It was the big Presstitute news since the COVID War broke out.
Florida’s Governor, Ron DeSantis, a Republican, did not impose strict lockdown rules on the state, as opposed to the stringent lockdown enforced on the people and businesses of New York State by Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Indeed, the media and politicians chastised DeSantis for his measures taken since the COVID War broke out and still applauds Cuomo’s actions, ignoring the hard fact that Florida, with a population of 21.5 million has, to date, registered 14,043 COVID-19 deaths compared to New York State, with a population of 19.5 million and 33,225 virus death.
These were some of the Florida fear headlines back then:
- “Coronavirus may have caused hundreds of additional deaths in Florida” — Tampa Bay Times, 20 May
- “Does Thursday’s coronavirus spike reset the clock on Gov. DeSantis’ plan to reopen the economy?” — com, 24 April
And here is how the media referred to New York Governor Cuomo’s handling of the virus:
- “Siena poll: Cuomo job rating ‘best ever’” — com, 27 April
- “How Cuomo, Once on Sidelines, Became the Politician of the Moment.
With his coronavirus briefings, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has emerged as an authoritative voice in the crisis.” — The New York Times, 24 March
Last week, DeSantis announced the state would move to its Phase 3 reopening, meaning restaurants, hotels, and bars can begin operating again at full capacity under state law.
“Every business has a right to operate… you can’t just say no after six months and have people twisting in the wind,” DeSantis said, according to Spectrum News. The report, citing DeSantis, said COVID survival rates in the state reached 94 percent and hospitalizations were also down.
DeSantis said he believes removing the restrictions are “very important” to the restaurant industry.
Restaurants and bars in the state could see some local restrictions, however, and DeSantis said local governments can limit some capacity as long as these establishments can operate at over 50 percent.
This compares to New York City where indoor restaurant capacity is limited to 25 percent, and bars across the state are not permitted to serve just drinks to customers and where strict mask wearing and social distancing rules are enforced.
While other states were locking down whole sectors of the economy, DeSantis has faced criticism for being too loose with his restrictions.
On His Side
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said in an emailed statement to News4Jax that his office continues to work with the governor “in his smart and safe approach to reopening our state. We ask for the continued vigilance of our citizens and establishments that helped slow the spread of COVID-19.”
Phase 3 of the state’s reopening means those 65+ and those with underlying conditions can resume public interactions, gyms can open at full capacity, theme parks can return to normal operations, and retail stores can operate at full capacity.
Dr. Marissa J. Levine, Professor of Public Health at the University of South Florida, said, “I think if the message that comes across is we can just go back to the way that it was, we have the potential for significant trouble,” according to WFLA.com.
WSVN interviewed Mike Penrod, the owner of Elbo Room, a beach bar in Fort Lauderdale. The report said the bar has been closed for more than six months. “Six months [closed] has been a nightmare, like everyone else,” Mr. Penrod told the station. “It’s really been difficult for everybody: our employees and our friends and families, and our customers.”
TREND FORECAST: Day after day, media source after media source, rather than reporting the socioeconomic misery imposed on Main Street by the lockdowns, instead, they focus on and applaud the record-breaking market gains by Wall Street… as the Bigs get bigger and small businesses perish.
As reported by Reuters, surveys from small business networking group Alignable and online review site Yelp forecast a dim future for small businesses.
“The impact has been too deep for too long. And it’s taking its toll,” Alignable spokesman Chuck Casto said after the group’s poll of more than 6,300 small businesses released Wednesday found more than 40 percent believe they won’t have enough money to stay in business by year’s end.
Being one of America’s major states, to analyze where the economy in the U.S. is going and how fast it will sink or temporarily rebound, keep abreast of Florida’s GDP data.