Yes, I know exactly what you mean. I used to think it was all a conspiracy theory. But when a few weeks ago they shut down all roads into the CBD and threatened $100 000 fines for anyone entering the city (even if you were fully vaxxed or masked) I was like wait a second this isn't about trying to save lives. They are gone mad with power. And you have to think about who benefits from extended lockdowns, from small businesses going under? Governments do and the megacorporations do.

I've also noticed the rhetoric that the media and government use against anyone who is COVID-vaccine hesitant. I'm fully vaxxed but I have several loved ones who are not "antivax" in the sense of "thinking measles vaccines cause autism" but who are concerned about THIS vaccine due to how quickly it was rushed out, plus the way the government keeps shifting the goalposts regarding vaccination. First it's our way out of lockdown, now some of our governments are saying even with 80% vaccination lockdowns can still happen because they're chasing 0 cases. Which is unrealistic for Delta or any future variants.

And given this, the way the media portrays anyone critical of the authoritarian measures of the government as being "antivax, anti-mask, anti-lockdown, anti-science COVIDiots" is just false rhetoric that doesn't address the main reasons people are concerned and critical. Most people labeled "antivax" or "anti-lockdown" are not actually, they have much more nuanced views like "lockdowns are useful in the short term but the longer they go on the more harm they are causing to the point that eventually they cause more harm than COVID would". Or "sending the military in to police migrant communities is racist". Or "locking an entire apartment building inside with armed guards out the front in Blacktown sounds like something the CCP would do".

All valid criticisms that get flattened out by media and government rhetoric as all being "COVIDiots". And the more I see it the more suspicious I become.

I've even seen it on Medium. Like that Jessica Wildfire's recent article on "Antivaxxers" which made my blood boil for how it misrepresented the COVID vaccine hesitant.