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Whatever happens, we’re all in this together

To the Editor;
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To the Editor;

A variety of reactions to this pandemic, and negative reactions to the resultant public health policies could be due to the fact that for the last half century or so we have been living in a bit of a fool’s paradise.

We are now into a third generation of adults living in a world that is relatively safe from various diseases and conditions - this includes; pertussis (whooping cough), polio, measles, rubella (German measles), smallpox, goiters, tetanus (lock-jaw), salmonella, rickets, botulism, typhus, diphtheria, cholera, typhoid fever, and even bubonic plague and tuberculosis.

Much of this disease and condition reduction is due to the evolution of various public health measures over the past couple of centuries. These measures include water treatment, waste sewage, garbage and vermin control, iodized salt, vaccinations, cleanliness rules in the treatment of our food from farm to factory, to restaurant and to church kitchen, pasteurized and fortified milk, and the widespread use of antibiotics.

So successful have these various public health policies been, that now into a third generation, we see a relatively disease free environment as the norm, rather than the exception.

However, the historical norm (and not that far back) has been that death can come to us, easily and unexpectedly at any age.

Yes, we have had warnings during this period: HIV/Aids, and Ebola. Then there were a number of bullets that seemed to have been effectively dodged, like SARS, MERS, H1N1 and others. The warnings tell us that potentially lethal and debilitating diseases lurk in our surrounding environment – and now we have COVID-19.

Fifty years ago, to be hired as a teacher or a flight attendant on International flights, one had to meet certain medical requirements, including vaccinations. At that time older people had memories of past disease norms, and we were just entering this fool’s paradise. Unfortunately, three generations later, those memories are now a rarity.

This is now the time for us to answer some big questions, particularly in respect to our varied responses to public health measures.

What levels of risk and death are tolerable? What economic costs are tolerable? What personal limits are tolerable?

However, whatever happens – we will all be in it together.

Glenn Andrews

Barriere, B.C.