Some people may disagree with me about school openings

[LuckyCharms]

and that's understandable...but I think it is nuts to even think about reopening schools, reopening restaurants, reopening much of anything.

Number one priority is to smash the virus with a sledge hammer.

Nothing else works well until the virus is controlled and managed.

Here's another thing I think should happen...$3,000 a month to every adult, and they stay home for awhile. Where will the government get the money? I don't care. Find it. Take it from somewhere else. Have the national guard deliver emergency food and medicine. Any financial relief is going to go right back into the economy anyway, and will keep things afloat.

Quit pretending. If you open the schools, expect a lot of slow walking and crying in about 3 weeks when people start dropping like flies. HOW...HOW...HOW DID THIS HAPPEN??? What kind of experience are kids going to have at school anyway when they have to essentially walk around in plastic bubbles, wash their hands 50 times a day, stay away from their friends, etc. Kids don't have that discipline, and all it takes is once.

Stop giving this country 1,000 paper cuts a day and fix this shit already. Yes, the children will be set back. When this is over, the new sane Democratic government can work on abating that.

Yes, but...we can't close down most of the economy like that!!!! Yes we can, because if we don't, the virus will. Quit dodging the barrage of bullets and pretending that you're just dancing.

Stop pretending that things can get back to normal this way. Come up with a goddamn national plan, and recognize that this is what happens when a fucking monster gets elected.

[Demonaut]

1. I have a sledge hammer

[soothsayer]

2. Are there people here who disagree with that?

I wish the whole world would shut down for (a month? 6 weeks? 100 days?). Shut the stupid global markets that distract everyone. Put a pause on bills and pretty much everything else for that time. Stay home and just do not give the virus anywhere to spread.

We’d be done with it.

[LuckyCharms]

3. Maybe not on DU, you're right...

but there are plenty of them where I live. Even a lot of Trump haters feel that things should open up..."get back to normal".

[soothsayer]

5. I don't understand that line of thinking at all

But...obviously those crazy folks are out there.

[happybird]

13. The number of calls we get at work every day

from people asking if the dining room or patio is open for seating is disheartening.

Some of them even get shirty when they hear, “No, we are still carryout, only, and plan to stay that way for the next couple months, at least.”

I had to cover phones today (yay! a reprieve from the sweltering kitchen!) and had a lady audibly huff when I told her that, and then she asked, “Why?”

[AllyCat]

15. Yes. Just this week someone was talking about

Some neglected children. It sounded bad. But we need changes to our social safety net, not reopening the schools.

[crickets]

17. +1000000

[CentralMass]

4. Full agreement here.

[albacore]

6. 30 years teaching...

Opening in-person schools this Fall is the Dumbest Fucking Idea Ever.

[MoonlitKnight]

7. It's the quickest way to end this

It’s a shame many are too ignorant to do it.

Instead we wasted a lot of time, money and lives only to try to rush back to normal. And we never really shut down.

At this point we just have to survive until our leadership changes.

Then we will fix things only to have people get stupid and screw it up again in a new way.

[smirkymonkey]

8. I agree completely.

Nothing is going to get better until we get this virus under control.

[skylucy]

9. I taught kindergarten for 38 years. Opening the schools is a terrible idea. If they open them, I

guarantee they won't be open for long.

[Initech]

10. We're not getting anything nice while Trump is in charge.

He's got his marching orders from Fox News and AM hate radio, as long as they have him in their back pocket, it won't matter how many people suffer, or how many will die. The only thing that they care about is the almighty dollar, and the only thing that Trump cares about is what makes him look good. So as long as those two things exist, it's a circular firing squad recipe for disaster.

[SheltieLover]

11. 100% agree!

Stupid!

Why does anyone listen to anything chump says?

[totodeinhere]

12. I think things are going to have to get worse before they will consider a shutdown.

And it will get worse. So I think we will shut down eventually but it should be now, not later. While we dither many more will die.

[yaesu]

14. wall street got at least 9 trillion dollars bailout so far, that is $25,000 per every man, women

and child in the USA.

[byronius]

16. Pretty plain logic.

Yup.

[Tribetime]

18. I like the way you think 👌

[Sugarcoated]

19. Absolutely

👍👍👍

[Raine]

20. Bars definitely need to be shut down and remain that way

for the foreseeable future. Absolutely insane to have places like bars open when the main reason to go to a bar is drinking and socializing, worst combination in the world when you don't want disease spread. Politicians need to quit taking money from the alchohol and beverage lobbyists that buy them off!

[Rhiannon12866]

23. Absolutely.

When this first started, I read a chart of the risk factors from 1-10. Opening schools was rated at 6 while going to bars was a 9 out of 10.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

21. We are smashing the virus with a whack-a-mole mallet.

We enforce masks in one spot, the kids will have a beach party or block party or boat party in another spot. We enforce distancing here, then have a political rally or demonstration there, share the virus, carry it home.

We don't have the social discipline to defeat the virus. It will end when a proven vaccine is available and distributed to the non-antivaxxers. Even then, a vaccine may prove to be "somewhat" effective, slowing, but not stopping the virus.

Meanwhile, time is passing, and kids' education is not being done well. Some homes, with educated and dedicated parents, may have kids who thrive. Elsewhere, other results.

Here's to solutions! Wish I were smart enough to think of one.

[Rhiannon12866]

22. I agree with you.

When this first started, I thought it would be a few weeks. My impression now is that this will remain a permanent condition until we have national leadership like we've seen in other countries, and that does not look like it's forthcoming.

[Progressive dog]

24. There are essential jobs and the people

doing those jobs can't stop. If those jobs aren't done, the money will be worthless. Everyone can't "stay home for a while." There will be no food, no heat, no electricity, no phones, no water, no sewage disposal, no garbage disposal-- though I guess we won't need the last two since we won't be eating and will have no wrapping or leftovers.

[LuckyCharms]

25. Of course...the essential jobs need to need done.

But...

The burden on medical workers is reduced when non-essentials stay off the streets.

The burden on grocery workers is reduced when normal grocery shopping is supplemented by guard members who are suited up for their safety and properly trained to safely perform the delivery of food, medicine and supplies.

The burden on police is reduced when hardly anyone is on the streets.

No one putting others at risk when anti-maskers are forced to stay inside.

Utility workers suited up with PPE. Some can even monitor grid systems from their home.

Landlords being paid as usual via electronic banking with funds provided via governmental relief.

Necessary purchases still being made online and orders being fulfilled and delivered by properly suited-up individuals who are at low risk.

Products still being produced by suited and daily tested individuals.

People still able to perform their normal jobs at home whenever possible.

Nobody walking around with a half-ass mask not covering their nose.

Rights and responsibilities go hand in hand. If you don't want to take responsibility for wearing a mask, then your "right" is diluted. Your "right" is diluted when it infringes on another persons right, especially during a health crises.

Small business losses to individual owners being mitigated by relief efforts provided by the Government.

Money provided to school systems that allows them to retrofit facilities in order to mitigate residual risks still evident after the curve is flattened as much as possible.

Financial assistance provided to hospitals to cover costs for treatment for both Covid and non-Covid related treatment, so the people who lost their jobs and insurance are not financially devastated.

Bring in the Army Corps. of Engineers to handle difficult logistical concerns.

Sacrifice, governmental financial support, draconian measures when absolutely needed...all toward the common goal of returning to a semi-normal state.

The Government caused the problem, they continue to exasperate it, and slow thinking dumb shits on the street cannot even be trusted to help to fix it. This bullshit needs to stop.

[Progressive dog]

26. That isn't the same as staying home

and getting paid for it while the majority of the workers do have to go to work. The government is us, the money from the government comes from us, we will have to pay back any money that the government borrows.
Getting even with the government is not going to solve the covid problem and neither is offering no solution except some get to stay home while others continue to work to feed them and care for them.
Shutting down is obviously not going to happen and it doesn't need to. Right now in NYS we are in phase 4 of a 4 stage recovery plan. It is not fixed in stone and the governor has adjusted the plan as problems arise.
Schools will reopen when the experts agree they can, but they will reopen.

[LuckyCharms]

27. I'm not talking about borrowing more money.

I' talking about re-prioritizing existing tax dollars and moving money from other budget line items.

I am not talking about getting back at the Government, I am talking about stratified state governments, with the blessing of the current federal government, running in 50 different directions.

Those that broke it need to fix it. Yes, it's our money. Where this money plans to be spent needs to be turned on it's head. We have close to 500,000 members of the National Guard and Army Corps of Engineers combined. We have FEMA. These resources are being paid for by our tax dollars currently. Their resources are not being fully utilized to help solve the one thing that has a pretty good potential of permanently destroying us.

You tell me how we are going to get to where we need to be considering current public opinion, remediation determined by artificial man made state borders, and public apathy.

By the way, NYS is in dire financial straits that cannot be solved without specific relief from the federal government.

[Progressive dog]

28. Now there's a plan

Magic money from all the waste. Lay off government workers to give their salaries to the stay at homes. That makes sense as long as laid off federal workers, contractors, seniors on medicare and social security, the poor on medicaid, food stamp recipients, and the people who will no longer get paid back for the money they loaned to the government.

[LuckyCharms]

29. Not sure where you are going with this.

I mentioned nothing about layoffs.

I understand that essential workers still need to work either at home or in the field.

I mentioned that a 50 state plan does not work.

I mentioned existing government workers being concentrated on this effort.

I mentioned supplementing every american citizen with meaningful financial relief.

I mentioned that non-essential workers, and even essential workers where it is feasible should work from home.

I mentioned that the more people that are off the streets, the less burden on essential workers.

I implied that rogue governors are making this worse with their insufficient planning.

I implied that a national relief and enforcement effort is needed.

So I again ask, what is your plan?

What is your plan?

[Progressive dog]

30. I'm not going anywhere with this.

I'm just trying to artculate that
There are still going to be people working or we all have nothing to buy.
Money is just paper if nothing is made that can be bought.
If people don't follow mask and distancing rules, they won't obey stay at home edicts.
The essential workers mostly cannot work from home.
Most government money ends up in peoples hands, it is not available to spend again and again.
Mentioning facts is not the same as using facts.