CRB: The masking of America

We continue our preview of the new (Summer) issue of the Claremont Review Books with Jeffrey H. Anderson’s essay “The Masking of America.” Subhead: “Faceless people make compliant subjects, not good citizens.”

At 8:00 p.m. yesterday evening Politico Nightly posted a long story under the headline“True or false: Kids should wear masks to school.” It opens:

WILL YOU NEED ONE EXTRA SCHOOL SUPPLY? At least nine states — Arkansas, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Vermont — have banned school districts from requiring masks in schools, according to CNN. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis slammed the idea of making kids wear face coverings in Florida classrooms today, saying “we want kids to be able to be kids.”

Yet the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended earlier this week that all children over 2 wear face masks at school, regardless of vaccination status.

President Joe Biden added his perspective to the latest pandemic tension point Wednesday when he said children under 12 “should probably be wearing masks” in schools this fall and hinted that the CDC may release updated guidance on the issue.

And so on.

Mr. Anderson served as director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics at the U.S. Department of Justice from 2017 to 2021. His essay could not be more timely.

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