COVID-19
Shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began it became clear that the virus was nowhere near as dangerous or deadly as government officials, mainstream journalists, and the public health establishment claimed.
Unfortunately, the government’s response to the disease turned into a major overreach that caused profound damage to citizens of every age, race, religion, and background. Since the start of the pandemic, the Independent Institute has explored the effects of the government’s response—both the nature of the overreach and the ways in which the media, corporations, the scientific community, and unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats helped make such a shocking and unconstitutional breach of power possible.
For those who lived through it, it is impossible to forget all the misinformation and hysterical screeds knowingly peddled by those in power. The danger of the virus was exaggerated to the point of deceit. Draconian lockdowns and mask mandates were praised by pundits and politicians and backed by law enforcement, even in the face of overwhelming evidence of their ineffectiveness at stopping the virus. Blatantly unconstitutional vaccine mandates forced working Americans to choose between their livelihood and bodily autonomy. The Independent Institute is committed to ensuring that no such abuse of power ever happens again.
Unfortunately, the government’s response to the disease turned into a major overreach that caused profound damage to citizens of every age, race, religion, and background. Since the start of the pandemic, the Independent Institute has explored the effects of the government’s response—both the nature of the overreach and the ways in which the media, corporations, the scientific community, and unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats helped make such a shocking and unconstitutional breach of power possible.
For those who lived through it, it is impossible to forget all the misinformation and hysterical screeds knowingly peddled by those in power. The danger of the virus was exaggerated to the point of deceit. Draconian lockdowns and mask mandates were praised by pundits and politicians and backed by law enforcement, even in the face of overwhelming evidence of their ineffectiveness at stopping the virus. Blatantly unconstitutional vaccine mandates forced working Americans to choose between their livelihood and bodily autonomy. The Independent Institute is committed to ensuring that no such abuse of power ever happens again.
LATEST Articles
Dr. Anthony Fauci: What Exactly Did Biden Pardon?
Biden’s pardon cancels the prospect of criminal charges against Fauci, whose network remains in place.
Dr. Fauci Doubles Down
As with COVID, the origin of AIDS was a matter of dispute.
Harmeet Dhillon, Trump’s Choice for DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, Battled Woke Policies in California
President-elect Donald Trump has nominated San Francisco attorney Harmeet Dhillon to lead the Civil Rights...
Were COVID-19 Lockdowns Worth It? A Meta-Analysis
Abstract
Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, an unprecedented use of mandatory lockdowns--defined as the imposition...
A Great Trump Appointment: Jay Bhattacharya (Part 1)
Putting leaders like Jay Bhattacharya into position of leadership probably will strengthen the environment for exploring alternative perspectives.
The Golden State Unleashes the Anonymous Snoop Dogs
Newsom kept the COVID measure in place so he must value what may be the most repressive legislation in California history.
Colleges and the Dumbing Down of America
Aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic, teaching fundamental knowledge to young Americans is worsening.
Did Modern Monetary Theory Elect Donald Trump?
The Biden-Harris administration added another multi-trillion-dollar stimulus to Trump-era COVID relief spending.
Trumping Inflation?
During and after the pandemic, the Fed had greatly expanded the money supply.
The Wrong Road to Freedom
Stiglitz comes out strongly for censoring people whose views on COVID differ from his.
What’s Wrong with the Way We Pay Doctors?
Prior to the covid pandemic, doctors could only be paid for in-person, face-to-face visits.
Report Rips Biden–Harris Labor Secretary Julie Su
During the pandemic crisis, Su failed to deliver, and she hasn’t learned the lesson.
Scarcity by Decree
Rising prices are the result of pandemic policies that pumped more money into people’s pockets.
Is Walz Worse than Newsom?
To monitor compliance, Walz set up a hotline for informers. Their tips led to reports on people playing basketball, walking their dog, and attending church.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell Is Trying to Explain Away the Inflation Rollercoaster—but Money Supply Is Absent from His Script
Inflation was caused by a plethora of non-monetary factors, ranging from supply chain glitches to COVID-19 lockdowns to oil price spikes.
Californians Can Still Be Their Own Boss in the ‘Gig Economy,’ Also Known as the Free Market
As they struggled to earn a living, AB-5 also harmed the effort to counter the Covid pandemic.
Newsom Continues Dreadful COVID-19 Crackdown
Newsom kept details of the $1 billion Chinese mask deal secret, even from fellow Democrats, and many Californians wonder where the money went.
Dr. Fauci: Unaccountable Power-Laden Bureaucrat
Political considerations blocked Dr. Fauci’s medical judgement, and that should come as no surprise.
From Solzhenitsyn to US Governors: No Lessons Learned
The government pandemic regime reflected an authoritarian mindset more than any quest to keep the people safe.
The National Debt Is over $34 Trillion. It’s Time to Tell the Truth about the U.S. Government’s Finances
If anyone living in the United States in the decades immediately after the Second World War...
Anthony Fauci Tells Columbia Medical Students to Lie Just Like Him
This is what happens when a medical doctor opts for a career as a government bureaucrat and remains in power for decade.
Biden FCC Threatens Free Speech by Restoring Internet Regulations
During the pandemic, NIH director Francis Collins teamed with Dr. Anthony Fauci to suppress the internet...
DEI Cronyism and Woke Grifters
When ideology replaces meritocracy or provides immunity from the consequences of illegal behavior, systemic mediocrity follows.
Under...
Is There A Trump Health Care Plan?
Even before the world had heard the term “Covid,” deregulation of vaccine production was an early Trump administration success.
Fauci and His Minions Are Still in Control
During the pandemic Fauci replicated the AIDS disaster, basically conducting vaccine experiments on the entire population, including children, the least vulnerable group.
The First Amendment is Under Attack in America’s Oceania
Court records show that the White House specifically targeted COVID skeptics Alex Berenson, Tucker Carlson, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Covid Lessons Learned, Four Years Later
None of those policies were successful, and many were gravely damaging.
Don’t Credit the Fed for Inflation’s Decline
The prolonged scourge of inflation is more directly related to the massive fiscal transfer payments associated with Covid and continued deficit spending.
COVID Lessons Learned
We outline ten key lessons that must be learned to avoid mistaken policy responses to future pandemics and other crises.
Harvard Tramples the Truth
Science cannot survive in a society that does not value truth and strive to discover it.
California Failed the Lab Test—And More Illegal Chinese Biolabs May Exist Across the Country
Local officials also found nearly 1,000 bio-engineered mice, vials of blood, and samples of infectious diseases including COVID.
Lessons from Gov. Newsom’s PaneraGate Scandal
As Californians may recall, while locking down the state in draconian style regime, Gov. Newsom wined and dined maskless at the upscale French Laundry.
Newsom Wants to Add $6.4 Billion to California’s $1.6 Trillion Debt with Proposition 1
California is losing businesses and taxpayers to other states, and at rates that have accelerated since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chicago, San Francisco Should Cut Real Estate Transfer Taxes
Additional tax revenue—estimated at $196 million per year—would “help those who have suffered most during the pandemic.”
The California Exodus Gets a Gag Order
Newsom’s draconian pandemic regime could easily motivate Californians to seek other states or countries.
Travis Kelce, COVID ‘Variants,’ and the CDC Vaccine Machine
The new vaccines are “expected to be effective against the variant,” which is not the same as actual, proven effectiveness.
No Policy Consequences Are ‘Unintended’
The regulatory costs imposed on the rest of us were not mistaken; nor were they inadvertent.
The Hysterical Style in American Politics
The COVID hysteria magically ended when Joe Biden won the 2020 election.
Health Insurance Without Health Care
In order to tend to the needs of a sudden surge in Covid patients, health care providers had to delay care for the non-Covid patients.
Inflation Was Always a Monetary Phenomenon, Never Transitory
When Covid-19 hit the United States in 2020, the Federal Reserve responded with a vigorous asset-purchase program.
Fauci, Friends, and Fallout
The time has come to hold Fauci and friends fully accountable for their actions.
California Will See Plenty of New Laws in 2024, but Few Which Will Fix Actual Problems
During the pandemic, California suffered some $30 billion in unemployment fraud, with taxpayer dollars flowing to criminals.
Political Promises Won’t End Drug Shortages
We can better address drug shortages by allowing a wider range of international pharmaceutical suppliers.
Through the GAO, the Deep State Chooses Government Leaders
Congress must hold Dr. Fauci accountable, to the full extent of the law, however long it takes.
In Debate with DeSantis, Newsom Can’t Admit California’s Policy Failures
The Centers for Disease Control reports that age-adjusted deaths were very similar between California and Florida, despite large differences in lockdown policies.
Biden’s State Department Paid NewsGuard to Tar Organizations Like Ours
The First Amendment has long been understood as settling matters where government manipulation of the press...
Fake Meat: More Entrée or Agenda?
Pandemic-driven valuations have led many previously high-flying public firms to face a sudden reversal of fortunes.
Randi Weingarten Lies, Lies and Lies Again about Closing Schools During COVID
In places like union-controlled Chicago, two weeks to slow the spread turned into two years to flatten a generation.
The Epistle of Paul to the Americans: Exposing White Coat Supremacy
We had entered a frightening new era of medicine, where the training and expertise of one’s...
Neo-Marxism and the End of Language
Language is changing in America; indeed, probably throughout the West. And the changes are not good.
The...
Markets Can Help Fix the Blood Shortage
Due to restrictions enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic, plasma collections dropped about 20% by September 2021.
The Federal Reserve at War
Here is where lessons from emergency actions taken during the 2008 global financial crisis and the Covid pandemic are helpful.
Today’s Public Health Emergency: Restoring Trust with Seven Steps
The truth cannot be denied—the Birx-Fauci lockdowns failed to stop the death and the spread of infection and inflicted tremendous harms.
Decongestant Drug Doesn’t Work? Neither Does the FDA
Several COVID-19 “variants of concern” emerging recently also make it terrible timing to remove any medicines that help treat flulike symptoms.
Gov. Newsom Goes to China
In April, 2020, Gov. Newsom struck a $1 billion deal for masks with Chinese company Build Your Dreams (BYD), not known for protective equipment.
Another Black Monday May Be Around the Corner
Early in the pandemic, the volume of U.S. dollars in circulation soared. Then, in March 2022, the Fed changed course.
Newsom Admits California’s Medical Professionals Were Right
It’s fair to say that the governor is not a big fan of the First Amendment.
SSRN and medRxiv Censor Counter-Narrative Science
A chapter of Friedrich Hayek's The Road to Serfdom is titled 'The End of Truth.' We...
San Francisco Values? Nancy Pelosi Explains It All for You.
In San Francisco values, rules that apply to the working class don’t apply to the ruling class.
Misinformation Is a Word We Use to Shut You Up
Censors have often invoked the opinions of certain organizations, such as CDC or WHO.
Independent Institute Books
Videos
Audio
Rand Paul: Unraveling Government Lies and Cover-ups During the COVID Pandemic | Ep. 19
Oct. 12, 2023
Oct. 12, 2023
