COVID concerns in the Northeast

[ss20]

Ikon/Epic COULD also track visitor locations and penalize those who go to/from VT and then an outside state...but they don't. Should they? Paging the peanut gallery...

 

[tumbler]

So not trying to be political but wondering if the administrations were different last February/March, do you think there would have been more of a federal plan instead of leaving it up to the individual states to make their own rules?

 

[KustyTheKlown]

So not trying to be political but wondering if the administrations were different last February/March, do you think there would have been more of a federal plan instead of leaving it up to the individual states to make their own rules?

yes.

 

[drjeff]

So not trying to be political but wondering if the administrations were different last February/March, do you think there would have been more of a federal plan instead of leaving it up to the individual states to make their own rules?

Initially, no.

Quite simply put, the virus originated in this Country in very localized geographic areas.

Likely no way that an entire country wide plan from day 1, could of been tolerated by the public at large as well as the various government leaders trying to sell/justify their calls for shutdowns.

Even now, it's not affecting the entire country in a uniform way, and given the population size and vast geographic area this Country has, honestly not sure that a "one size fits all" approach ever could of been used, let alone sold on the public in a way that wouldn't of generated sizable push back by probably 10's of millions of people

 

[KustyTheKlown]

the federal govt completely washed their hands of the problem and pushed it on the states with no funding or coordination, causing them to competitively bid over the same resources. it was an embarrassing response. stop excusing it.

 

[LasersInTheTaiga]

It's true that they did indeed TRY to make it work.
MA went as far a having their attorneys look in to it.
Came down to NOT being able to prove occupancy of said vehicle.

I remember when they first set up the EZPass system one of the conditions was that states wouldn't be allowed to use the data for issuing speeding tickets, possibly for this very reason.

 

[ss20]

the federal govt completely washed their hands of the problem and pushed it on the states with no funding or coordination, causing them to competitively bid over the same resources. it was an embarrassing response. stop excusing it.

There's what....150ish countries in the world? I can only think of a half dozen that didn't completely botch their response at some point.

I'm just happy we're skiing. They're not in many European countries.

 

[cdskier]

So not trying to be political but wondering if the administrations were different last February/March, do you think there would have been more of a federal plan instead of leaving it up to the individual states to make their own rules?

No. I think my opinions are surprisingly similar to drjeff's on this one...

I do think there are things that could have (and should have) been done differently. But I'm not convinced at all that the outcome would have been much different no matter what.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

There's what....150ish countries in the world? I can only think of a half dozen that didn't completely botch their response at some point.

I'm just happy we're skiing. They're not in many European countries.

yea but we're america and we're supposed to be 'exceptional' or so said my 10th grade history teacher

agreed that skiing is a blessing right now. as close as Ontario that blessing is verboten, tho i think i read they are opening soon

 

[Edd]

I’d go mad if not for skiing right now. I’d have to start a fight club or something.

 

[ss20]

No. I think my opinions are surprisingly similar to drjeff's on this one...

I do think there are things that could have (and should have) been done differently. But I'm not convinced at all that the outcome would have been much different no matter what.

Ditto on that. This is something no one could have imagined. I, and 98% of the population did not take this pandemic seriously til March. Any restrictions would have been laughed at/ignored/questioned as to why. And red or blue or purple I doubt the prevailing political party in the White House could've had much control over the progress of this disease. Unless you're New Zealand, it just has to run its course.

 

[ss20]

I’d go mad if not for skiing right now. I’d have to start a fight club or something.

I'm with you there. I have no idea what I'd be doing if I was in one of those European countries that's been under heavy restrictions for 11 months now.

It's just in our blood that we value personal freedom and accept taking personal risks. They just don't have the same mentality in Europe or the Asian countries. We are a nation of individuals, they are nations of like-minded groups. This isn't good/bad...just different. And it's engrained in our societal views/ideas. Our Democratic party is not half as liberal as the liberal parties over in Europe.

 

[cdskier]

I’d go mad if not for skiing right now. I’d have to start a fight club or something.

Agreed. My one cousin that I talk to a lot pointed out recently how much my tone and mood has changed since I started skiing. I'd very much be going crazy right now if it wasn't for skiing...

 

[abc]

So not trying to be political but wondering if the administrations were different last February/March, do you think there would have been more of a federal plan instead of leaving it up to the individual states to make their own rules?

Yes and no.

Personally, I think the federal government should coordinate and offer guidance (like, not contradicting CDC). But specific rules and enforcement should definitely be left to local government. I mean, not just at the state level but at county or city level. With support from states and federal government.

 

[Smellytele]

I’d go mad if not for skiing right now. I’d have to start a fight club or something.

So your last name is Norton

 

[KustyTheKlown]

coordinating supplies, harnessing the defense production act, and promoting consistent best practices without actively undermining them, would have made a significant difference.

 

[VTKilarney]

coordinating supplies, harnessing the defense production act, and promoting consistent best practices without actively undermining them, would have made a significant difference.

I think “significant“ is, at best, an overstatement. One reason is that infection rates in states that did a good job with those things aren’t much different than in states that did worse. Five of the top six states for per capita deaths are solidly blue states whose Governors took COVID extremely seriously. The Governor of one of those states mandated that infected people be shoved into nursing homes, has the second highest per capita death rate in the country, covered up nursing home deaths, and had the hubris to write a book on how well he handled the crisis. It’s hard to blame a President for stupidity like that even if the Presidential response could have been better. At a minimum, I’d put my partisanship aside and recognize that neither side has a perfect track record.

 

[abc]

It’s hard to blame a President for stupidity like that even if the Presidential response could have been better. At a minimum, I’d put my partisanship aside and recognize that neither side has a perfect track record.

Heck, even many European countries didn't do much better. So I'm not entirely sure the stupidity of the former President had really hurt the situation all that much.

Reality is, we didn't know how to handle it last spring. We were groping in the dark. So stupidity and rationality worked just about as poorly.

About the only thing that is really different, is contradicting the scientists don't inspire confidence. And confidence is the main thing that makes the situation "significantly" better or worse.

 

[VTKilarney]

The great Cuomo coverup is starting to unravel:

Cuomo administration ‘froze’ over nursing home COVID-19 data requests

The new figures come as the Cuomo administration has been forced in recent weeks to acknowledge it has been underreporting the overall number of COVID-19 deaths among long-term care residents.

www.wcax.com

I wonder how those book sales are going?

 

[gittist]

the federal govt completely washed their hands of the problem and pushed it on the states with no funding or coordination, causing them to competitively bid over the same resources. it was an embarrassing response. stop excusing it.

Federalism vs. States Rights (and responsibilities).

"Amendment X​

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 unless someone can show that the states surrendered their health and welfare powers to the federal government, the ultimate responsibility lies with each state. That's not to say the federal government can't or shouldn't help but ultimately it's up to the states. Why does President Biden's executive mask order only apply to federal property? It's because he doesn't have the power to mandate where the state's rights (and responsibilities) are supreme.

So if you're not happy with what's happening in your state, look no further than to your Governor and legislature.