Weather
The Pine Tree, News for Calaveras County and Beyond Weather
Amador Angels Camp Arnold Bear Valley Copperopolis Murphys San Andreas Valley Springs Moke Hill/West Point Tuolumne
News
Business Directory
Weather & Roads
Sports
Real Estate
Search
Weekly & Grocery Ads
Entertainment
Life & Style
Government
Law Enforcement
Business
Wine News
Health & Fitness
Home & Garden
Food & Dining
Religion & Faith
Frogtown USA
Calendar
Polls
Columns
Free Classifieds
Letters to the Editor
Obituaries
About Us

Coming Soon...
Wednesday, Apr 17
07:00 PM Drive in Movie Night at Bret Harte on April 17
Thursday, Apr 18
All Day Tickets on Sale Now for "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown!"
Friday, Apr 19
All Day Tickets on Sale Now for "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown!"
Saturday, Apr 20
All Day Tickets on Sale Now for "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown!"
All Day The 7th Annual Crafty Chicks Spring Market
All Day Big Plans at Big Trees State Park for Earth Day!
All Day Huge Savings at Millworkz Inventory Reduction Sale Every Saturday!
09:00 AM Spring Cleaning Time at Shred Fest 2024 on April 20th
01:00 PM Celebration of Life for Robyn Victoria Williams
05:00 PM Fundraiser Dinner at VFW San Andreas
Sunday, Apr 21
All Day Tickets on Sale Now for "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown!"
All Day Big Plans at Big Trees State Park for Earth Day!
All Day Our Sunday Edition with Local Features, Local Specials & More Every Sunday All Day Long!
09:00 AM Get Ready to Run in the 2024 Mr. Frog's Wild Run on April 21st.
11:30 AM The 11th Annual Mountain Ranch Chili Cook Off!
Saturday, Apr 27
All Day Come Celebrate Calaveras’ Spring Wine Weekend
All Day Huge Savings at Millworkz Inventory Reduction Sale Every Saturday!
Sunday, Apr 28
All Day Come Celebrate Calaveras’ Spring Wine Weekend
All Day Our Sunday Edition with Local Features, Local Specials & More Every Sunday All Day Long!

Log In
Username

Password

Remember Me



Posted by: thepinetree on 02/05/2021 10:53 AM Updated by: thepinetree on 02/05/2021 10:53 AM
Expires: 01/01/2026 12:00 AM
:

Lockdowns are Killing Us ~ Congressman Tom McClintock

Washington, DC...We are now nearly a year into the most self-destructive social experiment in the recorded history of human civilization. On this day a year ago, we enjoyed the greatest economic expansion in our lifetimes.  The poverty rate was the lowest in 60 years.  The unemployment rate was the lowest in 50 years.  Wage growth was the strongest in 40 years.  The wage gap was narrowing, with blue collar wages growing the fastest.  Unemployment rates for minority groups and women was the lowest ever recorded.





And then, over a course of just a few catastrophic weeks, our government took a wrecking ball to it all.  In the second quarter, GDP plunged by a third – the worst decline in productivity ever recorded.  Unemployment exploded to its highest levels since the great depression.  Tens of millions of Americans lost their jobs.  Trillions of dollars of the nation’s wealth were squandered.


In the months since, our children have been robbed of a year of their educations.  Millions of Americans have been forbidden from earning a living by their own government. Shopkeepers have seen their life’s work destroyed and when in desperation they try to hold on, they are led away in handcuffs.  Our most cherished rights to worship freely, to peaceably assemble, and not to be deprived of our lives, liberty, or property without due process of law have been destroyed.

Covid didn’t cause this damage. Public officials did.  They promised us it was for our own good – that it would save lives.

But mounting evidence in multiple scientific studies is putting the lie to these sophistries.  It is becoming increasingly, tragically, and bitterly clear that the lockdowns have not only failed to save lives – but are costing lives.

Last month, the University of Denmark released the results of a study comparing Danish municipalities that locked down and those that did not.  Their conclusion: the lockdowns “had limited and statistically insignificant effects.”

Their conclusion mirrored a similar study out of Stanford University that compared eight lockdown nations and two non-lockdown nations.  They concluded: “We fail to find an additional benefit of stay-at-home orders or business closures.”

These are studies based not on assumptions and predictions, but on actual real-life hard-core data.  This is what the science is telling us, and it’s telling us the same thing from multiple studies: the lockdowns have not saved lives – certainly not to any statistically significant level.

But it gets worse – much worse.  We are now seeing mounting evidence that lockdowns are costing lives on a staggering scale.

Last month, the National Bureau of Economic Research warned that increases in poverty caused by the lockdowns will cost more than 800,000 American lives over the next 15 years due to higher poverty levels – with the deaths disproportionally affecting African Americans and women.  That comports with a UN warning that tens of millions of people worldwide will be pushed to the brink of starvation.

Suicide rates have jumped dramatically over the past year.  Dementia deaths between March and September jumped 13,000 as patients were left with little means of social interaction.  San Francisco reported that additional deaths from drug overdoses exceeded Covid deaths in 2020.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the CDC reported 475,000 excess deaths in the United States at a time when it was reporting 281,000 Covid-related fatalities.  The difference is 194,000 additional deaths unexplained by normal mortality and Covid combined.  Could this be the butcher’s bill from a folly that has produced skyrocketing suicides, drug and alcohol deaths, domestic homicides, isolation-related deaths, delayed health screenings and delayed health treatments and poverty related deaths?

Unlike Covid, which is a curse brought us by nature, lockdown deaths are the fault of specific individuals in positions of public trust who imposed Draconian restrictions out of panic, ignorance, or egotism.  They preened and virtue-signaled and boasted how much they cared for the lives of others while they have pursued a folly – never attempted in recorded history -- that is needlessly taking an appalling toll of lives and livelihoods.

Some of those responsible hold power by virtue of appointments by elected officials.  Others hold power directly from the voters.  The American people ultimately must decide how much longer they will put up with this dystopian and authoritarian world. I fear this nightmare will not end until the officials who are responsible for it are removed from the offices they hold.

# # #


Comments - Make a comment
The comments are owned by the poster. We are not responsible for its content. We value free speech but remember this is a public forum and we hope that people would use common sense and decency. If you see an offensive comment please email us at news@thepinetree.net

What's Related
These might interest you as well
Calendar

Photo Albums

Local News

phpws Business Directory

RSS News Feeds

Web Pages


Mark Twain Medical Center
Meadowmont Pharmacy
Angels & San Andreas Memorial Chapels
Bear Valley Real Estate
Gerard Insurance
Bank of Stockton
Fox Security
Bistro Espresso
Chatom Winery
Middleton's Furniture
Bear Valley Mountain Resort
Cave, Mine & Zip Lines
High Country Spa & Stove
Ebbetts Pass Scenic Byway
Sierra Logging Museum Calaveras Mentoriing
Jenny's Kitchen

Copyright © The Pine Tree 2005-2023