Egalitarian Accommodation

it's how all the pandemic policies may be described

Thanks to the Volokh Conspiracy, I just learned about an 8th Circuit decision, upholding mask mandates in schools as a “reasonable accommodation” when children at risk for severe COVID-19 are present. A couple initial thoughts:

1. This is one more reason why government schools are a bad idea.

2. “reasonable accommodation”? Really? It’s a reasonable accommodation to require something that will psychologically damage, maybe even physically damage, all the other kids? This is a very slippery slope.

But further, as the Covidian agenda continues to be elaborated and revealed, we can see that it’s a nearly perfect application of John Rawls’ version of egalitarianism. Rawls’ difference principle, you may recall, held that the better off should continue to sacrifice until the point that the least well off can no longer be made better off by means of further sacrifices. And note that sacrifice in the form of money is not enough to please the Covidians: the sacrifices that are being demanded are sacrifices directly impacting the health and wellbeing of those least vulnerable to severe COVID-19. Just witness the top athletes who have suffered heart damage or died from the vaccines, those otherwise healthy individuals who have committed suicide due to alienation resulting from the combination of lockdowns and mask mandates.

And that raises a couple questions:

First, at what point will the Covidians in charge decide that the least well off in terms of health—the “vulnerable”—can no longer be made better off by means of further sacrifice by the healthy? You’ll want to figure this out, so you can adjust your expectations as to what might be demanded of you in the weeks, months, maybe even years to come.

Second, how many more sacrifices are you willing, personally, to make?

(And of course you might as well start thinking about what you’re willing or planning to do, so that you make no more sacrifices than you wish to.)