Reading John Balentine’s “Lockdown madness must end” (April 24) was just sad on so many levels – the lack of science behind the assertion of herd immunity, the callousness of indefinitely quarantining older people (more than 20% of our population in Maine) so that out-of-state tourists (from states with far greater risks of COVID-19 exposure) can vacation in a “safe zone,” the total trust in a federal response that has been conspicuous by its absence.
Herd immunity requires that at least 60 percent of a population is exposed to the pathogen – in Maine’s case that would be 807,500 positive cases and, with our current death rate as a model, more than 38,000 deaths. If Mr. Balentine is comfortable with that, he is beyond any rational response I can offer.
Catherine DiPietro
Bridgton
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