine is simply going to mark the final nail in the coffin of our civil liberties. Even if the rules are lifted, it won't make a lot of difference if people's psychology has been permanently altered.
If people no longer feel able to live with risk. If people think of their basic freedom as a kind of occasional treat, awarded for good behaviour. If the sight of other people's faces evokes feelings of fear and disgust. If the meaning of life has become preventing the deaths of
the elderly at any and all cost. People either carry on thinking that way forever or they are made to understand that it's wrong. On every level. In every circumstance. It is no way to live. It's not enough to hope that governments declare an end to all this and lift the
restrictions. We are going to have make everyone understand just how wrong it has been. We need to help everyone regain a sense of perspective, context, balance and meaning.
The idea that this is some regrettable episode that we will just move on from is dangerously naive.
The idea that this is some regrettable episode that we will just move on from is dangerously naive.
