The numbers do not lie.
COVID-19 infections climb higher and higher.
As of today (Dec. 7) there are 20,067 active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta. The province reported 1,735 new cases on Monday, and 16 deaths.
Monday's totals followed two consecutive days of more than 1,800 new cases, and a total of 25 deaths.
There has been 631 COVID deaths in Alberta since the beginning of the pandemic last March.
The province’s health-care system is being strangled. A total of 609 people have been hospitalized due to COVID, including 108 in ICU.
Hospitals are so full the military and Red Cross may soon be called to create field hospitals. Doctors, nurses and all other courageous health-care workers are exhausted.
"I think that the current measures that we have in place are not likely to be sufficient to bring down our numbers," said Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province's chief medical officer of health, during her daily COVID briefing on Dec. 7. "If the goal is to bring our numbers down we will need additional measures to be able to do that."
And yet, the insanity continues with a growing number of irresponsible anti-maskers who don’t get it.
They just can’t conveniently use the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to holler infringement on personal rights. It doesn’t work that way. The rights of innocent citizens to live free from a potentially harmful and even deadly virus supersede that utter nonsense.
Premier Jason Kenney’s attempt on Nov. 24 to right the sinking ship with half-hearted restrictions is failing – utterly.
Hinshaw said at her briefing her team will soon be making new recommendations to Kenney and his cabinet. Two weeks ago Kenney said decisions will be made by Dec. 15 on whether new measures are needed.
Why wait until Dec. 15? Now is the time to act, and not with another round of half measures.
It’s time for a hard province-wide shutdown, and that includes mandatory masking in all public places.
To get there, Albertans need decisive leadership. They also need to be inspired.
Last week, Albertans joined millions of Canadians and countless more across the globe for a moment of inspiration.
Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister, a proud but battered Conservative suffering the lowest approval ratings of any premier in the country still found the strength within to lay it all on the line on the seriousness of the public health crisis facing his province.
“If you don’t think that COVID's real, right now you’re an idiot,” he said during a recent update on his provincial government’s COVID response. “You need to understand that we're all in this together, you cannot fail to understand this. Stay apart.
“I’m the guy who’s stealing Christmas to keep you safe because you need to do this now,” he added, his voice cracking.
Almost a month ago, Pallister's government brought in the toughest COVID restrictions in the country, and yet Manitoba’s numbers continued to rise.
He has been assailed by many Manitobans for not acting quickly enough. That is fair, but there is plenty of that to go around everywhere in Canada.
For a few days anyways Pallister and most Manitobans have their moment, one that boosts the spirits of countless Canadians, including Albertans, and millions more across the globe.
They believe, including many on the left who despise Manitoba’s right flank government, there is finally a leader not afraid to tell the truth and risk it all.
The ball must now be put in Premier Kenney’s hands.
Can he push forward against the will of his powerful rural constituency, risking the loss of huge swathes of support, but knowing the right measures can and must be done?
Will he stare down the anti-maskers and anti-vaxx hordes and make it absolutely clear they are nothing more than an aggravating noisy problem in this unprecedented crisis that must be dealt with accordingly under the full force of the law if they don’t become part of the solution?
If the will, strength and courage can be drawn, Jason Kenney and all Albertans can also have their very own Pallister moment. But time is running out.
Johnnie Bachusky is an editor with The Albertan.
