Passport Anyone?

No, I am not talking about the federal government issued Canadian passport that allows you to travel to other countries. I’m talking about the unconstitutional, privacy invading, divisive passport that is being proposed to indicate that you have had two doses of anti-Covid 19 vaccines.  The hue and cry about these documents are truly amazing.  It has been rejected by the Canadian government and we are told it is a provincial matter.  The provinces cannot agree, even within themselves, whether to issue them or not.  How ridiculous.

Think of the things we already carry with our personal information.  If you drive, you have a drivers license. You need a health card to get any health services in Canada, otherwise you pay.  You have bank cards, credit cards, loyalty cards. If you live ‘on-the-grid’ you are registered with every utility including phone, electricity, natural gas, internet, and television providers. And yet I have never heard anyone complain about their privacy, civil liberties, or constitutional rights when these are mentioned.  If you travel abroad, you have a Canadian passport.  And now, many countries are demanding a vaccination passport to enter there.  That is one reason that any vaccine passport should be issued by the federal government.  Do you really think that other countries are going to accept something from some province without having any idea how they are issued?   

As it is now, whether or not you have had the vaccines, you are treated no differently than all those who have not.  You still must follow all of the protocols that the pandemic has brought forth.  You still must isolate, more or less.  You still have to wear a mask to go into any establishment.  You still have to limit your exposure to friends and relatives (I haven’t seen any of my children or grandchildren for almost a year).  If you have had both of your shots, is this fair?  All because too many people have not had, or refuse to have, their shots.

There was an interesting editorial in the weekly local newspaper this week.  The writer proposed that a date be set, such as the beginning or end of September by which time all who want or need the vaccine should have had that opportunity.  After that, any unvaccinated people who contract Covid 19 should be made to pay any and all bills, including hospitalization costs.  The idea is that anyone who chooses to remain unvaccinated has had ample opportunity to protect themselves and it should not be the responsibility of taxpayers to continue to support them.  An intriguing thought.

In summary, those people who have been fully vaccinated should have some way of proving it and be liberated from the sometimes onerous burdens that we still have to put up with.  Many European countries are already putting that into effect.