May 26? Why? Why Not?

Tony Evers put May 26 as the new date for staying in place. Is that a good idea?

The question begs analysis. There is no leadership on the coronavirus from the top; 45 seems content to avoid responsibility. He keeps saying that the governors should run the show.

So one has, quietly, as is his wont. Tony Evers is never going to let personality get in the way, never let himself get bigger than the moment. He's a teacher, first and foremost, and if this isn't a teachable moment, I'm not sure what is.

Wisconsin has had its share of coronavirus tragedy, and it continues. The Republicans have guaranteed that it will go longer than necessary, what with their resistance to having the past spring elections delayed. We already know that the virus' reach has extended because of it. They have no shame.

But they outnumber the Democrats at the state capitol because of their cagey gerrymandering. We already know that it doesn't reflect the true feelings of the electorate. In 2018, 54% of the state's voters voted for the Democratic candidates, but only 36% of them populate the seats of the legislature. That power grab was successful. You can judge the effects of the latest one, where they sued, successfully, at the state Supreme Court because again, they had the numbers, if not the logic.

So the first date of let's-see-what's-up-now, April 24, has pretty much been laid to waste. People gathered at the state capitol, as they have at state capitols elsewhere, and protested that their rights to fish, golf, go to church, and spit on each other have been curtailed by their state government's orders.

These are the same people that brought you "keep the government's hands off my Medicare," whatever in the hell that meant: the Tea Party, the purveyor of anger for its own sake, whether it makes any sense or not. Again, it means that people's orientations about their government have been twisted so out of proper definition that it's misinformation, not an attack on their rights, that is their problem.

Actually, it's also the problem of someone like Tony Evers, who's just trying to protect people from, well, themselves and this insidious virus, which will surely kill them if not make them very sick. Again, I respect their rights to get sick: Just don't get anywhere near me. They don't have any right to make me sick.

Other state governors have indicated that they're trying to get their states in a back-to-work phase by the first of the month, while three of them (interestingly, in Southern states with Republican governors) are looking to do it right now. But the affairs of people do not defy science.

We already know the country's not ready to go back to work. People can be forced to risk their health--see above, for the Wisconsin vote--but that extends and deepens the problem. One more time: the virus doesn't care. We don't have a good answer yet. It will spread, and spread indiscriminately.

Some disconnect is at work there. Many of the protestors claim that religiously, they believe in things unseen; it is a cornerstone of their faith. Yet, they cannot bring themselves to believe in actual reality, though it is unseen as well. Without sick people wandering around like zombies, without it to actually see for themselves, they apparently can't approach the devastation that the virus brings unless and until it is brought to their doorstep. They cling to their constitutional rights as if no one has ever trifled with them before, as if the temporary changes will become automatically permanent.

Apparently, then, that's what must happen: They have to get sick themselves. Many are in the more rural areas, so they don't get to see the devastation that often. They don't trust anyone on the other side who, nonetheless, cares about their health a great deal. Will they blame themselves when the virus strikes? We'll have to see. Their leader, or the person who they think is leading them, won't blame himself. If this epiphany takes place, though, he is doomed in November. I'm not holding my breath, though.

Meanwhile, what to do with the new infections caused by irresponsible Republicans? Wait another month. Wait through Memorial Day, though that will disturb cookouts and vacations. Wait until May 26, the day after.

That date isn't the latest. Virginia's governor, a doctor, has his folks in place until June 10. Michigan's governor, Gretchen Whitmer, is tougher than Evers about not letting some businesses operate. But they've lost far more people. Their numbers justify her actions.

People are getting antsy. I know I am. When my self-quarantining ended yesterday, the first thing I did after going to the store was take a long walk. It was a nice day: Lots of people out along Lincoln Memorial Drive in Milwaukee, and in Lake Park, two places I normally go.

Nobody, and I mean nobody, who was not my age wore a mask, and I walked more than two miles. (Though social distancing seems to have taken hold for the most part.) Generational issues here: Tough to recall, but so many of us thought once that we were indestructible, too. Looking at the faces of those who are assaulting the state capitols, there aren't too many of them who are ready to retire, or who have already done so.

That kind of defiance was once bracing: Tom Brady was caught working out in a Tampa Bay park yesterday, and was told to run along. Now, it looks stupid. Yes, I think May 26 isn't overreach, given what's already happened. Whether the Wisconsin general public thinks so is another matter. Businesses will most likely decide. But they must consider what losing their people will mean to their bottom line.

Be well. Be careful. With some luck, I'll see you down the road.


Mister Mark