Emory University’s student body is 75.9% fully vaccinated. Most other universities boast similar figures. Scientific estimates claim that a vaccination rate between 70% and 80% is sufficient for schools to make a safe return to normal. But instead, universities everywhere that fall well within those guidelines insist on maintaining some degree of pandemic-era social control.
The question arises: If not now, when will things return to normal for colleges and universities?
More broadly speaking, what will happen to the public at large in Democratic states that have religiously adhered to strict COVID guidelines, already to the point of stretching common sense, and even into the vaccination period? Given what we have seen from Democrats over the course of the pandemic, mere science might not be enough to end the restrictions. Even as liberals brand themselves the vanguard of science-based policymaking, they do not hesitate to disregard scientific evidence when confronted with the prospect of returning to normality.
We need not speculate about this: Los Angeles County, where 62% of those over 16 have been vaccinated completely, just reimposed its indoor mask mandate. With a vaccination rate so high, this is not supported by science. In fact, it seems to be instead motivated by the proclivity of Democratic politicians to cater to mask-scolds and to the paranoia of their own political base.
At least the county sheriff appears to agree that the reintroduced mandate is idiotic — he refuses to enforce it.
In the case of well-vaccinated universities, the restrictions are even more senseless. Students aren’t even particularly susceptible to COVID-19 in the first place. Undergraduates are, on average, much younger, healthier, and more affluent than the general population, all factors that mitigate the risk of complications. A highly vaccinated and comparatively low-risk population should be ideal for a full reopening, yet academic institutions hesitate.
One cannot fix this, either, by simply blurting out, “Better safe than sorry.” There are big risks and bigger opportunity costs that come with excessive caution. The small business owners whose livelihoods were snuffed out or taken to the brink by heavy-handed government lockdowns can attest to this. So can students from pre-school to grad school, who have endured mental duress and educational deterioration as a result of the shift to virtual instruction.
For whatever reason, some liberal policymakers will not relinquish the social control they were able to derive from the pandemic. Even as the danger of COVID-19 recedes, the politicians who would keep damaging restrictions in place “just because” remain as dangerous as ever.
