| From
the Church on the Hill
by D. Eric Williams Pastor, Cottonwood Community Church pastor@cottonwoodcommunitychurch.org I concluded last week’s article with a comparison between all cause deaths in 2019 and 2020 during the ninth to the thirty-first weeks of the year (first week of March to the first week of August). Before I move on to the main idea of this week’s column, I want to provide additional context for those numbers. (The CDC has published mortality data through the thirty-second week of 2020 as reflected in the following list.) Idaho data, weeks 9 to 32: year 2014, 5694 all cause deaths. Year 2015, 5897 all cause deaths (203 INCREASE OVER PREVIOUS YEAR). Year 2016, 6184 all cause deaths (287 INCREASE OVER PREVIOUS YEAR). Year 2017, 6265 all cause deaths (81 INCREASE OVER PREVIOUS YEAR). Year 2018, 6489 all cause deaths (224 INCREASE OVER PREVIOUS YEAR). Year 2019, 6596 all cause deaths (107 INCREASE OVER PREVIOUS YEAR). Year 2020, 6794 all cause deaths (198 INCREASE OVER PREVIOUS YEAR). As you can see, the 2020 data is typical. The yearly increase in all cause deaths reflects the natural process of a rapidly growing population; the 2020 mortality rate in Idaho is well within the statistical norm. If Idaho had truly experienced an extreme emergency brought on by a deadly virus the numbers would be dramatically different. One of the reasons this is a concern to the Christian is because the governor’s foolishness has placed the vulnerable population of Idaho at risk. The elderly and those with underlying health concerns have suffered disproportionately during the “pandemic.” We must be aware that a disregard for the weak and vulnerable is contrary to the mind of God. Throughout Scripture, we find that God has a special concern for the widow, the orphan, the dispossessed, the sick, the weak and the needy. God commands his people to have the same concern. Hence, the Bible teaches that the strong must look after the weak. Governor Little’s actions have made this difficult if not impossible. The state of Idaho does not publicize the number of COVID-19 deaths that have taken place in long-term care facilities but The Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity reports that over 60% of the COVID-19 deaths in Idaho have been in nursing homes. This could have been avoided if governor Little had used common sense guided by actual science rather than succumb to the lust for power. As Jeffrey Tucker wrote in AIER online (08/22/20), The whole point of how a free society deals with a pandemic is to share the burden of gaining immunity among the population that is least vulnerable in order that the virus can burn itself out through herd immunity, exactly as we have always done. Once this process plays out, older and vulnerable populations can live their lives in safety from the virus, the sooner the better. This is why schools should never have closed, why beaches should have stayed open, and why bars, dance clubs, and professional meetings should have gone ahead. Calm and normal social functioning were necessary to deal a swift blow to the virus so that the vulnerable populations would not be forced to shelter in place for many months, much less a full year. Cancelling schools and events only prolongs the pain and increases the risk that the vulnerable populations are exposed through errors in judgment, or otherwise die of loneliness and sadness due to restrictions on visitors and being cooped up indoors for months and months. This is extremely cruel. Governor Little ignored accepted medical and scientific principles from the beginning of this “pandemic” and continues to do so. He has followed a science denying path expedient to enhancing his personal political power at the expense of Idaho citizens. Therefore, Christians must take a stand against the tyranny of governor Little’s emergency declaration and the implementation of “Stage 4 Stay Healthy Guidelines.” For, Little has given tacit approval to the enforcement of his unconstitutional and harmful directives by local governments and health departments, including fines and imprisonment for noncompliance. As a result, those “lesser magistrates” who traditionally protect their constituency from Sate oppression have become agents of the State; we cannot count on our local government to stand up for us. The fear generated and perpetuated by governor Little’s faux state of extreme emergency has hamstrung efforts to properly protect the vulnerable. It has slowed the natural process of “herd immunity” and placed the sick and elderly in perpetual anxiety as they waste away in loneness and despair. It is high time for Bible believing Christians to say enough is enough. |
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