Omicron Eh…

by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU E. CHISU, CD, PMSC, FEC, CET, P. Eng. Former Member of Parliament Pickering-Scarborough East As we are approaching the 2021 Year end festivities so important for all Canadians, the specter of the pandemic now called Omicron is upon us. Just when you thought that family party was on, it's off; just as it felt safe to shop at the mall, it doesn't. The Omicron variant has changed the game. In Ontario, test positivity rates are nearing 10 per cent. In Quebec, the government says "it's war" and closes bars, gyms and schools. B.C. has banned New Year's Eve parties. Hockey games are on ice as the virus tears through the NHL. Toronto's Chief of Police tested positive, and expects one third of the force to do so as well. Politicians are not immune: the mayor of Montreal, the mayor of Ottawa, and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly as well as some of the Prime Minister's staff, all report testing positive for COVID-19. It feels depressing as hell. Two years of COVID-19 have upended our lives and beaten us down. And just as there was light at the end of the tunnel (thanks to vaccines, we were told), Omicron arrived, and the Grinch stole Christmas all over again. Surrounded by politicians at all levels dithering in the face of this new threat to their political lives and advised by a medical profession primarily concerned with hospital capacities rather than a cure for patients, we are in a fine pickle. Here we are, waiting for a better New Year, while those in charge are fixated on vaccinations and testing, using statistics to intimidate the public. The situation seems particularly dire in Ontario, where the advisory body on Omicron is running around like the proverbial headless chicken, with the science Advisor Dr. Peter Juni blowing his horn loudly, giving spaced-out advice to ordinary people, seemingly preparing us to get ready for further bleak and dark winter months. Omicron really seems to be ruling our lives with this high priest preaching doomsday. The question is, how much longer will Canadians continue to believe in a "science" that changes every day at the whim of the science table, at times completely contradicting itself. Let's look at an example of this tendency. Canadians were encouraged to have their full vaccination to beat the Covid pandemic with its Greek alphabet mutations; the famous two doses of sometimes cocktail vaccinations. As this did not seem to be enough, a booster shot was recommended to protect us from the pandemic and end it once and for all. Now we are told that was a false assumption. So may one ask where the science is in all this? No answer, just noisier and more boisterous running around. I mentioned in one of my previous articles that rapid tests were available in the provinces in the early stages of the pandemic but rather than being used or distributed to the public, they were stored and ignored. Now there is a hysteria to distribute these tests. They are being handed out in schools and made available at various places, including the LCBO in Ontario. What next? Will Premier Ford also enlist the Marijuana stores? People stand in line for the tests for hours and are not always lucky enough to get them. People looking for booster shots are running around desperately, and most of the time cannot get scheduled. It is a nightmare accentuated by the pompous declarations of politicians telling us that everything is all right. Canada's top doctor, Dr. Theresa Tam, says employers must provide the best masks and ventilation possible. So now vaccinated or not you need the mask of all masks to stay protected?! "You cannot have a single-layered cloth mask," she said. "The medical masks are better at filtering viruses." But even the three-ply surgical type might not be enough, she added, saying N95-type respirators are a better fit for people's faces. Hello China, can we get some?! In Ontario, as well as other provinces, limitations on the number of people allowed to gather have again been introduced, with retailers, restaurants and other small businesses taking the brunt. The question is how many of them will survive this latest onslaught? Once again Premier Ford has said: "We need to meet this variant head on. We need to do everything we can to push it back." In plain words, take the bull by the horns…. How many times has he said that without tangible results? How is it that the virus is still spreading when according to government claims, most Ontarian are vaccinated? Is the vaccine effective or not? Better still, is the vaccine at all useful? Is it really a vaccine? I guess we need to wait and see what the medical spin doctors will come up with next. In the meantime, inflation is raising the cost of living, we have no real information on how the economy is doing, yet according to the politicians everything is under control. God save us! Anyway, it is better to think positive and hope that the pandemic will run its course and peter out by itself. If the budget can balance itself, why can't the pandemic end by itself? With new challenges arising all over the world, including the Ukraine, Taiwan and Afghanistan, and with a highly preached new world order and build back better in the making, let us hope that the new year will bring some sanity to world affairs, and that in Canada, we will again enjoy life as we used to. In conclusion, try to stay safe, don't be scared, enjoy time with your family during the upcoming festivities, and hope that the best is yet to come. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!