In Great Britain, extraordinary measures are being taken to ensure compliance with a nationwide shutdown order. From Breitbart:
Humberside Police in northern England has built a website for citizens to inform on their neighbours for violating the government’s rules on daily exercise and social distancing.
You can only go for one walk a day. If you go out twice, you can be reported to the police. People’s worst instincts are coming to the fore.
This is what amazed me: the Derbyshire police have sent drones out, to catch citizens going for unauthorized walks:
Despite posts yesterday highlighting issues of people still visiting the #PeakDistrict despite government guidance, the message is still not getting through. @DerPolDroneUnit have been out at beauty spots across the county, and this footage was captured at #CurbarEdge last night. pic.twitter.com/soxWvMl0ls
— Derbyshire Police (@DerbysPolice) March 26, 2020
When the current madness is behind us, we will need to reflect on how easily governments, via orders that may or may not have any legal basis, have done away with our basic liberties, and on how few have objected.
AN IRRELEVANT PERSONAL NOTE: The Derbyshire story is especially painful for me, as we vacationed in the Peak District a few years ago. We stayed in a 17th century house at a place called Monsal Dale, not far from Chatsworth. This photo is of one of my daughters, overlooking Monsal Dale:
That would be illegal today, apparently.
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