Public health doctors created vaccination mandates and vaccine passports. Doctors tabled the ideas. Politicians followed doctors’ advice and turned it into policy.
Ideas shaped the policy, and policy formed a protest. Public policy made the Truckers’ Freedom Convoy a reality. Prime Minister Trudeau’s response to the protest turned the protest into a global movement.
The historic events of the last four weeks required more than just public health or politics alone. They needed public health plus politics, doctors plus politicians, authoritarian thinking plus authoritarian political response.
Doctors in Authority or Authoritarian Doctors?
Public health doctors follow their own ethic, which other doctors find unethical. Public health seeks to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Other doctors try to do the greatest good for the individual patient in front of them.
Doctors who treat individual patients focus on patient autonomy and informed consent above all other goals. Autonomy and consent define what morality means in medicine. It is immoral to treat patients for any other reason than their own good and with their full consent.
Public health doctors, who “treat” populations, ignore autonomy and consent by design – these ideas mean nothing if a vaccine mandate might help the majority. According to public health, we must always do what benefits the majority, even if it causes some harm to a few. Not taking action is itself immoral, if action might benefit the whole population.
Friction between public and personal health is not new. Evidence and open debate have resolved the tension in the past. Well-known riots about Smallpox vaccination stand out as a rare failure, not the norm we should expect.
Political Unity
The Truckers’ Convoy unified political opposition against the protest. Authoritarians from all political camps wanted action to deal with the protest. Mandates animated the authoritarian Left. “Law and Order” animated the authoritarian Right.
Now that riot police have cleared the protest, political authoritarians can cheer. No doubt, pundits will remind Canadians that clearing the protest is what most Canadians wanted. Now it is time to focus on something new.
Indeed, Trudeau’s political survival now depends on him changing the topic. This was easier before social media. Legacy media represented an institution which could be influenced and shaped. In that sense, social media is everything legacy media is not.
Canada Redefined
People will never forget some of the videos they have seen: police horses trampling an elderly, indigenous woman with her walker; riot police dressed like soldiers, carrying automatic weapons, and marching beside enormous military vehicles; and an officer tackling an old veteran off the war memorial and into a snowbank.
One moment can define an event.
We cannot erase public memory: police smashing windows of a parked vehicle, dragging a citizen into the street; a group of armoured police pinning a citizen to the ground, then kneeing repeatedly him in the back; police firing a canister at close range aimed at a female journalist, then repeatedly smashing her with a wooden rod; and a gang of riot police surrounding a kneeling woman then violently batting away the roses she offers.
These images shape our sense of who we are and where we live.
GK Chesterton, essayist and political pundit, said that, regardless of what you believe, belief rests on the same three things for all people: one person, one story, one image.
A Canadian Export
Freedom protesters in America, France, New Zealand, and elsewhere now carry Canadian flags. Wilfred Laurier, former Liberal Prime Minister, might be proud. His anachronism, “Canada is free, and freedom is its nationality,” fits the movement and might reflect Canada again, if the movement succeeds.
The freedom movement asks for less — less interference by government and fewer mandates from the managerial class.
Public health doctors invented the mandates, but Trudeau put them into action for cross-border travel. Trudeau could have doused the Truckers’ Convoy before it got going. He has met with every other protest but refused to respond to his own creation. He dismissed and delegitimized. Trudeau turned the protest into a global movement instead.
Politicians return to parliament tomorrow to resume their debate on the Emergencies Act. If Prime Minister Trudeau is smart, he will celebrate his victory and suspend the Act. Then he will show how the science has changed and drop his vaccine travel mandates immediately.
The world is watching Canada. Trudeau needs to separate the dangerous blend of public health and authoritarian politics. Let’s hope it’s not too late.
It is no longer about the Convoy for me. That was a policing action. This is what makes me anxious this morning: keeping the Emergency Measures Act in effect “just in case” the Truckers come back. The ability of the government to lock down bank accounts without a court order can be used to shut down the accounts of those who post anti-govt viewpoints online or maybe even worse, those who vote for an opposition party. The situation is making me queezy.
Me too, Gerry.
If Trudeau gets away with this, it will happen again. And it will happen in other countries.
Authoritarians on both sides rejoiced … we should be very queasy indeed.
Thanks for posting!
“Just in case” simply doesn’t fly. A return of the truckers and/or their supporters or a similar group of protesters can be addressed with existing laws, as could have been done in the first place. The Emergencies Act is not necessary for that purpose. I agree it is no longer about the convoy. I would go a step further and say it was never about the convoy and was JT exercising his political muscle in a power grab, just to show he can do it. More intimidation, more divisiveness, more complete and total arrogance. The convoy was just a good “excuse”, just as covid has, by their own admission, been an “opportunity” to advance the Great Reset. The idea that JT wants to maintain the Emergencies Act on an ongoing basis is beyond frightening. The fact that financial institutions will have immense power over our $$$ should have people demanding more answers and an end to such tyranny. We are not too elegantly being maneuvered into a position between a rock and a hard place with no escape and no recourse.
Great comments, Valerie. Political “opportunity” … exactly
Unfortunately, I haven’t heard too many people accuse Trudeau of being smart.
😀
Love it. Thanks Valerie!
Sorry by offering yet another quote:
“ The fundamental cause of trouble is that the stupid are so cocksure while the intelligent have no doubt.”
It’s so in medicine ( was truly manifested by our government salaried public health colleagues) it’s so in politics…Justin has no doubt at all, to say that he was cocksure would be an understatement.
The quote was from Bertrand Russell ( whose politics I didn’t like) who was famous for being highly intelligent but who never managed to brew a descent cup of tea.
His wife would leave him written instructions and he blew it each time…likely preoccupied by thought like an absent minded professor … he likely didn’t warm the teapot…allowed the water to overboil…I think of him each time I brew myself a cup…I lost my “ Brown Betty “ teapot decades ago.
Ha! I had forgotten that, Andris. Thank you. BR wrote well and presented a wonderful foil for building counter arguments against. 😀
I have known of you for quite a few years and appreciated many of your comments especially on the delivery of health care. Public health has been treating groups of patients for over 2 years something they have essentially never done in the past. and of course doubt really know how. Certainly don’t know how to treat individual patients.
Academic debate on all the issues has essentially been shut down for two years. Unfortunately most leaders love power and during a pandemic they have been given great power and will have difficulty giving it up. Authoritative statements re the pandemic have often been wrong.
There has never been so much politicization of medicine as we have all experienced over the last 2 years…the politicization of treatment and prevention methods with near religious zeal with “ denier” hurled about, colleagues cancelled, some losing their jobs, the College hunting for non believers transmitting misinformation.
Science has to be challenged otherwise it’s not science.
We used to have healthy debates at our live CME’s with studies challenged, statistics ripped apart with noone described as a “denier “ and shunned…then 2 years ago the politicization began and ruined everything.
Thanks so much for this, Graeme. Sure appreciate you tuning in for so long.
You raise an important point about shutting down debate and the desire to hang onto power. I do not know why we, as Canadians, are so accommodating … so deferential to power.
Hey, thanks again for reading and posting!
Cheers
Having the Public Health doctors being described as “ top doctors” irritated, you wouldn’t want them tending to your most minor ailment….they took to politicized medicine like ducks to water, COVID was like manna from heaven and they were on camera every day and loved it.
They had much in common with our beloved leader Justin, they both wrapped themselves in the cloak of science and of the common good to overawe and , in the process, to deceive the Canadian citizenry…and both are finding it hard to take the cloak off..
“Two times two equals five” ( Orwell 1984)…and don’t forget it otherwise you will be shunned, cancelled and even get your bank account frozen.
At present both Putin and Justin have the same power, the same temptation to abuse it…true it has to be renewed every 30 days in Canada , but that’s no real hurdle for a budding dictator.
There will be a vote in the House today…those who vote “no “ might run the danger of having their accounts frozen and doxed by the state media.
Quote: “ The law cannot protect anyone unless it binds everyone; and it cannot bind everyone unless it protects everyone “( Frank Wilholt)
In the meantime I’m observing history repeating itself, rhyming with the past…In 1935 Herr Hitler marched into the Saarland , held a referendum, 99% said OK…in 2014 Putin took over the Crimea, held a referendum and 99% said OK…in 1938 Hitler took over Sudetenland incorporating it into the fatherland, in 2022 Putin will/ is taking over Ukrainian Donbas and Luhansk with the intent of incorporating it into the motherland…Hitler moved on to further adventures and Putin will move on as well…if not stopped.
Lenin quote “Advance probing with your bayonets , if you meet mush, push on, if you meet steel, withdraw”.
The west are composed of Chamberlains wringing their hands without the foggiest idea on how to counter dictators and Putin’s bayonets are meeting mush.
Fingers crossed that our representatives in Ottawa will have the courage to nip dictatorship in the bud…or, have they been reduced to mush?
Fantastic comments, as always, Andris
Yes, public health docs sure seemed to love the politicization of their specialty. In all my interactions with them on policy issues, they were the ones to always say, “We just need government to … [eliminate sugary drinks, or whatever]”
Really appreciate you brining in history and another batch of excellent quotes. We only have two ways to know anything, when it comes to public policy. Either we have beautiful theoretical ideas that promise great outcomes as long as we pursue them with good intentions, or we have a broccoli salad of attempts, failures, and partial successes from which we can learn that policy-making requires a large dose of humility. Failure is common — we should try, but we should decide how we plan to stop when our plans fail.
Many (most?) people did not identify the rise of totalitarian regimes as either totalitarian or even regimes, when they started out. We see it clear in hindsight. Again, we might be wise to consider carefully the current moment. No cars were burned. No windows smashed. No weapons raised or police attacked. And yet, riot police with clubs and automatic rifles were used to clear the crowd.
I have found all this profoundly depressing. It’s as though my sense of Canada has been irreversibly changed. Very sad.
Thanks again for taking time to post!
Cheers
I live in Downtown Ottawa and I am censured if I say something good about the convoy.
I bet! I’ve been censored and shadow-banned also.
Interesting how the pandemic and resulting reactions have turned canada on its head.We are now intolerant,authoritarian,unscientific,and the world is aghast/critical of our democracy.Foreign journalists like NYT have been scolded by canadian journalists for …. what…reporting what they wouldn’t,unspun to the govt benefit ? This is truly scary stuff in a previously ‘sedate’ democracy.The division fomented by our PM( denied by truanon) planned strategically,as indicated by his caucus,was based on erroneous science .Omicron has shown that vaccine mandates/border controls/vaccine passports are no longer effective and over 20 countries have dropped them.Numerous provinces are dropping them.Yet our feds/PM continue them for what … punitive reasons ? Why would anyone be surprised at the anger/protests from people fed up with our govt incompetence/overreach.
Well said, Ram. Exactly
Even after years of outright errors, cant, and spin, I still tend to believe what I read in the news … It sounds so convincing. I assume people are trying their best. But this protest has been a blanket approach of pushing one message. Disturbing.
Other countries have completely dropped all mandates, restrictions … even for symptomatic people!
Anger and frustration is reason enough to protest. But I think there is more. IF you lost your job over these mandates, then you have a duty to speak up. I see it the same as alerting people to a sink hole in the road ahead. You need to get people’s attention. You need to let people know what might happen to your fellow citizens.
Thanks again. Really appreciate you posting!
Cheers
Thank you Shawn for writing this. I for one am very concerned about the events unfolding in our beautiful country.
I am very much in favour of immunization. I worked with the WHO expanded program of immunization in East Africa some years ago.
But when public health is enforced in this manner, and in such a disingenuous manner, we have a major problem.
Public health measures are grounded in trust. If the trust is lost, then public health is in trouble. Maybe public health officials hadn’t considered that.
As you may be aware, Canada is a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Bioethics and Human Rights. Under this declaration consent for any medical intervention must be granted by the individual and and can be withheld for any reason. It also states there should be no negative repercussions from withholding that consent.
These matters will eventually come before the Supreme Court of Canada. Let us pray our higher courts have not been compromised as the mainstream media and other parties have been.
Or worse, that since we are in an emergency situation the Supreme Court is “temporarily ” suspended.
[Sarcasm intended! Gerry is not saying the SC is suspended.]
Gerry! Your joke took on a life of its own … I deleted the replies from Andris and me, and added closed brackets to keep us all on track
Too funny!
It was suggested as something the govt could go on to do once they have emergency powers. Check and balances can be eroded more once they start to be removed.
I think you see my point now b
Excellent, Alicia. Really well said.
Very interesting to hear about your experience in East Africa. It makes your comment about trust all the more potent. I, too, support vaccines — one of the truly miraculous things we’ve achieved in medicine, besides antibiotics. But to your point, we cannot compromise trust when we offer them to patients.
I worry that medicine, as a social institution, has insulted patient trust beyond repair.
All excellent comments. Thank you for taking time to share them!
This is a really thoughtful article Shawn – thanks for posting.
I couldn’t agree more with you characterization of the authoritarian right and the authoritarian left. Our vacuous Prime Minister hides behind the screen of “progressivism”, but when all is said and done he is a bully and a member of the elite class. He has also expressed admiration for Xi Jinping in China, and his actions invoking the Emergency Measures Act when competent policing could have solved the bottleneck in Ottawa speaks volumes about his character and agenda.
Like some of the other people commenting here I am terrified and appalled by government overreach in seizing people’s bank accounts. This is a very slippery slope.
Hey CB,
Thanks for picking up and mentioning the authoritarian element on both sides of the political aisle. I had a whole post devoted to that single idea but didn’t go with it (maybe later).
Not all revolutions are the same. The American Revolution and the Glorious Revolution each represent citizens fighting to have their governments abide by the current laws. They weren’t asking for handouts or special dispensation. Most revolutions want to tear things down. A good revolution seeks to hold the government to its own rules. That’s what I see in this protest. Authoritarians of all flavours bristle at this notion.
Seizing bank accounts is, in some ways, even worse than putting people out of business. Now people can’t even buy groceries! These are the actions of a failed state. God help us all.
Thanks so much for taking time to read and share such a thoughtful comment!
Cheers
Trudeau may well be the focal point of the problem but perhaps the real problem is the electorate being full of gullible people who are easily and willingly influenced by the MS/Legacy media (CBC 1.23 billion dollars federal funding) and the pandemic of fear created and perpetrated by public health medical experts throughout the past 2+ years. Hence it was hardly a surprise if corrupt polls seeming showed Trudeau that he allegedly had the support to invoke the Emergencies Act. Selective 30 second sound bites that ignores key data like the case fatality rate (CFR) that peaked at 8.34 (2020.06.20) and has been steadily falling to ~ 1.11 presently and the infection fatality rate (IFR) which should be much lower and so on other key data points. Proper communication to the public would have allayed the public’s paranoia. And hardly a word from these so-called medical experts about prevention, managing co-morbidities to reach target and other measures that would boost one’s immune system to reduce the risk and impact of C19 if infected. Why was there also a higher mortality rate in LTC nursing homes besides age? Because guidelines allow the elderly with DM and co-morbidities to have a higher HbA1c (8.5+%) which massively increases their risk. 82.2% of apparent C19 deaths 80 years and above. 92.8% if 70+. Virtually no work done on developing re-purposed meds for early treatment or doing proper studies to objectively assess their potential benefit for not just Canadians but for third world countries that cannot afford vaccines. Plenty of blame that can be spread around for sure. And when the audit is done, they will certainly praise themselves and how magnificently those in charge did. The House of Commons votes in about 10 minutes. Make a list and remember those who voted yes.
Fantastic comments, Robert. We are glued to the vote here, too.
I fear that, as with all inquiries and reviews, it will come to light when we have a new government in power. This one will be gone. The appetite to prevent this nonsense will have faded.
Thanks again for reading and posting!
Great comments. I am sick as the votes roll in, and there are no MPs who voted with conscience, all abiding by the party lines. I have worked the nursing home tirelessly, always chasing and behind the curve. Plenty of blame to go around for sure, and a huge debt to saddle our children, and our children’s children with this debacle. We are over the cliff, with a loss of fundamental freedom and democracy.
Blame to go around … exactly.
The world is watching. Trudeau has guaranteed that this will be the only thing we talk about for the next month. Forget the debt. Forget hospital overcrowding. Forget the war in Ukraine.
Once it gets a taste of unlimited ‘Emergency’ power, no government will let it go. Don’t be surprised if they come up with something else to make sure we never go back to the dangerous situation that existed before the pandemic!
Thanks for posting!
Stay hopeful. The Senate now has to go to work. “As of 3 January 2022, there are 91 sitting senators. Of the sitting senators: 42 are members of the Independent Senators Group, 16 are members of the senate caucus of the Conservative Party of Canada, 14 are members of the Progressive Senate Group, 13 are members of the Canadian Senators Group, and 6 are non-affiliated. 14 seats are currently vacant.”(source WikiWand). What would Trudeau do if all 151 of MPs those who voted NO donates $100 each to the Freedom Convoy?
Thank you Robert for pointing that out. My worry is that people are feeling terribly frightened and intimidated right now and may not want to take action.
Many of those senators were appointed by Justin Trudeau and will feel obliged to him.
The next phase may be the “climate emergency”. Men like Justin Trudeau will not give up power easily. When he said he liked China’s basic dictatorship I guess he was very serious.
Good points points by both of you.
Government never (like, never ever ever) gives up all the power it acquires. It may give back some, but it always holds back something in the name of safety.
I just wanted to advise people of something I just experienced.
I took the step of donating US 75.00 to the trucker’s convoy in Ottawa as a show of my support and in view of how many lives have been wrecked by these ongoing draconian mandates.
Today I learned that I have been doxed for this action.
I do live by myself and am hoping no extremist shows up at my door.
Wow … THIS is what really bothers me. So sorry to hear this.
Western democracy ends when we can punish those who disagree with us. Declaring donations to be verboten AFTER the fact is fascistic.
Parliament better turn this around fast, or Canada will never be the same.
Please let us know how it goes and if there’s anything I can do to help. You have my email.
Dreadfully sorry to hear that Alice. Stay calm. Be brave. Stay strong. Think ahead. Anticipate what may happen. Plan ahead. Expect trolls and bots to use email; text messages; social media, phone calls from unknown numbers. Do not allow them to make you feel intimidated. That is what they want. I think that you should be ok but we live in strange times so IF you want to go the full nine yards…..
Respectful suggestions:
If you don’t have call display on your phone, get it.
Do not answer calls if you do not recognize the number.
Do not respond to baiting texts / Whatsapp texts.
Do not go on Twitter. If you have an account. Delete it. Twitter is awful. (Never had an account myself).
Consider changing your email address. Consider an email provider like protonmail (more secure).
Change your passwords on important websites and do it frequently.
If you do not have one, install a security camera system with recording capacity, especially if you live in a house.
Install a Ring door bell (has video).
Have your legal counsel’s phone number on speed dial. Perhaps it may be wise to inform your legal counsel that you have been doxed.
Have a support system whereby you send regular text messages to let them know that you are safe.
Consider getting an Apple AirTag (or something similar)and put it on your own person wherever you go or put one in your car. And let someone close to you know that you have an AirTag so that they can find you.
Without being or getting paranoid, be alert and check your rear view and side mirrors when driving to observe if you are being followed.
Do not park in the same spot everyday where you work.
Do not take the same route when driving to and from work every day.
Don’t shop at the same grocery store every time.
If you buy online, be careful when opening the box. Make sure it is from the vendor. Make sure the weight of the item is as expected.
Don’t open mail you do not recognize and even if it is expected mail, be a bit careful.
Consider withdrawing and keeping a healthy amount of cash at home, stashed away safely and in different places besides at home.
Stock up on essential foods and have a good shelf life, just in case.
Prepare a “Go Bag” with the most essential items in it so that if you have to leave the house in a hurry.
If you do not have a dog, get one (long term plan). Best alarm system ever. If you don’t have a dog and don’t want one, buy a “Beware of dog sign” and put it on the outside wall near your door if your domicile is a house. It acts as a deterrent.
Continue your normal routines as much as possible (other than the above suggestions), it helps make you feel “normal”.
I am sure there are other suggestions to add to the list. Sorry if this was too lengthy.
We will soon find out who are true friends are. We have your back Alice!
(I’m not actually paranoid….I just read way too many books LOL).
Holy smokes, Robert. You have put some thought into this! Most of this sounds like a “How to be smart in an unsafe world” post. Excellent.
Thank you. I’ve been thinking of the Ring doorbell myself. I need to put up our Beware of Dog sign again.
I found all the comments were not new and I have heard them for years. Individuals are angered by government interference with their lives. We do live in a democracy and do have the privilege to vote and change who is in power. Quotes of previous activists for”freedom_ have often wanted a political system that becomes more authoritarian than what we have.(ie Lenin) The cultural shift in the world has emboldened politicians who control by fear and are self-interested and not able to look at what democracy really entails.
I am in agreement with healthy dialogue and protests, but not when groups of individuals take away their neighbour’s freedoms and chant racist, misogynistic rants on those with opposing views or who are just walking by. We need everyone to take a step back and analyze what went wrong, stop pointing fingers, and look at what needs to change in a cooperative way to ensure this does not occur again. Stop the inflammatory rhetoric.
Don,I don’t disagree,but the present situation all stems from the inflammatory rhetoric used by our PM,especially since the sept election.His own caucus said that he chose to stigmatize and wedge as an election strategy.What did he think would happen ??? Here we are …. Thanks Justin.
Agree, Ram. JT saw inflammation and division as the best way to conquer at the polls.
You are correct, Ram. Unfortunately, it has become a mainstay for many politicians.Don
Thanks Donald,
I take your comment as a rebuke for us all. We all need to watch that we do not follow the excitement of inflammatory rhetoric aimed to please those who agree with us.
You make a subtle point here: “…emboldened politicians who control by fear and are self-interested and not able to look at what democracy really entails.”
The “what democracy entails” jumps out at me. Most of us haven’t asked what democracy is let alone what it entails. We have representative or parliamentary democracy — a very different bird from the direct democracy many (most?) people envision when they use the word.
As representative democracy decays into mob rule, we put greater confidence in fancy documents about ‘rights’ and ‘freedoms’. But Charters mean nothing without interpretation by the courts. And as we’ve seen so many times, the courts often rule in such a way that the so-called Charter of Rights and Freedoms allows you to be treated as though you had no rights or freedom at all. (I can offer examples if interested)
The weird, eccentric, and perhaps miraculous thing called English common law is what gave us our freedom and rights as citizens of Canada. The Charter is an attempt to give us a Napoleonic pronouncement of our Rights. These fine-sounding documents always lead to the opposite of what we hope.
Ok … getting on a tangent.
Thanks for posting!