By Sherman R. Frederick
Sometimes I hate it when I’m right.
As noted in an earlier column, the GCMS (Great Coronavirus Mask Switcheroo) made no sense to me at the time it was announced. Now we find it wasn’t a mistake at all. Our public health masters deliberately misled us to prevent a run on masks.
Early in the meltdown, the CDC and state public health officials claimed wearing a mask wasn’t necessary. In fact, they derided the idea as an “Asian thing” that lulls people into a false sense of security.
Then advice for the hoi polloi turned on a dime. Masks suddenly protected the hive from coronavirus, the medical gurus said, and in some jurisdictions masks not only became advisable, they became the law of the land.
Now the nation’s most recognized pandemic doc, Anthony Fauci, finally comes clean on why the GCMS.
Public health officials initially recommended against the general public wearing masks, Fauci said, because “it was at a time when personal protective equipment, including the N95 masks and the surgical masks, were in very short supply.”
They feared that if truth were told to the unwashed masses, masks would go the way of toilet paper and there would be none left for “essential” people — you know, doctors, professional basketball players and politicians.
It’s a stark reminder of how easy it is for anyone — public health gurus and politicians alike — to get drunk on power and treat people as expendable.
So, c’mon, docs: No more lying to protect the common good. Give us the full set of “facts ‘n stats.” Trust people to do the right thing. We will, I promise you, act in our own best interest.
SOCIAL BUBBLES
In the file labeled “You Can’t Make This Stuff Up” comes a thing called the “Social Bubble.” Health Officer Scott Morrow outlines the bubble concept in the latest set of new coronavirus rules.
“A social bubble is a group of 12 or fewer people from different households or living units who have agreed to socialize only with members of their group,” he explains. “A social bubble must be maintained for a minimum of three weeks, and people can only be members of one social bubble at a time.
“While face coverings and social distancing are always recommended, members of a social bubble do not have to adhere to these requirements when they are with members of their social bubble in outdoor settings.
“The health officer has requested that the sheriff and all police chiefs in the county ensure compliance with and enforcement of this order. Violation of any of its provisions is considered an imminent threat and menace to public health, constitutes a public nuisance, and is punishable by fine, imprisonment, or both.”
So, ladies and germs, as if the police didn’t have anything else to worry about these days, they’re now charged with enforcing social bubbles. So, if you don’t want to be a “menace to public health,” as the good doctor says, be prepared to identify who is in your social bubble, how long you’ve been in that social bubble and prove you’re not two-timing your first bubble group with a second or third bubble group.
How, may I ask, are police officers supposed to do that, exactly?
Jeez, you can’t make this stuff up.
WAIT, WHAT?
Protesters “celebrating” Juneteenth tore down a statue of Ulysses S. Grant in San Francisco last Friday night.
Can it get any dumber than that?
Gen. Grant won the Civil War that freed the slaves. There literally wouldn’t be a Juneteenth without Gen. Grant. As president he fought the first iteration of the Ku Klux Klan that sprang up in the South.
He also tried to reform Native American policy.
Ignorant anarchy ruled last Friday in San Francisco. And where was the mayor and the police in that fine city?
By the way, it should be noted that Frederick Douglass eulogized Grant with these words:
“A man too broad for prejudice, too humane to despise the humblest, too great to be small at any point. In him the Negro found a protector, the Indian a friend, a vanquished foe a brother, an imperiled nation a savior.”
I suspect the rioters had no idea who Frederick Douglass was when they pulled down Grant’s statue, which is more sadness heaped on sadness.
ONE MORE THING
— Attention: If you are required to wear a mask and also must wear glasses, you may be due condensation.
—I did a big load of pajamas today so I’d have enough work clothes to put out the newspaper next week. Thought you’d like to know.
— Now comes a PG rated Star Trek with a new captain of the Enterprise.
I know. That was bad. I’ll let myself out. I’ll be glad to see you here next week when we’ll boldly explore more strange new worlds in the screwed up year of 2020. Until then, stay well, protect yourself and avoid soreheads. It doesn’t cost a dime to be kind.
Sherman R. Frederick is the founder of Battle Born Media, publisher of intensely local community newspapers, including the Novato Advance, the San Rafael News Pointer, the Mill Valley Herald, the Sausalito Marin Scope, the Twin Cities Times, the Ross Valley Reporter and the Pacifica Tribune. He may be reached at shermfrederick@gmail.com.)
sandra sgorbati says
i adore your honest journalism. i am amazed personally that one of our current fearless leaders stated we should also wear masks anytime we are outside our home and try to mandate this as well. He also stated, lo, that we should probably wear a mask when we are alone driving a car. Whatever happened to fresh air and sunshine killing microbes? My landlord is wiping everything down with hand sanitizer with propyline glycol and wondering why everyone here has nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. I guess gloves are essential to protect us from those attempting to keep us safe. : )
Debbie says
Thank you for sharing your refreshing, intelligent and light-hearted perspective.
A delight to read. Your writing is a gift. Much appreciated!
Nora Sawyer says
Seriously — if they’d just said, “there’s a shortage of masks, so please, everyone, improvise something something made from a bandanna or t-shirt if you need to go outside,” we could have potentially prevented a lot of infections. Never mind the fact that a having a pandemic task force in place could have alerted manufacturers to a potential run on domestic toilet paper (as opposed to those giant rolls found in public bathrooms) and helped prevent shortages on that front.
Barbie says
I agreed with your article, until you said “ Trust people to do the right thing. We will, I promise you, act in our own best interest.”. Have you been out lately to see how many people are maskless and not social distancing?