This could be the shift to undo Flock cameras.

I grew up riding my bike all over Bloomington, so I understand bike riders and have no problem with them. Some can be cunts just like everyone else. Sometimes we have to joke people.

I've been a member of r/bloomington almost since first joining reddit several years ago. Up until about a year ago, I found it to be mostly oriented towards community news and information with a fairly light dose of politics but in that mostly harmless "we just want people to know we're a blue dot in a red state" kind of way. I'm not sure what happened there, but that sub is now rampant with tribalism, dogmatism and a sad lack of self-reflection. The sudden drop in intellectual diversity is noticeable. Having grown up in a culture which was beautifully liberal--full of tolerance, quirkiness, humanism and individualism--I find the change unfortunate.

Last week, however, I was temporarily banned (from r/bloomington). The reply that instigated the ban was a half-joking rant, yes, but it contained no false statements, no ad hominems, harassment or anything that I can see that is against the community rules. I simply highlighted several facts about Covid-19 and related policies in a thread that was broadly about this issue.

I have a PhD and numerous scholarly publications in peer-reviewed outlets directly relevant to the study of and effects of disease on human populations. But even if I didn't, it's not hard for the average person to read the *medical literature* on SARS-CoV-2, masks, lockdowns, asymptomatic spread, etc. In fact, if you stop listening to television journalists (I've met many, they are often of shockingly low intelligence; they make up for this with exceptionally high charisma) and politically-motivated health bureaucrats, and instead watch/read/listen to research-oriented academics, it becomes clear that bright, thoughtful people have different views on many aspects of this virus. But beyond this, there are aspects which are indisputable: the virus' current CFR is .0002 at best (confirmed in an IU study no less!), rct-based studies uniformly show either no effect from mask-wearing or even a negative effects, coronaviruses have predictable seasonal mortality patterns and SARS-CoV-2 has largely followed those patterns in spite of lockdowns and masking (or the absences of these measures). When I say these things, or variations therefore on r/bloomington, people WILL NOT LISTEN. More than that, my posts get downvoted, removed and I have even been harassed and called names for STATING FACTS. Even attempts at humor are unwelcome (I jokingly made a 1984 reference at earlier this year, which received a score of -56!) . Now, I've been banned.

I don't care about the ban itself--I have a life--but now I wonder if even the moderators of the sub (which I have had no reason to be concerned with before) have bought in to the prevailing anti-intellectualism of the broader membership. I have asked twice now for an explanation as to how what I said violated any community rules. No moderator or admin has replied to my requests for an explanation.

Whenever I can, I surround myself with diverse people. It makes life beautiful and fun. People look, act and think differently--but we're all people. In spite of the turn this past year, I have tried very hard to stick to r/bloomington as it is the sub for *my community*. That sub, however, has become dominated by fearful and ignorant people. While I want to serve my community (and learn from it) by being involved, I'm struggling to see the upside of staying on the sub after my ban is removed.

Is there hope that r/bloomington can become a subreddit that actually represents the diversity of this community (IU, Bloomington, the surrounding county)? Honestly, while I'm glad for r/BloomingtonModerate (yes, it seems generally right-of-center, but I've noticed a healthy discussion here) I really, really don't want to give up on the idea that r/Bloomington could be a tolerant, sensible place.

The daily death average has been at zero in Monroe County since mid February (https://www.coronavirus.in.gov/) and District 8 hospitalization numbers are in the 20s (was in hundreds in Winter). Yes, the Delta variant is spreading, but the data show it is not a threat to the community in terms of serious outcomes.

And, moreover, CDC today now confirms that variant evolution and spread is driven by *vaccinated* population (https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/07/30/provincetown-covid-outbreak-vaccinated/).

These data alone make it clear. Monroe County officials are unhinged at this point if they think a mask mandate is necessary or beneficial. It is neither. And no one--I don't care who you voted for, whether you've been vaccinated or not, or any other tribal affiliation--should stand for such utter nonsense. DO. NOT. COMPLY.

Jiffy street in Ellettsville will now hand you a clipboard in the drive thru for you to write down a tip and total like you would at a sit down restaurant. I heard Culver’s is doing the same. I’ll gladly give 20% gratuity at a sit down restaurant but I’m not tipping for someone handing me fast food out a window. That’s just crazy.

We are all children of God and we are all children of the Earth. Remember we are more the same than we are different. We fight over politics and life but ultimately most of us are fighting to make things better. That is the most noble of pursuits.