Mandates Are A Bluff - And Response (15)

  • Friday, July 10, 2020

Via something called an "Executive Order," the facemask mandate will go into effect in Hamilton County on Friday until Sept. 8. This is an illegal executive order and carries no legal weight. Those issuing it know this, which is why Jim Coppinger was too cowardly to issue it himself, but passed off the dirty deed to Dr. Paul Hendricks, who is not even a duly elected representative of the people.

The County Sheriff has said he is not interested in enforcing the mandate. Why? Because the Sheriff knows the District Attorney won't seek to prosecute. Why? Because attorneys, who actually know the laws of the land, aren't interested in things that aren't laws.

Governors, mayors, and "health officials" are not allowed to make laws, according to the U.S. Constitution and all State Constitutions. That question is not up for interpretation or discussion. Legislatures make laws, hence the name LEGislature. From the Latin lex/legis, meaning law/of the law. State legislatures also have access to all of the same information the governors have concerning the dangers of Covid, so why aren't they making laws? Why are governors making laws? Because the state legislatures are supposed to be direct representatives of the people, and apparently they don't feel these laws are necessary. So they are just being bypassed.

It is much easier for Bill Gates and the Federal Reserve (who have already stolen trillions from us with this latest crisis at the behest of the private banks who control them) to buy off 50 governors than to buy off thousands of state senators and representatives, so that is what we are seeing. We are seeing legislatures mothballed in favor of fascist and illegal rule by governors.

The media tells you the governors and mayors have this authority, when they do not. It is basically a big bluff, but if you believe it and act on it, it is all the same. At that point they have you. If you will obey illegal orders, then they can just dispense with the law and the Constitution, ruling you through fear and bluff. If you will do anything you are told with no laws to back it up, you are then what? A slave. Not just like a slave, but a slave by the definition of the word. If you are ruled by fear and force, with no laws and no representation by a legislature, you are a slave. Period.

Colin Stayton

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I agree whole-heartedly with Mr. Stayton.  Neither the county mayor nor the county health department have the authority to mandate wearing masks in public.  They don’t require us to get flu shots, so why start with this flu? 

We live in a republic not a communist country.  The liberals will stop at nothing to make sure Trump does not get re-elected. 

I won’t be wearing a mask in public (I will in businesses that ask) until the County Commission passes a bill requiring it and the mayor signs it into law.

Brian Watson

* * *

We can debate the legality of the Health Department’s public health order, or we can simply recognize that, legal or not, it’s a good idea. The dispute over wearing masks reminds me of the cries of those who objected to wearing seat belts when that became law. I wonder how many people didn’t wear seat belts because they wanted to make a statement for personal freedom, only to become injured in an auto accident because they didn’t wear one. Just like then, “It’s not only the law, it’s a good idea.”

Unlike wearing a seat belt, however, the purpose behind wearing a mask is not to protect yourself, but rather to protect those around you. Shouldn’t we all be willing to sacrifice a momentary inconvenience for the health and welfare of our fellow citizens?

Let’s put politics and blustering aside, and talk about the economics of the matter. We have a better chance of returning to some semblance of normalcy - children going to school, restaurants operating at normal capacity, festivals and county fairs being held, and football games being played- and restarting a robust economy, if we follow the CDC guidelines and the Health Department’s “mandates.”

I’ve made many mistakes in my life, and no doubt will make many more. I have unintentionally hurt those around me. I pray that I don’t give a loved one or a friend, or even a stranger, COVID-19 because I was unwilling to accept the simple inconvenience of wearing a mask for limited periods of time.

George Caudle

* * *

I agree that the mask mandate is not enforceable.  I encourage the public to send the Mayor an email on his official site informing him that you will not follow the mandate on wearing a mask.

Joe Giles

* * *

...Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your mouth
Blowing down the back roads headin' south
Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe...
Idiot wind
Blowing through the flowers on your tomb
Blowing through the curtains in your room
Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe...
—Bob Dylan (Likely not written for mask objectors, but apropos). 
Michael Mallen, health, safety and environmental attorney, still desperately trying to inform based on facts and best practices.

* * *

“If there is ever a fascist takeover in America, it will come not in the form of storm troopers kicking down doors but with lawyers and social workers saying. "I'm from the government and I'm here to help.”

 

- Jonah Goldberg

 

“There's no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.”

 

- Ayn Rand

 

Chris Morgan

 

* * *

 

I will wear my mask to all functions or stores or any place I must go. I have loved my husband for 55 years. 

My husband has Mantle Cell Lymphoma, something I never heard of until November 2014. It has been one cancer treatment after another over these years. His immune system is very fragile. I do not want to bring home a disease that will end him. I love him. 

I do not want to harm another human being by being childish enough to think by not wearing one I am safe. Because I do not know if others I interact with are healthy or not. I am not selfish or childish. I have learned a thing or two over the years. Fear does not rule me, LOVE DOES.

Julia Buckner

 

* * *

 

What’s that saying about free speech, it’s okay to yell, “It’s safe in here” in a burning theater?  Lord knows nowadays it won’t be crowded. 

America: land of the free and home of the self absorbed. Four percent of the world’s population and nearly 25 percent of the world cases. 
  
Prentice Hicks

 

* * *

 

I have heard people state that there is no need to pass laws regarding the use of a mask in public, common sense will prevail.

 

Although the "mandate" is not a law, it is a good suggestion. So is washing your hands and disinfecting your home and belongings.The problem is common sense. Very few people seem to have it. Masks and handwashing and disinfecting are easy things to do. They rank right up there with lights on when raining and coming to a complete stop at a STOP sign.

Perhaps the "mandate" will encourage enough people to wear a mask and in the long run wearing masks will help us in the battle against covid. We already know that the great majority of the masks seen in public will not stop the virus--its way too small and passes through the fabric with ease.

They do prevent the expression of sneezes and coughs directly into the air and they assist
in keeping your hands away from your mouth and nose. If you wear glasses you have a trifecta of prevention for yourself.

The six foot rule is a great suggestion also, but it is not practiced, except by a very few. Yesterday we were out shopping. While we were standing close to a display looking at items, a teen [15-17 year old?] squeezed in front of us, just inches away, to grab an item from the display. She did not even think to say "excuse me" or "pardon me" to give us a chance to move away. 

Common sense is an endangered animal.

Teddy Ladd

 

 

* * *

 

Here’s some fun facts for you sufferers out there.
 
Total staffed hospital beds in the State of Tennessee 18,456. 
 
Present hospitalizations from Covid-19:  1,160 patients, which would make up 6.28 of present rooms utilized in Tennessee’s hospitals.
 
Cumulative hospitalizations from Covid-19:  3,023 patients, and if all were hospitalized at once would have been just 16.4 percent of available rooms.
 
All this for that?
 
Again I say, "Wake up!"
 
Jay Reed

 

* * *

 

Given the opinions and now mandatory requirements to wear face masks and social distance in Hamilton County, it appears to me that we are now living in a time where personal responsibility and kindness have been advocated by city and county politicians to rules and regulations. 

 

I wish we all could be civil and do the right thing, but now it's more about "a political statement" and "what is right vs. wrong" by wearing or not wearing a face mask. 

 

We have lost our rights given the motivations of groups, including local government and media outlets, based on their view of what is right or wrong. How much more are we willing to give up?  What will it take to get it back if we can?  Will we be ostracized for saying the pledge of allegiance to the  US Flag?  Can we still speak without retribution?  If I don't wear a mask, does it prevent someone from getting COVID-19?

 

I wish no harm to anyone, but reserve my right to do what I believe is right and not [what] the city mayor or county government [believes is right].


Timothy Bittenbender

 

* * *

 

I hate that this issue has become so polarizing, however here is my question - 

We have reputable studies that show the size of a flu virus particle. 

We have reputable studies (that were completed pre-COVID-19) that analyze the effectiveness of various types of masks against flu particles.  They are inconclusive or advise against use of cloth face coverings for flu.

We also know that initially masks or face coverings in general were advised against use for COVID-19 outside of various medical providers.

We can look up the size particles range for COVID-19 virus and can compare that size to the size of a flu virus particle.  Flu virus particles are much larger.

We know now face coverings of any type are being mandated across the country.

We also know that the many exemptions in these mandates exist due to it not being practical or medically advisable for numerous people to wear masks.

Why is this issue so polarizing?

Amanda Newman

 

* * *

 

I just spent a few minutes reading the comments/opinions about the mandate to wear masks.  I don't know about you - but making us wear shoes and shirts to be allowed into a restaurant was when it all began for me.  Don't these people understand how hard it is to properly tie shoes?  Don't these people realize buttoning a shirt can sometimes take up to 30-40 seconds.  Now they want us to actually wrap an elastic band around BOTH of my ears just in case I have a highly contagious and often deadly disease.  Come on fellas - enough is enough - how much inconvenience can one man take?

Quit whining and put on the d**n mask.

George Parker

 

* * *

 

I personally choose not to wear a mask. 

 

Being 72, some may feel I am in a compromised group of citizens. I take a flu shot every year, as my doctor advises. He has not advised me to wear a mask. Since I’ve been his patient for almost 40 years, I trust his opinion more than Mayor Berke or Mayor Coppinger. 

Ultimately everyone is responsible for their own well-being, and if they feel vulnerable they should have been social distancing long before being mandated to wear a mask. 

This is my right, just as yours is to decide whether you wear one or not.

 

I’ve always practiced social distancing and no handshakes if I felt I had an illness.

David Garren

 

* * *

 

I have never seen such "snowflakes" whine and cry about a piece of cloth or mask in my entire life. Since the 1960s, restaurants have posted signs that say "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service"......where is your outrage For over 40 years you should have been up in arms about not showing your "grocery store" feet and man-bosoms when you go get your hot wings and beer.

There is no federal or state law that has been passed that requires shirts and shoes in restaurants. It is arguably not a health hazard. (The rules were put in place in the 60s to keep hippies out.). And while all of the folks out there with their high school diploma, GED and drop-out papers want to scream "it's unconstitutional".....you are not ....I repeat not...Constitutional Scholars. In the Preamble to the United States Constitution, one of the fundamental purposes and guiding principles is too " promote the general welfare". 

For those who don't know, the entire text of the preamble is:
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

And the 10th Amendment states:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

So, if the federal government doesn't do it, and the states aren't prohibited by law from doing it, the states have every right to pass laws protecting the general public.

And I assure you that even with my UGA United States History and Political Science classes, I certainly don't grasp the intricracies of the U.S. Constitution. But, to me, "promote the general welfare" of the populace in a global pandemic would fall under something that the government has control of. Scholars of the Constitution and professors of Constitutional Law may correct me if they deem my opinion incorrect.

I am an ER nurse.....with 26 years experience. I assure that this virus is nothing to disregard or make light of. I see it every shift. If you think it is, then speak to the families of the folks that I have cared for and have died. Maybe one person wearing a mask would let them have their loved ones for a few more years. No matter what you think. 

Nothing I say here is going to change the mind of the narrow-minded and self-centered. It just isn't. Our world, our societies, at this point, with few exceptions are a failed segment of evolution. So many believe that "rights" are only good for those that look like them, believe like them, worship like them and all "others" don't deserve the same benefits and rights that society has to offer. It's a sad testament to what our Founding Fathers hope for this country. We have a whole segment of the population in the South that take pride and celebrate their lack of education and ignorance. It's very disheartening and sad. So many lack any empathy for the elderly that are stuck in nursing homes and have been exposed to this virus and may die of it through no fault of their own. And you won't wear a small mask to maybe give them a few more years to see their grandkids and great-grandkids grow up. You are horrid people. Selfish, self-centered, and narcissistic...bordering on sociopaths.

Story time: Standing in line at the store recently....I had my mask on...the clerk had her mask on. A gentleman behind me commented "Y'all look silly wearing those masks everywhere." He, of course, didn't have one on. I turned to him and said, "I'm an ER nurse. I see and take care of Covid positive patients most every shift I work. If you would like, I'll take off my mask and talk to you face to face if you think I look silly." He backed away and said "Ummm, I don't think that will be necessary." I looked at him, shook my head and said, "I didn't think so. But, sir, you never, ever know who you are standing close to. Protect yourself....get a mask."

Probability of Transmission:
Covid + Person without mask and a Healthy Person with a mask = 70%
Covid + Person with a mask and a Healthy Person without a mask  = 5%
Covid + Person with a mask and a Healthy Person with a mask = 1.5%

You wear a mask to protect others, they wear a mask to protect you. We not me.

Grow up people and stop throwing tantrums like toddlers. Your actions will cause another shut down....and the people to blame will be those not following the instructions of healthcare providers and healthcare experts. 

Ken York, RN

 

* * *

Having read the prior 14 opinions, fundamentally "Opinions are like butts, everyone has one and they all stink."

The bottom line is that it makes obvious two things; we are a divided nation due to fake news; and it is another rule that cannot be enforced.

P.S. Where are the masks that make you safe? I'm not spending 10 bucks on a hunch.

Jack Varner


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