Over the weekend, the Canadian government said it is dropping all COVID-19 measures at borders from next month.

This means, as of October 1, travelers won’t need to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination when entering Canada or wear masks on planes and trains.

They will also not have to undergo any testing before and after arrival. There will also be no mandatory isolation and quarantine.

The ArriveCan app - used to upload health documents when entering Canada - will now become optional.

In Canada, 82% of the population has taken both doses of the vaccine.

Despite that, the BBC reports that around 32 Canadians are currently dying each day from the virus.

Canada isn’t the only country to lift the vaccine mandates, other countries, such as the United Kingdom, have also dropped COVID-19 entry requirements earlier this year.

The COVID-19 vaccine mandates in Canada caused headlines back in February when a group of truckers held protests in opposition to the mandates, that prevented American truckers from entering Canada.

The group that called themselves the Freedom Convoy, held protest against the vaccine mandates required unvaccinated Canadian truckers crossing the two nations' boundary to quarantine once they've returned home, from the U.S.

The truckers staged blockades at key border crossings between the US and Canada, disrupting the flow of goods between the two countries.

This caused Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to flee from his home and relay a message from an undisclosed location like a deposed dictator, calling the protest an attack on democracy. 

The self-righteous often don’t comprehend irony.

Next Trudeau invoked the never before used Emergencies Act, which gave his government additional powers in times of national crisis.

Trudeau’s government prohibited public assembly, restricted travel, and the use of specific properties. Trudeau compelled private towing -truck services to aid the government in forcibly removing the trucks. There were restrictions on the media. Trudeau’s police seized fuel from the trucks and even impounded some vehicles.

The protestors have raised more than $9.6 million on their GoFundMe. However, GoFundMe withheld the money citing police reports of violence.

When Trudeau's political opponents (including a Jewish woman) questioned him about his draconian methods, Trudeau tarred her as associated with swastika-wavers.

In the end, Trudeau was able to force the truckers by force and clear the streets.

So what do we make of the lifting of the vaccine mandates?

In a democracy, freedom is an inherent right.

It is essential to reiterate the word ‘inherent’ because it means the right is not granted by governments, it belongs to the individual by birth.

If the right wasn’t given by the government, the right cannot be trespassed upon in any manner rights irrespective of the circumstance. The right can most certainly not be revoked away no matter what the situation is.

Among freedoms is the right of choice.

The choice to consume according to personal preferences.

Deep-fried chicken and sugary pastries may be detrimental to health, but a government cannot mandate to interfering in people's personal eating habits.

There can never ever be food mandates in any form. A government cannot mandates salads. A government cannot incentivize health food businesses, as well, because that would be discriminatory towards foods that are considered unhealthy.

Adults must be allowed to decide for themselves – if they want to eat themselves to eventual death, that is a right that must be allowed.

But mandates to save life?

That is the price of freedom, we cannot tamper with freedom and liberty because the worst among us will misuse it.

This applies to vaccines as well.

The vaccine isn’t a disposable product that can be thrown away if it fails; it is material being injected into your body; and the changes are likely to be permanent.

An individual must always be allowed to decide what they allow in his or her body.

What added to the skepticism about the vaccine is the fanatical proponents of the vaccine kept shifting the goalpost as the vaccines behaved unpredictably.

First, they claimed that the fully vaccinated were completely protected from COVID-19 infections. When the vaccinated were infected, they claimed that vaccinated individuals won’t suffer during their infection. When the vaccinated individuals began to suffer during their infection, they claimed the vaccinated will certainly survive their infection. When some vaccinated individuals died, they claim that deaths were rare or due to pre-existing conditions.

They also keep redefining the term 'fully vaccinated' by adding boosters.

Some who have taken the vaccine have suffered serious side effects. 

The fanatical proponents of the COVID-19 vaccine never engaged with skeptics to convince them about the merits of the vaccine. Like most leftists, they prefer mandates instead of debates.

But it wasn’t just the right of choice that was trampled upon by the government, it was also the right of free expression.

Any reasonable skepticism about the vaccine that was developed and tested for a relatively short period of time, was ridiculed. Big tech censored opinions and de-platformed individuals that questioned the effectiveness of the vaccine on social media.

The lifting of vaccine mandates leaves some open questions.

What about those who lost valuable jobs because they refused to take the vaccine?

What about those who reluctantly took the vaccine merely to continue their employment? Their freedom of choice was irrevocably trampled upon.

What about those whose health suffered due to the vaccine?

Who will compensate for their losses?

The lifting of mandates comes in the wake of Trudeau facing challenges to his leadership and public disproval of his performance.  

A group of Members of Parliament and U.S.-Canada border city mayors last week sent a letter addressed to Trudeau and President Biden asking them to remove "unnecessary" border restrictions that are hampering post-pandemic economic recovery.

Trudeau lifted the vaccine mandates not because he is concerned for the well-being of his individuals. It is because he is concerned about his re-election prospects.

This is not a victory for the protestors, it is a politician changing his colors like a chameleon after seeing the writings on the wall.

Image: European Parliament, via Flickr // CC BY 2.0