Answering the call from Lockdown Sceptics for news from the reopened states in America with which to shame our own timid Government, Julian Boulter sent us this dispatch from Florida. More stories will follow.
We are a family of three Brits – although my wife was born South Korean – living in Naples, Florida for the past six and a half years.
Florida, in line with most other states, issued a Shelter-at-Home order (lockdown) in April 2020, but in Florida this only lasted for one month; eight states followed South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem’s lead in not locking down at all, preferring to share the data with their populations and only making recommendations on behaviour. Governor Noem has eloquently pointed out that all businesses are essential to those who own them and it is not the Government’s place to decide otherwise.
Between May and the end of August 2020, Florida gradually re-opened (against the wishes of President Trump), although schools did not resume in-person learning until the start of the 2020/2021 year in August, and then with masks in classrooms. In September Governor Ron DeSantis met with the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration (Sunetra Gupta of the University of Oxford, Jay Bhattacharya of Stanford University and Martin Kulldorff of Harvard University) and took their advice about a focused protection approach rather than any continuing restrictions.
He has subsequently issued Executive Orders that strengthen Floridian’s rights to decide for themselves on mask wearing and taking the vaccine, and has banned vaccine passports. At the same time he ensured care homes and the vulnerable were protected – witness a death per million rate that ranks around 26 of 50 states – and is better than the UK, despite having some similarities with the UK (same average age of population, same urban density and worse metabolic health).
I returned to the office in June 2020 (no masks) and have been working there ever since. We had our first two cases of COVID-19 in May this year; both have recovered and are back at work. My daughter has had to wear a mask to class, but that is all. The school averaged four to five cases a week but did not shut down any classes at any time; testing was not required. Her High School Graduation was at the local Concert Centre, who insisted on reduced numbers and masks; by contrast, the graduating students and parents’ dinner at a local country club earlier in the week had 300 people with no masks, and a packed dance floor. We’ve been eating in restaurants for months. Last year we went to the Florida Keys diving twice, and drove up to St Augustine for a few days earlier this year. We had friends drive across from Texas to stay with us for a few days back in May.
We’ve been back in church and singing in the choir since well before Christmas, although we also had a separate service for those who wished to wear masks. In May we moved to a combined service, and we also had international opera star Jeannette Vecchionne-Donati performed a charity benefit concert to a packed Church, no masks (video here).
It’s also worth noting that politics is very polarised here and many are sceptical of President Biden, Dr Fauci and Bill Gates, and are reluctant to take the vaccine, so take-up appears to have stalled; infections and deaths however have continued to decline. In fact, I think I know more people who will not take the “experimental gene therapy” than have had the vaccine. Governor DeSantis’s current mantra is that Florida chose “Freedom over Faucism”.
Finally, I attach the preamble to the Declaration of Independence and suggest that today’s freeborn Britons may wish to mull upon their right and duty as written for posterity by an earlier group of Britons:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organising its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
Of course, without the Second Amendment guaranteeing an armed citizenry that may be difficult to act upon…
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
Sounds like a dream from this side of the pond. And compared to the nightmare of NY and California its incredible the differences across the world and indeed in the US itself.
Yes, remember that Donald Trump was for lockdown before he was against it, he is a worm.
Kristi Noem 2024.
Unlike Boris Trump learns from mistakes made by taking the advice of government ‘experts’ and corrects course.
Aargh, a place where the population is human.
And fancy, a separate church service for the face-knickered. When I remember how I was hounded out of my church for having a face…
I would have always preferred to live in California than in Florida.
Not anymore, because the people around you are now mainly woke, masked, Covid zealous imbeciles in California even when the restrictions are lifted but mainly ‘old’ normal ones in Florida.
I think Germans fully lived and live up to their fascist roots and reputation, the rebellious Southern Europeans were and are just a joke, the supposedly liberal freedom living Brits and Swiss just a myth and huge disappointment and with regard to Americans, while they were also a huge disappointment, at least half the country and people seems to have regained their ‘land of the free’ footing and learned a lesson now.
I was always against the second amendment, but now, I think it was a major factor in them coming to their senses and politicians being forced to ditch the restrictions and stop the coercion, especially in those heavily armed red, rural places.
Bring it on to the Shires, I say now.
I’m not sure it was the Second Amendment. I think it’s state’s rights – the federal system. The states have different cultures and these seem to be somewhat self-perpetuating, so those with more libertarian or conservative leanings tend to move to states that are already like that, and you end up with states that are more reflective of the views of those who live there, and the politicians act accordingly.
Kids being made to wear masks in schools though…what’s that all about?
Unbelievable that people can live in a place like that….
…just remembered, we did until 15 months ago
Weeeell, 16 months actually (in a week).
Sounds like the way we British would have approached this situation before we ‘got in touch with ourselves’ and elected mediocre agenda politicians, starting with Blair
Mind you, the rot really started with Major.
‘Freedom over Faucism’
Brilliant! Thank you very much.
‘The American experience with Covid-19 and the policies unleashed by our government should have been the millionth wake-up call that perhaps, our leaders really aren’t with us. Lockdown policies based on no solid empirical evidence were upheld as if they had always worked.’
https://www.aier.org/article/has-the-government-forgotten-how-society-works/
The empirical evidence from Florida and elsewhere in the USA is overwhelmingly against the efficacy of lockdowns but, as the man said, our leaders aren’t really with us, as the G7 has just so flagrantly demonstrated.
And if they aren’t with us, then……..you know the rest……….
Its worth pointing out that Naples is Collier County, together with Lee County to its north its deep red territory on the Gulf Coast. You might get a different take with an article from say Broward on the Atlantic seeboard, which is blue. Florida is not homogeneous, counties have different policies, even though deSantis is doing his best to set the ground rules.
https://www.winknews.com/2020/07/25/seed-to-table-owner-protests-collier-countys-mask-mandate/
They also had one of the first and most persistent resistance fighters and heroes in Naples, Alfie Oakes.
A basic idea, that people can determine their own risk levels. How quaint. Now that we have vaccinated 99% of the death corridor, why is this not just the standard?
I lived for part of last decade in Colorado. My friends there have been living the same since March. But then we lived with driving in the snow, dodging deer on the roads, and much else. Because it was a lovely place to live (as is England). But there was a basic idea that surviving isn’t living (I was bed ridden for parts of 8 years with a degenerative disease, I know the difference). Life lived to the full is what you think about as days grow near to the final count. Will anyone be thinking of sitting on their couch, watching Netflix while ordering groceries online?
Actually, I think quite a few of the snowflake generation will…
DeSantis/Noem 24