As I set out in my book A State of Fear: How the UK government weaponised fear during the Covid-19 pandemic masks are a nudge, even described as a ‘signal’ by David Halpern, the director of the UK government’s Behavioural Insights Team. Similarly, Professor Neil Ferguson said that masks remind us ‘we’re not completely out of the woods yet’. They serve as a visible public reminder of the pandemic, turning us back into walking billboards pronouncing danger. My source concurred: ‘Masks are a behavioural psychology policy. We need to stop pretending that it’s about public health. Nudge is a big thing in government.’
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Samizdata quote of the daySamizdata Illuminatus (Arkham, Massachusetts) · Health & medical · Slogans & Quotations · Totalitarianism · UK affairs February 15th, 2022 |
 11 comments to Samizdata quote of the day |
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Prof Pantsdown : ‘we’re not completely out of the woods yet’
Thus proving in one short sentence why he top of my list of Useful Idiots. Always cowering in a corner in fear of everything that could possibly happen, regardless of how unlikely it really is.
Never being completely out of the woods is one of the hidden mysteries of being human and mortal. Always liable to any one of the hundreds of “normal” diseases and illnesses. Including “normal” seasonal flu, which itself includes the long tail of previous (and quickly forgotten) flu epidemics that were just as deadly as the current “pandemic”.
Prof Pantsdown is clueless about living a normal life, with all its risks, handled in a proportional manner.
I may yet cross a road without using a pedestrian crossing. I may even ride my bicycle fast downhill while other cars are on the road. I might even drink a bottle of wine each day. Cheers!
Masks are a symbol, all right. Rather like a dog collar. I hear the gov is quietly stockpiling leashes.
Carrying guns reminds us “we’re not completely out of the woods yet.” They serve as a visible public reminder of government tyranny, turning us back into walking billboards pronouncing danger.
Anyone can nudge.
Many Western governments now have these Behaviour Modification teams or “Nudge Units”.
In theory they serve democratically elected politicians – although no honest leader would want such corrupting service. But in practice they serve an international “educated” agenda – and politicians, of all parties, are sucked into that agenda. Via endless “training”, conferences, and so on.
“But Paul – an elected leader does not have to go along with the international establishment”.
True – but there is a price for not going along with the international agenda. Ask President Trump.
By the way the word “libertarian” is sometimes used for the founder of some of this “Nudge” stuff (he is not the real founder as it goes back at least to the time of President Woodrow Wilson – yes the academic agenda was much the same a century ago), Cass Sunstein.
I was sickened when I first heard the word “libertarian” being applied to Cass “Nudge” Sunstein. The idea being that if you can trick and indoctrinate (“nudge”) people into doing what you want – you do not “have to” shoot them (as if those were the only two alternatives – tricking people, or ordering them about at gun point). So Cass Sunstein was a good “libertarian” – because he wanted to trick and manipulate people – rather than just openly order them about at the point of a gun.
I am still sickened by all this – everyone should be.
People such as Prof. Ferguson deserve to fry in one of Dante’s more intense circles of Hell.
In reality, the fellow will be pensioned off and walk into the sunset with whichever woman will take him. He will not be remorseful, nor will the institution he worked in suffer adversely, apart from maybe having its coat of arms changed because it offends someone.
Look, citizens always cry out for their governments to do something. The way to maintain, or even win more, votes is for the government to be seen to be doing something, like telling people to wear masks. I think of this as The Expanding Mandate problem of democracies.
When I go out and particularly when I go to the shops, I tend to do a rough count up of how many mask wearers there are. I see them as a kind of opinion poll on how much danger people think that they are in. The numbers do seem to be falling gradually. A slightly seperate issue is the observations of people alone in cars or walking alone down the street with masks on. These people are surely beyond help.
Likewise, the wifey & I call it our daily “cunt count”.
It does not stop – it just does not stop.
Now many governments in the Western world are pushing dangerous injections on children – healthy children who are at no risk for Covid, but are at risk from the injections.
The last words of Charlton Heston’s character in “Planet of the Apes” spring to mind.
Just a little “nudge” , like swastika armbands!