Free-Dumb In Texas And Mississippi

President Biden said in relation to relaxing across-the-board state mandates during the pandemic in places like Texas and Mississippi, it was just too early.

“Look, I hope everybody’s realized by now these masks make a difference,” Biden, who was wearing a mask, told reporters at the White House.

He said the United States was “on the cusp of being able to fundamentally change” the course of the pandemic, with vaccinations currently underway across the nation.

But, he said, “The last thing, the last thing we need is Neanderthal thinking that, in the meantime, everything’s fine, take off your mask.”

I totally agree with Biden in his assessment of the situation about the medical data regarding COVID. But I do differ with him about using the term Neanderthal. Considering the brainpower of some of these GOP ‘leaders’ makes the comparison rather insulting to Neanderthals.

I was outside assisting Mother Nature with spring melting and talked with some neighbors today. One of them had family in Texas and there was a clear-out denunciation of the short-sighted action of Governor Greg Abbott.

It comes as no surprise that medical professionals are very concerned about a stronger variant wave that is coming. They are mindful of the transit points–such as in places like Texas–where there is a weakness in accepting public responsibility for the actions so to stem the spread of the virus. The political culture of places like Texas is skewed towards Free-Dumb, but the nation pays the price for their lack of understanding of science and data about COVID.

For the rest of the nation who find science to be a good thing, I urge getting vaccinated and continue to prevent infection–especially the coronavirus variants by sticking to the fundamentals that we know work. Wear a mask and social distance. Wash your hands often and be good to other people.

Epitome Of Ignorant Republican Southern Governor

There are times when one watches a news interview and has to wonder if the remote somehow placed the viewer on the comedy channel.  Such was the case when watching Face The Nation this morning where Mississippi Tate Reeves proved not every southern politician is ready for prime time.

MARGARET BRENNAN: We’re glad to have you. According to Johns Hopkins, your state has a positivity rate of twenty-three percent, which is the highest in the nation when it comes to COVID infections. Where are you headed going into a fall that the CDC warns could be the worst ever?

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: Well, I haven’t seen that particular data, but what I can tell you is in our state, we peaked with a seven-day average of one thousand three hundred and ninety-one cases on– on July the 29th. As of yesterday, we had brought that number down considerably to seven hundred and twenty-eight cases per the state of Mississippi for a seven-day trailing average.

MARGARET BRENNAN: But your state, I mean, I’m looking at a statement from your state health officer, it says that you have eleven hospitals with zero ICU beds currently available. That seems dangerous. Don’t you need to take more stringent measures? I mean, you seem to be characterizing this as under control, but this looks like your medical system could be overwhelmed.

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: Well, Margaret, I think you may be looking at data that’s two or three weeks old, but the reality is in our state–

MARGARET BRENNAN: No, this is from a briefing this week with your state health officer.

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: Well, the reality is in our state that we’ve actually cut the total number of cases on a daily basis in half over the last two and a half weeks. We peaked at thirteen hundred ninety-one as I mentioned earlier. We’re down around seven hundred right now. Do we have hospital capacity issues? We do. But the reality is, Margaret, in our state and virtually every other rural state across America, we have ICU bed issues and– and hospital capacity issues even when there’s not COVID-19.

So, knowing this information, in the good years there was nothing done in Mississippi to ensure that such a lack of medical capacity was resolved.

###

MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. You could shut down bars, for instance, to stop that community spread as the White House has asked some states to do. I do want to move on, though, because–

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: We– we have significantly limited bars in Mississippi.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Right, they close at 11: 00 PM.

That brought a howl of laughter from this home.

###

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: I am confident that the– the ballots that are legally cast in the state of Mississippi will be counted and I’m also very confident that Donald J. Trump–

MARGARET BRENNAN: What do you mean legally cast?

Oh, we know what that means in Mississippi.

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: –is going to win Mississippi and he’s going to win it big. Every– every vote that is legally cast in the state of Mississippi will be counted in the November election, and I’m confident that once all of those votes are counted that Donald J. Trump is going to win Mississippi–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Right.

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: –and many other states overwhelmingly.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah, I asked you what legally cast meant but– so your state doesn’t currently allow for absentee ballots, for fear of getting COVID. Like if someone doesn’t want it– doesn’t feel safe going to a polling booth and wants to vote by mail, you don’t allow for that right now. Why not?

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: We– we do not allow mail-in voting in the state of Mississippi. We think that– that our elections process, which has been in place for many, many years, is a– ensures that we have a fair process in which we have the opportunity to limit fraud. We still have fraudulent claims every single election. We’ve actually got many–

MARGARET BRENNAN: You have a positivity rate of twenty-three percent.

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: –folks in our state that have had– Democrats that have had–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Aren’t you worried about the health of your constituents?

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: –Democrats that have gone to jail because of election fraud and it is just reality.

MARGARET BRENNAN: First of all, that’s– that’s is not substantiated, but–

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: The reality is that– that every legal ballot cast is going to get counted.

MARGARET BRENNAN: You have a positivity rate of twenty-three percent in the state of Mississippi. Can you tell people that they can go to the voting booths and not get COVID? Why don’t you offer the option for someone who’s afraid of their health, someone with asthma, someone with diabetes, someone who’s overweight to send in their ballot by mail?

GOVERNOR TATE REEVES: Well, we’re not going to allow them to send in the ballot by mail unless they legally qualify for an absentee ballot–

Some interviews are priceless.

Mississippi: Closed Bridges, Crumbling Infrastructure Due To Lack Of Taxes

Another example of what happens when taxes are not raised and collected.  

What business willing moves to a state that can not construct and maintain a transportation system and needed infrastructure?   Therefore–this is one reason why no one needs wonder why much of Mississippi is poor.

Stephanie Park, 70, waited with the body of her neighbor for two hours before the Washington County coroner could make it to his house here in the Mississippi Delta. Rigor mortis had set in.

About 15 miles to the southwest, Lori Gower, 57, had to drive her Dodge Charger through a nearby farm field swamped by heavy rain to get to her house after work. The car’s engine flooded and her husband, Mack, 64, had to tow her out. Mack, for his part, couldn’t get his diabetes medication delivered.

Just 50 miles north, Rives Neblett, 75, a Delta farmer, has watched the production cost for each bushel of soybeans increase by more than seven cents because his harvest truck has to take circuitous routes.

The source of all four Mississippians’ troubles: Bridges that were closed. And not temporarily closed because of accidents or flooding, but closed because of old age, splintered supports, or cracked concrete.

Mississippi, a relatively poor state, has never been known for its gleaming transportation network, but the situation today is worse than ever. Across the state, residents now have to circumvent nearly 500 closed bridges that have been declared unsafe, according to the Mississippi Office of State Aid Road Construction. Another 1,742 are posted with specific weight limits because of structural deficiencies. Combined, that accounts for more than 20 percent of the county and local bridges in the state.

Let Constance Take Her Girlfriend To Prom!

There must be something better for the administration of this small Mississippi school district to do than promote bigotry and small-mindedness.  There is a national backlash already forming on Facebook to the anti-gay stance that is brewing over the cancellation of prom in Fulton.  Two girls want to go as a date to the prom and one would think from the reaction of this backwards area that  they were planning to go  as terrorists.  It is perhaps the most silly story of the day.  Granted, it comes from Mississippi, but hasn’t the 21st century landed there yet?  You can support the efforts of Constance and those who desire to live their lives just as fully as all other students at prom time.  

A school board in the US state of Mississippi has cancelled a high school prom after a female student asked to attend with her girlfriend.

The board said it would not host the event due to “distractions to the educational process”.

Student Constance McMillen, 18, said the move was in retaliation for her request to bring her girlfriend to the event and wear a tuxedo.

The school had circulated a memo prohibiting same-sex dates.

Ms McMillen, 18, approached school officials shortly before the memo was issued.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which is backing Ms McMillen’s case, the school board told her that she and her partner would not be allowed to arrive at the event together nor would she be allowed to wear a tuxedo, AP reported.

Itawamba County Agricultural High School in Fulton also reserved the right to ask Ms McMillen and her girlfriend to leave if it made any other students feel uncomfortable, the ACLU said.

The ACLU had given the Itawamba County school district until Wednesday to reverse the school’s ban on same-sex couples attending proms.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the board said it hoped that “private citizens will organise an event for the juniors and seniors” instead.

Ms McMillen said cancelling the prom was an act of “retaliation”.

“A bunch of kids at school are really going to hate me for this,” she told local media.

She also said that when she asked a teacher about the school’s ban on same-sex dates at the prom, she was told she had to remember where she was.

I suspect blacks were told the same when they were fighting for their rights too.