South Central Reporter

Illinois state Rep. Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City) wants to see more of a balance in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

“Covid-19 is a serious disease,” Wilhour recently posted on Illinois Review. “People have died and more people will die. We all acknowledge the importance of taking preventative measures to protect our most vulnerable, but when taking draconian, repressive measures that have far-reaching negative effects on our lives and livelihoods, the threshold on reliable data needs to be high.”

Wilhour argues that many of the stringent restrictions and stay-at-home orders that remain in place were based on early models indicating how the disease was spreading. He points to data that suggests many of those projections have now changed as evidence of why leaders need to be just as flexible in their thinking and planning when it comes to fighting the disease.

“In the midst of this crisis, few if any have stopped to question the validity of the things they are being told,” he said. “Many of the same people who dismissed the threat of coronavirus are forcing a shutdown of our lives with no plan for when and how to get our country back online and the expectation is that we better just shut up and comply.”

Wilhour points to Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker as being guilty of such transgressions.

“Gov. Pritzker has been either behind on collecting the proper data or just chooses not to share it in a manner that it can be scrutinized to find trends that could allow us to ensure good decisions are being made,” Wilhour said. “His press conferences have been low-information, highlighted by political outbursts deflecting all blame to the federal government. That’s not really useful information and it is counterproductive on so many levels.”

Wilhour argues that citizens have every right to question state government, which is obligated to provide answers.

“The idea that we shouldn’t question any of these moves is dangerous, irresponsible and downright scary,” Wilhour said. “Maybe we are doing everything right, maybe we are not, but asking questions and making sure we are making good decisions based on real data is absolutely essential.”