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There already was a chip on the shoulder of a large number of American and that has been fed and grown by certain media and social channels specifically to unde

There already was a chip on the shoulder of a large number of American and that has been fed and grown by certain media and social channels specifically to undermine trust in institutions and checks on power. The lockdown (that wasn't locked down) was just more fuel on that well-feed fire.

mcpackieh 3y ago
> fed and grown by certain media and social channels specifically to Ideologues are always saying that anybody who doesn't agree with them must be brainwashed. They can't imagine that could actually choose to hold a different point of view from their own. Well let me tell you it ain't necessarily the case.
UncleOxidant 3y ago
Exactly. Initially "lockdowns" (and I hesitate to even call them that here in the US, we didn't have literal lockdowns like China had where they welded doors shut on apartments) were seen as positive - "flatten the curve to help our healthcare workers and keep our hospitals from being overrun". Pretty soon, though, they started getting very negative framing from right-wing social media, etc.
- mrguyorama 3y ago
  >and I hesitate to even call them that here in the US, we didn't have literal lockdowns like China had where they welded doors shut on apartments Were there even places that gave you a citation for being out "uneccessarily"? Every single "lockdown" I'm familiar with in the US was voluntary. There was a period where "non-essential" businesses were forced or encouraged to not operate, but even that still isn't a lockdown, and nobody was forced to stay in their home.
  - mike_hearn 3y ago
    Yes, the word lockdown means forced quarantine of the entire population by law (except "essential" workers). Were they really voluntary everywhere in the USA? For example, the UK is still processing a giant backlog of fines and imprisonments for people who violated lockdown rules, more than 28,000 so far. You were allowed to go for a walk alone or with members of your household once per day, and go to supermarkets, but nothing else.
    - dboreham 3y ago
      afaik, and certainly nowhere around where I live (Montana), there were no UK-style lockdowns in the US. Here we had: schools closed, theaters closed, and restaurants closed for indoors dining, and we had quarantine rules for people moving from out of state (that were not enforced). No restrictions on leaving your home, shopping, etc. No enforcement/fines.
    - fzeroracer 3y ago
      Yes? I lived in Texas during the outbreak. It was very much so optional.
    - triceratops 3y ago
      In the lefty commie California Bay Area where everyone "believes in the science", I was never, ever stopped by the lockdown police to ask why I was outside. I don't know why the UK issuing thousands of fines is relevant to this discussion.
      - mike_hearn 3y ago
        Fair enough, then it's not relevant and I shouldn't have brought it up. I think a lot of people in the rest of the world don't realize how much less totalitarian the restrictions were in the US.
shapenamer 3y ago
Always blows my mind when people suggest the only reason someone wouldn't trust the US government is because they've fallen for some misinformation. The US government does a great job of destroying trust all by itself.
- refurb 3y ago
  It's really odd seeing comments on HN upvoted like: US government overthrew Iran democratic government -> "I know the US is so evil!" US government secretly injecting US citizens with radioactive material -> "My gosh, what's wrong with these people?" US government lies about reasons for Iraq War -> "One of the great crimes of the century" Then someone suggests, that just maybe, the lockdowns weren't based on science and that we should be concerned about the government overstepping and the comments are suddenly -> "Wow, did you forget your tinfoil hat?" or "Why don't you believe in science?" or "Think of the children" It's really weird. The US gets rightfully condemned for wrongdoings, but then suddenly any suggestion that they did it again is met with violent opposition.
  - kelipso 3y ago
    They are propagandised to the gills. Their brains will break and they probably won't be able to function anymore if they try to go through all the contradictions.
  - larvaetron 3y ago
    > It's really odd seeing comments on HN upvoted like: Not really. The HN user base has been taken over by big-corporation/big-government shills for years now.

mcpackieh 3y ago

> fed and grown by certain media and social channels specifically to Ideologues are always saying that anybody who doesn't agree with them must be brainwashed. They can't imagine that could actually choose to hold a different point of view from their own. Well let me tell you it ain't necessarily the case.

UncleOxidant 3y ago

Exactly. Initially "lockdowns" (and I hesitate to even call them that here in the US, we didn't have literal lockdowns like China had where they welded doors shut on apartments) were seen as positive - "flatten the curve to help our healthcare workers and keep our hospitals from being overrun". Pretty soon, though, they started getting very negative framing from right-wing social media, etc.

mrguyorama 3y ago
>and I hesitate to even call them that here in the US, we didn't have literal lockdowns like China had where they welded doors shut on apartments Were there even places that gave you a citation for being out "uneccessarily"? Every single "lockdown" I'm familiar with in the US was voluntary. There was a period where "non-essential" businesses were forced or encouraged to not operate, but even that still isn't a lockdown, and nobody was forced to stay in their home.
- mike_hearn 3y ago
  Yes, the word lockdown means forced quarantine of the entire population by law (except "essential" workers). Were they really voluntary everywhere in the USA? For example, the UK is still processing a giant backlog of fines and imprisonments for people who violated lockdown rules, more than 28,000 so far. You were allowed to go for a walk alone or with members of your household once per day, and go to supermarkets, but nothing else.
  - dboreham 3y ago
    afaik, and certainly nowhere around where I live (Montana), there were no UK-style lockdowns in the US. Here we had: schools closed, theaters closed, and restaurants closed for indoors dining, and we had quarantine rules for people moving from out of state (that were not enforced). No restrictions on leaving your home, shopping, etc. No enforcement/fines.
  - fzeroracer 3y ago
    Yes? I lived in Texas during the outbreak. It was very much so optional.
  - triceratops 3y ago
    In the lefty commie California Bay Area where everyone "believes in the science", I was never, ever stopped by the lockdown police to ask why I was outside. I don't know why the UK issuing thousands of fines is relevant to this discussion.
    - mike_hearn 3y ago
      Fair enough, then it's not relevant and I shouldn't have brought it up. I think a lot of people in the rest of the world don't realize how much less totalitarian the restrictions were in the US.

shapenamer 3y ago

Always blows my mind when people suggest the only reason someone wouldn't trust the US government is because they've fallen for some misinformation. The US government does a great job of destroying trust all by itself.

refurb 3y ago
It's really odd seeing comments on HN upvoted like: US government overthrew Iran democratic government -> "I know the US is so evil!" US government secretly injecting US citizens with radioactive material -> "My gosh, what's wrong with these people?" US government lies about reasons for Iraq War -> "One of the great crimes of the century" Then someone suggests, that just maybe, the lockdowns weren't based on science and that we should be concerned about the government overstepping and the comments are suddenly -> "Wow, did you forget your tinfoil hat?" or "Why don't you believe in science?" or "Think of the children" It's really weird. The US gets rightfully condemned for wrongdoings, but then suddenly any suggestion that they did it again is met with violent opposition.
- kelipso 3y ago
  They are propagandised to the gills. Their brains will break and they probably won't be able to function anymore if they try to go through all the contradictions.
- larvaetron 3y ago
  > It's really odd seeing comments on HN upvoted like: Not really. The HN user base has been taken over by big-corporation/big-government shills for years now.