Though Governor Tom Wolf was among the first to close down businesses, he is behind 29 other states that are already giving the self-employed and laid off workers relief under the federal CARES Act. It was only on Saturday that he finally set up a portal on the state unemployment website . When it was finally opened this weekend, it either failed completely or merely acted as a place holder. Many self-employed have yet to see a dime, whether it is the $1,200 stimulus check, pandemic unemployment, those mythical $600 checks that are supposed to be tacked onto everyone's benefits or no-interest loans. Small business owners, the very backbone of this country, are withering in the Spring. Let's start, ironically, with lawn and garden shops.
Small lawn and garden shops like Gumpf Gardens in Beaver Falls have been closed for six weeks, while Home Depot and Lowe's are making a killing. Gumpf has operated for 60 years and 70% of its annual sales are at this time of year. It was denied a waiver without explanation.
Contractor
I started my contracting company in February of 2015, with a $2000 tax refund my wife and I got that year. I worked almost the whole first season alone, completing whole roofs and siding jobs by myself, because I couldn't afford to hire anyone. I toughed through 14 hour days, 7 days a week to make it work. In January of 2016, my wife and I adopted a new born, born to a drug addicted welfare recipient that has given birth to 7 children, but has given them all up. Within hours of being born Jacob was incubated and his organs were shutting down, with his liver staying shut down when the other organs began functioning. He spent almost 2 months in UPMC Children's Hospital(great place) before recovering and we thought many times he wouldn't recover. During that time, I would work all day and then drive 45 minutes to the hospital to relieve my wife because she was pretty much living at the hospital. After he was healthy, and came home, we bought a new house and finally seem to have the American dream. Then in June of 2016, I had a bad fall on a roof, dislocated my left shoulder and completely tore all 4 tendons in my rotator cuff. The helper I had quit showing up to work and then stole off of me. To keep the business going, I worked with one arm in a sling until a friend starting up his own company was able to help me keep my schedule moving. Since then I have dealt with the expected hurdles of owning a business but managed to make it to my 5 year mark, and now have an excellent crew doing $5000 up to $15000 projects. I have done all of this while coping with the symptoms of bipolar disorder, and have never once asked for anything from the government. Now in the month of April 2020, I find myself wondering if I will still have a business next month and when I do need help from the government that is trying to put me out of business, they aren't there. I am sharing this because I know every small business owner has a story of their trials a tribulations. I would like to see others share their stories to make this more of a reality to those that don't support us.
Trucker
Saved up enough money to buy my own 2013 9900I 550cc 18 speed manual transmission with 259,000 miles on it this year. Finally got it ready and the government went into closure. I do not have the funds as a single dad to keep going. I kept 50/50 custody of my kids since the divorce in 2011 and I kept the house paying her for her portion. I have no 401K I have no savings. I am paying insurance for a truck that has no plates. $735 per month or I lose my Motor Carrier #. The truck is earning me zero dollars. This could take everything I have saved over my life and leave me with nothing.
Printer
I own a sign and graphics shop, from what I’ve been told but can’t find anything on Wolfe guidelines that I’m aloud to be open. So I’ve been shut down just to be safe but I myself go in and print the very few jobs we have. Phones are dead I don’t have the big print jobs we should for this time of year cause well everyone else is closed also. Race series we do awards for are shut down little to hardly any bike kits being ordered. This is my wife’s and my only income and with buying new printers at 20 grand a pop the bills still come in and we have nothing to pay them with. Tried to file for unemployment but we all know that’s a joke applied for PPP to bring back my employee who hasn’t got her pin yet after 4 weeks now also. This entire thing is a damn joke the way Wolfe has handled all of this. Most of us could be open and following the guidelines and still be safe to do business. This all just makes my blood boil, we have worked so hard since 08 to watch it all go away over this.
Stone Mason
Own a small one man show masonry restoration business. Being that I am self employed and work alone. I filed for 3 waivers to work and was denied all three times. Yet I see crews of landscapers, painters, roofers and so on working through this in my neighborhood. Most have approval to work. How the hell does this make any sense at all?????? Someone please explain the reason my small (ONE man show) business can’t work and crews with many guys can???🤦♂️🤦♂️🤷♂️🤷♂️🤷♂️ Most of the brick repairs I do are chimneys and on the exterior of the homes. When someone’s chimney is leaking into the home or falling over that is an emergency repair to me. I’ve explained all this when I filed for the waiver!!!! Bad chimneys can cause damages to a structure or home yet I was denied and told it’s not life sustaining. Ok then but painting inside someone’s house is??? Getting a new driveway installed is?? I see crews out working all day side by side yet I can’t work by myself???! Give me a break!!!! This whole thing is nothing but a f$&@,ing mess.... I am going to work soon with or without it. I have a family to support!!!!😡
On a side note: I stand by the recommendations of the hard working men and women on the front lines fighting this awful virus:) They are the true heroes in all of this and we owe them so much.❤️❤️ In no way am I belittling the severity of what’s going on here. I wish you all the best during these troubling times. Be safe everyone.
Auto Dealer
Even though we are not open I came into clean my office this weekend like I normally do. I'm looking around and remembering sanding drywall until I couldn't feel my hands, I remember every screw every nail and every brush stroke of paint I put into this place. I have worked 6 and 7 days a week longer then I can remember, I have put my family through so much trying to get this business to go , and they have sacrificed so much for me to chase after what is supposed to be a dream. I have sacrificed so much to chase this dream. I have never had any help from government they have always kicked me when they had a chance. Between fighting with local borough for zoning, building permits,occupancy permits and buisines licenses. I've had the attorney general send me a violation for wording in a vehicle advertisement ( advertised the car as being loaded) . Then your always on thin ice waiting on that next surprise inspection. After that you get to pay in a bunch of taxes . Then us small buisness owners do the right thing and close our business to protect our families, friends and neighbors. We VOLUNTARILY closed we were never sent a letter to close, not even an email. I have received zero dollars of unemployment, zero dollars government funding. But I have had to pay 100 percent of my companys overhead and my personal bills. Don't let them kill our dreams and take what we earned! look around the government didnt help you get where you are. Help Is NOT COMING! open signs need to be turned on. statistics say that 60 percent of small businesses will not make it 5 months in Pennsylvania. Not me I'm not going out without a fight! Im praying for all of you to get through this!
Get the picture? This is not about politics. It is about an overbearing state government denying people the right to earn a living and refusing to help them. It needs to start helping instead of suffocating the very people who make this country what it is.
They are no longer going to test you if you are under 65.
ReplyDeletehttp://northampton.thelehighvalleypress.com/2020/04/19/lvhn-coronavirus-testing-criteria-updated
I believe I actually know the Gumpfs; almost went to work for them after I graduated in horticulture from Penn State. I chose a different career path. Hope they come through this to be able to continue on.
ReplyDeleteIf Trump were to tweet "Stop the protests. Stay-at-home," the media would suddenly call these protesters "heroes" who were risking their personal safety to protest "authoritarian Trump" for destroying their lives.
ReplyDeleteWell this will be an interesting test if whether political convictions are smarter than science. They should sign waivers to not burden the healthcare system if they get sick.
ReplyDeleteI also question who wrote those heart retching stories.
The guidance from the Feds as to requirements for gig workers were issued on the 16th of April.
ReplyDeleteYou can see the report if you choose to.
As to far right groups-care to bet they ignore the republican legislature who can overrule Wolf?
The stories cited.until i know the names and can check it out i doubt all of them.
Let's see if social distancing and masks are big today.
Big business wants to make money.If that means some little people have to die for that to happen well too bad.
The gun groups have stated they do not care about self employed they want gun owners to be feared by politicians.
So who will take the blame if opening up early causes a second wave of covid?
Boycott Home Depot!
ReplyDeleteI don’t get the anti-Wolf stuff. You make it sound like he wanted to shut down these businesses. I understand that you got left out of Trump’s bailout for the airlines and you should be angry, but Wolf wants you alive.
ReplyDelete41,114 Deaths and counting.
ReplyDeleteEveryone accepts the need for distancing, masks and possibly gloves, many businesses can operate within the distancing guidelines. Road workers, outdoor construction, nurseries and greenhouses, lawn maintenance, golf courses and many more. It is laziness and poor management that puts a blanket stay at home order on everyone, without thinking of what is important. Social Distancing.
ReplyDeleteLaziness and a fear of making a wrong decision, so don't make any decision.
Good management, is adapting to differing situations to accomplish your goals in a balanced way. If it is too hard, let someone else do it, but don't needlessly destroy the businesses that many have been built over a lifetime. Business's can adapt and manage their business if they let them. They have to work, they cannot just raise taxes as the government will want to do.
I would bet that a lot of the people who believe in blanket shutdowns are government workers who are guaranteed their wages, while they stay home and watch netflix.
ReplyDelete"Models" based upon changing inputs are akin to the hilarious "now casting" you get from local weather personalities after they've completely blown a call. The new model is what they're seeing out the window. Quarantine was to flatten the curve and keep pressure off hospitals. That happened. It morphed into an open-ended proposition, when our leaders realized how much fun wielding this power was. Now, we're locking down until everyone gets a test, is microchipped or tattooed until a vaccine is distributed? The pandemic isn't over until the authoritarian agenda is fully enacted. This has nothing to do with health and safety. Like all things, it has to do with power.
ReplyDelete7:08. Check your numbers, the curve is not flat in PA. It is still rising in Lehigh, Berks, and Northampton Counties. I still see families having play dates, high school kids getting together with no masks. They’re still not getting it because the have to learn new behaviors. I’d believe these protests more if the dudes up front weren’t carrying their automatic weapons.
ReplyDeleteWolf really doesn't like private industry workers. They were his nemesis while a businessman and he knows they generally don't like him. Private trades have protested him before. He likes public employees whom he controls via their paychecks and security. Not only don't they act up, they vigorously defend their patron, as you would expect given the rules of our system. There is a great disconnect between those who draw checks from others' toil, having created no value - and those whose livelihoods depend upon creating value from their own risk and toil. It's the difference between necessary evils, and actually necessary.
ReplyDeleteBernie is not an assholes or a hypocrite he's just a three sided coin.
ReplyDelete7:19 PM
ReplyDeleteActually, nobody knows, except one would hope, Wolf and his team.
If anyone has published a graph of hospitalization rates vs capacities, I haven't seen it.
Since the state doesn't track recoveries, we don't know the numbers for active cases.
All the state publishes are new cases, which certainly have flattened. And the way the state is now reporting deaths, pretty soon we may have more of those than cases.
Wolf/Dr. Levine stated that one of the caveats to opening the state is mass testing.
ReplyDeleteRight now, they are not testing anybody under 62 years of age. How many 62 + are involved in the economy vs. the 61 and under?
It is time to soft roll out opening the state.
Wolf, Pelosi, Schiff, Nadler, Schumer, AOC, Omar and others--true leaders
ReplyDeleteThe numbers speak for them self - open the state
ReplyDelete8:47--true--- let the people who want to stay isolated stay isolated-personal choice
ReplyDeleteOne gets the sense that certain people on this blog would be ok with anything and everything Wolf or any other democrat did or would do and would viciously attack anyone who wasn't fine with it.
ReplyDeleteBernie - what happened years ago when smallpox, polio, measles and the like were working through the country when there were no vaccines for these killers? Homes were quarantined and life went on. When the families were cleared, the sign was removed from their home and they went about their lives. Talking to old timers, they never recalled total prophylactic quarantine of the country. Some I talked to can remember the anxiety of facing an Iron Lung! But at no time was the economy shut down. And, before anyone says anything, these legacy diseases were just as contagious as COVID-19. Time to open up the Economy! If people are afraid to go out or feel sick, stay home!
ReplyDeletethe most incredible thing here is noone even questions why Gov. Wolf lumber company is and has been from the beggining open for business...no layoffs no shut down...could this be because HE supplies home depot??????
ReplyDeleteAs a means of getting exercise, I worked in the yard and as yard work goes, I have loads of yard waste. The township won't let me get rid of my yard waste because they have the center closed down during the pandemic. I have no more room in my yard for the cut trees, limbs, etc
ReplyDeleteI also want to put an addition onto my home and the township won't issue construction permits. This is crazy.
Wolf led government has gone way too far but what did you expect from wolf--he will take care of himself as he did---he is an unfair person to begin with--and then his political beliefs are too far you know where if I say it Bernie will delete it
ReplyDeleteIs it really all about safety, we can do the distancing etc. Or is it about flattening the U.S. economic curve to be more like the rest of the world.
ReplyDeleteAbout 10 years ago, (after several misdiagnoses), I went to the hospital for a routine test. I was supposed to leave on a much anticipated vacation with my family after the testing. The test showed that I had a very serious medical condition and needed immediate hospitalization.
ReplyDeleteI bitched and complained, even threatened to leave. The doctor did not f*ck around. He said, "I'm saving your life and if you try to leave, you'll be restrained and I'll take medical custody of you. You don't understand how serious this is. I'm surprised that you're not dead".
I ended up being hospitalized for a month. The medically couldn't release me until my oxygen and PT/INR levels were WNL, and doing so was treating me with medication on a trial by error basis.
I wasn't the best patient, but I understood that they were doing what was in my best interest, whether I liked it or not...and they were thinking of my family who needed their husband, dad, brother, son, et. el.
Listen to the medical professionals. They are saving our lives.
Anon 7:19 said:
ReplyDelete"Check your numbers, the curve is not flat in PA. It is still rising in Lehigh, Berks, and Northampton Counties."
You're either ignoring the purpose of flattening the curve, or intentionally trying to misstate it.
The reason for the shutdowns was to prevent our hospitals from becoming overwhelmed to the point that they couldn't care for Covid-19 patients, and patients facing other life-threatening illness (as happened in other countries).
That overwhelming of the hospital system hasn't happened here in PA. That's because of the extraordinary efforts of those in the health care industry, as well as better/additional treatments that have been found since the outbreak started that have helped to minimize the need for any hospital stay. In addition, we're way below the death estimates that were the basis for the lockdown. That's all good news.
Given that the hospital system isn't overwhelmed, it's time to gradually start responsibly opening the state to normal activity. Those who catch Covid-19 will be able to seek and receive medical treatment just as they would for any other illness.
The lockdown - in its present form - is no longer needed and is doing more harm (overall) than good.
9:23: Congratulations on your good fortune and recovery!
ReplyDeleteI think the key parts of your story were that:
1) YOU voluntarily went to the hospital for a routine test;
2) YOUR doctor decided on the best course of action for YOU; and
3) Despite his threats, it sounds like it was YOU who ultimately made the decision to remain in the hospital.
More importantly, as the state is responsibly re-opened, YOU can make the choice to continue to self-isolate if you feel you need additional protection, just as you have in the past with other communicable diseases.
What's going on now is EVERYONE is being asked to stay home (many without an income), whether they currently have or will ever get the virus. That's backwards and that's the problem.
This isn't about flattening any curve, at this point. i'd also like to know how full the ESU fieldhouse hospital is. Given the clamour, I'd expect it's swamped, right?
ReplyDeleteI saw a post on social media saying opening the economy now is like stopping taking antibiotics when you feel better. I find that to be a poor analogy. When I take antibiotics (and I always take the full dose) I start feeling better within a few days, so I don't continue to stay home the whole time I am taking them. I start resuming my normal day to day activities, maybe not 100% of them but I work towards 100%. Be cautious, but the governor needs to let people start making a living, rather than keeping them hostage.
ReplyDeleteHomes were quarantined and life went on. When the families were cleared, the sign was removed from their home and they went about their lives.
ReplyDeletePeople today aren't as concerned about their neighbors as they were back then. If the government tried that today the right-wing gun fanatics would be having shoot-outs from their windows. I could only imagine the lawsuits because some family was "socially disparaged" and Hippa Laws violated, because a sign identified them.
Despite that non-starter, I do believe this shutdown has been handled ignorantly and the small businesses are being treated differently than the box stores. The first two weeks of it should have been spent developing plans on how to get these businesses open, even partially.
No more than X number of people in any establishment. Masks or face coverings for employees on the job. Those who have been tested can return to work, etc.
The problem is a number of required items was in short supply or non-existent to implement some of these requirements and that blame falls on the federal government who was unprepared, or didn't take the threat seriously in the beginning.
Lack of masks. Lack of test kits. This entire situation was a fk'd up - BIGLY.
Go higher than governors, who had to take action on their own. The fault lands squarely on the President.
9:23 AM
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the existing health care system was successfully able to treat your condition and hope you continue to do well.
But I think the better analogy would be if your doctor says "Hmmm...I don't like the way your cholesterol test looks. I'm going to call the State Police and make sure they keep you away from those fast-food joints."
Thank you BO for the article. It is sad that so many posters here can only see life through a political lens. "These gatherings are dangerous and unnecessary. They are pure politics." They are not pure politics. Perhaps they believe strongly and want to save their business. This in turn, helps not only their own family, but their employees and their families.
ReplyDelete"While some protests around the country have been linked to big-money conservative donors, others appear genuinely grassroots, like ReOpen Pennsylvania..." The quote comes from an article that appeared today in The Context, put out by the PA Post, written by Russ Walker. "Protesters head to Harrisburg on Monday to demand lifting of Pa. restrictions" https://papost.org/2020/04/20/protesters-head-to-harrisburg-on-monday-to-demand-lifting-of-pa-restrictions/
Comments have been made expressing valid points. There are also those comments which seem to be driven by pure politics. The political spectrum is more diverse than many believe it to be.
Not saying that there aren't SOME protesters out there concerned about jobs, but this article shows clearly that most are inspired by Trumpsters and guns rights advocates, libertarians, etc. I applaud the hospital workers who stood in the streets in Denver to try to send a message that these people are making their life saving job harder. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2020/04/17/us/politics/poll-watch-quarantine-protesters.amp.html
ReplyDelete"These gatherings are dangerous and unnecessary."
ReplyDeleteas a life-long democrat, I find this statement beyond appalling.
I'm sure the Brits felt the same way at the Boston tea-party.
the fundamental right for these folks to protest what they believe to be over-reach by the state is imperative to a free society.
forgive me if i will not defer to your judgment as to what is "unnecessary. "
""Check your numbers, the curve is not flat in PA. It is still rising in Lehigh, Berks, and Northampton Counties."
ReplyDeleteOf course, if you look at a logarithmic graph, you see a rise in numbers, but the percentage of increase is decreasing and curve is flattening. You will notice this if you look at the ordinal graph. Both NorCo and PSU have ordinal graphs. In NorCo, there has been a drop in new cases since April 2, with two spikes. https://northampton.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/a90733c6c4e1469289ec826f3f59dc23
Thank you for these hardship stories -- they deserve more attention and concern.
ReplyDeleteThe medical professionals will err too far on the side of fewer virus deaths, that's how they're trained. There's a risk they lose sight of the public health damage that comes from widespread unemployment.
People who are hurting financially could just as easily err on the side of re-opening too soon, which could also do more harm than good, particularly if there's a bad second wave that forces another shutdown.
Elected officials have to decide a sensible middle ground, which is guaranteed to please nobody, while taking fire from all sides.
The conversation about re-opening should be about the boring subjects of safety and science and risk management. What data support staying closed, opening, or a slow re-opening? What are the minimum criteria for re-opening? I heard a mayor in CT say no new infections for two weeks -- that sounds excessive to me.
We have the advantage of looking at countries that were hit with the virus sooner, and learning from their experience. Sweden continued business more or less as usual, and just had vulnerable people stay home. How's that working out for them? What are the lessons learned from countries that are re-opening, i.e. China/South Korea/Singapore/Germany?
This story seems relevant:
https://www.propublica.org/article/coronavirus-advice-from-abroad-7-lessons-americas-governors-should-not-ignore-as-they-reopen-their-economies
And this, from Sweden:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8233783/Sweden-herd-immunity-month-claims-infectious-diseases-chief.html
The experts know more than I do, but they can be wrong, which is why now is the time for a robust public debate about how and when to re-open. I'd like to hear every elected official take a position and make their case, rather than evade and blame others, as some have done. The stakes here are very high.
Huntress, I am not standing in the street counting these people, but subscribed to three of the grassroots Facebook groups who organized this protest. It does include Trump supporters and far-right groups. It also includes Democrats and small business owners who have been cast aside by an administration that has done NOTHING to help them while putting them out of business, yet has permitted a connected few to continue operating.
ReplyDeleteCanary, You've posted sensible, rational ideas, thank you. We don't have to reinvent the wheel. Look at other countries that are going before us. One thing that you will hear clearly though, over and over, testing, testing, testing!
ReplyDeleteAnon 10:16 said:
ReplyDelete"The problem is a number of required items was in short supply or non-existent to implement some of these requirements and that blame falls on the federal government who was unprepared, or didn't take the threat seriously in the beginning."
So it's the FEDERAL government's fault that Cuomo decided five years ago not to purchase a sufficient amount of ventilators? The federal government should have been providing test kits that didn't exist or didn't produce accurate results?
I realize you're trying to score political points, but this wasn't the fault of the federal government, unless you're talking about the Democrats who were focused on a bogus impeachment trial instead of protecting the American public and who savagely attacked Trump for his early attempts to ban travel from infected countries.
If you hope to continue to get information about these protests from FB, you better hurry.
ReplyDeletehttps://twitter.com/oliverdarcy/status/1252224126279802881
"Anti-quarantine protests being organized through Facebook in California, New Jersey, and Nebraska, are being removed from the platform on the instruction of governments in those three states because it violates stay-at-home orders, Facebook spokesperson."
By the way Bernie, Morning Call this morning has an article about the gun rights activist from OHIO that has the facebook page that is promoting this protest in PA. These are folks with a different agenda other than worrying about their jobs. They are turning into mini Trump rallies which is why the dear leader is encouraging them of course. Between his wild and crazy rants at press conferences that fire up his base and disgust the majority and now these rallies, he's got his campaign going.
ReplyDeleteProtest is inconvenient and embarrassing for rulers. Wolf is also cowardly. He'll extend the shutdown as soon as the last cars leave Harrisburg, because he's enjoying the power trip and has no economic hardship.
ReplyDeleteI agree as long as it does not turn into a political rally for Trump supporters and Klan supporters and white Nationalist supporters and gun rights supporters and anti abortion supporters and right wingnuts of all stripes.
ReplyDeleteIt's about the politics of fake news.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Wolf went too far and his choices were arbitrary at best. It stunk and he never came clean. As a D..it is a deal breaker. He over reacted instead of thinking things thru...he panicked.
ReplyDelete"By the way Bernie, Morning Call this morning has an article about the gun rights activist from OHIO that has the facebook page that is promoting this protest in PA"
ReplyDeleteWithout question, many of those who come to Harrisburg will be there bc they are pro-Trump. Newspapers will look for them so they can get bombastic statements like The Morning Call did. I actually predict this in my story. But this is not about Trump, who did his share of damage and continues. It is about people who are unable to work. It is about a state government that has over-reacted to a pandemic and has enacted a shutdown on the very people who make this country what it is. It has done so while making no effort to minimize the financial catastrophe caused. This is wrong.
I saw a fascinating video about the Spanish flu in Pa. Large groups were banned. Schools and churches were closed. Bars were shutdown, as well as coffeehouses. But business continued. I believe the Spanish flu was far more deadly.
So, what if a small business owners, contractors, etc. just open their stores, and go to work. What is truly going to happen to them?
ReplyDeleteHuntress 11:21 said:
ReplyDelete"One thing that you will hear clearly though, over and over, testing, testing, testing!"
Yes, you'll hear this over and over from those who don't want to re-open the economy, or who want to take away your civil liberties.
Simply put, the way this virus transmits makes mass testing irrelevant. Since the virus can be transmitted by people who don't show any symptoms, are you proposing to test everyone on a weekly/daily/hourly basis regardless of whether they're showing symptoms? Are you proposing that in order to go to church, attend a public meeting, leave your house to buy groceries or go to work that you have to be tested? What if someone who's not sick doesn't want to be continually tested, or tested at all? Do they have to surrender their rights over something they might not have?
This virus is not going totally away, may not ever have a highly-effective vaccine against it. But our hospitals have not been overwhelmed and its time to start moving back to normal life, for those who choose to.
I'm not saying don't test sick people or that people shouldn't be able to get tested. But I think too many are pushing more testing as an excuse to keep the current status quo and/or as a means to continue to exert control over people.
The mask requirement is ridiculous and overly restrictive.
ReplyDeleteJust a few weeks ago, they were telling us that we shouldn't wear masks because they wouldn't protect against the virus or we were too stupid to use real masks properly.
Now we can't get basic supplies at a grocery store unless we're wearing a flimsy piece of cloth over our face.
But the government was smarter this time around. This time they're telling us that those flimsy cloth masks won't necessarily protect us, but it will keep others safe. So we're being virtuous and caring if we obey and wear masks, and anyone who doesn't wear one or even questions the government this time is someone who doesn't care about others and who should be attacked or reported.
Wake up! You're being lied to again so that you'll conform.
New numbers:
ReplyDeleteBoth Lehigh and Northampton Counties reported their lowest number of new cases in the month of April.
OK, yeah, the numbers were not zero, so someone can still say "the number of cases is still going up!"
Bernie I know this of the subject but look into Whitehall schools spending 20 millionon a football field, field house, new entrance to the high SCHOOL.LAST TAXES WENT UP AT VERY HIGH RATE - this year it may be worse. Many of us are out of work, or lost our businesses and many are on a fixed income.the virus has affected many of us but it did not affect the whitehall administration or school board. please expose them see monday april 20 morning call
ReplyDeletehttps://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/04/pa-extends-coronavirus-stay-at-home-order-until-may-8-then-it-hopes-to-reopen-some-businesses.html
ReplyDeleteThere's no reason to extend it. Which is why he did.
The latest scheme to bring down Trump is failing miserably.
ReplyDelete"Without question, many of those who come to Harrisburg will be there bc they are pro-Trump."
ReplyDeletePro trump
And a lack of a tragic personal story of grief. Nothing is out of the ordinary death wise.
If people were witnessing what the panic porn news is bullshitting you about, they wouldn't need the government to tell them to stay home and wear a mask, it would be self-evident.
Huntress, I agree completely that we need more testing and contact tracing. That has been my point from the beginning, based on the data from countries that have had success. If the VP is to be believed, we will have 5 million tests by the end of April and have already conducted 3.5 million. Everyone needs to be tested. This is proven to be far more effective than a business shutdown. Of course, priority should be given to first responders, health care workers, those in the food industry and those deemed at risk.
ReplyDeleteCount for yourselves, not what you heard someone say, count for yourselves, those are the real numbers.
ReplyDeleteTHE STORES NEED TO OPEN , GOLF COURSES NEED TO OPEN EVERYTHING NEEDS TO OPEN...FUCK WOLF AND HIS BULLSHIT HE HASNT LOST A CENT IN THIS WHOLE DEAL HE IS NOTHING MORE THAN PWER HUNGRY ASSHOLE..THIS NEEDS TO STOP NOW ..THEY CANT LOCK EVERYONE UP..SO OPEN UR STORES ,,CONTRACTORS GO BACK TO WORK , GOLF COURSES OPEN UP LETS GET THE ECONOMY GOING SCREW THIS ASSHOLE...WHAT THE WORSE THAT CAN HAD ..SOMEONE GETS A COLD OR THE FLU??? COMON PEOPLE DONT BE SO NIEVE ITS ALL POLITICS AND THEY USING THE POWER OF FEAR......
ReplyDelete"testing and contact tracing."
ReplyDeleteContact tracing is the collection of Metadata. It's the new word being used.
https://www.rollcall.com/2020/03/16/senate-passes-77-day-fisa-surveillance-stopgap/
Some people will use this to push for what they otherwise want.
People need healthcare which includes many kinds of test.
https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/489957-teen-who-may-have-died-of-coronavirus-was-turned-away-from-urgent-care-due
Here is wolfs answer to the protest he extended the shut down till may 8 go wolf co
ReplyDeleteIn my own personal experience there is an overwhelming number of stories like these posted in this article the death rate is 0.
ReplyDeleteThis is the only place I've seen these stories numerated.
April 20, 2020 at 2:16 PM
ReplyDelete"Anonymous said...
Here is wolfs answer to the protest he extended the shut down till may 8 go wolf co'
The wall just got 10 feet higher.
I hope people realize the biggest reason that many supplies were in short supply is that they are mostly all made in China. They are ordered for on time delivery, calculated what is needed. When the whole world needs the same items, it is not easy to supply demand.
ReplyDeleteAs far as forcing companies to make items, this will only work if they have the right equipment and access to the raw materials, many of which are also made in China.
Everyone screamed when Trump put tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminium, This was done for national security because we were about to have no domestic manufacturers of steel and aluminum. These tariffs applied to products made with Chines metals re fabricated in Canada, the EU and other allied countries.
This country no longer has the foundries and steel manufacturers to be an arsenal of democracy. In fact we no longer have the ability to produce paper masks, cotton swabs and 90 % of the chemicals used in making pharmaceuticals.
I hope this country rethinks its situation concerning foreign dependence.
This should not be a democrat/republican issue it should be a USA issue.
It is a fact that many of Trump supporters are small business and self employed, so does that mean that democrat governors should not let them go to work while obeying the guidelines.
ReplyDeleteI hope wolf can run for another term
ReplyDelete@3:22 pm
ReplyDeleteProof that the right to vote is a now a googolplex more dangerous than is the right to own firearms.
-Clem
This is just the damm dem governors way of getting back at those in there state for voting Trump in as the POTUS.
ReplyDeleteCan you receive a stimulus check if you are disbarred ?.
ReplyDeleteSo how many got infected at the protest?
ReplyDeleteLot's of people not wearing masks and certainly not keeping a proper distance.
kinda working against the public good.course they only care about themselves.
If they want to protest they should do it safely.
Shame on them for doing that.
Why gun humpers that want to make politicians fear them are even there is puzzling.
works against the message the protest was supposed to be about.
the politicians like wolf and others have run the economy into the ground -they overreacted--this could have been done in a much better way
ReplyDeleteStay home and order a pie from Large Marge !
ReplyDeleteAnother problem with opening up PA.
ReplyDeleteSo the self employed can work but no one has any work for them.
People will put off installing say a sidewalk or replacing a roof.
How do they know whether a second wave of covid shows up.
So they will wait.
our leaders wolf , pelosi, nadler, schumer, schiff, aoc, omar, just think if these people would lead our country we would be much better off
ReplyDeletetry
ReplyDeletehttps://thehill.com/homenews/administration/493647-fauci-warns-protests-against-against-stay-at-home-orders-will?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link&ICID=ref_fark
"Clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics and the standpoint of things that have nothing to do with the virus, but unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen," Fauci said on "Good Morning America."
"So what you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you’re going to set yourself back," he said. "So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a reopening, it’s going to backfire. That’s the problem."
7:15 PM
ReplyDeleteYes, Fauci's a smart guy. So I guess you support the PA legislative bill that Wolf vetoed. You know, the one that called for PA businesses to be reopened under the Federal guidelines that he signed off on.
https://www.newsweek.com/kentucky-reports-highest-coronavirus-infection-increase-after-week-protests-reopen-state-1498835?amp=1&__twitter_impression=true
ReplyDeleteRadio Free Penna. Send you the truth about these "demonstrations". the Truth some do not want you to read.
ReplyDeleteIn reading about this "rally" and some comments I am reminded of the resaying that when the truth gets in the way of the delusion, stick with your delusion. That is the case here.
Yeah real great rally. A pro-Trump celebration. It was complete with goofs in fatigues with their AR's pretending to he soldiers. No social distancing, no face masks. Plenty of right wingnut signs.
You hate the truth Mr. O'Hare but your great populist uprising is Bullshit. Right wing financed political rally. The stories were probably manufactured by some Koch business.
Your premise is wrong. This is all about politics. Presidential election in November - gee, let's remember that detail. First, right wing media said COVID-19 was a hoax. Then they said "there are 0 deaths". Then there were 60 deaths. Then came the "remedy" that was suggested in the media, which the president picked up and ran with. It is not a proven remedy. Then the right wing media said "the cure can't be worse than the disease" which the president then ran with. Now thousands have died, but we are told "these people are old and should sacrifice themselves for the good of the country." Tell that to the 30, 40, 50 and 60 year olds who are dying. Look at all the sacrifices of the public during WWII. We are wimps by comparison. We now have over 40,000 people dead. Oh, but look how many the flu has killed is the next excuse. Well, we have a vaccine for the flu, not for the coronavirus. That puppy is let loose and our hospitals can't keep up. Our president is choosing policy based on right wing media - what could go wrong? The president wants to be seen as a winner, as having a good economy. So his lemmings in state government are marching to his beat - get the economy going again. Why haven't the Republicans and Trump been pushing hard for testing and tracing? Because it's all a hoax, and not a big deal. And hey, you have shut down jobs with your damned hoax! Trump's supporters never believed in government regulations in the first place - so you can take your big brother and screw it. A considered and wise approach to relaxing guidelines is antithetical to the GOP's way of doing things.
ReplyDelete10:10 PM
ReplyDeleteAnd according to wiki, today's increase was 90 cases in Kentucky (wouldn't PA love to have that number?), about what it's been running for a week or two.
Amazing those protests...caused a sharp spike in cases for one day and then the rate went back to where it had been.
I guess only in Kentucky is that incubation period so precise.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_coronavirus_pandemic_in_Kentucky
No, I do not agree with you. Lives matter.
ReplyDeleteSo why doesn't McClure open the court house? should we protest?
ReplyDeleteBernie
ReplyDeleteWould you allow the above one-man businesses to at least list themselves. I know someone wanting a stone mason. Someone else wanting garden supplies. Although not confirmed,
word is several major stores have police officers at the door making certain customers
wear masks.
I got these stories from participants in a closed Facebook page. It would be improper for me to identify them without their permission.
ReplyDeleteI guess this will be blamed on the protesters.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.wfmz.com/health/coronavirus/tuesday-update-1-296-new-virus-cases-360-more-deaths-in-pennsylvania/article_b627b9ee-83e6-11ea-a137-d7a36707ad12.html
360 more deaths. Sad, but makes one wonder about the counting and attribution.
The famous models now look like they've gone from being super pessimistic to overly optimistic, at least for PA.
I guess the models didn't count on those damn protesters yesterday.
try
ReplyDeletehttps://www.mprnews.org/story/2020/04/20/behind-calls-to-reopen-economy-a-mn-activist-and-his-family
"Now, the trio is using their pro-gun social media platforms to call for anti-quarantine protests in Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Iowa and New York,"
and
"Based on publicly available tax documents, the Dorrs’ efforts in Minnesota, Iowa and Ohio have raised more than $2.9 million since 2013, with at least a third of it going to a direct mail printing company in Iowa owned by the Dorr family. "
"the Republican Party of Minnesota, launched a website earlier this year denouncing his organizations as scams.
https://www.mnscammersexposed.com/