WEYBURN – The timing for reducing the restrictions around COVID-19 will be determined by the conditions that exist in communities, and not because there are protests ongoing.
The protests, much like the issues surrounding COVID, have divided people even more, as there are those who support what the protesters stand for, and there are those who are sick of the horn-blowing and long lines of trucks on the highways and at the Legislature and Parliament Hill.
Truthfully, most everyone is sick and tired of COVID after two years of fighting this virus, and the restrictions are simply annoying and downright maddening at times. Most people put up with them because it’s what law-abiding people are supposed to do.
The protests encapsulate the frustration and anger at the requirements to show proof of vaccination to go into most places or do many activities, most of which have nothing whatever to do with the spread of COVID.
The requirement to wear masks is also an annoyance, but at some point the restrictions will ease, as Premier Scott Moe and Dr. Shahab announced on Tuesday.
So did the protesters have a point to make, if the restrictions are going be eased off?
Truck drivers do, insofar as they are absolutely crucial and needed to the movement of goods to and from markets and suppliers.
We saw during the strict lockdowns in 2020 just how important their services were (remember toilet paper shortages?), and the officials imposing the lockdown restrictions clearly over-reached and over-reacted.
It was so bad and so ridiculous that, while truckers had to keep moving and delivering, the lockdowns meant there was no where for them to get food or even go to the bathroom – clearly these restrictions were not planned very well. Those lockdowns didn’t last, thankfully, but the vaccine protocols were almost just as bad, stopping people from doing their jobs or delivering crucial goods, even though a vaccination has nothing whatever to do with their jobs.
So the news that proof of vaccinations will end on Feb. 14, at least here in Saskatchewan, is a good thing. It’s backed up by the fact the vast majority of people have their vaccines (and they were never going to reach 100 per cent of all people).
There are protections in place now, so as some people have stated all through this pandemic, we can now move towards living with the virus. Those who oppose what the premier is doing may likely claim that the protesters were the ones forcing the issue, but that just isn’t the case.
It’s because the time is right, the circumstances are such that we can move forward with our lives without fear, without the concerns for our safety, and enjoy life once more, the way we want, and need.
