Here’s why that should terrify the rest of us, too.
by Robby Soave
Reason.com
Last week, Brown University implemented strict new COVID-19 mitigation protocols following 82 confirmed positive (including asymptomatic) cases among students.
Until the number of cases decreases, students are forbidden to gather in groups of more than five, whether indoors or outdoors. They are no longer permitted to eat in the cafeteria, and must instead pick up their meals and eat elsewhere, keeping a mask on at all other times. But they can’t go out to eat at bars or restaurants; this is strictly prohibited. The university doesn’t want students to mingle with anyone from outside the campus, but administrators would also prefer if students declined to make new friends among their peers.
“Students are expected to consistently engage with the same small social group, rather than attending or ‘hopping’ among multiple small-group gatherings over the course of a day or short period of time,” according to the university.