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Andrew Cuomo is shutting down New York City because of those very bad religious organizations. You see, those darned churches and synagogues won’t voluntarily lockdown and stop the spread of Covid.
“On Sunday, with those fears growing, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an emergency crackdown, saying that he intended to impose new restrictions in 20 hot spots in Brooklyn and Queens that have been experiencing rising positivity rates.”
These new restrictions would include shutting down public and private schools as well as many businesses across multiple zip codes. Hizzonor was very sad about having to make this announcement.
"Pending approval from the state of New York, starting Wednesday morning, public and nonpublic schools would be closed in these areas" pic.twitter.com/6ryTGrDx7f
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) October 4, 2020
According to de Blasio, schools must be closed because they are Petri dishes for Covid! Except that science has been telling us the opposite for MONTHS!
“Cuomo’s schools-only plan is just as absurd. We know that kids face a minuscule risk from the virus. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that babies, kids and teens account for roughly 5 percent of all confirmed cases, and 0.06 percent of all reported deaths — less than one-tenth of 1 percent. We also know kids transmit the virus at a lower rate than adults.
Plus, Gotham public schools only opened for in-person learning last week, certainly not enough time to show that they are the cause of any spread, despite Cuomo’s unscientific claim that the “virus mainly transmits” in schools.” [Emphasis Added]
Heck, de Blasio himself even admitted schools weren’t spreading the virus during his sad little press conference on Sunday!
In addition to parents and school kids, business owners weren’t too happy to hear about the upcoming lockdown edict. Some folks who had just hired new staff, would have to let them go. Restaurant owners who just spent thousands of dollars on non-refundable equipment that will enable them to have outdoor dining in the winter were understandably outraged at this.
Needless to say, the thought of shutting everything down again was resonating badly throughout the city. Oh wait! Here comes Governor Cuomo riding to the rescue! Sort of.
He won’t shut down the businesses. But he did order the schools to close starting today instead of Wednesday. But the real kicker? Those problematic churches and synagogues. They MUST CLOSE NOW.
“Religious gatherings. The city’s proposal does not close religious institutions. We know religious institutions have been a problem. We know mass gatherings are the super spreader events. We know there have been mass gatherings going on in concert with religious institutions in these communities for weeks. For weeks. I don’t mean little violations. You’re only supposed to have 50, they had 55. I’m talking about, you’re only supposed to have 50 outdoors, they had one thousand. These are pictures from the past couple weeks. And these are just emblematic. You’ve seen pictures like this for weeks. What did you think was going to happen? What did you think was going to happen? Religious institutions are mass gatherings and raise the greatest potential. Its schools and its large mass gatherings. Schools frankly, because they’re students and that’s where our heart goes, our priority goes. But in terms of numbers, it’s large gatherings and large religious gatherings are large gatherings, these have been going on for weeks. You don’t see masks and you see clear violation of social distancing.”
In other words children, I am doing this for your own good. Never mind the fact that a majority of positive cases aren’t requiring hospitalization. Never mind the fact that hospitals have full bed and ICU capability and are NOT overwhelmed in any capacity. Nope, good ole Governor ‘nursing home’ Cuomo is here to tell you that trampling all over the First Amendment and our Constitutional rights is perfectly fine because VIRUS!
He even used photographic evidence to highlight the bad behavior of those problem religious institutions. They were really good photos of hundreds of people gathering against the rules.
About those photos…
Apparently the picture @NYGovCuomo put up in his presentation today of a “recent” large gathering in Satmar Kiryas Joel is from 2006 — the funeral of Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum in Kiryas Joel! pic.twitter.com/CxGtHhyZUj
— Jacob Kornbluh (@jacobkornbluh) October 5, 2020
One photo from a funeral in 2006, and the photo on the right is from a gathering nearly two weeks ago in a zip code that isn’t on the current lockdown list.
That’s not a good look for a Governor who is gleefully trampling over religious institutions and disguising it as protecting us from a nasty virus. He even ignores the real data he himself publishes. Yesterday’s numbers, according to Cuomo show a 1.22% positive rate out of nearly 77,000 tests and only 636 hospitalized across the ENTIRE STATE.
Never mind that. Those churches and synagogues are the problem. Freedom of religion? Does not apply here according to Cuomo.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo: "I have to say to the Orthodox community tomorrow, 'If you're not willing to live with these rules, then I'm going to close the synagogues.'" pic.twitter.com/QWOPvZMbFI
— The Hill (@thehill) October 5, 2020
Saving us all from a virus that will never go away is the justification de Blasio and Cuomo are using to stomp all over our Constitutional rights. The transcript of Cuomo’s press conference shows he is specifically targeting the Orthodox Jewish community. That should raise red flags everywhere.
It’s time, past time for the citizens of New York to stand up and tell de Blasio and Cuomo to take their rules and edicts and shove it.
Welcome Instapundit Readers!
Feature Photo Credit: Cuomo caricature by DonkeyHotey via Flickr, cropped and modified
Cameron says: They won’t listen until they are given a one way helicopter ride.
Drew458 says: Maybe someday this whole situation could be discussed in a rational, pragmatic, and dispassionate way, with honest data on hand. Today is probably not that day. Very few people can discuss the facts without getting prickly about the identity politics.
The ‘rona first spread into New York City from New Rochelle in Westchester County NY, primarily by one man. A lawyer, who kept on taking public transit to work in south Manhattan while very ill. He also infected his family and his neighborhood. It quickly spread around his pocket community in New Rochelle, and then jumped to very similar communities in Rockland County NY, Orange County NY (Kiryas Joel), and similar neighborhood communities in Brooklyn and Queens. A very similar area in Lakewood NJ was impacted then, and right now is the epicenter of the current case spike in NJ, with upwards of 27% testing positive. In the early days of this mess, these small communities were home to as much as 3/4 of all the cases in their counties. This didn’t last, as everyone else soon got sick as well.
The very first action NY Governor Cuomo took against the not-then-called-a-pandemic was to lock down New Rochelle, but it was already too late. You’ve heard of the “Zelenko Protocol” I’m sure; the treatment plan of HCQ, zinc, and Z-pack. He’s the guy who advised the President of this. Guess which communities Dr. Valdimir Zelenko was primarily serving? Hint: these are the exact same communities that were previously plagued with measles for several years, right up until the ‘rona hit, lawsuits left and right, local health officials declaring states of emergency, etc, and have frequently had hepatitis outbreaks in the recent past. A group that tries to live apart from most of the rest of us, and ignores rules when they think nobody is watching.
From Westchester it spread into Connecticut and then into New England. From NYC, Rockland, and Westchester it spread across the border into Bergen County NJ, and the other northern NJ bedroom counties just across the river from Manhattan, and then across down across the whole state, while the viral fire from Lakewood in the middle of the state worked from below pushed northward and westward. The net effect was that it mostly skipped over the less populated NW and SE parts of the state and shifted to PA and points west.
It is important to keep in mind that this was not the only vector. There were many, especially those within other ethno-centric communities. In hindsight it will likely be admitted (it’s already been proven true for many months) that very high percentages of the 4 main ethnic communities all had historically low levels of vitamin D, very high rates of other serious pre-existing conditions, a high percentage of elderly members, and often lived in rather dense housing conditions, along with traditions of frequent large and energetic gatherings.
I am not a big believer in masks or social distancing, but in some cases it just makes sense. Gathering together in big dense crowds for hours at a time, especially indoors, is begging for it. Not doing anything to improve your own health is rather foolish.
GWB says: The ‘rona first spread into New York City … by one man.
I seriously doubt this. There were so many vectors into NYC it was never going to not be a petri dish of WTF.
the “Zelenko Protocol”
Typical. It was a group of French doctors who actually tried it and documented it. But some dude in NYC gets credit.
GWB says: that have been experiencing rising positivity rates
So what? Have they been experiencing rising hospitalizations? Rising treatments, even? Rising death rates?
If not, then who cares if people are positive for it.
We also know kids transmit the virus at a lower rate than adults.
This is the real issue. Even if they don’t get sick with a disease, they can be carriers, the little vermin. But, evidently not Winnie The Flu. So, important science point there.
were understandably outraged at this
If there aren’t pitchforks and torches involved, they aren’t really “outraged”. Show up in Albany armed in such a fashion, and he might actually believe he’s crossed a line. Until then, you’re all still just subjects of his tyranny.
Or, of course, simply refuse to shut down.
We know mass gatherings are the super spreader events.
Actually, no, we don’t. The subway and taxis are more likely super-spreaders than churches and synagogues.
I don’t mean little violations. You’re only supposed to have 50, they had 55.
Actually, that’s the very definition of a “little” violation.
Schools frankly, because they’re students and that’s where our heart goes, our priority goes.
‘Cause that’s SO sciencey! To follow your heart!
About those photos…
Hey! Who you gonna believe? Me or your lyin’ eyes? Errr…. ummm, wait a minute….
“I have to say to the Orthodox community tomorrow, ‘If you’re not willing to live with these rules, then I’m going to close the synagogues.'”
Never again, right?
It’s time, past time for the citizens of New York to stand up and tell de Blasio and Cuomo to take their rules and edicts and shove it.
If only!
Rick says: Leftists can’t have Mammon?
JonathanInIsrael says: FWIW the synagogues in Israel are closed. And some of the ultraorthodox voolate the closure orders.
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