Posted on by Californiacontrarian

A Blast From the Past – XI


This is my blog from 12/23/20

Not Essential ? 

During the pandemic, the arbitrary regulations and lockdowns that have forced small businesses to close and kids to remain out of school have had serious consequences. Pandemic-induced depression and suicide is a serious problem that seems to have been overlooked by many of the leaders imposing lockdowns.

From CBS Philadelphia:

Pandemic depression is a new disorder linked to COVID-19 and it’s growing. Research shows people in major metropolitan areas, like Philadelphia, are being hit harder by mental health challenges.

It’s not just physical ailments as emergency departments are also being bombarded with the emotional fallout from the pandemic. Over a six-week period this summer in Montgomery County in Pennsylvania, 400 people went to hospitals because of self-injury or suicidal thoughts.

A new study in Britain shows school lockdowns are having a big impact on children. “We found quite a substantial increase in ratings of depressive symptoms during lockdown,” said Duncan Astle, a developmental psychologist for the University of Cambridge.

The research tracked about 200 elementary students before and after the lockdown and found a 70% chance that depression increased with isolation.

From PJ Media:

Meanwhile, religious worship was deemed nonessential by some Democrat leaders during the pandemic. And houses of worship were forced to remain closed, allegedly out of health concerns. According to some Democrats, you could social distance in a Walmart, a restaurant, or even an airplane, but not a church or a synagogue—so they ordered them closed.

But a recently released Gallup Poll suggests that churches and synagogues should never have been deemed nonessential, and may have been the most essential thing Americans needed to get through the pandemic.

Gallup has been polling Americans annually, as part of its November Health and Healthcare survey, to assess whether their mental health is excellent, good, fair, or poor. While Americans’ mental health overall declined in 2020, frequent churchgoers (weekly) did not experience a mental health decline at all, and were the only group in the U.S. not to experience a decline. In fact, they saw a slight increase, with 46 percent rating their mental health as excellent in 2020, a 4 point increase over 2019. This compared to:

Monthly churchgoers = -12

Seldom or never churchgoers = -13

For comparison, some other groups in the Gallup poll – 2020 vs.2019:

White = -10

Non-white = -8

Married = -8

Non-married =-10

All different age groups = -8 to-10

Democrat =-1   (polled  in November after the election)

Republican =-15    (     “.        “.           “.             “.  )

Independent =-11.  (.  “.       “.      “.             “.        “. )

Jenna Ellis, who is also an attorney for the Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, Calif., which is suing Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Xavier Becerra and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti for their unconstitutional COVID-19 restrictions, has argued that restricting religious worship has nothing to do with protecting Americans. “Church is essential, and the government has no power to arbitrate whether religious organizations are essential. This is not about health and safety, it is about targeting churches.”

At this moment in time, it appears that the Supreme Court agrees. 

State tuned.

12/23/20

12/24/22

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