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When it's something deadly that affects others, then the difficult question of forcing others comes up. What if smallpox got started again. That kills millions

When it's something deadly that affects others, then the difficult question of forcing others comes up. What if smallpox got started again. That kills millions of people. Today most of us in the west don't have personal experience with things like that. It's like masks. You should be able to make laws that force people to wear masks if there is a deadly disease that will kill other people in large numbers, in my opinion. For those that argue about undue force, what about driver's licenses, taxes, health checks at restaurants, food inspection, building codes, rules on water lines, seat belts, etc? Seat belts mostly just affect people in the car, yet masking and cv19 affects others, so it should be an easier thing to understand the impact. My guess is our tortured political situation convinces people that somehow the situation is different than these other things.

meowface 6y ago
I think being very specific about language is important here. There's "forcing", and there's "disallowing things if people don't agree to do something". Forcing would be literally forcibly entering people's homes and testing or vaccinating them against their will, or jailing them or removing them from the country if they refuse. But you could disallow people from entering certain kinds of property or areas if they don't agree to show test results / vaccination status or take a temperature test or wear a mask. Once a vaccine is officially approved and rolled out, I don't think vaccination should be mandatory for residents of the US, but I also don't think people should be allowed to enter my place of work or education if they aren't confirmed to be vaccinated.
- dredmorbius 6y ago
  Or maybe freedom is simply the wrong frame for this question. There are others. Public health. Commonweal. Morality. Consideration for the disadvantaged.
swiley 6y ago
> It's like masks. It is in fact exactly like masks. You’re not forced to wear one unless you want to be around other people.

meowface 6y ago

I think being very specific about language is important here. There's "forcing", and there's "disallowing things if people don't agree to do something". Forcing would be literally forcibly entering people's homes and testing or vaccinating them against their will, or jailing them or removing them from the country if they refuse. But you could disallow people from entering certain kinds of property or areas if they don't agree to show test results / vaccination status or take a temperature test or wear a mask. Once a vaccine is officially approved and rolled out, I don't think vaccination should be mandatory for residents of the US, but I also don't think people should be allowed to enter my place of work or education if they aren't confirmed to be vaccinated.

dredmorbius 6y ago
Or maybe freedom is simply the wrong frame for this question. There are others. Public health. Commonweal. Morality. Consideration for the disadvantaged.

swiley 6y ago

> It's like masks. It is in fact exactly like masks. You’re not forced to wear one unless you want to be around other people.