Reg Warkentin. (rdnewsNOW file photo)

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Lesser Of All Evils

Reg Warkentin: Don’t hate the player

Sep 24, 2021 | 10:08 AM

In a year or two there will be thorough analysis on how governments managed the pandemic. The academics are likely to “score” government responses based on health guidelines, their efficacy, the ancillary impacts of restrictions and the number of deaths.

Alberta reached a boiling point as the fourth wave wreaked havoc on the health care system. More than a year and a half into this pandemic, the public is emotionally drained from on again off again health measures that have prevented us from working, seeing friends and family, celebrating life and mourning the deceased. Businesses are exasperated from the yo-yo measures as our unemployment rate hovers around 10 per cent.

Last week the government announced they would be instituting what most other jurisdictions refer to as a vaccination passport that would restrict a sizeable portion of the population from fully participating in society. With ICU loads scarily high, the Premier felt they had no choice but to act now, or have the health system collapse. Our health system has proven unable to scale up capacity while the Delta variant rages and as a result, far too many people are dying.

Enter the Restriction Exemption Program herein referred to as the REP.

Show your proof of vaccination or show a negative COVID test and you can live life close to normal. If you don’t, rule-following businesses are required by the government to deny service or face massive fines and mandatory closure. Far from an ideal solution, the government has downloaded this extremely divisive, personal and administrative burden onto small business operators. Serious questions exist about the privacy of health records, personal choice, business independence and the social impact. After enjoying the “best summer ever” and just a few months of “normal,” last week’s announcement was a punch to the gut that left many feeling nauseous.

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I’m constantly working to be more optimistic and the easiest way is by thinking about the bright side. The bright side of last week’s announcement is it could have been worse. Given the choice between having hundreds more dying, a full lockdown, or vaccination passport, the latter is clearly the lesser of evils.

Between eating my own cooking or showing an excerpt of my health records I will choose to go out to eat and support my friends and family that work in the hospitality industry. If I owned/managed a restaurant I would choose to keep my staff employed and ask my patrons for their documents. At the Red Deer Chamber we’ve chosen to implement the REP so we can continue to offer our members opportunities to network and promote their businesses ergo livelihoods to one another. Given the options, implementing the REP is the pro-business choice.

That doesn’t mean I or anyone else should be happy. Anger that we are in a fourth wave and so many continue to end up in ICU or worse, die, is justified. However, anger at our small businesses following rules so they can remain in operation and provide a living for themselves and their employees is not justified. Closing the business, firing staff and going bankrupt is not a real option. At this point it’s pure survival. Like Ice T famously rapped, “don’t hate the player, hate the game.”

Reg Warkentin

Policy & Government Relations Manager

Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce

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