This isn’t really a big deal – it’s just two weeks to flatten the curve from the deadly Omicron virus.
Our number one concern has to be public safety from viruses, and this is all really just about viruses.
RT:
Bars, cafes, and all but the most essential stores will close in the Netherlands until mid-January, as the country goes into hard lockdown in a bid to slow the spread of the Omicron variant.
The new restrictions were announced by the government on Saturday evening, after an emergency meeting of Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s cabinet that afternoon. The lockdown was recommended by the government’s Outbreak Management Team.
“A sudden press conference on Saturday, four days after the last one, does not indicate anything good,” Rutte said during a televised briefing, before delivering the bad news: “The Netherlands goes back into lockdown, it shuts again.”
UPDATE – Dutch PM Rutte has just confirmed a nationwide hard lockdown in the Netherlands because of #Omicron.
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) December 18, 2021
As of Sunday morning, all stores, services, and hospitality venues will close until January 14, save for a few essential outlets like supermarkets and pharmacies. Bars and cafes will shut, and restaurants will provide take-out meals only. Schools, many of which are already finished for Christmas, will close their doors.
Officially, those celebrating Christmas at home will be subject to restrictions, too. Throughout the lockdown, a maximum of two visitors per household will apply. Exceptions will be made for Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve, the latter a day typically celebrated in the Netherlands with drinks, parties, and home fireworks.
The Netherlands has been under partial lockdown since late November, with face masks required in most settings and “non-essential locations” forced to close between 5pm and 5am. However, the new restrictions mark the sharpest curbs on freedom and socialization since the country entered a hard lockdown this time last year.
Christmas time might be a time of joy – but not when there’s a virus.
Covid: Dutch go into Christmas lockdown over Omicron wave https://t.co/PAD6bb9XPe
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) December 19, 2021
Viruses remove all joy.
Everyone is dying from this virus.
We have to save the lives of all of these people that are dying from this virus, and that means destroying every aspect of human society and creating an entirely new world order based on avoiding viruses.
Britain’s health minister hilariously falls over herself during interview about the lack of severity of Omicron. pic.twitter.com/ShEZ3XFKp1
— Syrian Girl 🇸🇾🎗 (@Partisangirl) December 18, 2021