covid diary: day 43

#GetUsPPE

I caught a tiny bit of Gov. Cuomo's daily press conference today. I tuned in just as he was showing a slide that read "BLAME ME." He was saying that as governor, he is responsible for making difficult decisions like extending the stay-at-home order, and that he knows that he shoulders the blame and the credit in equal measures. Then he went on to say that we all are interconnected, that we all depend on each other, and that we can succeed together. What a show of matter-of-fact, everyday leadership. What a breath of fresh air. What a relief to know that someone in a leadership position is willing to stand up and say, day after day, that he is willing to take any criticism that comes his way because he knows that he is doing the right thing for the people of his state.

Meanwhile, in another part of the country, you have what Twitter people have dubbed the #SickSix: the governors of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi, who have formed a coalition of their own to reopen their states. Except that most of these states were never actually fully closed, because all of these governors are Republicans who believe that economic interests outweigh the public good. Georgia "closed" for less than three weeks. It was April 2 when Gov. Kemp (who, let's recall, won a very close election against Stacey Abrams largely by using his former position as secretary of state to purge tens of thousands of largely Democratic voters from the rolls) realized that a person could spread COVID-19 even if that person is asymptomatic. He called that realization a "game changer." Well, apparently his game hasn't changed all that much, because now he has ordered Georgia businesses like nail and hair salons, bowling alleys, tattoo parlors, and massage parlors to open back up this week, followed by theaters and restaurants next week. Not just that, but he specifically ordered that no county or city in the state could put any restrictions in place to contradict his order.

Take a look at those businesses again. What do they have in common? They employ lots of low-wage workers, and they require people to get very close to each other. You know what's not opening up? Banks. Factories. Schools. I wonder why? One very good theory is that the businesses that are opening up are opening up specifically because Gov. Kemp wants to keep those workers off of unemployment, the funds for which are about to run out. Georgia has a cap on taxes and very restrictive borrowing laws (that's fiscal conservatism for you), so it won't be easy to replenish the state's unemployment program. I guess what's easier is to just send a bunch of people back into a dangerous situation, knowing full well that many of them will die. And Kemp certainly knows it: "We have more people moving around, we're probably going to have to see our cases continue to go up, but we're a lot better prepared for that now than we were over a month ago," he said Monday. "But if we have an instance where a community starts becoming a hot spot, then, you know, I will take further action." Sure you will, governor. Sure.

I'm so sorry, people of Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi. Take care of yourselves, please, because your government isn't going to help.

Good gravy, y'all. I just saw an interview with the mayor of Las Vegas, Carolyn Goodman, where she offers up the city to be a "control group." And by that she means she wants to reopen everything in Las Vegas and just ... see what happens. Because she doesn't think social distancing is the reason that only (only!) 150 people have died in Las Vegas so far. She's willing to bet the lives of more than 2 million people (!!!) on her control group theory ... which I guess is dedication to the mission of Las Vegas?

I'm so sorry, people of Las Vegas. Stay safe out there! Don't let this woman gamble with your lives.

By far the best thing to happen today came late this afternoon, when our first great-nephew, Emeri James, was born. He's a big boy at 8 pounds, 11 ounces and 20 inches long. Klaudia is a champ and will be a great mom, and Bethany will love being a grandma. Emeri doesn't know it, of course, but he's so lucky to have been born into such an extraordinary family. He'll always have a whole clan at his back, ready to love him and teach him and laugh with him and stand beside him. Welcome to the world, young man. I can't wait until I get to meet you in person.

Nationwide cases: 837,947. Deaths: 46,497.