RESPONSIBILITY. Politicians call for it time and time again. Despite the politicians having the ultimate responsibility for striking the balance between public health and the health of the economy, it does come down to personal responsibility.
It always did, and this is still the case. The trouble is, though, that politicians (and others) can make their calls, but that is all they are. If people choose to ignore them, they will do. There are those for whom the message is now lost.
Perhaps it is because this has all gone on so long. Perhaps it is because the relaxation of measures has created an environment in which people push the relaxation further. Perhaps it’s the vaccination. And then perhaps it’s also the fact that the narrative has shifted.
President Armengol has done this.
She has said that there has been a shift in focus away from the daily numbers to the response capacity in hospitals. Hasn’t this capacity always been crucial? And by seemingly playing down the incidence, she is neglecting the fact that there are those who do pay close attention to it. Hence why Germany has upped its risk rating.
Meanwhile, such a message suggests that soaring incidence doesn’t matter, when it clearly does.
There has been a relaxation. There is an abandonment of responsibility. You can see it all around you. It’s as if it were over. It isn’t, as why else would there be a shift in focus to hospital response capacity?