(Lance D Johnson) Locked down and isolated from interstate commerce, the island of Bermuda should have theoretically been free of COVID infections over a year ago. But like any nation, lock downs suppressed the health and well being of the population, priming people for disease, poverty, mental health challenges and societal breakdown. After a miserable mask mandate was put in place on December 1, 2020, the island quickly saw a spike in COVID cases — a spike that far exceeded any previous influx of infection. According to the COVID case data, forced masking only suppresses the population further, spreading infections and straining the very systems of the body (respiratory and cardiovascular) that need to be strengthened in order to overcome these attacks.