Yay.
And we'll see what comes of the holiday weekend. Memorial Day gave us a nice spike in June, and there were some pretty big crowds at certain places the last coupla days, but it seems a fair bunch have begun to understand the realities, so maybe enough people are aware enough to make a difference. (not bloody likely, but hey - a guy can hope)
It seemed this spring that the pandemic sweeping America had passed Joplin by.
The meticulously prepared coronavirus unit at the hospital was all but deserted. The health department dutifully reported each day it had nothing new to report. The novel coronavirus was terrorizing the coasts and larger inland hubs, killing people by the thousands. But in the modest southwest Missouri city where Bonnie and Clyde once hid out from the law, it was more rumor than reality.
“We’re dead center in the middle of the nation,” said Joplin Mayor Ryan Stanley. “It took so long to get to us.”
Now that it has arrived following a rapid statewide reopening, however, it’s hitting the region with a vengeance. After starting June with no active cases in the city, Joplin entered July at the heart of one of the country’s fastest growing coronavirus hot spots. And like many places that skipped the springtime surge only to be walloped this summer, it’s fighting back with a much-diminished arsenal.
Missouri’s stay-at-home order is gone and unlikely to return. Tests are in short supply. The hospital is bumping against capacity as coronavirus cases pile up and doctors work their way through a backlog of non-emergency procedures.
Meanwhile, the one measure that medical experts say could turn the coronavirus tide — widespread use of masks — has become mired in politics. Joplin’s city council spent nearly five hours debating whether to require them last week, only to reject the proposal by a single vote.
In a deeply conservative region where Donald Trump won nearly 80 percent of 2016’s presidential ballots, any attempt to force people to mask up was likely to backfire, Stanley concluded. Most residents who had spoken at the meeting argued against the measure, citing infringement of their personal freedom.
“I’m surprised it’s as divisive as it is,” said the mayor, who personally wears masks and advocates that others do the same, but who cast the deciding vote against mandating them. “If we’re having this crazy spike in the area, don’t you think we’d want to err on the side of caution?”
Reason has gone out the fucking window. The mayor of Joplin wears a mask, knowing it's the best thing for himself and others, but he votes against the mandate because he's afraid it'll backfire(?) He laments that the issue is divisive and political, and then he votes in line with the divisive politics of the moment.
Fake lord have mercy.
Not that the story is particularly sunny and optimistic in the first place, but it gets worse, so that's as far as I'm gonna go with it.
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