Unlocking means two things:
People being able to do what they want in their lives
The country's businesses, which require people to mingle, being able to function profitably
The situation we are in:
Cases are growing, and will continue to grow
Hospitalisations are growing, and will continue to grow
Deaths will grow
Yes you will be able to do what you want
But what will you want to do?
Maybe you are hardy
And don't mind a bit of COVID in your lungs
You will be out and about living life as free as you once were
But maybe you're single jabbed and worried
Maybe you're double jabbed and worried
Maybe you're not jabbed at all because you're young, or scared about the vaccine, but you're still worried about getting COVID
— If you're in the last three groups
As cases grow faster than they do now
As hospitalisations mount
As deaths trickle up
You will not be going to the cinema filled with maskless people
You will not be going to the bar filled with maskless people
You will be scared and avoiding social contact
You will not be participating in the economy like a pre-pandemicer
Yes people will be allowed to do whatever they want
But businesses will not be unlocked from the bind they are in now
Hospitality occupancy will still be down
Businesses will remain unprofitable
(And a not insignificant number of people will die)
It was not meant to be like this
Cases were meant to trickle down and down
As vaccinations grew and grew
And we nestled comfortably into herd immunity, as other countries and cities have done
Then life really can return to normal
Because you feel normally safe.
But that is not what is happening to the UK
Instead we are unlocking because it was in the calendar
It's the way we were going and we will continue to go this way despite the consequences
Reversing is understandably impossible, the momentum on the unlocking train is far too strong
But truly what this is is a disgrace
Unlocking into a rising tied of COVID
Needless
Shamefull
Driven by absolute incompetence
We tolerate too much
Perhaps people do not see the stress of the months ahead
We have gulped down the Kool-Aid of our vaccine success
For many it is over! We won!
Boris will nestle his rotund self into his approval ratings
But those with their fingers in the river
Who felt the waves before they came
Look at each other with concern
They know something icky is on the way
And, if they think it all through, and explosion of outrage lurks
All this for a trade deal
All this to be wonder-Boris
Disgraceful
A poetic opinion piece from The Annoying Centrist