Civil Disobedience in New York and Mississippi
Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York was asked whether he should have started forced quarantines earlier while on MSNBC’s Morning Joe entertainment show this morning (Good Friday 2020 AD).
He said that all of the projections were wrong and also pointed out that many Americans think that they are free.
“What that leaves out is, ‘would people have followed the policy?’
[…]
‘Do you do closedown and would people have listened to the closedown?’ And that’s the question. I can say everything’s closed down. And people say, ‘that’s nice. You’re being over dramatic. You’re political. I don’t believe it. I don’t think it’s necessary. I’m not going to comply with it.’
[…]
We’re not dictators. You need the body politic to believe you’re correct.”
Moments later his live feed cut out.
The quarantine is not working.
Are you going to church on Easter Sunday? Are you not gathering together for fear of the police, like the first Easter?
Or is it because you were free to choose and you listened to a doctor or medical professional’s advice and researched for yourself?
The difference matters.
Tate Reeves, the governor of Mississippi, has reinforced the effectiveness of civil disobedience by reaffirming his support for the freedom of assembly.
He said,
“If you send police after worshippers trying to social distance, you are going to have Mississippians revolt. I’ve asked all pastors not to hold these services—but we ordered churches safe from these outrageous actions. Don’t trample the constitution. Please use sense, everybody.”[1]
Of course, it was in response to the cops of Greenville, MS fining some parishioners $500 for assembling.[2]
Doing your own research and consulting doctors will ultimately be more effective in living with the Coronavirus than any forced quarantine that the government takes.
People need to be free to decide that it is a good idea or they will simply disobey.
[1]https://mobile.twitter.com/tatereeves/status/1248608870131351552