[Capt Spaulding]

Ultra requested a solution. OK. What do we actually know? All things considered we seem to know; 1) Vaccines reduce the likelihood of infection by a substantial amount, 2) Vaccination reduces morbidity associated with a break through infection by a substantial amount, 3) Vaccination reduces the likelihood of hospitalization by an even greater amount and 4) Vaccination reduces the likelihood of death by an even GREATER amount. Finally, 5) we know masks are effective at slowing down the rate of transmission.

No one has mentioned the virus "reproduction number" in a very long time. This is the number of other people each infected person spreads a virus to. The goal is (should be) to reduce that number to lower (preferably much lower) than 1. If we do that, a pandemic will eventually collapse of it's own weight. What can do that? Vaccinations and masks.

I submit the above as "fact." If we can agree on those facts, the question is how to get all people to vaccinate and then get the vaccinated to mask up where needed in order to keep R-naught as far below 1 as possible.

The Governor of Idaho has refused to issue any mandates, citing his insistence the people make the responsible personal choice to "get vaccinated and do the right thing." Covid cases from Idaho have overwhelmed a number of their hospitals and are now piling in hospitals in Spokane WA among other places. Last year the Governor of Utah refused to issue a mask mandate citing the "persona responsibility" trope. Sometime later he concluded that the people of Utah are to inherently irresponsible to make decisions on their own and issued a mask mandate.

So now we have come full circle and seem only a little closer to solving the problem. I submit that human beings are so messed up as a species that we collectively are incapable of exercising personal responsibility and will not do the "right thing" absent some coercion.

There is a long extensive literature on what social scientists refer to as "The Collective Action" problem. The gist of it is that absent some form of coercion most humans will not contribute to the creation and/or maintenance of a "public good." They won't pony up money for highways, schools, law enforcement, clean air, clean water ... the list is almost endless. Applying the coercion to get these things done is one of biggest things governments do.

So, Covid is one of our most important public concerns at the moment. Coercion is necessary to everyone get on board. So - let's coerce. I don't like the idea, but some people are really fucked up and they are fucking it up for everyone else. So we will have to force them. Vaccine mandates. If you cannot be vaccinated for health reasons you are exempted, but you must quarantine until there are NO new cases for one year.

If you have religious objections - sorry. No exemptions for you. Unless you, too, are willing to quarantine until there are no new cases for a year. Go live in a unvaxed unmasked convent.

And second, mask mandates. If R-naught is greater than .75 in any community a mask mandate for all public places should be imposed until that number can be brought to below .5.

And, finally - ration care for the unvaxed.