Follow the science. That was the mantra of most governments in dealing with the outbreak of one of the most disastrous episodes in recent world history.

We knew almost from the start that lots of people would die of covid19 and that hospitals and health systems everywhere were for the most part unprepared for such a sudden pandemic, but we had no idea that the pandemic would last as long as it has, nor that after the initial coming together, apart from China, the world would divide along an ideological fault line that will definitely have lasting effects.

Politics is always expedient and tricky but once it had lofty ideas too. In my lifetime, it has largely been about creating a post-world-war idyll, with ideas derived from well argued intellectual positions on the right and the left, and many to do with economics and socio-economics. One one side, Adam Smith arguing for private capital and capitalism as the way to improve people's lives, and on the other, Karl Marx, calling for a revolution to restore justice for the masses from the inequities of capitalism.

We played out that ideological war viciously for over four decades, until communism gave way to people's inert desire to own things, including personal belief systems, and to be free in the multi-varied meaning of the word. Now, we have arrived at another crucible, induced by covid19.

I have always been struck at how differently people see things, amazed by the existence of totally and earnestly-held opposing views on what is logical, right, wrong or nonsensical, or of what we have before our very eyes in the same frame. Balancing out those very different views is not easy.

Impressive numbers of people do not believe in the current world vaccination programme for a range of good and silly reasons and refuse to be vaccinated.

The science says that without effective vaccines there would eventually be no place to bury the dead.

The WHO has made recommendations about how countries and peoples should act, but some political leaders have gone head-to-head against the WHO's messaging, making political mileage out of it.

In last week's Spanish regional elections, Madrid residents voted back in the right-wing People's Party candidate, whose rallying cry was very simple and direct - FREEDOM. Freedom to keep theatres, bars and restaurants in Madrid open, to keep the hospitality sector working while managing the high number of infections and deaths - the highest in the country. with one death in five of Spain's total, so it was a vote for the right to die, too. Madrid is the only European capital city not to impose stringent restrictions once the national 2020 lockdown ended last June. The PP win was a vote against tighter control measures advocated by the Socialist government.

It may have been the first open political battle of the sort in the now hotly contested and very polarised debate about the way forward out of covid19.

Most people are prepared not to trust politicians, recognisin