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> But the data isn't so clear. Countries in South America locked down hard and early but it had no effect on the pandemic spread. This is false. The hard lockd

> But the data isn't so clear. Countries in South America locked down hard and early but it had no effect on the pandemic spread. This is false. The hard lockdown period in most SA countries lasted 3-6 weeks at most; after that there was almost no enforcement by the police, no fines handed out, no public shaming. It was essentially left up to individuals with ample latitude in how they chose to exercise self-imposed freedom. Poor people in SA did not generally have the option to stay at home with a robust safety net such as in Europe. Wealthier business owners have to deal with an inefficient legal system that burdens anyone who does things by the book. The first few weeks with a real lockdown were remarkably effective, as shown by the mobility and disease transmission stats. As soon as the countries stopped using their monopoly of force to limit mobility, the disease shot up, in an entirely predictable manner. It's truly unfortunate that this misinformation keeps cropping up.

ryandrake 6y ago
Without enforcement, "lockdown" is just a word coming out of a politician's mouth in order to make it look like they are doing something. I think when the dust settles, we're going to find that lockdowns did indeed work, but only in the few places on Earth where they actually had teeth and were enforced. Most of the West say they ordered a lockdown, but it was more of a flimsy suggestion than an order. In the US, people are still out and about horsing around despite Stay At Home orders, and there are just no consequences. They just busted an illegal gathering in NYC [1] with over 300 people, yet only the organizer got a slap-on-the-wrist $15K fine. Where are the $15K fines for each of the party-goers? 1: https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/02/us/sheriff-nye-raids/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/02/us/sheriff-nye-raids/index.ht...

ryandrake 6y ago

Without enforcement, "lockdown" is just a word coming out of a politician's mouth in order to make it look like they are doing something. I think when the dust settles, we're going to find that lockdowns did indeed work, but only in the few places on Earth where they actually had teeth and were enforced. Most of the West say they ordered a lockdown, but it was more of a flimsy suggestion than an order. In the US, people are still out and about horsing around despite Stay At Home orders, and there are just no consequences. They just busted an illegal gathering in NYC [1] with over 300 people, yet only the organizer got a slap-on-the-wrist $15K fine. Where are the $15K fines for each of the party-goers? 1: https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/02/us/sheriff-nye-raids/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/02/us/sheriff-nye-raids/index.ht...