After six months of this virus clearly demonstrating that it is no more dangerous than any other, the draconian government restrictions are not only continuing, they are being heightened to WWII level Nazi style abuse. Curfews, walking papers, mandatory masks for healthy people, trace apps on your phone, social isolation. And if you are caught out without your muzzle or after hours you will be punished by the authorities.

But why are they "the authorities"? How did they acquire authority that the rest of us don't have? What makes them so special that they can legitimately rule our lives like this?

I'm not referring to the current crop of known liars, connivers and baby kissers, I'm referring to the institution. It doesn't matter who is running it, people still refer to it as "the authorities" and act as if it's a mortal sin to disobey them.

You know how that institution was created? Some people just like you and me sat down at a table, wrote a p…

When searching for the reason why things go wrong, stop when you get to the Media.
The Media is our Teacher. It's the whole world's teacher.  Everything we learn, we learn from the Media.With screens, cameras, actors and glib, well-coiffed hosts, radio and TV signals, cable, microwave, publishing, the all-powerful Internet with its own 'social media', it instructs us hourly, daily, weekly, month in, year out. The classroom is anywhere; it's ubiquitous. Class is in session even when school is closed. The course is Regimentation. There is no 'graduation'. There is no individual achievement, only the 'Greater Good'. "We're all in this together" is our motto.
The Media teaches Unquestioning Obedience with Fear based on Ignorance, the greatest, most effective motivational tools ever; critical thinking is forbidden. Distortion and disinformation construct the new and ever-changing 'normal with a vocabulary to wordsmith the emotive code wo…

Indeed, this is the Perfect Virus. 
No known origin, no known cure, no known preventative. Every 'medicine', every 'treatment', every effective 'solution' to stop it has been attacked, ridiculed, ignored, demeaned, denied, discarded - except those approved by Government and its cronies. It defies all masks that don't need to be worn or must be worn because Karen; effective and ineffective, indoors or outdoors. It's highly contagious, especially in crowds except politically approved 'protests' with sufficient property destruction. Contrary to originally announced 'scientific  experience', it is no longer deterred by heat or cold. Without evidence, even asymptomatic people can spread it. No, they can't. Wait - when did you ask? No Constitution, Rule of Law, legal precedent, economy, logic, values or basic common sense can stand before it. It is the Perfect Virus. But the people and entities that would control every aspect of your daily …

A  Doctor is explaining the pandemic to a coma patient who just woke up…

Dr: “They shut down the world because of a worldwide pandemic.”
Patient: “OMG! How many people are infected?”
Dr : “About 11 Million.”
Patient: “OMG! 11 million people died?”
Dr: “No, only 500 thousand… Kind of.”
Patient: “What do you mean ‘kind of’?”
Dr: “Well… they keep halving the number of deaths due to double counting, inaccurate tests and mislabeled death certificates. Also, most of the people that die are elderly and dying of other things. There are also people who died because of incorrect ventilator use and other treatments because no-one really understands the virus.”
Patient: “I don’t get it. So how many died from ONLY the virus… like literally dropped dead in the street?”
Dr: “No-one. Only in hospitals and nursing homes”
Patient: “I don’t get it.”
Dr: “Neither do I, it’s a very confusing time.”
Patient: “So they cured the other 11 million people then?”
Dr: “No, most didn’t have any symptoms and in fa…

FYI - Regular visitors know I occasionally post articles from other pundit pals who scribble something of particular worth; this is one of them. I have known, worked and shared efforts with L. Neil Smith for 30+  years. Remarkably, despite a shared philosophy, correspondence and several phone conversations, we have never met; as long as there is a TSA, we won't. Regardless, I remain an admirer of his mind at work, especially when put to print. The following is a compelling example...BW
For something like 850 years, the British held the Irish against their will. So stubborn was the Irish desire for independence that their conquerors attempted to stamp out Irish culture, banning their language, their music, their native dress, even hanging, drawing, and quartering men who flaunted the Irish color -- green -- and throwing women wearing green to the troops. They even wanted to forbid the shamrock, a species of clover, from being worn. 
In the long run, the British brutalitarian st…

Note: I received the following from a close friend who recently moved to a charming Southern village in SC. It's irresistible little downtown area and gorgeous tree-lined streets have been a tourist and retirement magnet for years. Unfortunately, all this quaintness camouflaged some unpleasant issues deep within the social landscape that the Chamber of Commerce would prefer remained there. To be fair, one wonders if this would have happened without the hysterical media hype of the last few months.
BW

I went grocery shopping today. Usually not a very contentious task, rather mundane, in fact. But something happened at this store in a little Southern town that now has me resigned that the world, the country, the town and life in general will never be the same again.

The trip down the aisles started as unexciting as any trip to the store begins. I pulled out a cart, grabbed my list from my purse and began loading the cart. Nothing out of the ordinary except the several remaining empt…