By Ray Cardello for October 21, 2021 Season 6 / Post 31

Just last year, we looked up to First Responders, Hospital Personnel, members of the Military, and Police Officers as heroes helping the country navigate the COVID-19 Pandemic. They were fearless and worked with minimal protection against an unknown disease to minimize fatalities, comfort the sick, and protect the well. They risked their lives every day to save people they did not even know. Today they are being forced to be vaccinated or be terminated from their jobs. Last year these people were essential. They were championed as the best of society. Today they are being cast aside if they dare defy the controlling arm of the government.

This sad situation brings to light so many poor decisions by poorly placed leaders. Biden and his team have opted for an aggressive approach to an unattainable goal of vaccinating 100% of our population. In addition to legitimate reasons such as religion, pre-existing conditions, natural immunity, or simply personal choice, Biden and Harris put themselves in a defensive position by declaring during the campaign that they did not support the “Trump” vaccine. It has been a challenge for them to overcome that negative stance to motivate the country to take the needle.

Biden has passed the burden onto private businesses and municipalities. The President has weaponized companies struggling to recover from nearly two years of the Pandemic through mandate. Supply chain issues, staff shortages, and continued regulations were already proving too much for many struggling companies, but the vaccine mandate was the final blow. They now had no choice but to terminate employees that refused to VAXX regardless of the value of the employee to their team. They cannot get to full staff status, but now they are adding to the gap. This is not their choice. They are the victims of government overreach. Not isolated to the private sector, the State of Washington has terminated over 1,900 state employees who refused to take the vaccine. Employees are the essential resource to a company, and the government was driving a stake into the heart of the workforce.

Our leadership is letting us down. Our priorities are out of sync. We are reactive to bad decisions rather than insisting on better leadership and decisions to be unified behind and proactive in support. We have lowered our bar of expectation and are settling for mediocrity. It is a poor and dangerous example for our young. How can they strive for excellence when they see the adults in the room have given up? Whether it is local school boards keeping our children in masks or the President inflicting his will through mandates, we need to rethink those we have given the power. When these people forget who they are serving and become the served, they need to be replaced quickly.

As employees are cast aside, who will fill the vacuum? We see hospitals shut down departments due to a lack of staff. We have already seen a rise in diseases due to a lack of preventative care due to the Pandemic. Now we are creating an artificial Pandemic of services due to poor leadership. We are defunding Police departments and now releasing trained officers who fail to vaccinate. Who will answer the call when you need help. Chances are it will be a voice recording.

Some companies, like Delta, have started to rethink these mandates. That is what we need. We need companies to balk at government mandates. People are fighting back. States are joining in. What we have to do is show Biden and the Democrats that we will not be rolled over. The battle is worth it, and we are ready to fight back.