News reports indicate that a new variant of covid–now, basically the common cold–is in the air. Some people are alarmed. Driving to work this morning, I passed a young woman walking by herself, outdoors, no one within a block of her. She was wearing a mask.

Are we about to enter a new era of shutdowns, masks and general hysteria? If governments try to impose such neo-fascist measures, will citizens comply, or will they rebel? On that last point, neither polls nor election results offer much comfort. I believe that all of the governors who imposed the worst covid damages on their people were re-elected.

[We don’t see that in Texas. A few people still wear masks, which is fine as a personal choice even if it is a waste of time, unless the wearer is himself symptomatic with some transmissible virus. Don’t expect the southern states to succumb to COVID hysteria this time around, even if the media is clearly gearing up to lose their minds over it. — Ed]