This isn't a game. It's a pandemic.

[TexasTowelie]

By American-Statesman Editorial Board


More and more Texans are contracting the coronavirus at a clip that public health officials warn is unsustainable. Waves of new patients are hitting hospitals, which statewide are seeing two-thirds more COVID-19 patients now than they had just three weeks ago. And Gov. Greg Abbott appears to be more interested in playing word games than providing reliable leadership.

In a move seemingly pulled from the pages of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” Abbott announced that, actually, local governments had the power they needed all along to require face masks, a proven method to curb the virus’ spread. This was quite a surprise, considering Abbott issued an executive order in late April barring cities and counties from enforcing a mask requirement. Turns out all they needed to do, Abbott said Wednesday, was require businesses to require masks of their customers and employees, not have local governments directly require masks of the public.

“The county judge in Bexar County finally figured that out,” Abbott said in an interview with Waco TV station KWTX, as if the state’s coronavirus strategy was a delicious riddle for local policy makers to solve.

Local officials, including those in Austin, quickly crafted new mask mandates for businesses. But it shouldn’t have taken seven weeks and secret code-cracking abilities to make it happen. In reality, it took an undeniable upswing of COVID cases, and louder pleas from Texas mayors, for Abbott to do what he should have done in late April: Let local communities establish mask mandates as needed.

Read more: https://www.statesman.com/opinion/20200618/editorial-this-isnrsquot-game-itrsquos-pandemic

The editorial calls Gov. Abbott a stupid sh*t in a polite manner.

[soothsayer]

1. Jeezus gawd

[rownesheck]

2. STUPID!!!!!

It should be the role of government to make these decisions, NOT private entities!!!!!! That's what government is for, you GD moron!!!!! Fucking Republicans.

[sheshe2]

3. Abbott.

Tool and Fool.

[yonder]

4. Republican leadership:

Let individual businesses decide what's best for the public with a helter skelter patchwork of go/no go, mask/maskless policies.

Let Al's Hardware control the traffic signal timing on Main St. Sure. Joe's Bar and Grill will have the drainage issue over on Elm St. fixed by next year...or the year after. Jack and Jill's Flowers will be deciding who gets to build what over there on Market St. Not a problem.

Absolutely insane.

[Midnight Writer]

5. When Abbott realized he was losing against the virus, he put responsibility on the localities.

Same thing Trump did when he declared the individual states held responsibility.

[soothsayer]

6. Bingo