Tag Archives: social distancing

State news

Beachgoers tempt fate

You are looking at a beachful of goobers who ought to know better than to do what they are doing.

They are congregating along the Texas coast, apparently heeding Gov. Greg Abbott’s declaration that it’s OK to venture to the beach without regard to the restrictions he had imposed on Texans since early April.

You can count me out. What in the world is going on here?

Planet Earth is still in the throes of the coronavirus pandemic. It has killed hundreds of thousands of people and nearly 70,000 Americans. Yet some states, such as Texas, are being run by governors who seem to think it’s OK to reopen their economies that had been shut down by the pandemic.

Abbott said he would let “doctors and data” determine how to loosen the restrictions. Did he really have this in mind? If he didn’t, then the goobers on the beach need to know better. If he did, these numbskulls still should pay attention.

Many governors are proclaiming that social distancing is having a profoundly positive effect on the infection and death rates by the COVID-19 virus. I don’t see a whole lot of social distancing in the picture I have attached to this blog post. What I do see is a crowd of nitwits who are endangering themselves or worse, endangering others.

What I wish would happen is that Abbott reimpose the restrictions. Good grief. He needs to tell those who want to go to the beach to follow the rules they have been following already.

Or, he could deputize Texas Parks & Wildlife rangers to work alongside Department of Public Safety troopers to issue citations to those they see clustering like these yahoos.

We are witnessing a rush to potential disaster and it gives my family me all the justification we need to keep doing what we’ve been doing to avoid getting caught by the killer virus.

International news

Ancestral homeys make me proud

Many of my friends are aware of my ethnic ancestry; I guess my last name is a dead giveaway … you know?

One of them sent me a link from The New York Times that contains a story about how well Greece has responded to the coronavirus pandemic.

You can see the story here.

What fascinates me is how well the Greeks have responded to the pandemic in light of the intense criticism that has come their way over the years with their myriad financial issues, their reneging on national debt, the bailouts given to them by the European Union, not to mention the political chaos that kept waters roiling in Athens.

It appears that Greece got way ahead of the curve when the pandemic began leveling Europeans. They enacted “social distancing” measures right away; they began imposing restrictions on gatherings; they shut down business and effectively shut down their borders. They didn’t celebrate Orthodox Easter in the traditional way, as the picture attached to this post attests.

They have recorded fewer than 150 deaths from the viral infection. The Times article notes that Belgium, an EU member of comparable population, has suffered thousands of deaths and far more reported infections than Greece.

OK, have said all that, the report card isn’t a straight-A grade. Greece has tested a small percentage of its population of 10.7 million citizens, which means the reports of infections might be understated.

Still, according to the Times: Now, a country that has grown used to being seen as a problem child in the European Union is celebrating its government’s response and looking forward to reopening its economy.

“Greece has defied the odds,” said Kevin Featherstone, director of the Hellenic Observatory at the London School of Economics.

I have been critical of my ethnic brothers over the financial hassles that they have brought on themselves. On this matter, they make me proud that they have responded proactively — and successfully — in response to a worldwide crisis. Other nations and their leaders ought to pay attention to how they have responded.

Yes, that means you, too, Donald Trump!

local news, State news

Go slowly on relaxing restrictions

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott reportedly is planning to issue an executive order this week that sets in motion a relaxation of the restrictions enacted to fight to coronavirus pandemic.

Allow me to offer this bit of advice: Go slow on returning to what we call “normal” activity.

Abbott’s emergency response team tells us that social distancing is doing its job, that the infection rate is stabilizing if not declining. Indeed, we’re practicing it in our household, as are our sons. My wife and I haven’t socialized with anyone since the pandemic began creeping into our lives.

Abbott doesn’t seem like someone who is going to rush to return to normal activity. He was a bit slow to issue the stay at home order, although he didn’t call it that. Whatever. We’re staying at home and that’s worked well for us. We venture out only to buy food at the grocery store or to purchase weed killer at the garden shop.

Princeton has shut down dining in at restaurants and practically every form of service business you can name. Haircuts? Gymnasiums? Forget about it!

I did walk into a bank the other day wearing a face mask my wife had made and joked to the teller how strange it felt to be wearing a mask while walking into a bank. She didn’t have me arrested, for which I was much obliged.

This so-called “new normal” is beginning to feel more like just plain “normal” the longer we’re into it.

But … whatever Abbott does later this week, I urge him to go slow in suggesting how we should behave. For that matter, all of us on the receiving end of the governor’s suggestion would do well to proceed with all due caution.

Social distancing is working, man, but we ain’t in the clear.

medical news, national news

Crisis producing a new level of heroism

The coronavirus pandemic is producing an entirely new level of heroism all around the world.

Let’s ponder what we’re witnessing in real time as the coronavirus infection scores new hits every minute.

  • Hospital workers are donning makeshift masks and are wearing garbage bags on their bodies to protect themselves against infected patients. They lack the protective gear they need, but they stay on the job.
  • Police officers and firefighters are falling ill because they lack the appropriate personal protection equipment to stave off infection.
  • Children are singing to patients, seeking to cheer them up as they fight for their lives.
  • Neighbors are helping neighbors cope with their formerly “routine” errands.
  • Teachers are crafting in-home study plans for students who’ve been banned from classrooms because governors are closing schools.
  • Building maintenance crews are working day and night to disinfect structures, exposing themselves to infection.
  • At least one naval officer, the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt — a nuclear-powered attack aircraft carrier — has decided to allow most of his crew off the ship to deal with infection; four of his crew members have died.
  • Cruise ship crews are battling infection among passengers.

I hope you understand my point here. This pandemic is producing the very best in many of us. The United States does not lack heroes, people who do extraordinary deeds under great duress. Indeed, nations on every continent on Earth are discovering heroes among their midst as well.

None of this will lessen the pandemic by itself. That lessening will occur over time as we continue to practice “social distancing.” Meanwhile, researchers are working 24/7 in laboratories searching frantically for drugs they can use to inoculate human beings against the ravages of this “invisible enemy.”

Many of us are distressed. Our lives are being disrupted beyond measure. I just want to offer a heartfelt expressing of gratitude for all the heroes out there who are stepping up in this time of dire peril.

local news

Iconic play falls victim to coronavirus

The coronavirus pandemic appears to have inflicted a major casualty in the Texas Panhandle: an iconic musical that has been thrilling millions of visitors for decades.

“Texas” is going to miss its 2020 summer season at the Pioneer Amphitheater on the floor of Palo Duro Canyon.

This is a very huge deal in the lives of West Texans, not to mention those who have flocked to the canyon floor to watch the musical that tells the story of the settling of the Panhandle.

Donald Trump declared that the national “social distancing” guideline will remain until April 30. Texas has imposed similar measures statewide. Communities and counties are taking proactive measures, too, to stem the spread of the illness that likely is destined to kill hundreds of thousands of Americans.

Hey, if they can postpone the Summer Olympics until July 2021, it only makes sense that the Texas Panhandle Heritage Foundation will put “Texas” on the shelf as well until next year.

This news saddens me, but it must be done.

national news

Do as we say, not as we do?

You may accuse me of nitpicking if you wish. That’s fine. I don’t give a pile of rat sh** if you do.

The picture you see with this blog post shows the president of the United States along with members of his coronavirus response team. Donald Trump and others have been briefing the pubic on measures the government is taking to stem the infection rate.

They’ve talked a whole lot about “social distancing,” which reminds us to maintain a certain distance from other people; the coronavirus is transmitted easily from person to person. It’s what they call “community transmission” or “community spread.”

What’s wrong with this picture? It shows that the brainiacs comprising the pandemic response team members aren’t doing what they’re telling the rest of us to do.

Donald Trump even has chided media members for “sitting too close to each other” while he blathers on incoherently.

C’mon, folks! Get with the program! If you’re going to issue stern warnings and advice on how to avoid getting a potentially disease, you should at least have the common sense, decency and smarts to demonstrate the thing you’re telling us to do.