This post Tyranny appeared first on Daily Reckoning.

I'd like to stop writing about COVID, but I can't because it has such strong economic implications, which can't be separated. And I'm afraid policies will be enacted that will only make things worse.

We all know the Delta variant of the COVID virus (SARS-CoV-2) is spreading rapidly in the U.S. and Australia. Major outbreaks have also hit India and Brazil.

What has received less attention is the fact that the Delta variant is now also spreading in China. That's ironic because the virus started in China at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

While the virus spread around the world, China quickly eliminated the spread inside China itself. Now, the virus has come full circle and is back in China in a new, more virulent form.

There's a huge difference in how China approaches the virus from a public health perspective compared to the U.S., Japan or Europe. China's lockdowns are far more extreme.

Why China Enforces Extreme Lockdowns

China will quickly identify an outbreak and cut off all car, train and air services to the affected area. China will also quickly shut down major ports and distribution centers if even a single case appears.

China knows that the spread of the virus is a threat to the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party. China cares more about Party loyalty and Party survival than it does about economic growth.

China is now imposing extreme measures, including canceling many domestic flights, closing ports and restricting vacation travel. China's economy was already slowing before this new wave of the virus. Given China's more extreme forms of COVID control, their economy will slow even further.

That's bad news for China ? and bad news for the world. Global growth will slow noticeably in the months ahead, partly because of the extreme nature of China's lockdown approach.

That's a prime example of how the virus and the economy are closely linked.

But how much do we really know about COVID? Can you really trust what the health authorities are telling you?

Science vs. Anti-Science

The essence of science is debate. One scientist will propose a hypothesis, which is then tested with experimentation. If the data from the experiment tends to confirm the hypothesis, it gains acceptance in a wider professional audience.

If the data tends to refute the hypothesis, it can be abandoned in favor of another new hypothesis. If the data are unclear, the experiments can continue. At the same time, other professionals can question the hypothesis or propose their own.

Different experts may question the experiments or challenge the interpretation of experimental data.

All of these ideas and results are published in peer-reviewed academic journals. The debate goes on until some consensus is reached. But even then, the consensus may last only until some even better view comes along. And, so it goes.

Anyone who says that the science on a particular topic is ?settled? knows nothing about science because true science is never settled. It evolves. Just ask Newton, Einstein and Niels Bohr. They were three of the giants of science, yet each one revolutionized the work of their predecessors.

Unfortunately, none of the rules of real science seem to apply anymore. The ?science? surrounding the COVID pandemic has been politicized, distorted, squashed and lied about to the point that citizens don't trust their public officials ? nor should they.

Censorship

One of the reasons the per capita rate of infection and fatality in Sub-Saharan Africa has been so much lower than was expected at the start of the pandemic is because Africans routinely take hydroxychloroquine to prevent malaria.

Hydroxychloroquine is cheap and safe and seems to have excellent prophylactic properties against the COVID virus. Likewise, the drug Ivermectin, which is also cheap and safe, has had fantastic results in helping to mitigate a severe outbreak of the Delta variant of the virus in India.

In India, Ivermectin may have stopped COVID dead in its tracks. 61 studies incorporating about 23,000 people revealed as much as a 96% reduction in death by taking Ivermectin.

Why have you not heard more about the role of hydroxychloroquine in Africa? Why have you not heard more about the role of Ivermectin in India? Why are both drugs not being more widely utilized to fight COVID?

The answer is that Big Tech and Big Media have banned any discussion. If you type the word hydroxychloroquine on Twitter, your tweet will be shadow-banned, or your account will be shut down. If you post something about Ivermectin on Facebook, you'll be slapped with a ?misinformation? warning label or worse.

The main TV networks ? ABC, NBC and CBS (and the leading newspapers) ? won't report on these drugs and others. The news is being censored with a view to forcing vaccination with the experimental gene modification treatments from Moderna and Pfizer.

I don't want to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but you have to ask yourself why positive news about cheap, effective therapeutics is being suppressed.

It never hurts to follow the money. It's all about billions of dollars for Big Pharma and creating a nation that lives in fear.

Who Cares What the Science Says?

Unfortunately, the pandemic will go on because the vaccines don't work well and wear off quickly. And, that means economic growth will continue to face headwinds. The pandemic could be mitigated with some cheap generic drugs. But it won't be because of censorship and simple greed.

But that's not stopping bureaucrats and politicians from demanding universal vaccination.

The COVID-19 vaccine mandate train keeps rolling down the tracks. The Biden administration said several months ago that there would be no national vaccine mandate. In the narrow technical sense, no federal mandate applicable to all citizens has been issued.

But, the spirit of Biden's promise is now in shreds.

Instead of a single nationwide mandate, Biden has issued a large number of separate mandates to specific groups and encouraged private businesses and institutions to do likewise. The result has been practically the same as a national vaccine requirement.

The vaccine is now required for all federal officials and all government contractors. It is required for all military forces. It is required at most major universities for students returning to class. Major businesses such as Walmart, Amazon, Facebook and others require the vaccine for some or all of their employees.

Similar vaccine requirements have been imposed at the state and municipal level and by school districts, teachers' unions and non-government organizations. Still, there are pockets of the population where the mandates don't apply, and some individuals have been able to maintain their freedom of action.

Get Vaxxed or Live Like a Leper

Those pockets are the next targets of the vaccine pushers. Since some cannot be forced to take the vaccine, the latest tactic is to make their lives as miserable as possible until they agree to do so voluntarily. These tactics include being banned from indoor dining, concerts, sporting events, plays, movies and other social activities.

A new reign of terror being imposed on those who refuse to go along with the vaccine orthodoxy. Among the most chilling recommendations are requirements ?mandating vaccines for interstate travel? and reducing Medicare payments to the unvaccinated who get COVID.

There are many legitimate reasons not to take the vaccine, including those who have already had COVID (about 35 million people with stronger antibodies than the vaccine itself produces), religious reasons, and serious doubts about side-effects and permanent changes to individual DNA genomes because of the vaccine.

None of that matters to the bureaucrats. The vaccine is being imposed whether you like it or not. Those who don't get vaxxed will be forced into the basement of a two-tiered society and be denied access to public spaces and social interaction.

Your choice is to get vaxxed or be treated like a leper.

Regards,

Jim Rickards
for The Daily Reckoning

The post Tyranny appeared first on Daily Reckoning.