I think MBD is absolutely right: We can’t forget the “noble lies” the supposed experts told us and the harm they did during the height of Covid-19, when we were torturing children on Zoom school, washing groceries and leaving them outside, etc.
I also think (and here’s where Emily Oster and I might have something in common) that one of the overarching lessons we need to take from the whole ordeal is the tremendous need for humility. It’s okay for even experts to admit they don’t know, lest they reinforce a false sense of security that helps no one.
Life is fragile. Today is the second anniversary of the death of a friend of mine, Andrew Walther, who died in November 2020 not of Covid-19 but complications from leukemia. Another friend and editor, John Moorehouse, died just after Thanksgiving that year of a heart attack. No precaution or hiding can keep us from death, ultimately, and it sometimes comes when we are in our prime. We must be prepared.
Today is All Saints Day in the Catholic Church. Living a good and virtuous and courageous life is what’s important. It’s not easy. Let’s help one another do that, even as we reflect with wisdom and clarity on what we’ve done and what we’ve failed to do, individually and as a nation.