Open (More or Less) Post on Covid 4

[ecosophia]

The semi-open posts  I've hosted here on the Covid-19 narrative, the inadequately tested experimental drugs for it, and the whole cascading mess surrounding them have continued to field a huge number of comments, so I'm opening another space for discussion. The rules are the same as before: 

1. If you plan on parroting the party line of the medical industry and its paid shills, please go away. This is a place for people to talk openly, honestly, and freely about their concerns that the party line in question is dangerously flawed and that actions being pushed by the medical industry et al. are causing injury and death. It is not a place for you to dismiss those concerns. Anyone who wants to hear the official story and the arguments in favor of it can find those on hundreds of thousands of websites.

2. If you plan on insisting that the current situation is the result of a deliberate plot by some villainous group of people or other, please go away. There are tens of thousands of websites currently rehashing various conspiracy theories about the Covid-19 outbreak and the vaccines. This is not one of them. What we're exploring is the likelihood that what's going on is the product of the same arrogance, incompetence, and corruption that the medical industry and its tame politicians have displayed so abundantly in recent decades. That possibility deserves a space of its own for discussion, and that's what we're doing here. 

3. If you don't believe in treating people with common courtesy, please go away. I have, and enforce, a strict courtesy policy on my blogs and online forums, and this is no exception. The sort of schoolyard bullying that takes place on so many other internet forums will get you deleted and banned here. No, I don't care if you disagree with that: my journal, my rules. 

With that said, the floor is open for discussion. 

Comments

Re: Resisting Mask and Other Mandates

[(Anonymous)]

I know the first rule of speakeasy is: don't talk about speakeasy! But that said, living in a vibrant blue land, I know there are people around me in every day life that would probably appreciate a speakeasy, but don't know that each other exists. As generally as possible, would you be willing to talk about how you got this rolling? If not, I completely understand.

Re: Resisting Mask and Other Mandates

[kimberlysteele]

Thanks for asking! I started the group *just* as I was making plans to ditch Facebook forever. I actually hate Facebook. I based the concept on the Speakeasy era of Prohibition and an essay I wrote tying in that theme around my birthday in 2020:

https://kimberlysteele.dreamwidth.org/7308.html

The point of the group is not to tear anyone or anything down. Instead, I formed it around the promotion of "patriotic" (code word for mask-free and medical coercion-free) businesses and establishments. I run such an establishment, a music lesson studio to be specific, and I almost folded because of the loss of students during the pandemic and its many aftermaths. The group exists to promote businesses like mine... Do unto others.

During the height of Illinois's restaurant shutdowns, my group members and I met in restaurants in secret, or posted selfies of our maskless gatherings. Basically it was and is an affirmational group that life goes on. The Old Normal is alive and well. I believe the original mask mandate fell apart not because of the availability of vaccines but because the retailers figured out groups like mine were boycotting their stores en masse in favor of the little guy. These people hate more than anything to lose money, so suddenly one could take the mask off if they pretended to have been vaccinated. There was also the problem of groups like mine empowering parents to ratio wokesters in school districts. Now that the governor is trying his mask mandate again with threats to lock the whole state down this month, we're once again gathering and taking selfies in stores, reporting on which places are cool and others where we are harassed (boycott). The powers that be are afraid of my group. We're mostly women between the ages of 30 - 70. Many of us are mothers and grandmothers -- not me of course, unless you count cats. There are lots of Mama Bears. You don't piss off Mama Bear.

Nevertheless, the rules of the group are very strict. No politics, no vaccine talk unless it is about getting exemptions or trying to get out of taking them, no controversy. I have other groups for that. The group is mostly about promoting patriotic establishments. With that narrow focus, it has grown from 2 members to 4000 from its birth in February 2021.

Please feel free to "steal" the Speakeasy concept for yourself. Please encourage others to do the same. You needn't mention or credit me. Start a social media group and gather people who want to go around the mandates. Modify it to your needs. Bravery begets bravery. I get messages all the time thanking me for inspiring people to stand up in a small way. Tyranny does not stand a chance if you quietly help large numbers of people to go around it in little ways. Our group has mirrors on MeWe, Gab, and Telegram. I'd be honored if someone created a Speakeasy Auckland or a Speakeasy Toronto and it started making waves.

Re: Resisting Mask and Other Mandates

[hearthspirit]

I count cats.

Re: Resisting Mask and Other Mandates

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you for this! And for being willing to break the first rule of speakeasy :)

And thanks for the link to your posting. I'm going to have to meditate on all of this and see if I am up for getting something similar going in my part of the world. Regardless, I'm grateful to know you and your efforts exist. It's very inspirational.