Are you ready for another raucous City Council meeting? And this time, be prepared to wear the blue as opponents to the citywide mask mandate are coming back to the city council meeting to voice their opposition to proposals for citywide shutdowns and what people can and can’t do in their own yards.
The Brookings City Council is meeting against this week to talk about masks on Tuesday, September 8th at 6PM, after the overwhelming opposition to the council’s overreaching proposals this past week. And after being somewhat taken off guard, the city is regrouping somewhat and moving the meeting to a larger venue, where people gathering to express their opposition to the proposals being brought are encouraged to wear blue.
I’m also being told that “The pro-mandate people and far left are telling each other to be dressed in green.” If you’re going to be watching at home and wondering who is who.
The change.org petition to encourage “the city council not to adopt ANY NEW Covid restrictions and to stop extending current restrictions” is currently standing at around 2100 signatures, which you can find here.
Concerned about governmental overreach? Make sure you spread the word and share the image!
The issue as to whether or not people should wear masks pales in comparison to what efforts will be required to enforce a mask mandate.
Will citizens take it upon themselves to scream at people not wearing masks? Will they call the police? How will that alter the general ambience of the city?
After one person said she would indeed call the cops on a gathering of too many people at a private residence, I wondered how that would affect relations among neighbors, would they all end up not speaking to each other?
And what about out-of-town visitors, unaware of the mandate, finding themselves accosted by hostile residents? Will they want to return?
Right now the city windows are full of multi-colored hearts. Does the council want to replace them with daggers?
Maybe they should just place “Keep Out” signs on all roads into town.
The arrogance/ignorance of people who refuse to honor others by refusing to wear masks is no different than the arrogant/ignorant of people who refuse to vaccinate! It is totally a respect for others issue! This staunch Republican will honor you with my mask every time I leave my home. This is a respect issue, not a political issue.
Of course our Covid numbers have more than tripled. Of course they did. Gov. Noem’s actions assured it. Now we will have thousands suffering and dozens will die every few weeks until she gets this right. Masks would have done no damage to our economy but would have spared many.
We had this discussion six weeks ago. You all knew this was the logical result of her actions.
Dozens are going to die every few weeks?
Where is the science to back your claim up?
I’m on it.
We have gone from 850 active cases six weeks ago to 3,000 now. Up 2,150 cases. An active case lasts about two weeks.
Nationally, we have a three percent death rate for active cases. It’s over one percent in South Dakota so far, but deaths are a lagging indicator. But just one percent of 2,150 cases is 21 cases resulting in death for every two week period that these high numbers persist.
So…. what is the delusion that backs up your denial?
With college and K-12 starting, many new cases will start out in the younger populations. That may hold down the fatality rate, at least for now. But our numbers are trending much higher, so things are fluid.
Any way you look at it, illness and death will be much higher than they should have been.
July 18, 2020. Written right here on this blog:
OK. How exactly are Kristi’s Covid policies different from Kemp, DeSantis and Abbott? She is doing the same thing…. and expecting a different result.
“We did, in fact, we according to the national experts, did everything wrong,” Kristi said.
It may take a little time because we are a rural state surrounded by rural areas but our Covid numbers will rise again. Doing “everything wrong” during a pandemic has already proven disastrous throughout the country. Deadly. But Kristi thinks she’s special.
And actually, I am all for opening up the economy. Just not in a way that is indefensibly stupid. No masks? Crowds? Less testing?
Lunacy.
(And these words written on this blog are from July 14th, 2020)
Learn science.
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2006372
Elk, you posted a comment with an excerpt without context or attribution. That makes it not just difficult to follow what your point is, but lacking attribution makes it unclear whether it is in accordance with fair use guidelines.
(Sorry, I put in the date but not the attribution.)
It was a letter in the New England Journal of Medicine clarifying misconceptions about their study cited by Realist above. People were using their study to justify not using masks… when their intent was the opposite.
The team conducting the study said: “In truth, the intent of our article was to push for more masking, not less”. (NEJM July 9,2020 Letters to the Editor)
“The pro-mandate people and far left are telling each other to be dressed in green.”
What exactly is the “far left” in Brookings? I have a hard time believing they exist in any substantial number.
Anyway, here’s something from the Brookings Chamber of Commerce today:
“An Open Letter to the Brookings Community
Your Brookings Area Chamber of Commerce understands this is a difficult and emotional time for many in our community. All of our members and their staff have been impacted by COVID-19 in some way, and stress levels are at an all-time high. To get through such
times, collaboration, respect, understanding, and patience are needed to navigate these unprecedented situations as best we can. That being said, the Brookings Area Chamber of Commerce would like to remind our fellow community members the civility expected of each
and every person when testifying before and while in attendance at any public forum or meeting, including Brookings City Council meetings. Civil discourse is key in a democratic government. A government for the people, by the people will not succeed if all voices
are not heard and respected.
The first amendment gives all citizens the right to free speech and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Intimidation and other actions discounting another person’s speech is disrespectful and can infringe on the free speech rights of others. Council Members and all elected officials also deserve to be heard uninterrupted. You will have the opportunity to approve or disapprove their actions at the next election.
Government meetings, through parliamentary process, are organized to make sure the business of government is accomplished and done fairly. This process has been in place for generations, and the process must be respected.
To accomplish civil dialogue:
Respect all who attend and speak.
– Booing, cheering, and chanting has a chilling effect on free speech. It can frustrate and/or intimidate those speaking.
– Name calling and comments about attendees and leaders are disrespectful.
– Citizens who attend are not to be approached to debate the issue.
Respect the process.
– Time is allocated for public input. This is time to speak about the issue. When the time for public input has been declared
closed on that agenda item, we are to allow the meeting to proceed.
– Please be concise as there are others who deserve to speak.
– All speakers deserve to be heard. Be silent while they are speaking.
– When all testimony is completed it is time for the Council to complete the agenda item.
– Be respectful to the Council Members. Give them the same respect they gave you.
Attending and testifying at a government meeting is a privilege given to us by our forefathers and protected by the men and women of our armed forces. It deserves civility.
We truly appreciate each and every one of you that has participated in our great democracy. Brookings is a special place that continues to thrive even through adversity – you are an important piece of that.”
Heard booing at the last meeting and thought it was a WWF match. The Chamber of Commerce is on point!
Apparently the chamber person has never watched the British Parliament in action.
Fun to watch, but wrong country. We live in the USA.
Brookings doesn’t want to go the leftist way like Texas, do they?
I was just there and everybody, everywhere wore masks. At least where I was in Houston and Galveston. Like us, their Covid cases were going sky high about two months back. But they got smart, mandated masks in most places and down their numbers went.
Now, they have less than half of South Dakota’s rate.
I take it that wearing red didn’t go over well at SDSU?
Thumbs down to USD Red. Thumbs up for Jackrabbit blue?
Looks like common sense prevailed. I guess all those people who don’t like it are going to move now, right? That’s the argument from conservatives right?