image from citizentruth.org
Granted, the situation in Texas is VERY different than the one in Michigan. Michigan has more stringent measures put into place regarding business closures (which might make sense, considering the numbers dying up there right now). Of course, since state governments are trying to do the best they can–or at least some of them are–to stop the spread of the virus and promote physical distancing without a consistent guideline that applies to ALL states, things are gonna get screwy.
And tempers are gonna fly. Especially when a protest is led by a major Dump-supporter group that is in blaming mode.
And the temper will fly just as much when said protest is blocking all traffic as a tactic, not using any distancing precautions or PPEs, and preventing hospital workers from getting to their workplace to help save lives.
Oh boy, I applauded when I first saw this clip earlier… and then watched it a few more times in silence. I think I cried a bit the third time because this is super stupid and super frustrating, and I wanted to give the guy a hug big time.
This is a hospital worker in his vehicle, clip provided by MSNBC:
I want to give him a hug and yell at them, too.
I get that too many are unemployed right now, but why block up the roads to the hospital near the statehouse? How many of those screaming protesters wanting to go back to work (without face-masks, physical distancing, gloves, etc) have gone back to their homes and spread the virus around?
That part REALLY gets me–what was the point? Why block up the hospital on purpose, make the streets impassable while people are dying? Makes no sense to me. It’s frustrating because you know somebody in that crowd probably has a sick person at home, or will in the near future.
Funny how this is worse than I’d imagined in that respect,. I don’t think we’ll get something like that down here in Texas, at least, not my neck of the woods by Houston. I think there are quite a few people that aren’t taking it terribly seriously, not wearing protective gear and the like, and not making much of an effort to stay at home.
I do, however, anticipate some laxness that’s gonna slip back in once the governor or the counties relax the rules a bit. I talked to someone today who works for a nearby hospital that they’re slowly relaxing things to get more patients in for things that aren’t strictly emergency. Of course, they’re making it a trickle so there’s not a swarm.
I hope it works. Good luck putting the genie back in the lamp if it doesn’t.
Thanks, Daffy.
That’s the thing I think I’ve been most concerned about. I gave my boss and everybody else a week to plan for a shutdown where I’m at because I’m running out of PPE supplies and want to have a chance to stock up. I can’t do it any other times because the stores don’t open until after my shift begins, and five hours later if I was to go looking, no gloves or sanitizer anywhere.
That was a useful reason to shut down, a much needed and very honest one. I have one small box of gloves here at home, but I don’t want to break that one open until I’m sure I’ve got some coming my way or I’m able to find some.
That also means, I won’t be in full self-quarantine if I have to try and shop early some mornings, just to get that stock started. I found some things I needed on Amazon (ugh, I hate shopping with them), but no guarantees that it’ll reach me in time to reopen in two weeks. That’s why I need the days off (and my dogs need to visit the vet for meds).
But this impatience to get back to things. I was very annoyed with our state leadership when Dan Patrick was practically approving death panels to write off the elderly in order to get the economy going. I know Abbott was kind of in the same boat of wanting to get things going, and was coming up with a plan over the weekend. He couldn’t seem to make up his mind, but it looks like he calmed down a bit and took the weekend to consider timing. Yes, things got extended til Mid-May as far as the shutdown goes, but I was afraid things would go the other way.
Yeah, not often would I say I’m glad to be missing out on a paycheck, but part of me is tired and I just need to be at home taking care of stuff, unwinding, de-stressing. I’ve had stress headaches for weeks that have made sleep awful. Being at home and away from people may well help me recover my good nature and get out of my depressive funk much easier. I’ve been goofy and such at work for the customers, but I’m wearing myself out trying to be so helpful.
Hello customer, pay no attention to the smile. I’m just going quietly mad…
Time to help myself, like I promised I would.
Again, I don’t think we’ll have some massive protest and whatnot going through the streets, screwing things up. On the other hand, there are those people that if you give ’em an inch they take a mile, and will as rules get more lax. I’m determined to wait out the birth pains of a revitalized economy at home, cleaning my house and getting my yard all fixed up like I should’ve done a month ago.
Well, hoping everybody’s transition to being working schmoes again isn’t too radical or crazy… and that everybody stay safe as possible.
Let’s hope this protest in Michigan just goes away when they realize how stupid they’re being with their tactics… and that no other protests go the way this one did. We need our healthcare workers, dammit. Don’t hurt your neighbors and hospitals like that.
Oh wait, North Carolina and Ohio have similar protests going on (only Michigan has a democratic woman governor rather than a male one, according to a scathing Salon.com article I just found). DAMMIT!!!
The Chatty Introvert 
there are protests all over the country…only democrati governors seem to be getting the most press. The hill country has been hit with covid19..a nursing home in marble falls has every single patient ill and half their staff. I know because my aunt is in there now..and no one can be shipped to a hospital as the entire home is now quarantined. Everyone wants to go back to work. even those of us who are retired want to get out and about. but relaxing the stay at home orders too soon will result in a resurgence of infections. frankly you are lucky you even have gloves. my hubby doesn’t and he is a registered nurse, retired BUT volunteering in a nearby hospital because so many of their workers are out sick. Sorry, hun, but I get really pissed off that my love has not enough PPE to carry him through one day’s work and you have an entire box of gloves.
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Virtual hugs to you both. I totally get that feeling and don’t blame you. I’m shocked at how ill-equipped so many hospitals and care facilities seem to be, that nobody seemed to foresee this (you’d think our never-reading but movie-watching leaders might contemplate what a major contagion they’ve seen on TV would require for hospital staff.) I almost didn’t know I had them til I went looking all over the place. They were left over from the last day my dad’s home-care nurse came to visit and she gave me a box about four or five years ago. Not sure how good they are or if they go bad, but thankfully they’ve been in air conditioned environments, so maybe that will help. My last pair at work was used yesterday and after four hours and lots of sanitizer on them, the fingertips were splitting. I ended up winding scotch tape around the tips of four of the fingers to hold the split area together and keep it sealed up. Was hell trying to remove ’em without touching the outside later. Glad I don’t need gloves at home.
That’s another reason I wanna see if I can get some more gloves online. My next door neighbor works in a hospital and if she’s running out, I want to give her a box to take with her. So far, her workplace seems okay, but they’re not seeing the numbers of infected other areas are yet, either. I’ve made sure to offer just in case because this is ridiculous and she’s not in the best health herself from other issues.
Hope they can get their hands on some more PPEs soon… that every hospital can. You know, they keep talking about the ventilators and needing to make those and spending money on making them… but what about the businesses that make the gloves and the gowns? What’s going on there?
Now I’ve got a research topic for the night.
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Don’t count on getting anything you order until you have it in your hands. I had a small order in with Amazon and 3 weeks (!) later got a note that the order had been canceled. Not delayed or back ordered or something, but flat out canceled! I could have spent those 3 weeks trying to track down the supplies someplace else. Stay safe, stay well.
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That’s half the reason why I hate Amazon. No explanations or assurances that maybe they can back-order something and ask if you’d like to keep trying. (the other half of the reason is how they treat their workers.)
I’d rather get just something that I can cover my hands with around customers and put some sanitizer on it. Doesn’t have to be hospital grade because I’d prefer the hospitals have that. I just know I’m flat out not going back to work until I have gloves, because with my fingerprinting job, there’s no way to do that without physically touching their hands, and I have to do it up to 40 times a morning. That means lots of sanitizer, and dealing with people who might not have taken this situation very seriously before walking in my door. I’ve got two grocery stores 10 miles from me, one north, one southwest. The northern one’s in a small town where last time i went, maybe only 1 in 10 were wearing a mask, gloves, or both (I was one of them). The staff weren’t wearing any of these things because management wasn’t comfortable with the idea (reeks of Hobby Lobby management all over again). The one south of me is an H-E-B and they’re big on the distancing rule, sanitizing carts for the customers, whatever they can do. And the whole staff walks around with some type of masks and gloves on. Customers are half or better in taking it seriously.
It’s gonna be a long two weeks at home, but I’m willing to do it.
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Hello thechattyintrovert. Yes the protest was designed to hurt the most and blocking the hospital was deliberate. An ER doctor even went out to plead with them to let the ambulances through. Everyone of them should be arrested and charged if any patient died as a result of not being able to get to the ER in a timely manner. What has happened to these people that the lives of others mean so little to them. The sad fact is most of them can not figure out they are being used. The wealthy want them working, shopping, producing, and selling so the wealthy can make more money. It is like the Hobby Lobby billionaire owner who demanded his stores stay open and his workers not wear any PPE while he stayed safe at home. He ended up with so much backlash he pulled a tRump, closed all the stores and laid all the help off with no automatic return to work if they reopen. Basically he in a snit fired everyone. He did not give a crap about the employees, it was all about his profit. And that is why State Propaganda TV is pushing to reopen the country, profit for the wealthy, death for the working serfs and peasants. Hugs
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Hugs back. The Hobby Lobby thing’s been on the mind because that’s one of the worst examples of naked corporate negligence I’ve seen in a while (amazing how they briefly knocked Amazon off the pedestal as the most hated company–hee hee). I just responded to somebody else about how a grocery store near me wasn’t doing any PPE with their employees because as one told me, management wasn’t comfortable with it and thought it might look bad. They just had the “salad bar shields” in front of the cashiers and that was it. Maybe some had gloves at least, but I’m not sure.
I guess my biggest questions are “What the heck are they thinking?” which maybe needs to be prefaced with “ARE they thinking?” They’d say they are, I’m sure…
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Hello TheChattyIntrovert. Here we have two grocery stores really close, a Publix and a Winn Dixie. The Winn Dixie did a great job with the cashier shields, and nearly all the customers wear PPE. In the Publix nearly no one wears PPE and the cashier shields are horrible and do little to protect the cashier. But what kills me is at one of the stores a man wouldn’t speak up, and the cashier kept having to get closer and closer. The man had no mask and Ron said he seemed to be doing it deliberty. When Ron got up to her he told her not to do that , if they don’t want to be heard call a supervisor. Ron sees people die of this every night he works, young people, healthy people, old people, it doesn’t matter, this gets into your lungs and it can be a fight to live. Hugs
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