Image Credit: The Canadian Press

By Mel Rothenburger

ARMCHAIR MAYOR

ROTHENBURGER – Stop the COVIDIOTS, invoke the Emergency Measures Act

Mar 25, 2020 | 5:30 AM

KAMLOOPS — IT’S SIMPLY ASTOUNDING that so many people continue to congregate in large numbers as though COVID-19 is some sort of a lark.

It needs to be said that many, many people — hopefully, most — are doing it right and keeping their distance.

But it’s unforgivable that throngs continue to crowd beaches, parks and markets across the country and around the world. A new hashtag, #COVIDIOTS, chronicles their idiocy.

It wouldn’t matter as much if they were only putting themselves at risk, but have they no compassion for others they might infect?

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The time has come to invoke the federal Emergency Measures Act. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday it’s not off the table but he’s obviously reluctant to take such a drastic step.

His father Pierre invoked the War Measures Act — the old version of the modern act — during the FLQ crisis of 1970, arresting hundreds without bail.

It remains a stain on the elder Trudeau’s record. Certainly, using such powers must be done with great care — we don’t want hundreds or thousands of people being rounded up and thrown in jail.

But jail shouldn’t be out of the question. A Quebec woman who tested positive for COVID-19 was arrested for defying an isolation order, and there needs to be more of that kind of enforcement.

Provincial and local governments are cracking down with steep fines for those who ignore social-distancing guidelines and profit off the hoarding of needed supplies, and they’re closing civic facilities — such as Hillside Stadium at the TCC — where people aren’t following the rules.

But we need consistency across the country, and a strong message to the social-distance slackers.

I say, declare the Emergencies Measures Act now, not later, and put a stop to the stupidity.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group.