Cold weather has arrived throughout most of the United States, and so more people are now spending time indoors. Also, the weaker but apparently more virulent omicron strain of the coronavirus has found its way into the country. This means coronavirus cases will rise in most states, just as they did in Florida (where cases are down now) during its intensely hot summer months.

Even as certain Democratic governors attempt to lock down and impose mask mandates on their states once again, their hearts are no longer in it . They know that nobody is going to respect these rules, and indeed, in most places, they do not. This is why governors such as California’s Gavin Newsom and New York’s Kathy Hochul acknowledge that they will not be enforcing their own bans this time around. People simply wouldn’t accept it.

Moreover, even hospitals and medical providers are realizing they cannot afford to enforce vaccine mandates on their employees. Ideological rigidity on this question could leave no one in place to care for the sick or even to administer much-needed vaccinations and treatments.

The emergency is over. So is the excuse for soft tyranny.