Let’s not forget the harms caused by covid lockdowns

In April 2020, the UK was 18 days into the first lockdown, with two more months to endure and with two further extended periods of incarceration on the horizon. Retired clinical psychologist Dr. Gary Sidley reminds us of the harm to so many, of all ages, caused by the Government’s lockdown policies.

The ‘Covid Day of Reflection’ took place on the 9th of March 2025 to commemorate the victims of the “pandemic.” While it is right to honour the memories of those who perished as a result of a pathogen during the 2020-2022 covid event, my focus here will be on a much larger, and often forgotten, group of victims of this era: those who were harmed or killed by the range of unprecedented and non-evidenced responses to a presumed novel virus.

Because the “pandemic” restrictions imposed by governments were multiple, and the associated harms pervasive, this essay will span three articles. This one will focus on the mass casualties of lockdowns, the second on the victims of fear inflation and mask requirements, and the third upon those impacted by the escalation of ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ orders, Midazolam prescribing and the covid “vaccine” rollout....<<<Read More>>>...

Data from Sweden proves covid lockdowns are not the cause of the rise in cancer cases

 Recent media reports of sudden cancer tragedies have been blamed on lockdowns which delayed appointments for checkups and tests at hospitals. It’s obvious that while lockdowns can complicate treatment and outcomes, lockdowns cannot cause cancer. For those who find this concept difficult to fathom, is there data to prove it? Yes.

Recent data from Sweden shows a 10.9% increase in cancer incidence in 2022 and a further increase in 2023, resulting in approximately 20,000 additional cases over two years, which cannot be attributed to lockdowns as Sweden did not have any.

The timing of the rapid increase in cancer incidence suggests that covid injections may be the cause, with 87% of Sweden’s population over 12 receiving at least one dose in 2021.

Despite this evidence, some medical authorities, including the UK’s Professor Pat Price and New Zealand’s Helen Petousis-Harris, deny any link between covid injections and cancer, citing outdated data and ignoring the potential risks of biotechnology experimentation....<<<Read More>>>...

US government tanked the economy with covid lockdowns to gain control over the population through data collection and enforcement

 The covid lockdowns amounted to the world’s largest and most elaborate economic head-fake in human history.

It left the entire world less free and less prosperous, and with drained hopes that restoring normality can happen anytime soon. To add injury to the insult, most official institutions are manufacturing fake data to cover it all up.

In the following, Jeffrey Tucker explains the economic impact on the USA of the lockdown in March 2020 and its aftermath. He highlights that the labour market has not fully recovered, stimulus was eroded by inflation, retail sales and factory orders have not significantly increased, and output has not seen a substantial rise. Additionally, it questions the accuracy of inflation data and the sustainability of the economic recovery.

Why did they shut economies down? A major ambition of the covid response was the creation of a universal vaccine passport, he writes. “All these efforts were reversed but the plan itself revealed the larger agenda: control through data collection and enforcement. The ambition is not gone and will likely come back but a better and more comprehensive path is the Central Bank Digital Currency.”...<<<Read More>>>...

We Need Covid Fine Amnesty, Says Ex-Justice Secretary During Pandemic

 Sir Robert Buckland said the 29,383 people fined by the courts should have their “slates wiped clean” rather than risk their career prospects being hampered by convictions handed out at an “exceptional time”.

Sir Robert’s call has been backed by two former Cabinet ministers and charities while a source close to Alex Chalk, the current Justice Secretary, said he was also sympathetic to the idea of wiping the slate clean.

Magistrates fined people for breaking Covid restrictions, resulting in criminal convictions that could bar them from working as teachers, social workers or police officers.

Police can pass on these details to potential employers if they are deemed ‘relevant’ for criminal background checks for sensitive jobs where applicants deal with vulnerable people or children.

People are also required to declare any criminal convictions when applying for visas to visit countries like the U.S. and Canada, both of which reserve the right to permanently ban anyone who fails to reveal one.

Offences including attending gatherings, leaving home during lockdowns and failing to wear face coverings resulted in fines, with three quarters of those handed out between 2020 and 2023 going to people under the age of 40.

Sir Robert, who was Justice Secretary from July 2019 to September 2021, said any background criminal checks should focus on those who might be a threat to public safety, rather than people fined in the “exceptional circumstances” of a pandemic.

He said: “It is not proportionate or necessary at a time when we want to encourage and support as many people back to work as possible. If it is not being recorded in the usual way as a previous conviction, I would wipe the slate clean.”

Sir Robert is among three former Cabinet ministers and charities demanding an amnesty following the Government’s previous assurances that Covid fines were not intended to criminalise large numbers of people.

Sir David Davis, a former Cabinet Minister, said all but the most egregious breaches should be “obliterated” from the record. He said: “Much of the Covid regulation was heavy handed, unnecessary and penalised people wrongly. For this to turn into a lifetime penalty is a shameful disgrace and we should correct it as soon as possible.”

Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, the former Business Secretary, said: “It is time for an amnesty on Covid fines which were an unnecessarily draconian measure at the time but with hindsight look entirely disproportionate.”...<<<Read More>>>...

Hospital worker tells Scottish Covid Inquiry hospitals were only “half full” during the covid outbreak

A porter has testified at the Scottish Covid-19 Inquiry that the hospital he works in was “half full” at “the outbreak” of covid and the beginning of the first lockdown. In April 2020, gradually covid patients began being admitted to the hospital but it was still not anywhere near as busy as on a normal day pre-covid.

The UK Covid-19 Inquiry is examining, considering and reporting on preparations and the response to the pandemic in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, in areas reserved to the UK Government and Parliament. Whereas, the Scottish Covid-19 Inquiry is investigating aspects of the devolved strategic response to the pandemic between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2022.

It held its final week of Health and Social Care Impact Hearings from 21–23 May 2024. On the last day, Neil Craig who has worked as a hospital porter at Glasgow Royal Infirmary for 25 years gave his oral testimony. He worked as a porter at the hospital throughout the covid pandemic and was giving evidence relating to the impacts of the pandemic and its response on porters as a union representative for Unite.

At first, he and his hospital porters were not catching covid. They felt it was their duty to continue working despite what was being publicised in the media.

At first, he said, the managers at the hospital didn’t know what the impact of covid would be or the number of patients to expect.

“They thought that the workload was going to be higher so we were all there. And we could be there as long as we wanted to be really because people weren’t sure if you were going to be needed. But it turned out they weren’t really needed,” he told the Inquiry. Because there was a significant fall in the amount of work that porters had to do.

“We didn’t have the capacity [high numbers of patients] in the hospital. Obviously, a lot of patients they discharged out of the hospital, either to home or care homes or other places [and] they didn’t schedule elective surgeries. So, the workload was definitely not as bad,” he said.

In his written testimony (see the last section of this article), Craig said that the medical block was less than half-full.  He was asked what he meant by the “medical block.”...<<<Read More>>>....

Four Years Ago this Month a Lockdown was Imposed by National Governments Worldwide – Never Forget What They are Capable Of.

 Professor Michel Chossudovsky of Global Research wrote – March 11, 2024, Four Years Ago the Covid-19 Lockdown was imposed in one fell swoop by national governments Worldwide. The Lockdown implied: “Confining the Labour Force” and “Freezing the Work Place”. Not a single economist has acknowledged this relationship. From their standpoint, it was the virus which triggered economic and social collapse. What nonsense.

What does this imply. The most serious economic and social crisis in World history which four years later is still ongoing, leading to economic chaos and mass poverty Worldwide. Destabilizing the social, political and economic structure of 190 sovereign countries cannot constitute a “solution” to combating the virus.

But that was the imposed “solution” which was implemented in several stages from the very outset of the corona crisis in January 2020. It’s the destruction of people’s lives. It is the destabilization of civil society. Fake science was supportive of this devastating agenda. The lies were sustained by a massive media disinformation campaign. 24/7, Incessant and Repetitive “Covid alerts” in the course of the last four years.

The historic March 11, 2020 lockdown triggered economic and social chaos Worldwide. It was an act of “economic warfare”: a war against humanity.

This diabolical agenda has undermined the sovereignty of nation states.

It has contributed to a wave of bankruptcies. It has impoverished people Worldwide.

It has led to a spiralling dollar denominated global debt.

The powerful structures of global capitalism, Big Money coupled with its intelligence and military apparatus were the driving force.

Using advanced digital and communications technologies, the lockdown and “closure” of the global economy is unprecedented in RECENT World history...<<<Read More>>>...

Skin Cancer Diagnosis Delays Caused by Lockdowns Led to 12,000 Years of Life Lost

University College London (UCL) analysed records from more than 50,000 patients across Europe, including the U.K., and calculated how many people’s cancer would have progressed from one stage owing to delays in beginning or continuing treatment.

Both screening services and treatments were disrupted in 2020 and 2021 by lockdown restrictions, staff shortages and fear of infection.

The team who worked with the University of Basel, in Switzerland, estimated that around 17% of people progressed to a higher stage of cancer in 2020-2021, owing to delays in diagnosis or treatment of two to three months or longer.

It equates to more than 12,000 years of life lost in Britain and to more than 100,000 years of life lost across Europe....<<<Read More>>>...

The Great Reset Didn’t Work: The Case of EVs

 We are living through one of history’s longest and most excruciating versions of “We told you so”. When in March 2020, the world’s governments decided to “shut down” the world’s economies and throttle any and all social activity, and deny kids schooling plus cancel worship services and holidays, there was no end to the warnings of the terrible collateral damage, even if most of them were censored.

Every bit of the warnings proved true. You see it in every story in the news. It’s behind every headline. It’s in countless family tragedies. It’s in the loss of trust. It’s in the upheaval in industry and demographics. The fingerprints of lockdowns are deeply embedded in every aspect of our lives, in ways obvious and not so much.

Actually, the results have been even worse than critics predicted, simply because the chaos lasted such a long time. There are seemingly endless iterations of this theme. Learning losses, infrastructure breakages, rampant criminality, vast debt, inflation, lost work ethic, a growing commercial real estate bust, real income losses, political extremism, labour shortages, substance addiction, and more much besides, all trace to the fateful decision.

The headlines on seemingly unrelated matters go back to the same, in circuitous ways. A good example is the news of the electric vehicle bust. The confusion, disorientation, malinvestment, overproduction and retrenchment – along with the crazed ambition to force convert a country and world away from oil and gas towards wind and solar – all trace to those fateful days....<<<Read More>>>...

“Lockdowns” didn’t work and they were catastrophic

 The Covid-inspired forced lockdowns on business and school closures are and have been counterproductive, not sustainable and are, quite frankly, meritless and unscientific. They have been disastrous and just plain wrong! There has been no good reason for this.

These unparalleled public health actions were enacted for a virus with an infection mortality rate (“IFR”) roughly similar – or likely lower once all infection data are collected – to seasonal influenza.

Countries and territories around the world enforced lockdowns of varying stringency in response to covid. Beginning with the first lockdown in China’s Hubei province and nationwide in Italy in March 2020, lockdowns continued to be implemented in many countries throughout 2020 and 2021.

Schools, universities and colleges closed either on a nationwide or local basis in 63 countries, affecting approximately 47 per cent of the world’s student population. The city of Toronto, Ontario is considered to have the longest continuous covid lockdown of any major city in the world.

In May 2023, the USA finally lifted the last of the restrictions on travel, allowing unvaccinated passengers to enter the country, and China, who had instigated the draconian unscientific measures, still prohibited its citizens from travelling abroad and the country was still largely closed off to tourists and other foreign visitors. Brazil also had some restrictions still in place and a handful of other countries still had some rules in place....<<<Read More>>>...

Moronic Mark Drakeford is barred from dozens of pubs in Wales because of ‘Covid’ rules

 Mark Drakeford is still barred from dozens of pubs in Wales, with the chairman of a pub watch scheme saying he will never be welcome. 

In December 2020, Mr Drakeford was barred from every pub on the pub watch scheme because landlords felt his Covid restrictions were too extreme, including the ban on alcohol sales in hospitality settings as well as the 6pm curfew as the prevalence of the virus grew as Christmas got closer.

This week, Mr Drakeford announced he will soon stand down as First Minister of Wales, with the process for his successor already underway. But if he visits this part of Wales, he may struggle to get himself a pint. Phil Ashe, chairman of Llandudno Pub Watch and the vice-chair of West Conwy Pub Watch, told North Wales Live: “Mark Drakeford is not welcome in our pubs, and he never will be because of the damage he caused all the pubs during the pandemic. We currently have 90 odd members, and Mark Drakeford is still barred. Most pubs and businesses are still struggling because of him.” ....<<<Read More>>>...

COVID was a high-tech coup d’état that hasn’t gone away: Lockdowns 2.0, great reset coming soon

 March 2020, the month and year the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) "pandemic" was decreed, marked a significant change in the direction of civilization. Like 9/11 before it, the world has never been the same since – and there is much more to come.

The lockdowns, business and school closures, mask and vaccine mandates, and social distancing-driven fear of others that the world suffered through in the years that followed COVID's launch in early 2020 were only just a taste of the much-worse future the globalists have planned for the world.

"What happened in March 2020 was a high-tech coup d'état against rights and freedoms," warns the Brownstone Institute. "It has not gone away. That's why there have been no apologies for the pandemic response. Too many people got rich, and they got most of what they wanted as a start to the Great Reset."

"There will be many more crises: more weird diseases, more anomalous weather patterns, more and unexpected reasons to panic the population into society-wide panic for another 'all-of-government' response. The mainstream media will fall in line just like the last time. Same with all major social media and major corporate voices, all backed by deep-state bureaucracies, some of which didn't even exist a decade ago."

Government brutality was made acceptable, at least to some, as a result of COVID. It enshrined the globalist-led effort to communize the world, and not in a good way, by making it seem reasonable to basically shut down the world in order to keep everyone "safe."

There is almost no other excuse that would have flown other than to bombard the public with nonstop propaganda about a "virus" floating around and infecting people at will. To the fearful, this was more than enough to justify hitting the pause button on human living for as long as the government and media say are necessary.

What happened during COVID completely contradicts what the founding fathers of the United States, at least, designed and intended for Americans. All it took to turn the entire Constitution on its head was the threat of getting sick from an "infectious disease" that many now believe was concocted in a communist Chinese laboratory using U.S. tax dollars.

Though things have cooled some since the start of the "pandemic," do not be fooled: the deep state is not done with everyone yet. Expect lockdowns 2.0, except this time with concentration "quarantine" camps to house the "sick" and "infected." All it will take is another catalyst to fool the masses.

There will be more crises that the powers have planned to destabilize the peace, stir up a bunch more fear, and voila: another fake "pandemic" is born.

"Make no mistake: representative government, as it came to be called, is right now in the process of being replaced by a biosecurity state that cares nothing for what its subjects believe or say," the Brownstone Institute further explains. "It's massive transformation, and so shocking because we never thought we would live in such times." ....<<<Read More>>>...

Trained like DOGS: Britons will readily comply with future lockdowns and mask mandates, “Nudge Unit” chief says

According to a British government adviser, since the United Kingdom has already been "brainwashed" to learn a new behavior, British people would quickly obey future pandemic lockdowns.

"In principle, you can just switch it [behavior] back on," Professor David Halpern, head of the Behavioral Insights Team (BIT), which was spun out from the cabinet office, told the Daily Telegraph.

He pointed out that since the country had "practiced the drill" of the pandemic's restrictive government mandates like wearing facemasks as well as following other health protocols such as social distancing and working from home, it would be easy to "redo it" in a future crisis because people are now "conditioned to do what they are told." Thanks to the engineered globalists' pandemic.

Speaking on the "Lockdown Files" podcast, Halpern pointed out that generally, messaging based on fearmongering is ineffective. He defended its use in extreme circumstances, choosing not to reference the mass protests built across the country after the restrictions began in March 2020. "There are times when you do need to cut through… particularly if you think people are wrongly calibrated," he said.

The Nudge Unit chief also stressed how powerful messages on posters are. These were used throughout pandemic restrictions and could enforce visual prompts so that when people go into a shop or somewhere else, it reminds them, automatically cues and triggers the "learned behavior." ...<<<Read More>>>....

It’s finally the end of the longest 2 weeks in history!

 In the US on 14 April 2023, the covid “State of Emergency” officially ended. It couldn’t have happened yesterday – April 13th. Nor, would it have been possible to have ended tomorrow – April 15th (Tax Day – for those who don’t live in the US). No, the science stated that April 14th was the day to end all days! The end of two weeks to flatten the curve. Or, as Meryl Dorey writes: 

Two weeks to flatten the population.
Two weeks to flatten your business.
Two weeks to flatten your and your children’s educations.
Two weeks to flatten your family, your community and your mental health.

Who knew that so much could happen in just two weeks?

In Australia, the state and federal governments haven’t yet ended the emergency declaration. Doing so would take all that lovely, sexy and all-encompassing power away from them.

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced on 11 April 2023 that a seven-day mandatory coronavirus quarantine period will be kept in place through the end of 2023 and possibly beyond.

New Zealand health officials largely favoured keeping the quarantine policy in place, even though most of the rest of the world has moved on from the coronavirus pandemic because they felt maintaining the quarantine requirement would inspire citizens to take possible coronavirus infections more seriously...<<<Read More>>>...

New post-pandemic dining restrictions in some cities charge customers hundreds of dollars just to get seated at a table

A lot has changed ever since the Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) was forced on the world, including in the food service industry.

Some restaurants in major cities like Chicago have begun imposing minimum purchase requirements on their patrons, or charging cancelation fees for reservations.

Mandatory minimums are gradually becoming the norm in some areas, especially at higher-end restaurants. Steak 48, a steakhouse in Chicago, now starts the bill with a $100 charge per person. If a customer or table orders less than $100 worth of food per person, they get charged the full amount regardless.

“It’s a shame,” said Howard Tolsky, a Chicago-area resident who went to book a dinner online at Steak 48 for himself, his wife, and his mother-in-law, only to notice the new charge, which deterred him from making a reservation.

“I figured, well, we’re not going to spend $300. We might spend $250. But I don’t want to spend $300 on a meal that costs $250.”...<<<Read More>>>...

China announces lockdown plans for the FLU: Officials spark fury by warning areas may be shut down to quell outbreaks of the common virus

Chinese officials want to bring in lockdowns to combat the flu, leaving many furious about a prospect of returning to the strict restrictions seen during the Covid-19 outbreak.

The city of Xi'an, in Shaanxi Province in central China, said it may enforce lockdowns 'when necessary' if an outbreak of the common flu virus poses a 'severe threat'. The emergency response plan for the city published on Wednesday is intended to combat the rising number of influenza cases in the country, as Covid-19 cases continue to fall.

Authorities in the Chinese city have not suggested that a new set of lockdowns are imminent, but locals in the area have still dubbed the plans excessive.

China's zero-Covid lockdown plans were implemented throughout the country during the pandemic and were seen as extreme by many.

The plan by the Xi'an local government accounts for four levels of flu outbreak. If the common virus was to reach a critically high level, lockdowns would likely be reinstated....<<<Read More>>>...

Because of propaganda churned out by corporate media some people still live in fear of “the virus”

 In the USA, the covid “vaccine” requirement affecting an estimated 10 million healthcare workers was enforced on 20 February 2022. One year later, it is the last remaining major mandate from Joe Biden’s sweeping attempt to boost national vaccination rates.

On Sunday, Yahoo News published an article about covid vaccine mandates being still in place in healthcare settings. Citing the example of a nursing home in Missouri, the article describes the daily testing for covid that healthcare workers continue to endure. The article goes on to state that “only the healthy are allowed in to care for virus-free residents.”

So, what does “healthy” mean? A negative covid test? A test which has been widely recognised for not being able to detect infection or diagnose illness. What if a person tests negative for covid but has another infection or illness? Is that person “healthy”? It sounds less like a health measure and more like obedience training.

As The Awake Epidemiologist points out, the continuing covid mandates in healthcare settings are a reminder of what happened in universities and colleges regarding “vaccine” mandates and exemptions last year.

One of the most nonsensical aspects of continuing covid “vaccine” mandates in American universities and colleges in 2022 was that students, faculty and staff who survived the mandates the year before – that is, were fortunate enough to be granted religious and/or medical exemptions – had to reapply for an exemption in 2022. There is no rational explanation for why an exemption would expire.

The requirement to renew exemptions was therefore more likely to be an exercise in obedience or perhaps to wear down the morale of the individual....<<<Read More>>>...

NHS Doctor confirms Staff were ordered to let Patients Die or “Euthanise” them to falsely increase the COVID Death Count while Hospitals were EMPTY & Nurses had TikTok Dance-Offs

 An NHS whistleblower, who wishes to remain anonymous, has come forward with allegations that the NHS hospitals were not overwhelmed during the Covid-19 pandemic, as was reported by authorities and the mainstream media.

The whistleblower also confirmed that the little care given throughout the pandemic amounted to negligence, and that the government and NHS bosses essentially instructed staff to let people die, or in some cases kill them through the ‘End of Life Care’ programme and falsely label the deaths as being due to Covid-19.

This individual referred to as Dr. John, has worked in minor injuries and illness centres as well as in a primary care role throughout the pandemic.

Dr. John claims that he has “seen this mess evolve from the very beginning of the pandemic” and that hospitals were actually extremely quiet and almost empty during the first lockdown.

“I used to see an average of 20 patients per day, that dropped to 1 – 2 patients during the first lockdown. I have even witnessed an elderly lady with horrific broken bones come into the hospital three weeks after her accident as she was too scared of catching coronavirus to visit the hospital sooner. In the end, the pain overcame the fear.

“I have also assessed people with chest pains in their homes who would not go for further assessment as they were so scared of ‘the virus’ they would rather chance a heart attack than the infection or the loneliness of going to the hospital alone.” ...<<<Read More>>>...

British Army unit SPIED on COVID-19 lockdown dissenters

A shadowy propaganda unit of the British Army spied on people who were critical of the government’s Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic lockdown policies.

The offending unit of the British Army is the 77th Brigade’s Counter Disinformation Unit, which specializes in psychological and information warfare.

According to the statement of a whistleblower who spoke with the Daily Mail, this unit compiled dossiers on prominent public figures who voiced their dissenting views on COVID-19 policies. Their dissenting views were then reported back to former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government.

The information gathered during the illegal espionage operation was then used to craft the British government’s responses to criticisms of different COVID-19 policies, including lockdown orders, and police being given the power to break up gatherings and issue fines for violating COVID-19 policies.

“I entered this role believing I would be uncovering foreign information warfare,” said the whistleblower. “Instead, I found the banner of disinformation was a guise under which the British military was being deployed to monitor and flag our own concerned citizens.”

The whistleblower further noted that there may have been actual social media campaigns from foreign governments like China to promote support for COVID-19 lockdown policies in places like the United Kingdom, but because most of the 77th Brigade’s efforts were focused on monitoring sentiment toward the success of the lockdown, the unit probably missed its chance to detect it....<<<Read More>>>...

Lockdown Wasn’t Imposed to Protect the World from a New Virus but Because the Real Economy Had to Be Shut Down

As the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, announces £54 billion in increased taxes and cuts to public services in order to reduce a fiscal deficit being blamed on everything from the Pandemic to Putin and Brexit, this is a look at the actual causes of our spiralling inflation, not just in the UK but across the globe.

In June 2019, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the world’s central bank, published its Annual Economic Report. This began with the statement: ‘It was perhaps too good to be true’ — the ‘it’ being the recovery from the 2007-2009 Global Financial Crisis. Describing financial markets as ‘jittery’, the report warned investors about the social and political backlash against what it called the ‘open international economic order’, which the BIS predicted would continue to cast a ‘long if unpredictable shadow’ over the global economy:

From a historical perspective, it is not unusual to see such surges of sentiment in the wake of major economic shockwaves: the Great Depression marked the end of the previous globalisation era. It is too early to tell how this surge will evolve; but it will clearly be a force to contend with in the years to come.

What the BIS was describing here are not only the classic symptoms of a financial crisis produced by the internal contradictions of capitalist accumulation — according to which, as the wages of workers are deflated so too is the purchasing power of consumers, threatening the profits of capitalists and resulting in an inflated credit bubble — but also the threat of the social unrest they cause in the body politic. As the bank of highest appeal on monetary policy, the BIS is more than aware of the threat this presents to the global financial system. The following month, accordingly, in July 2019, the BIS called for ‘unconventional policy’ in order to ‘insulate the real economy’ from further deterioration in conditions, specifically advocating that, by offering direct credit to the economy, central banks could ‘replace commercial banks in providing loans’.

By August 2019, the global debt-to-Gross Domestic Product ratio had risen to an all-time high of 322 per cent, with total debt reaching close to $253 trillion. Germany, Italy and Japan were on the verge of a recession, and the economies of the UK and China were contracting. That same month, BlackRock, the largest investment fund in the world with $6.5 trillion in assets under management at the time (and since then risen to $10 trillion), published a white paper titled ‘Dealing with the next downturn’. This instructed the Federal Reserve, the central banking system of the USA, to inject liquidity directly into the financial system, in order to prevent a dramatic downturn in the economy it predicted would be even worse than that of the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2009.

BlackRock argued that, since monetary policy (interest rates on loans and the amount of money in circulation) was exhausted, and fiscal policy (government taxation and spending) would not be sufficient to reverse such a crisis, what was needed was an ‘unprecedented response’. It therefore recommended ‘going direct’. This meant ‘finding ways to get central bank money directly into the hands of public and private-sector spenders’ while avoiding hyperinflation. Significantly, as an example of the dangers of the latter, BlackRock cited the Weimar Republic in the early 1920s, at precisely the time when fascism took root in both Germany and Italy. Later that month, in August 2019, central bankers from the G7 nations (the USA, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and Canada) met to discuss and approve BlackRock’s ‘unconventional’ proposals....<<<Read More>>>....

The Confinement of the Healthy

 COVID-19 represents the first time in the history of pandemics that we confined healthy populations. While the ancients did not understand the mechanisms of infectious disease—they knew nothing of viruses and bacteria—they nevertheless figured out many ways to mitigate the spread of contagion during epidemics. These time-tested measures ranged from quarantining symptomatic patients to enlisting those with natural immunity, who had recovered from the illness, to care for the sick.

From the lepers in the Old Testament to the plague of Justinian in Ancient Rome to the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, lockdowns were never part of conventional public health measures. The concept of lockdowns arose in part from a public health apparatus that had become militarized over the previous two decades. We now routinely hear of “countermeasures,” but doctors and nurses never use that word, which is a term of spycraft and soldiering.

In 1968, while an estimated one to four million people died in the H3N2 influenza pandemic, businesses and schools stayed open and large events were never cancelled. Until 2020 we had not previously locked down entire populations, because that strategy does not work. In 2020 we had zero empirical evidence that lockdowns would save lives, only flawed mathematical models whose predications were not just slightly off, but wildly exaggerated by orders of magnitude....<<<Read More>>>...