The cult of ignorance, part 1

 

“There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.”

― Issac Asimov

Today’s post is political, and it’s about COVID,  so take that as a warning … move in if you don’t want to hear my rant …

I am so tired of ignorance and misinformation.  So very, very tired of it.  Especially from people I consider to be intelligent and educated.  

Some of the things I have heard just truly amaze me.

Let’s start with “a mandate is not a law, and it’s unconstitutional”.  That one has me rolling my eyes.  

Vaccine mandates have been part of American law for a long, long time.  George Washington vaccinated his troops against smallpox, even against their will.  In 1905 the United States Supreme Court, in the landmark case of Jacobson v. Massachusetts, upheld the right of local governments to enforce a vaccine mandates.  During the 1918 influenza pandemic, masks, social distancing and the cancelation of public events were the norm, as there was no vaccine for the flu at that time.  All 50 states have mandatory vaccine requirements for entry into public school; we have all had a vaccine “passport” most of our lives.

Someone actually told me that I couldn’t possibly be an attorney because I insisted that our Governor’s recent mask mandate was enforceable as law.  Do we really do such a poor job of educating our population?  She insisted that if it’s not enacted by the legislature it’s not a “law”.  I had to explain to her that the legislature enacts statutes, that the governor signs Executive Orders, and that public agencies such as the heath department have rules and regulations, all of which are “law” and will be enforced by a court.  

That is, an Executive Order will be enforced if it was within the Governor’s inherent power to make the Order.  Whether a Governor has the power to mandate masks, vaccines, etc. depends on the powers vested in that office by the state Constitution and the statutes enacted by the State legislature.  If the Governor overreaches her authority, it’s up to the legislature or the courts to curb her power.  Same goes for rules and regulations promulgated by a public agency.  

That our Governor has delegated enforcement of her mask mandate to the county governments, and that our incoming County Executive has chosen not to enforce the mask mandate, is an entirely different issue that whether the mandate is lawful.

NYC and Long Island are once again COVID central, and our idiot incoming County Executive has decided not to enforce the Governor’s mask mandate.   Our actions now should be ruled by science, not politics, and yet … here we are.  A power struggle instead of public policy.

So frustrating.