Is it right to do something you know is wrong for some greater good? Do lockdowns fit into this category? What does the Bible say about the “greater good”? Here I look at some of the ways our society thinks of the “greater good”, and we look at the Parable of the Good Samaritan.
The article I mentioned was Lockdown was a choice from The Critic.
It seems to me when experts are telling us what basic physical contact is and is not safe for us, we have a problem.
I didn’t mention this in the video, but there are lots of benefits to hugging – see this website for example.
I wrote about experts here earlier on in the year – Will lockdown be the end of “experts”.
Why did lockdown happen? Frank Furedi argues in an article on Spiked that we were already primed for lockdown because of our culture of fear and safetyism. But how do we combat fear?
My article on Understand the Bible about the fear of the Lord is here.
In my previous video about why lockdowns are immoral I wanted to say one more thing but ran out of time. In this video I take a more in depth look at what philosophers call the trolley problem.
There’s a concept from Christianity called “legalism” which I think has become evident in our society’s response to covid. So what is legalism, and why is it a bad thing?
I’ve been thinking for a long time now that we need a new reformation. The last year or so has convinced me that this is critically important for the health of our society. But I am convinced that God is at work.
One of the most puzzling things of the last 12 months is this: why is it that some people, especially the government, are so obsessed with masks? Why do people treat them as if they’re the only thing standing between us and disaster?
Discussion about the rights and wrongs of lockdown usually focusses on whether they are effective, or how serious covid is, etc. Here I want to go back to the beginning and ask whether lockdowns are morally right. I give two reasons why I believe lockdowns are immoral and should never have been attempted.
The article in The Critic I mention is here.
“I’m not a conspiracy theorist, but…” I’ve heard this more than once over the last few months. It’s really hard to explain what is going on without it. The Bible has a lot to say which can help us explain about the dark forces going on behind the scenes.
In March 2020 the UK ditched its pandemic preparedness strategy and switched to lockdowns. Why? I suggest that, although there are many reasons, the roots go to a problem which has been around for a long time.
If you’d like to read the 2011 Influenza Pandemic Preparedness Strategy, you can see it here.
Dominion by Tom Holland is available on lots of places e.g. Waterstones.
My other website is Understand the Bible.
Just for fun, here are a few quotes from the plan which we were operating under up until February 2020.
Face masks:
Although there is a perception that the wearing of facemasks by the public in the community and household setting may be beneficial, there is in fact very little evidence of widespread benefit from their use in this setting. Facemasks must be worn correctly, changed frequently, removed properly, disposed of safely and used in combination with good respiratory, hand, and home hygiene behaviour in order for them to achieve the intended benefit. Research also shows that compliance with these recommended behaviours when wearing facemasks for prolonged periods reduces over time.
Border restrictions:
There are no plans to attempt to close borders in the event of an influenza pandemic.
Closing events:
For these reasons, the working presumption will be that Government will not impose any such restrictions. The emphasis will instead be on encouraging all those who have symptoms to follow the advice to stay at home and avoid spreading their illness. However, local organisers may decide to cancel or postpone events in a pandemic fearing economic loss through poor attendances, and the public themselves may decide not to mix in crowds, or use public transport if other options are available.
School closures:
The impact of closure of schools and similar settings on all sectors would have substantial economic and social consequences, and have a disproportionately large effect on health and social care because of the demographic profile of those employed in these sectors. Such a step would therefore only be taken in an influenza pandemic with a very high impact and so, although school closures cannot be ruled out, it should not be the primary focus of schools’ planning.
Communication:
All communication should be high quality and cost effective, using the most efficient and reliable ways of delivering information in a range of scenarios to a variety of audiences so to maximise understanding and encourage appropriate behaviour without causing panic or appearing disproportionate.
To be fair, this is all based on an influenza pandemic, which is not the same as a coronavirus pandemic. But I think there would be a lot of common ground there, and I see no reason why this strategy would not have worked for covid-19. But I think the key points are the ethical considerations rather than the blunt fact of what works and what doesn’t.