It's time for America to remove its chains and realize that there's nothing ''normal'' about the so-called ''new normal'' of extreme lockdowns and mask mandates — especially now that three variants of the Trump vaccine are being distributed at record rates.
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., drove this point home Thursday during a testy exchange with Dr. Anthony Fauci.
''There is no evidence that there is significant reinfections after the vaccine,'' Paul said. ''In fact, I don't think we have a hospitalization in the United States after the two-week period after the second vaccination.''
He then mocked Fauci for ''[parading] around in two masks for show'' after he'd been fully vaccinated. He said that this behavior gives the wrong message to Americans.
"You want to get rid of vaccine hesitancy?" Paul asked. "Tell people to quit wearing their masks after they get the vaccine. You want people to get the vaccine? Give them a reward instead of telling them that the nanny state is going to be there for three more years and you have to wear a mask forever."
States continue to order mask mandates whether people are vaccinated or not. Oregon is even considering making it permanent.
The state's current order, mandating social distancing and the wearing of masks, will expire on May 4. Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officials are drafting a replacement.
''Although the rule must be adopted as a permanent rule, its purpose is to address the COVID-19 pandemic,'' the proposal reads. ''Oregon OSHA intends to repeal the rule when it is no longer necessary to address the pandemic.''
The same goes for the freedom of Americans to support themselves — to earn a living.
State and local governments have decided on their own which businesses are essential and which are not, without regard for the fact that all business is essential. They all provide a livelihood for their owners and employees.
Former Attorney General William Barr called such orders the "greatest intrusion on civil liberties" since slavery.
"You know, putting a national lockdown, stay-at-home orders, is like house arrest. Other than slavery, which was a different kind of restraint, this is the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history," he said.
Carol Roth, a Chicago-based TV host and champion of free market capitalism, observed that government always gives small business the short end of the stick.
''First the govt told small business owners, 'you didn't build that'; then they forced them to shutter without due compensation," she said. ''Govt is crushing the backbone of America because small businesses are too small to matter and too hard to control. Decentralization threatens big govt.''
As for education, medical experts have repeatedly urged school districts to open their doors to in-person learning.
Drs. Tara O. Henderson, Monica Gandhi, Tracy Beth Hoeg and Daniel Johnson wrote an opinion piece in USA Today saying that keeping schools closed or even partially reopened is ''unwarranted, harming children, and has become a human rights issue.''
It's now apparent that it's less about safety than it is control.
American psychologist G.M. Gilbert interviewed Hermann Göering, the highest-ranked Nazi official tried at Nuremberg. Goering reportedly told Gilbert that the masses can always be controlled with the right messaging.
''The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders,'' Goering supposedly said, according to Gilbert's ''Nuremberg Diary.''
''That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to greater danger. It works the same way in any country.''
In the same manner, Americans are told that it's necessary and even ''patriotic'' to sit in your car alone while wearing a mask, avoiding human contact, closing businesses until they go bankrupt, and shuttering schools.
In the early stages of the pandemic, all these precautions appeared necessary, because we were dealing with the unknown. Now that we have a better understanding, it's time to make America free again.
Local ''essential'' businesses like grocers, pharmacies, and even liquor stores that have remained open without problem, offer proof that all businesses can reopen.
Private and parochial schools that conduct full-time, in-person education with no significant outbreak are proof that public schools can do the same.
And states like Florida and South Dakota that have survived just fine without mask mandates are proof that Americans are capable of making their own decisions based upon their own particular circumstances.
During a 2012 campaign event, then-Vice President Biden said of his Republican rivals, ''They're gonna put y'all back in chains.''
He was wrong. He and his fellow Democrats are the ones keeping us in chains, and they're not ready to give up that power.
If the government can restrict our rights to address a crisis, it will always find a crisis to restrict our rights.
Michael Dorstewitz is a retired lawyer and has been a frequent contributor to BizPac Review and Liberty Unyielding. He is also a former U.S. Merchant Marine officer and an enthusiastic Second Amendment supporter, who can often be found honing his skills at the range. Read Dorstewitz's Reports — More Here.