“Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” —Benjamin Franklin

One of the worst mayors in the nation has further “burnished” his credentials.

On August 3, New York City’s Bill de Blasio announced that vaccine passports would become a way of life in the Big Apple. “We know that strong, clear mandates help,” de Blasio stated during a press conference announcing his “Key to NYC” initiative. “If you’re vaccinated, you have the key. You can open the door. If you’re unvaccinated, unfortunately, you will not be allowed to participate in many things.”

This dictatorial decree was launched on August 16. It will be enforced beginning September 13.

Some New Yorkers may be less than enthused. For example, only 28% percent of black New Yorkers between the ages of 18 and 44 are vaccinated, and only 48% of Latino residents have gotten the jab. As a result, 72% of blacks and 52% Hispanics between those ages will be getting a firsthand experience with discrimination that has a decidedly Jim Crow odor about it.

Brought to you by the very same Democrat Party that embraced it the first time around.

Moreover, it’s not just service at restaurants, gyms, and theaters that will be denied to the unvaccinated. They will also be denied the right to work at these establishments.

On the flip side, de Blasio has now turned thousands of people who work at these establishments into de facto government enforcement agents. “If you’re hungry, I’m gonna sit here and be like, ‘No, you can’t come in, you cannot get food, because you’re not vaccinated?’” asked Jacqueline Badillo, a restaurant cashier. “It’s too much.”

Georgie Fulton, 31, another Brooklyn restaurant server, noted the policy will be equally disastrous for restaurants already facing staffing shortages engendered by the Biden administration’s extension of enhanced unemployment benefits — benefits that pay some people more to sit home than go out and get a job. “Everyone’s struggling to find more staff, and then that’s just one extra thing that we have to do that takes time,” she said. “It’s just time-consuming and annoying.”

That the unconstitutional and wholly arbitrary abrogation of personal choice and individual freedom is seen as irritating rather than infuriating is a stark reminder of just how corrupt America’s educational system has become. With the apparent cooperation of far too many go-along-to-get-along New Yorkers, requiring all of them to provide proof of COVID vaccination and a photo ID began rolling out last Tuesday. When the edict goes fully into effect on September 13, those establishments who defy it will be hit with a series of escalating fines that begin at $1,000 for the first “offense” followed by $2,000 for the second, and $5,000 for all subsequent violations.

The hypocrisy is breathtaking. Aren’t these the very same Democrats, led by Joe Biden, who insisted a photo-ID requirement for voting amounted to “Jim Crow 2.0”? The ones who wring their collective hands about “systemic racism” even as they enforce de facto segregation for a majority of non-white New Yorkers?

What about illegals? New York is such a dedicated sanctuary city that it has refused to honor more than 1,300 detainer requests ICE even for illegals charged with felonies, and state officials are forbidden to inquire about one’s immigration status. Some illegals have taken advantage of the city’s ID cards, but what about those who wish to remain in the shadows, even as they are required to show ID and proof of vaccination to remain employed?

What about New York’s Jewish population, which is the largest Jewish community in the world outside of Israel? Are they willing to abide a “papers, please” policy that officially designates some New Yorkers as “The Other,” both of which reek with a historical stench that cannot possibly be denied?

Whatever happened to “never again”?

And what about vaccinated people? In spite of their status, are there any who still believe in autonomy and personal choice to the point where they are willing to stand with the fellow unvaccinated New Yorkers solely for principle’s sake? Or have we reached the point where the path of least resistance is all that matters, and Ben Franklin’s aforementioned admonition will be tossed on the ash heap of history?

“Last month, the Centers for Disease Control reported that vaccinated people who contract the delta variant carry viral loads similar to those of people who are unvaccinated,” explains columnist Portia Berry-Kilby. “In short, vaccinated people can spread the virus just as the unvaccinated can. Faced with such a fact, one struggles to see how a vaccine passport serves as little more than a license to spread COVID variants old and new.”

What’s far less of a struggle to see is the tyrannical ambitions of a self-aggrandizing mayor, and the legions of useful idiots who will accommodate him.

Thankfully, some New Yorkers are fighting back. A newly formed group called The Independent Restaurant Owners Association Rescue, which includes gyms and dining establishments, has filed suit against the city. The suit alleges that the mandate violates the plaintiffs’ constitutional rights and unfairly targets certain establishments, but not others like churches, grocery stores, schools, offices, and medical facilities; that it is “arbitrary and capricious.” It also alleges that the COVID-19 Delta variant can spread among both vaccinated and unvaccinated people, and that it doesn’t accommodate vaccination exceptions for those who’ve already had the virus, those allergic to vaccine ingredients, those with pre-existing conditions that elevate risk, and those whose religious beliefs prevent them from getting it.

Nonetheless, de Blasio stated that he has “tremendous confidence that we’re in a strong legal position.” He added, “We’re in a global pandemic still.”

Really? Then why the wholesale capriciousness? Unvaccinated New Yorkers can still briefly enter restaurants and bars to get takeout, or use the restroom as long as they wear a face mask and practice social distancing. Performers entertaining a crowd live inside a restaurant don’t need to provide proof of vaccination unless they are NYC residents, or employees of the Key to NYC establishment.

Who defines “briefly”? Why are some venues wholly exempt? And why delay the roll out for three more weeks?

De Blasio insists the delay is about “educating” the public. About what? Full-blown submission to political whims sold as “following the science”?

For almost two years, Americans have been subjected to the most highly orchestrated fear campaign in history. And all throughout, we were assured that lockdowns, mask mandates, travel restrictions, the evisceration of peoples’ livelihoods, the suppression of alternative viewpoints and treatments, ukases issued by officials, and the wholesale — and in some cases unconstitutional — bastardization of the 2020 election process, were critical to “stopping the spread” of COVID. All while ruling class mandarins exempted themselves and “approved” protesters from all of it, whenever it suited their purposes.

When does it end? Only when — or is that if — ordinary Americans decide they won’t submit to full-blown totalitarianism.

For “safety’s sake.”