Greetings. I am a voting constituent in rural west Texas.
Texas is open for business. And the National Guard was in my small town recently giving vaccinations. Why? I’m assuming because our vaccine allotment was so paltry, and our infection numbers greater than they should be, that someone decided maybe it was time to literally call in the troops.
Regardless. Our town has pretty much remained open. I think we were at 75% business occupancy when the mask mandate was rescinded on Wednesday.
Around here, relying on people to do the right thing has a wide-open definition. And mostly consists of doing nothing proactive. Proactive like wearing a small piece of cloth to try and help us get back to normal.
Whatever. A politician’s life consists of weighing the risks. Mostly to their political career.
As I read this a.m. in The Hill:
“Here’s how to think about “risk taking.” An individual may decide to engage in risky behavior that has minimal impact on others. A young person decides to go freestyle cliff climbing, that is, vertical rock walls without ropes. Other than grieving survivors, that person is risking their life without endangering others.
Another individual chooses to drive at high speeds after drinking alcohol. That person, as well, is taking an extreme risk — but also puts other innocent lives at extreme risk. That is a higher level of risk that is both illegal and immoral.
But what about the governor who insists upon a policy that puts the lives of millions of others at risk, perhaps while involving little or no risk for the politician on a personal level? This is in effect what a government order does by rescinding mask wearing and social distancing rules in the middle of a still highly contagious, deadly outbreak. Who will be accountable if the ill-conceived public health rollbacks result in a new wave of COVID-19 cases and fatalities?”
Who will be accountable indeed. Think we’ll see some of that long-touted, but rarely exhibited, ‘personal responsibility’ from our Republican leadership?
