What I find really perplexing and quite sad are the number of people who have bought into the hype and are enthusiastically endorsing the tough measures around border closures, self isolation, major events etc. In fact many of these people are berating the government for not doing more, not making tougher conditions, not closing schools not imposing mandatory isolation for everybody. I never thought I would see a time when people are demanding that their freedoms be taken away by the government and attacking anybody who tries to suggest this is not what it seems. I mean, come on. In NZ we have 11 cases and zero deaths but from the reaction of many people, you would think we were experiencing the same situation as Italy.
The retirement village operators have jumped on the bandwagon and in many villages they have security guards on the gates, no outside visitors are allowed (many families sent home when come to visit their parents or grandparents), no social events in the village, gyms closed, bowls games cancelled and all residents advised to stay in their villas and not to leave the premises. Even three months ago if they tried this there would have been a riot. Now, people accept and embrace it to be safe.
And of course there is the shaming routine. Look you might be young or you might be healthy but you may well be carrying the virus and if you don't buckle down and do what the Health Department says, you will probably be carrying the diseae and spreading it and will be responsible for killing the elderly, so don't be selfish, after all, we are all in this together. Quite staggering and mind numbing.