Open borders is open disease

Australia is closing its borders, but it should have done so four weeks ago:

The Prime Minister has closed Australia’s borders to prevent the spread of coronavirus. From 9pm on Friday night, only Australian permanent residents and citizens will be allowed to enter the country.

Scott Morrison said he made the drastic move because 80 per cent of Australia’s 636 coronavirus cases have come in from abroad.

The ban, which has no end date, is likely to cause chaos for thousands of temporary residents who live and work in Australia, such as people on skilled work visas.

If they are overseas on holiday they have one day to return to their lives here. If they are in the country they cannot leave because they will not be able to come back.

Think about how much better off these countries would have been if they never permitted foreign invasions in the first place, and prioritized the well-being of their citizenries rather than sacrificing them at the altar of GDP. Whether the issue is bad government or disease, open borders and centralized governments are like building a ship without watertight compartments. It increases both the risks and the costs of anything going wrong.

Never forget that efficiency is a double-edged sword that always cuts both ways.