Vaccine False Alternatives: Bribes vs. Mandates

New Ideal, from the Ayn Rand Institute

In this episode of New Ideal Live, Elan Journo and Onkar Ghate discuss whether governments should give out lottery prizes or other incentives for getting vaccinated, or mandate vaccination when people refuse it. Among the topics covered: Why the role of the U.S. government should shift given the end of the pandemic;How the problem that unvaccinated people pose to others is mainly due to socialized health care;Why incentivizing vaccination through “vaccine lotteries” is unjust paternalism;Differentiating the policies packaged together as vaccine “mandates”;Whether it is proper for governments to mandate vaccination;How government control of industry obscures the application of these principles;How collectivism generates conflict between people and discourages individual responsibility;Whether government mask mandates are justifiable;Whether the government involvement in vaccine distribution is a reason to fear the vaccine;The proper role of government in a pandemic. Mentioned in the discussion are Onkar Ghate’s paper “A Pro-Freedom Approach to Infectious Disease: Planning for the Next Pandemic,” Ben Bayer’s article “The Unscientific, Un-American Ethics of Vaccine Distribution,” and Ayn Rand’s comments on vaccine mandates and quarantine. This podcast was recorded on July 14, 2021. Listen to the discussion below. Listen and subscribe from your mobile device on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or Stitcher. Watch archived podcasts here. Podcast audio: