Texas governor rescinds mask mandate and all COVID restrictions

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Aikouka

Lifer
Nov 27, 2001
30,383
912
126
The vaccines work against 117. The problem is that Texas, for example, only has 13% of people with at least one shot so far so inviting a much more infectious variant to run rampant in whatever is left of the naive population is flatly gambling with peoples lives.

Ah, okay... thank you. It looks like I might have been mixing up my variants. From the CDC's website, it appears that the vaccine is most likely just as effective against the B.1.1.7 variant, but there's a little worry about the P.1 and B.1.351 variants.
 

kage69

Lifer
Jul 17, 2003
28,745
40,187
136
More sound decision making in Texas. Way to go Abbot, you fucking chump.

Sorry Texans, more of you have to die or maybe just suffer chronic conditions, the party of 'life' and 'personal responsibility' has been inconvenienced long enough.

Mississippi doing it too. Shocking.
 
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K1052

Elite Member
Aug 21, 2003
48,089
37,283
136
I’ve been texted by three people about what an idiot our governor is, including my very Republican Trump fan father. Kinda unusual.
 
Feb 28, 2021
26
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I'm willing to bet Governor Hot Wheels is just doing this to distract from his mismanagement of the whole power debacle two weeks ago. He can bloviate all he wants about reforming and (somewhat ironically) legislating ERCOT... how convenient it is that he never says anything about the Public Utilities Commission, which has the real cojones here and whose members he directly appoints.

Deflect, ignore, whatabout, be hypocritical, deflect - typical R playbook.

“Removing statewide mandates does not end personal responsibility,” said Abbott, speaking from a crowded dining room where many of those surrounding him were not wearing masks. “It’s just that now state mandates are no longer needed."

Yeah, because I can count on the other ~54% of the state who voted R to give a shit about anyone else but themselves. Between them, Assbott, Lt Gov Dannie "Sacrifice Granny for the Economy" Goeb, Senators Zodiac Killer and Cornhole, Gohmert Pyle, and all of their failed policies... I really want out of this borderline shithole.
 

kage69

Lifer
Jul 17, 2003
28,745
40,187
136
I’ve been texted by three people about what an idiot our governor is, including my very Republican Trump fan father. Kinda unusual.

Wife just lost a cousin out there, from going to an Xmas party everyone told her not to but that she insisted was safe due to whole pandemic being one big hoax (praise Trump). Several family members attended and they all got covid19, but this cousin was the one who got to spend several weeks in the ICU, slowly dying an unpleasant and lonely death. They streamed her service on zoom.

That has, thankfully, got many of them to snap out of it a bit. They can't believe this news, this and not having electricity and clean water has them beyond pissed. AOC getting involved was sobering to many I think.

The sad fact is it is going to take more dead people and financial ruin to make the majority of Americans realize how toxic republican governance is. It's a lesson Texans should understand well by now, better than most. Oh well.
 

Paratus

Lifer
Jun 4, 2004
17,117
14,484
146
Look we have to distract from the people that died from the cold due to state government negligence by removing COVID restrictions so people can go out and party it up and then die from state government negligence.
 

ch33zw1z

Lifer
Nov 4, 2004
38,201
18,670
146
What is so dumb is that most restrictions can probably be safely lifted in about a month and nearly all within two months at our current rate of vaccination. Why do this when the end is so close?

Distraction, virtue signaling. I'm sure the resident troll will be by any minute to say the same.
 
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Saylick

Diamond Member
Sep 10, 2012
3,512
7,766
136
If COVID-19 hospitalizations rise above 15% for seven straight days for any hospital region, county judges may opt to impose stricter COVID-19 mitigation strategies, but they cannot impose face mask restrictions or fines, Abbott said.

Does not compute. Imposing a face mask mandate IS stricter COVID-19 mitigation strategies. What other strategy is there? Imposing a face mask mandate is one of the easiest things to do. If you can't guarantee that people will at least wear face masks, your second best bet is to somehow prevent people from being in close contact with each other, but how would you accomplish that? Martial law? Make people wear shock collars that detect if you're within 6 ft from someone else, and if you are, you get a rude awakening?
 
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PingSpike

Lifer
Feb 25, 2004
21,749
584
126
I’ve been texted by three people about what an idiot our governor is, including my very Republican Trump fan father. Kinda unusual.

Even if all you care about is opening business and getting money then at the very least you'd still support a mask mandate, because now half of people are going to stay home as much as possible. There's a store down the road by my house. Went in there and the guy that owns it wasn't wearing a mask. I ain't going back there.
 
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K1052

Elite Member
Aug 21, 2003
48,089
37,283
136
Even if all you care about is opening business and getting money then at the very least you'd still support a mask mandate, because now half of people are going to stay home as much as possible. There's a store down the road by my house. Went in there and the guy that owns it wasn't wearing a mask. I ain't going back there.

Yea, a lot of people will see pics of people packed into bars later this week and think “nope, seen this before” and pull back their activity.
 

conehead433

Diamond Member
Dec 4, 2002
5,566
899
126
Is there a contest to see which Governor can kill the most residents of their state? I'd say Texas is the frontrunner.
 
Mar 11, 2004
23,280
5,721
146
Yea, a lot of people will see pics of people packed into bars later this week and think “nope, seen this before” and pull back their activity.

I wish I had your optimism, as I think its gonna be the opposite, people see that and go join them. Almost guarantee that happens here in Arizona regardless of if they loosen mask restrictions (which I could see Ducebag doing). Already seeing bars packed again, and tons more traffic (honestly seems like more traffic than before the pandemic even).

But, I'm going to be cutting way back again. I'd been ordering more food out lately since everyone was wearing masks. Gonna be stocking up on various stuff as well as within a month bet we'll be back like it was that time last year.
 

trenchfoot

Lifer
Aug 5, 2000
14,939
7,459
136
How odd it is that it's going to be those folks who keep wearing their masks as well as practicing those other procedures that keep themselves and others safe from the virus that's going to, by coincidence, make Abbott look as best as he could be given his opening the doors for another surge of infections.
 

zinfamous

No Lifer
Jul 12, 2006
111,136
30,085
146
Republicans need to be removed from this country.

Not sure where you'd put them, though.

Can we at least ban them all from travel, "until we can figure out what is going on"? I mean, they support that exact policy, without question, so let's just do it for them.
 
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SteveGrabowski

Diamond Member
Oct 20, 2014
7,428
6,157
136
The sad fact is it is going to take more dead people and financial ruin to make the majority of Americans realize how toxic republican governance is. It's a lesson Texans should understand well by now, better than most. Oh well.

It'll never happen. White supremacy has been a winning political strategy in the US for 400 years now.
 

MrSquished

Lifer
Jan 14, 2013
23,082
21,203
136
well hopefully more non-masking Trump idiots just cleanse themselves out of the gene pool. You know, silver linings and all.
 

SteveGrabowski

Diamond Member
Oct 20, 2014
7,428
6,157
136
Republicans need to be removed from this country.

Not sure where you'd put them, though.

Can we at least ban them all from travel, "until we can figure out what is going on"? I mean, they support that exact policy, without question, so let's just do it for them.

Ugh I don't need more of them put into Texas.
 

SteveGrabowski

Diamond Member
Oct 20, 2014
7,428
6,157
136
well hopefully more non-masking Trump idiots just cleanse themselves out of the gene pool. You know, silver linings and all.

God I'm so glad I got my second shot last week. Fuck, wish Gov Halfdead had waited another week though so I'd have the maximum protection from the death cult.