The Orange County, California, school board approved a full reopening of schools in the fall, with no mandatory masks or social distancing.
Orange County education leaders voted 4 to 1 Monday evening to approve recommendations for reopening schools in the fall that do not include the mandatory use of masks for students or increased social distancing in classrooms amid a surge in coronavirus cases.
The Board of Education did, however, leave reopening plans up to individual school districts.
Among the recommendations are daily temperature checks, frequent handwashing and use of hand sanitizer, in addition to the nightly disinfection of classrooms, offices and transportation vehicles.
The recommendations, contained in a white paper, widely support schools reopening in the fall. The document states that remote learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic has been an “utter failure” and suggests allowing parents to send their children to another district or charter school to receive instruction if their home district does not reopen.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
This is utterly irresponsible, especially now that researchers are saying that the coronavirus is airborne and that droplets can stay afloat possibly across a room and back. To be blunt, these board members have their heads up their asses.
NYC schools were fully open at the beginning of the virus outbreak. 75 teachers and other staff died of COVID. Statistically that’s a small number. But to their families, it mattered.
Mark my words. They will not be open for more than 3 weeks. Once people start getting sick, schools will need to close. Most urban high school teachers teach 150-200 students. Can you imagine what will happen when this teacher needs to quarantine? Then the school will have to get (a severely underpaid) sub. For multiple teachers. Good luck.
The district in which I teach has NO contingency plan for if we have to shut down.
They won’t need the substitute because those 150-200 students will have to quarantine also. won’t take long to shut the whole school down once a few of those students who went to other classes test positive.
speduktr I do hope parents’ support for Trumpism stops at the door to sacrificing their children’s health to him and his Republican sycophants, not to mention their Wall Street investments. CBK
I live and work in Orange County California. That school board has NO authority over the 29 local school districts in OC. Yes! Four of those people are insane trumpers and they do approve charters left and right. They were bought and paid for by the CSA.
Call or email me if you want to hear the rest of the story! I can put you in touch with the one sane board member, Beckie Gomez, if you like.
Teri Sorey President, Irvine Teachers Association Vice Chair, Teachers for Local Control in Orange County PAC
>
Insane
In the membrane.
Had to look that one up, Greg!
And I thought you were hip to scene!
Saw a picture today of a smiling Melania Trump with a shovel, in the place where Michele Obama’s garden was. The caption: “I’m digging graves for schoolchildren.”
“… suggests allowing parents to send their children to another district or charter school to receive instruction if their home district does not reopen.”
There it is.
My three grandchildren go to school in Orange County. My son and daughter-in-law are going to freak when they see this in the morning. They are VERY conscious of the virus and the importance of masks, etc. Leftcoast: “there it is,” indeed.
One result on children I haven’t seen published is that, if a teacher or parent or other beloved adult gets the virus and even dies (and many teachers have died already), there are those children who are going to feel responsible for it . . . because they went to school and brought it home.
Will this Trump sickness ever end. Two pandemics (1) the virus, (2) the Trumpist mental disease. CBK
Oh my Lord, CBK. Very sorry to hear that you have grandchildren in this benighted district!!!
How many governors have eaten the Trump mantra….LIBERATE STATES! Open schools!
INDIANAPOLIS – More Indiana cities have decided to impose mask mandates as health officials reported Monday the state’s most hospitalizations of people with coronavirus-related illnesses in almost a month….
Gov. Eric Holcomb [R-IN] has declined to issue a mask mandate, but cited worries about possible increases in coronavirus cases across the state in deciding earlier this month to keep capacity limits in place for restaurants, bars and entertainment venues in place until at least Saturday.
July 13,2020
Last month, the Indiana Department of Education released a series of considerations for schools to use while crafting reopening plans but the guidance didn’t include any safety mandates.
State health officials have been hesitant to say what parameters would warrant another wide-scale suspension of in-person instruction, like the state saw in the spring when several districts close their buildings ahead of the statewide closure mandated by Gov. Eric Holcomb in mid-March.
I know how this will sound, but when I think of Orange County, I don’t think of a place where a lot of smart things occur. This is the district, after all, that sent Robert Dornan to Congress–twice!
it is a strange time when certain cities/counties are now physically proving what the CDC said would happen should they not follow scientific logic — CA now feels like a kid’s science project where, while some counties adamantly go into lockdown and decide to use online only, good old OC says, no, we’re going into full attendance five days a week with plans ‘left up to us…’
Washington Township Schools first in Indianapolis to announce it won’t reopen schools
July 13, 2020
Washington Township Schools is scrapping plans to reopen its doors for students later this month, instead continuing with virtual instruction.
After announcing plans to reopen as scheduled, Washington Township Schools said Monday it will not bring students back into classrooms to start the new school year due to an increasing number of coronavirus cases.
The school district’s board voted Monday to continue with virtual classes, “while coronavirus indicators increase.” All Indiana schools finished the last school via remote instruction after Gov. Eric Holcomb ordered them closed in mid-March.
“While we will reopen beginning July 30, as previously decided, today the Board has voted that all classes will be virtual until the Board determines otherwise,” the district said in a statement released Monday morning. “At each of our upcoming Board meetings we will carefully examine where we are locally in the fight against the coronavirus as we consider when students may return to the classroom.”…
Check out this story on indystar.com: https://www.indystar.com/story/news/education/2020/07/13/indiana-education-washington-township-schools-not-reopen/5426726002/
Reply
Forward
If everything is safe enough for kids and teachers to skip the masks and social distancing in classrooms, then why was the Orange County board, these so called “education leaders”, using Zoom for their meeting last night?
About halfway down the article: “Ryan Schachter, a special-education specialist at Corona del Mar Middle School and Corona del Mar High School in Newport Beach, said he is divided on the Board of Education’s recommendations. He also said he didn’t plan to watch Monday night’s special meeting on Zoom.”
I checked and a local newspaper said this about the meeting venue: “The meeting tonight will include some in-person attendance, but most public commentary and attendance will be online. Here are details on how to comment and listen in, using meeting ID 840 9228 0768 or connect by audio only by calling 1-669-900-6833 and enter meeting ID 840 9228 0768.”
“Most”.
https://www.ocregister.com/2020/07/13/parents-might-square-off-with-orange-county-board-of-education-tonight-over-push-to-re-open-schools/
And, I quote from the “meeting procedures”.
“3.Speakers are asked to attend the board meeting virtually through the Zoom invitation link at the top of the agenda.”
Click to access Special%20Meeting%20Agenda%2007.13.2020.pdf
Of course, some of those Orange County “education leaders” would probably blame California’s governor for having to follow that meeting rule.
Sure.
I wonder what they’re doing with their own kids?
P.S. some sort of error message on the link to the Orange County Board of Ed. site. Hmmm…I guess they’re more worried about computer viruses than people viruses ???
Somebody said this about a TV news show where the participants agreed that schools should reopen now. “I will believe you when you are sitting side by side, not remote.”
Republicans actually are pushing for financial incentives to get schools to open as part of a COVID-19 recovery bill. What is wrong with these people? Lives don’t matter. Why are so many GOP people concerned about getting fetuses born? Hypocrites.
CNN:
Senate GOP leaders and senior administration officials are cooking up a new coronavirus recovery bill, but their Democratic counterparts probably aren’t going to like what they serve. Republican lawmakers said their plan is expected to include financial incentives to push schools to reopen and would also shield health care workers and companies from lawsuits related to the coronavirus. This liability protection is essential, according to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said it would remove responsibility from employers and institutions. The whole package is expected to cost around $1.3 trillion and will be rolled out as soon as next week. However, both sides are skeptical that a bipartisan agreement can be reached before Congress adjourns for its summer recess in August.
Yeah, but part of that “incentive” will be that we can’t sue our districts if we get sick, or our families can’t sue the district if we die. The Repubs want liability waivers for EVERYONE before they even “consider” money to help schools reopen.
“Republican lawmakers said their plan is expected to include BRIBES to push schools to reopen. . . .”
Race To The Grave
Axios:
71% of U.S. parents polled in the new Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index say it’d be risky to send children back to school in the fall — including nine in 10 Black Americans and even a slim majority of Republicans, Axios’ Margaret Talev writes.
Why it matters: President Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos have threatened to withhold federal funds from schools that don’t reopen. These findings suggest that the pressure campaign could backfire.
As with so many aspects of the pandemic, there are big differences in risks perceived by Ds and Rs, and between whites and people of color.
82% of Democrats and 53% of Republicans say returning to school would be very or moderately risky.
89% of Black parents saw returning to school as a large or moderate risk, compared with 80% of Hispanic parents and 64% of white parents.
Driving the news: Officials announced plans yesterday for some giant metro areas, erring on the side of caution.
In California, with Gov. Gavin Newsom locked down much of the state amid a virus surge, officials announced that public schools in Los Angeles and San Diego (825,000 students) will hold online classes only.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said New York schools will open only if the daily infection rates in their region are below 5% over a 14-day average: “We’re not going to use our children as guinea pigs.”
The superintendent of the Orange County Schools is a former administrator in Florida. She is also a member of Chiefs for Change. We all know that one of big changes this group seeks is the demolition of democratic public schools. I hope the parents protest and the board of ed fires her.https://chiefsforchange.org/chiefs-for-change-adds-five-new-members/
By the way her name is Barbara Jenkins. If we put this information in context, she is trying to create a disruption that will allow her to grab power. She has little regard for the students or teachers in the district.
The (Entirely Predictable) Looming Catastrophe
So, what will be the one-liner about Trump in history books of the future, assuming that we survive? Russia stealing the election for him? Abandoning our allies the Kurds? Ignoring climate change? Withdrawing from nuclear weapons treaties? Locking up kids in cages? Encouraging people to inject disinfectant?
I think not. His major claim to infamy will be using his bully pulpit (emphasis on the “bully”) to insist that we reopen schools in the middle of a pandemic, leading to widespread deaths of teachers, students, staff, administrators, and family members of all these and to long-term complications from the blood clots, kidney, liver, heart, and brain damage in survivors of the disease. That, I think, will be what he and his Secretary of Education with no experience in education are most remembered for. Let me be the first to say it: Heck of a job, Donnie, Betsy! Donnie Death and Ditzy DeVoid.
BTW, cloth masks and surgical masks are better than nothing, but they are only partially effective, and the average person breathes out half a liter of air with every exhalation and does this an average of 14 times per minute. So, 128 (number of people in the middle-school or high-school room in a given day) x 60 (number of minutes per person) x 14 (number of breaths per minute) x 0.5 (liters of air exhaled per minute) = 53,760 liters of air expelled by people into a closed classroom each day.
BTW, four relevant facts: recent studies suggest that kids 10 and over contract Covid-19 at the same rate that adults do; other studies show that even those who were asymptomatic can suffer very serious long-term consequences, such as neurological damage and widespread blood-clotting; 30.7 percent of teachers are over 50 years old; kids are kids–they have the attention spans of gerbils on methamphetamine, and nothing will keep them from removing their masks, picking their noses, and touching one another and everything.
Let’s not call them classrooms this coming year. Let’s call them Covid-19 Exposure Chambers.
It’s going to be a tragic October and November, folks.
The season of reaping what has been sown.
But if we don’t test the pandemic is over .
These are very good points to consider.
In addition, I just read a report that half of infections come from exposure to infected but asymptomatic people. Aie yie yie. We’re about to open Pandora’s Box.
Bob the big HOWEVER, however, is that “the people” elected Trump and that so many still support him.
If we DO ever get through this, I hope public institutions remain; but also that those who set policy for curriculum development take our present situation as a mandate for keeping history and the humanities at the center of education throughout K-12; and at the center of that, an understanding of the existential nature of democracy. I wonder if we’ll ever get it back. CBK
Coincidentally it is Bastille day. Enough said!
Allons enfants de la Patrie, Le jour de gloire est arrivé !
If you read a translation of the French National Anthem, you will see that it is a call to arms for citizens to overthrow the monarchy. It is very appropriate for us in our current state in America.
LOL!!!
I have always found it an interesting contrast that Americans celebrate a document that declared separation from its colonial mother country, while the French celebrate a panicked mob. The King put troops around the city of Paris that July 14, 1789, fearing the worst from a growing bread riot.. Feeling threatened for obvious reasons, the self-formed National Guard broke into arsenals and stole weapons. Panic ruled the streets as mobs roved about looking for gunpowder. Finally someone suggested they go to the Bastille, an old symbol of the King’s dominance. Poorly defended, the mob soon prevailed and began the tradition of raising the heads of the vanquished guards on pike poles.
After the triumph of the revolution was under way, the people of Paris tore down the Bastille by hand, brick by hated brick.
The modern day French seem to understand the difference between freedom to participate in the government and freedom to infect their fellow citizens. May we discover the difference ourselves.
I agree. The French are known for standing up to injustice, even today. Many of them admire iconoclasts. They will revolt when they are pushed too far. They reject and question government rules that undermine democracy. They defend their unions even if it means a bloody battle with police. Before Covid hit, there were weekly police battles with the “gilets jaunes,” the yellow vests. They are fighting against Macron’s neoliberal policies that are trying to upend unions. As late as January 2020, blue collar workers have pressured Macron to resign, or they have threatened to shut the country down. Of course, now with Covid, everything has changed.https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/20/yell-j20.html
Joel Herman Irony, . . all over place. I read yesterday that a bus driver in France was beaten to death by passengers when he insisted that someone wear a mask. These ARE the people who sent us the Statute of Liberty. CBK
This is so sad and unnecessary. I guess we aren’t the only country with crazies.
Very similar plan in the district in which I teach, which was released on Friday afternoon of Independence Day weekend and as such has received little press. Masks were “optional” at first, but now the governor is requiring everyone in schools wear masks. However, a parent is now circulating a petition demanding that masks be optional for students (in other words, no kid would wear them), because “parents have the right to decide.” https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/make-mask-wearing-a-choice-in-utah-schools-thousands-sign-petition-to-roll-back-k-12-mask-mandate
Threatened Out West: Thanks for the article. I sent it out to others, including two Trump supporters. Trump’s ignorance is having repercussions that make this virus spread. LIBERATE and don’t wear a mask!! STUPIDITY PERSONIFIED!
The infuriating part is that “letting parents decide if their kids will wear masks” means that NO junior high students will wear masks. It takes away MY freedom to survive, and for my family to survive. But I guess that doesn’t matter.
Threatened Your union should insist that masks are mandated in middle school. Research keeps showing the benefit of reducing infection when everyone wears a mask.
What union? I’m in a Right to Work state. Our professional organization has said nothing. Lily Eskelsen Garcia is from Utah, and she has not said one thing about this state.
Trump is claiming that “radical leftists” have infiltrated Fox News.
retired . . . maybe there’s hope for Fox News after all . . . .? CBK
“. . . because ‘parents have the right to decide.'”
Been working on this for a couple weeks now:
I am responsible for myself in wearing a mask, however, when everyone else isn’t, then there is a serious problem. I actually consider it the highest form of disrespect, a form of actually intending harms to others when people didn’t and don’t follow the guidelines/mandates. And when you come at me meaning to harm me, which is what those people are doing, I will fight back with all I can, intellectually speaking that is. As a friend who is a TKD master states, “the only [physical] fight one wins is the one that one doesn’t get into.” But that doesn’t hold for intellectual fights because if one doesn’t engage others one automatically will lose and then have to succumb to demands one may not want to.
The reason that those revolt against taking simple safety precautions is because they have a very stilted, childish view of liberty. Allow me to explain.
We all recognize “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” as THE fundamental, THE bedrock of our system of governance. Notice which is first and foremost. The writers and signers of the Founding Documents very much knew what order they wanted to sign off on. For without life there is no liberty nor pursuit of happiness. And without liberty there is no true sense of the pursuit of happiness. (of which term did not have the same meaning then as most think it does now, but that’s for another day.)
Those who “revolt against” wearing masks are putting the second concept into the number one spot, however, in doing so they are disregarding the rest of ours right to life by not taking common sense precautions like wearing a mask and social distancing and potentially infecting others. That is very wrong both in conceptual thinking making the secondary concern primary. And it is wrong ethically and morally as it can deprive others of their right to life.
Now, no one can pursue happiness without life and liberty so that concern, while tertiary, should not be considered to be overriding of the first two. That those who feel the need to take part in activities that are detrimental to the two prior and more important rights are violating everyone else’s rights to life and liberty, in essence potentially being destructive of the first two rights. They are breaking the social contract of which we all have to abide. I find that very selfish, self-centered and an abomination of behavior.
I hope this make sense to you and that you can see why I get rather pissed off at people when they propose that their supposed right to liberty and to the pursuit of happiness should and could override my primary right to life. For those who advocate for such things are, in essence, asking others to die, so they can have a moment’s pleasure.
They’re not thinking about anybody’s rights but their own.
Well said, Señor Swacker!
Duane E Swacker When we are already in a crisis situation, there is NO IN-BETWEEN . . . . between deciding,and not deciding. In a crisis, to NOT decide is, itself, to decide. Crises don’t wait.
Example: If my phone is ringing, and I don’t answer it, then I have decided NOT to respond. A crisis is like a ringing phone in that way.
We are in a crisis as a voting public: “If we turn out in record numbers, we will win. If we fail to turn our people out, Trump and the Republicans will win.” CBK
You’re exactly right, as usual, Duane. But where does that leave me? There’s no way I can enforce 40 kids wearing masks, even if it is state policy, if a few parents refuse to have their children wear masks, because then every other kid won’t wear them either. I teach 9th grade–height of peer pressure.
And if I talk to my kids (which I plan to do) about wearing masks so that I can be safe, and the people that I and they go home to can be safe, you can bet I will have parents FREAKING OUT and calling me and the principal and the superintendent and the school board. Because I’m “violating their rights.”
It’s a Catch-22.
Threatened . . . can you deny them access to your classroom if not wearing a mask? CBK
CBK: There is no policy on that, but I’m sure the answer is no.
TOW,
The first day I would give them my writing to read and discuss. Treat them as the adults (yes, I understand that can be hard with 9th graders) they are wanting to be and they will respond in like kind. At least that is what I used to do and would do now.
And then I’d reiterate that my class is a dictatorship and that whatever I say goes! (of course with the right tone and sense of humor, that is). They appreciate that also.
And TOW, I’d expect the administration to back me 100% when it came to those parental complaints. As much as I decry the adminimals with whom I’ve had to deal, I did let them know ahead of time what I expected out of them. They might not have liked it that much but they knew where I stood and that I demanded, as part of their job, that they defend me when I was in the right.
Threatened (I copied below two notes from this thread). But about denying students without masks access to classrooms:
Is it reasonable to just assume that all of students will be irresponsible about their own health? They are being asked to actually BECOME political by their actions.
Also, teachers are putting their own health in danger (not to mention the other students’ health). Haven’t the big “they” (who have their heads up Trump’s xxx), pushed all teachers, parents, administrators and students into a corner where “group legal” is the only step out, besides just quitting or staying home and facing THOSE consequences?
This is also all in the light of (in my state) Governor Newsome and the two big areas of San Diego and LA. So there is grounds for resistance there also, as well as all over the Country. (see below) CBK
Note 1: Catherine King: July 14, 2020 at 1:42 pm . . . can you deny them access to your classroom if not wearing a mask? CBK
Note 2: Threatened Out West/July 14, 2020 at 2:25 pm
There is no policy on that, but I’m sure the answer is no.
We teachers in Utah do not have that kind of power. Never have. We’ve always been seen as “the second income to our husbands, and we just make the money to have fun with, plus we get summers off.” The legislature and most parents don’t care about us. We’re babysitters, pure and simple. That’s why our class sizes are routinely 30-40. That’s why Utah’s per pupil expenditure is the lowest in the country. That’s why our pay is so horrible. And the state figures they have an unlimited supply of young women teachers who will teach for a couple of years and will quit to have a family.
Threatened I remember THAT. Thanks for explaining. Sigh . . . CBK
I WISH BERNIE WAS PRESIDENT. Imagine what this country would look like vs. the Orange Maniac.
……………………………………….
BERNIE SANDERS:
The pandemic surges in state after state. More people are sick. More people are dying. As a result of the economic meltdown millions live in desperation — unemployed, hungry and facing eviction from their homes.
And, in the midst of all that, we have a president who seems more clueless, isolated and unhinged every day.
So where do we go from here?
As progressives, our job is not just to respond to the “news of the day.” We’ve got to think strategically and know where we want to go short-term and long-term and do everything possible to implement our priorities.
Now, Republicans may try to ignore the horrific reality facing tens of millions of Americans today, but they are smart politicians. In their heart of hearts, they may not want to do anything to help the working people of this country during this crisis, but they do realize if they want to get re-elected they have to act.
So our job, right now, is to put as much pressure on them as we possibly can.
Congress reconvenes next week. And between now and then the most immediate task we face is to demand that the do-nothing Republican Senate pass meaningful legislation to protect working families from the ravages of the pandemic and the economic anguish that so many Americans are experiencing. There are a lot of good ideas out there.
Here is what I am fighting for:
Passing the Paycheck Security Act to make sure that every worker in America who lost a job during this crisis continues to receive a paycheck.
Passing the Emergency Health Care Guarantee Act to empower Medicare to pay all of the medical bills of the 100 million Americans who are now uninsured or under-insured.
Providing $2,000 emergency payments to every working class American until this crisis is over.
Saving the Post Service to protect 630,000 good-paying jobs and to make sure that people living in rural areas continue to receive the packages, prescription drugs and supplies they need.
Extending the $600 a week increase in unemployment benefits that expires at the end of this month.
Canceling rent and mortgage payments until the pandemic ends to prevent up to 20 million Americans from being evicted from their homes.
Making sure no one in America goes hungry by substantially increasing nutrition assistance programs.
Manufacturing and distributing high quality masks for ALL through the Defense Production Act.
Secondly, it is absolutely imperative that we do everything possible to make sure that Trump is defeated in November, and that starts with substantially increasing voter turnout.
If we turn out in record numbers, we will win.
If we fail to turn our people out, Trump and the Republicans will win.
School boards in California are part of our problem. One doesn’t have to have any higher education to be elected to a school board and you can have a felony on your record and still serve. These Orange County members should be recalled.
Israel fully reopened differently: covid was under control after a draconian lockdown; , testing/ tracking/ isolating systems in place. Schools were fully reopened in May over a 2-wk period, w/ students wearing masks, but closely spaced. Meanwhile everything else reopened too, w/no reqt for masks or restrictions on public gatherings. Within 6 wks, the infection rate has jumped to 56 times what it was, & everything is now closing down again.
So blaming Israeli schools for the outbreak is without acknowledging the role of opening society as a whole with no restrictions. I wonder how many times someone somewhere has to try this experiment before it is generally accepted that we must take the medically recommended precautions.
I have given two links to this video. [Hope you can get the video.] It does show that the NYT is aware of the destructiveness of Bolsonaro. Trump and Bolsonaro are two peas in a pod.
Video: Trump Isn’t the Worst Pandemic President By Felipe Neto
Felipe Neto, a Brazilian YouTuber with close to 39 million subscribers, talks about President Jair Bolsonaro, who he says, “makes Donald Trump seem like Patch Adams.”
Bolsonaro is presiding over what may be the world’s worst coronavirus crisis, and despite recently testing positive for the virus, he still won’t take the pandemic seriously. He even fired his health minister for encouraging social distancing. He’s Brazil’s denier-in-chief.
https://www.nytimes.com/video/players/offsite/index.html?videoId=100000007227771
One more reason that schools should open. Kids don’t catch COVIC-19 and won’t pass it on to other students OR any adults in the school. [EXTREME SARCASM!!]
Chicago Tribune
July 15, 2020 BREAKING NEWS At least 36 Lake Zurich High School students test positive for COVID-19, infections traced to three sports camps At least 36 students at Lake Zurich High School have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to Lake County health officials who say they have traced the infections to three summer athletic camps and “recent social gatherings.”
Parents need to be careful about what they are asking for.
Idaho is having problems.
https://t1.news.mcclatchydc.com/r/?id=h5782a0bd,b1934a5,adaecfa&ac_cid=DM238822&ac_bid=1468178621&s=0sbLHc99FAEBkmW_2t-AnG4J8KGssuEgJkBVhwIAMUo=
Opps. The chart didn’t show.
Idaho experiences deadliest day since coronavirus pandemic began, new cases hit record
JULY 15, 2020 05:21 PM , UPDATED 11 HOURS 31 MINUTES AGO
Read more here: https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/coronavirus/article244255877.html?#storylink=cpy
https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/coronavirus/article244255877.html
Many Republicans enter Walmart and things are changing for the good. [How many shootings will occur when angry men don’t want to do this. Trump has already shown them that to wear a mask is very unmanly.]
WaPo:
Walmart’s nationwide mandate could prove a watershed moment in the mask debate.
There is already evidence that the announcement by the nation’s biggest employer — a retail staple of rural and exurban Republican strongholds — is turning the tide on what had become another front in a toxic partisan fight.
Hours after Walmart made its announcement, supermarket chain Kroger said it is following suit with a nationwide rule for shoppers in its stores that will take effect next week. Kohl’s, too, announced it will require shoppers to mask up in its 1,100 nationwide starting Monday.
And the National Retail Federation piggybacked on the Walmart announcement to encourage all retailers to adopt the policy, saying it hoped the news proves to be a “tipping point” on the matter. “Workers serving customers should not have to make a critical decision as to whether they should risk exposure to infection or lose their jobs because a minority of people refuse to wear masks in order to help stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus,” the trade association said in its statement.
General counsel for the federation, Stephanie Martz, suggested that Walmart’s market and cultural pull could have an outsize impact. “The more stores that are able to make announcements like this, the more it will help move the needle culturally and make it accepted that this is what you do when you shop in an enclosed space,” she said. “The fact that this has become politicized is really disappointing.”
Someone should publish a picture of JOHN WAYNE wearing a mask. (Does anyone here remember who John Wayne was?)
. . . SUPERMAN, maybe . . . ?
My father, who was a shy mild-mannered man, always wished he could be John Wayne. Some of his quotes are quite relevant today. Some are on the far Right BS level.
The reason there are so many stupid people is because it’s illegal to kill them.
—John Wayne
A friend of mine told me to shoot first and ask questions later. I was going to ask him why, but I had to shoot him.
—John Wayne
Tomorrow hopes we have learned something from yesterday.
–John Wayne
Male menopause is a lot more fun than female menopause. With female menopause you gain weight and get hot flashes. Male menopause ? you get to date young girls and drive motorcycles.
—John Wayne
Life is getting up one more time than you’ve been knocked down.
—John Wayne
SUPREME YUCK!
I believe in white supremacy, until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people … I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from [the Native Americans] … Our so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.
—John Wayne
I have found a certain type calls himself a Liberal…Now I always thought I was a Liberal. I came up terribly surprised one time when I found out that I was a Right-Wing Conservative Extremist, when I listened to everybody’s point of view that I ever met, and then decided how I should feel. But this so-called new Liberal group, Jesus, they never listen to your point of view.
—John Wayne
carolmalaysia Thanks for the hearty laugh. During the Duke’s time on this earth, few would have given those yucky quotes a second thought. CBK