Start With the Ministry of Truth

Or whatever the government is calling its departments these days:

The Liberal government says they are ‘considering’ legislation to silence what they call ‘Coronavirus misinformation.’

Of course, it’s nothing more than an attempt to silence their legitimate critics, many of whom (including yours truly) who were right early on while the government was wrong. ...

Weeks and weeks after arguing against border closures, the government then reversed themselves, with Trudeau saying border closures “would save lives.”

Theresa Tam repeatedly changed her advice, arguing against masks, then for masks – coincidentally at the exact moment the WHO also reversed themselves.

In short, as you’ve seen and heard throughout, the ‘Coronavirus misinformation’ has come from the Liberal federal government.

So, if they want to fight that disinformation, they can start by applying legal punishment against themselves, arrest themselves, and refrain from spreading lies any further.

Indeed:

“While we are aware of incidents under investigation, we have no reports of any confirmed cases of this new coronavirus in Canada,” Dr. Theresa Tam said during a technical briefing with reporters. “The risk of an outbreak in Canada remains low.”

(article dated January 23rd, 2020)

**

That possibility loomed larger after the country’s chief public health officer stopped describing the situation as low-risk.

“Our window to flatten the curve of the epidemic is narrow,” Dr. Theresa Tam said at a news conference. “We all need to act now. COVID-19 is a serious public health threat.”

(article dated March 16th, 2020)


From late January to the middle of March, other countries had started screening passengers or restricting flights. Canada was still allowing planes from China to land at major airports. Screening of these passengers consisted of automated kiosks and nothing more.

**

Canadian Health Minister Patty Hadju says the federal government has no reason to believe the Chinese government is hiding the full extent of novel coronavirus infections and deaths in that country.

She also accused a journalist who asked her about the matter of fuelling conspiracy theories.

By this time, funeral homes in Wuhan alone issued anywhere from two thousand to three thousand urns. This disputes the claim that the total death toll in China was 3,292.

Then there is the matter of the WHO:

A Parliamentary health committee on Wednesday repeated calls for the World Health Organization to explain its handling of the pandemic, amid mounting criticism that the United Nations’ agency relayed faulty Chinese data about the coronavirus that causes the COVID-19 disease.

The federal Standing Committee on Health passed a motion, put forward by Conservative MP Matt Jeneroux, that invites senior WHO official Bruce Aylward to appear before the committee by the end of month. Aylward “abruptly” cancelled earlier plans to appear before the committee on Tuesday, according to the motion.

The motion comes amid widespread criticism of the WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly after the organization repeated Chinese claims in the early stages that the virus could not spread through human-to-human transmission. In the following months the virus spread killing more than 130,000 people and triggering a complete lockdown of the global economy. ...

Amid confusion over what the correct response to the pandemic is, Canadian opposition members have raised concerns that the WHO’s reluctance to appear critical of China has in turn put Canadians’ health at risk. Canada, like other developed nations, depends on the organization for modelling and policy advice.

“Many concerns have been raised about the accuracy of the World Health Organization’s data, the influence that China has on the World Health Organization,” Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said on Tuesday.

Aylward, a Canadian, himself drew criticism earlier this month when he appeared to ignore a reporter’s questions about whether Taiwan should be allowed to join the WHO — an exchange that, to some, reinforced China’s sway within the organization.

**

Canada’s response to COVID-19, on the other hand, has moved pretty much in lockstep with that of the WHO. The federal government didn’t shut down the border to international travellers until March 16, five days after the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic and three days after Health Minister Patty Hajdu called border measures “highly ineffective.” Both Ms. Hajdu and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited WHO recommendations when previously defending the decision to keep Canada’s border open.

Canada, like the WHO, was slow to recommend the use of non-medical masks in situations where physical distancing is not possible. It was slow to approve serological tests, despite their use in other countries, because, as a Health Canada spokesperson told CBC, the WHO does not recommend them for clinical diagnosis.

On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump lashed out at the WHO, accusing it of bungling its early response to COVID-19 and announcing that U.S. funding for the organization would be put on hold. 

It was a rich deflection from a leader who spent February comparing COVID-19 to the seasonal flu and much of March fighting with governors over their requests for resources to fight the pandemic. 

But on the substance of his attack, the President was not wrong. Pulling money from the organization during a crisis is rather boneheaded, particularly when it is essential in getting resources on the ground in developing countries. But critically reviewing the performance of the organization, even in the midst of a pandemic, is not.

(Sidebar: as of this writing, Canada, though "disappointed" that the US has withdrawn funding from the WHO, hasn't stepped up to replace that funding nor will it question the direction of the WHO and its apparent closeness to China. There is also no word on whether sanctions will be placed on any Chinese official who hid the extent of the outbreak.)


There is also the question of the disposal of masks and the failure to replenish them and their purpose:

Moments ago, in response to a question from the Globe’s @MariekeWalsh Dr. Tam just said the emergency stockpile was never meant to backstop the whole country. That is exactly the reason that the stockpile is there. She gave a political answer that really hurts her credibility. pic.twitter.com/PEWaiSP0lz

— Brian Lilley (@brianlilley) April 16, 2020

The items above all come from well-established sources.

Did Justin pay out $600 million for nothing?

When communist dictatorships like China censor things, they do it before the word gets out.

What is more absurd: that the government would censor information or that they would be clumsy about it?


Also:

After Pierre Poilievre accurately described how the media is trying to protect Trudeau from accountability, Barton pushed back:

“Media is ramping up a campaign to protect Trudeau from accountability sessions. They know he can’t handle tough questions. He left the borders open to 2000 people from COVID hotspots & giving away our medical stockpiles. No wonder he is hiding from questions.”

Strangely, Barton called Poilievre’s accurate claims “ridiculous.”

“This is ridiculous. We are doing story after story to hold the govt to account on a daily basis. Pot shots take away from your legitimate questions.”