It feels later than 8:30 in the morning. I have been up for quite awhile, getting a head start on work, and I am now sitting on my back patio for what is becoming my routine morning coffee break. I feel like it should be closer to lunch time, partly because of how early I got up this morning and partly because of how warm it is outside. The summer heat is definitely here.
All four furs are inside enjoying morning naps. Potatoe is sharing his dog pillow bed with Trooper this morning, but he does not look happy about it. Storme is purring away in Little Chirp’s lap, while Little Chirp starts a new book. Pumpkine is snuggled on my bed. With the Storey Furs all inside, the squirrels are owning the backyard this morning. I am pretty sure that it is the same two squirrels every morning. Brainy Bird is busy getting the stew in the pot for lunch. It is way too hot for stew, but the beef selection was quite limited at HEB this week.
A headline on Fox Business this morning was something to the effect of Americans are beginning to revolt against Draconian like measures. Elon Musk, founder of Tesla, is front and center as he is opening his plant today against California state orders. He has asked that if they are going to arrest someone that it be him (not one of his employees). I love my Audi, and I swear that I am never buying another new car, but if Musk moves his operations to Houston or the surrounding area, my next car is going to be a Tesla.
Another headline is that Fauci warns of suffering and death if the states continue with their reopening plans. Sadly, I think that this is what Fauci is hoping for. I think that being empowered and being right are more important to many government officials than what is best for America. I feel that Fauci is at the forefront of these government officials.
I think that the government – federal, state and local needs to step back and let Americans decide for themselves. If people want to stay home, then they can stay home. If people want to open their business and make a living instead of putting themselves at the mercy of another government stimulus package, they should be allow to do so. If people want to go to a locally owned business, they should have the right to do so. The wrong turn was the government telling us what we could and could not do, rather than focusing on providing people information.
Watching the news this morning, and seeing the protests against the stay at home orders, and demands to reopen all of our business, makes me proud to be an American. It gives me a great deal of hope.
Even if all of American opened right this instant, the damage that the stay at home orders has done to our economy and to individuals from a mental health perspective is going to last for years. Suicide, domestic violence and crime are all on a steep incline. I see elementary school kids outside doing manual labor for their parent’s yard service, something that school protected them from for at least nine months of the year. Every teacher that I know says that the vast majority of their students are backsliding. I could write paragraphs and paragraphs of the impact that the stay at home orders have had on our country. They far exceed the death rate of the virus.
The protests are a start, but we have to make sure that we take measure to never let this happen again.