As the forever war fades, the war to live forever—to live wrapped in the linens of the dead—enters the forefront. That this is no way to live is beside the point, because too many of our fellow citizens elect to dress a certain way; they elect politicians who want everyone to dress the same way: masked and separated, and segregated too, so as to distinguish the smart from the selfish, the healthy from the hateful, the believers from the deniers.
That this is how we live now, assigning blame with no cause save opposition to a cause, sacrificing liberty on behalf of science. This is why the price of immortality is eternal submission. We cannot go on living this way, in a purgatory of our own making, just because someone, somewhere, may contract or spread COVID-19.
That people choose to live this way is not proof that a majority of people support this lifestyle. As a lifestyle, few people choose to look penitent while advertising their pain; few choose to trade comfort for the coveralls of a clean room, so they may recite from the catechism of a false religion, “Trust the science.” But enough people believe in the inerrancy of faith, enough people share the same faith, that they do not see the irony of praising a belief system that takes nothing on faith. What the faithful call science is a cult by any other name.
What other faith accepts testimony to Congress as testimony of the spirit of prophecy? What other faith treats the testimony of a man in himself as testimony of a miracle? What other faith tasks a man with investigating himself, proclaiming his testimony true and holy?
About these questions, let there be no question that all other faiths have no faith in Dr. Anthony Fauci. About Dr. Fauci’s ability to tell the truth, we should question the truth of his statement about time. We should question whether he can even tell time, as we pass the 500th day of his 15-day plan to slow the spread of COVID-19.
We should also question whether he is true to the oath of his profession, whether he knows he has a duty to say, “I know not,” since he acts like a know-it-all. We should question why this man retains the power to act, when the secretary of Health and Human Services has the power to fire Fauci.
If the secretary fails to fire Fauci for want of cause, if the secretary wants to find cause to fire Fauci, he should review the seventh leading cause of death in this country. He should look at how many Americans (342) per day die from COVID-19. And while correlation does not imply causation, it is hard not to infer that Fauci bears some degree of responsibility for this catastrophe.
That he refuses to take responsibility for the consequences of his actions, that he refuses to retract his testimony in response to questions about his actions, testifying in such a way that the transcript is as unintelligible as a doctor’s handwriting, is testimony of his refusal to relinquish power.
As his reasons shift and his recommendations change, expect Fauci to issue new suggestions. Expect him to suggest, or expect that his allies will suggest, that the least vulnerable to COVID-19 are the most favorable candidates for vaccination from COVID-19. When he comes to save our children, there will be no one left to speak for him.