Drivers swarm Michigan capital to protest coronavirus lockdown measures
These protests hopefully are just the beginning. End the nanny state. Stop the dystopia regarding movement and religious observances. Open up the economy now. Uphold the constitution!
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Hundreds of cars, trucks and SUVs descended on Michigan’s state capital Wednesday afternoon as part of a noisy protest against Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ’s social-distancing restrictions that critics say have gone too far.
Dubbed “Operation Gridlock” and organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition, the protest did just that – creating bumper-to-bumper traffic throughout downtown Lansing as demonstrators blasted their horns, waved Americans flags and hoisted placards deriding Whitmer’s orders and demanding that she reopen the state’s economy.
The lockdown measures are meant to curb the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, but Whitmer has gone further than some other governors -- and the backlash in Michigan is among the most heated in the country.
“Let’s start with the fact that some counties have no or very few COVID cases and yet are totally shut down,” Rosanne Ponkowski, president of the Michigan Conservative Coalition, said in a statement. “When did a one-size solution solve everyone’s local issues? Governor Whitmer will put you out of business before allowing mere citizens to be responsible for their own behavior. That is madness.”
Whitmer announced over the weekend an expansion to her state’s stay-at-home orders, which among other things prohibits residents from visiting family or friends with exceptions for providing care, bans public and private gatherings regardless of size or family ties, and places restrictions on what types of businesses may operate and in what capacity.
Michigan has the fourth-largest number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States, with more 27,000 being reported as of Wednesday afternoon, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.
The orders, which are in place until at least May 1, quickly drew criticism from conservative Republicans in the state, who argue that the governor is turning Michigan into a “nanny state” and impeding their civil liberties.
“Quarantine is when you restrict movement of sick people. Tyranny is when you restrict the movement of healthy people,” Meshawn Maddock, an organizer of “Operation Gridlock” with the Michigan Conservative Coalition, told Fox News. “Every person has learned a harsh lesson about social distancing. We don’t need a nanny state to tell people how to be careful.”
Whitmer – who had to issue clarifications to her orders, most notably when someone tweeted a picture from Walmart saying that children’s car seats were “non-essential” items – has so far remained steady in her resolve that Michigan needs to stick to strict stay-at-home measures in order to tackle the virus. She has also recognized, however, that residents have a right to protest under the Constitution, but asked demonstrators to do so safely.
“Everyone has a right to protest and speak up. We recognize that some people are angry and frustrated, and that’s okay,” Whitmer’s office said Wednesday in a statement. “The Governor will always defend everyone’s rights to free speech. We just ask those who choose to protest these orders to do so in a manner that doesn’t put their health or the health of our first responders at risk.”
The organizers of “Operation Gridlock” have asked anyone participating in Wednesday’s protest to “[d]isplay signs, make noise and be disruptive, but stay in your vehicle so that the ‘Whitmer police’ cannot say you are ignoring the 'social distancing' order.” They have also asked people not to carpool “because gas is cheap” and warned them to not drink too much liquids because they will not be able to access any public restrooms.
“We can get this rally done and stay within the social distancing guidelines,” Marian Sheridan, a co-founder of the Michigan Conservative Coalition, said in a statement. “Citizens are frankly tired of being treated like babies. As adults, we now know what needs to be done to stay safe. We also believe the liberal attack on the economy is becoming a serious threat right now. Join us in Lansing. We need to stop the madness and Whitmer needs a plan to re-open Michigan’s economy before it is too late.”
“Operation Gridlock” is just one of a number of demonstrations of civil disobedience around the country by Americans upset with their state’s stay-at-home orders amid the pandemic. While the contagion has sickened more than 610,000 people in the U.S. and killed over 26,000 people, protesters from North Carolina to Wyoming said they’ve been just as concerned with the economic and financial impact from shutdowns – echoing President Trump’s complaint that “the cure” could be worse than the virus.
Alex Berenson, a former New York Times reporter who has been sounding the alarm about what he believes are flawed models dictating the aggressive strategy, drew attention to the protests in North Carolina, as well as a social media uproar in Michigan.
“As someone wrote me, people in [Michigan] know when you lose jobs, they don’t come back,” he tweeted.
As for unemployment, some 16.8 million Americans have lost their jobs in the last three weeks – meaning one in 10 working Americans was out of a job.
The figures collectively constituted the largest and fastest string of job losses in records dating to 1948. By contrast, during the Great Recession, it took 44 weeks — roughly 10 months — for unemployment claims to go as high as they now have in less than a month.
Last Thursday, dozens of protesters carrying placards and wearing Guy Fawkes masks ignored Ohio’s social-distancing guidelines to demonstrate on the steps of the state’s capital building in Columbus against Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, and his administration’s handling of the outbreak. Demonstrators held signs reading “Open Ohio,” “Quarantine worse than virus,” and “Social distancing or social conditioning. We do not consent.”
A car at the "Operation Gridlock" protest in Lansing, Mich. Photo: Grady Trimble/FBN
In Wyoming, about 20 gathered last week in a park in Casper to protest the government-mandated measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus and let people go back to work, while a Facebook group called “ReOpen NC” has brought in over 21,000 members since it launched last Tuesday; it’s planning to gather in protest later this week.
“We are losing our small businesses, which are the backbone of our economy,” the group wrote on its page. “The shutdown is not warranted, nor sustainable for our area. The vulnerable can be isolated or protected in other ways, without sacrificing our entire state economy.”
While a full reopening of the U.S. economy appears to be a long way off as the country continues to battle the world’s largest outbreak of the novel coronavirus, there are signs that some states are making plans to get things at least partially up-and-running sometime in the near future.
The governors of California, Oregon and Washington announced Monday an agreement for reopening their states’ economies and controlling COVID-19 into the future. Those three states, which recorded some of the earliest cases of the coronavirus and were expected to be hard hit by the pathogen, have defied expectations and so far seen far fewer cases of the disease than expected.
A car in the "Operation Gridlock" protest in Lansing, Mich. Photo: Grady Trimble/FBN
The governors said health outcomes and science, not politics, would drive decision-making. Any modifications to each state’s stay-at-home order will be grounded in a comprehensive understanding of the health impacts of COVID-19, they added, saying no large-scale reopening will take place until metrics reflected a significant decline in the spread of the virus.
A number of states in the Northeast – including New York, which has been the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. – announced a similar plan on Monday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Tyranny is when you restrict the movement of healthy people
Does this moron understand that even if a person is asymptomatic, they can still infect others? I guess she missed history class the day Typhoid Mary was covered.
I get the frustration. And some of the measures that different jurisdictions are taking may be poorly targeted. Ok. Maybe some adjustments can be made?
But do protesting people understand that healthy people with no symptoms pass the disease on to others? The data shows that as many as half of the infected people never show symptoms, but are contagious all the same. That makes them just as dangerous as sick people. That's why healthy and sick alike are being quarantined.
Of course not!
(That's why they blindly support anything Trump wants..)
1. Since there is a two week incubation period during which there are no symptoms so a person would not know they are infected, but during that period they will still spread the virus.
2. Strictly following the guidelines worked where I live, where everything is now returning to normal, because NOBODY tried to be a rebel, and people are STILL wearing masks and keeping social distances. No new cases in my city of 32 million for more than a month. Let's see where telling the contagious disease experts to shove it up their ass gets the American population, which has already succeeded in making the numbers of infections and deaths in America astronomical (beyond primitive societies) because of ignorant resistence.
Contrary to Kris Kristofferson's song, Freedom's just another word for SOMETHING you may lose - your health or your life.
I really shook my head when I read a comment on this site by someone who wrote that they would rather lose their life to covid-19 than live in a Communist country. Wow!!! Good thing I'm not scared of Communism (even though I'm not a Communist).
What a vile (and inaccurate) thing to say.
He is after all a VISITOR in China and can disappear or be deported by looking at the wrong thing at the wrong time
I get that. But there's a difference between not saying anything and actively promoting anti-Amerivan propaganda. There's no need for anyone to actively promote CCP talking points on this site.
What ignorant resistence is that Buzz? Perhaps you are reading Chinese propaganda?
Actually American citizens have been praised by leading scientist and doctors for their cooperation and compliance during the pandemic.
I wasn't referring to the doctors and scientists, Sunshine, I was referring to the people who are resisting the needed safety procedures and endangering the lives of others, and the government figures who are encouraging that.
Your continuing ignorant accusations are really becoming tiresome, and as I'm now determining, other members are beginning to see that.themselves.
I post what I think, and I don't use or require the CCP to guide me, so I don't recite what they might say, but what I determine to be correct using my own life experiences.
They are as free to protest clogging streets as were those in Minneapolis were protesting unjustified police shootings. You know those ones the Trump Humpers said they would run over if they had the chance. I also feel if anyone is dumb enough to congregate (I know most of these particular people were in cars, but others like in Ohio were not) they deserve whatever fate hands them.
You do know the governor has shut down most of Michigan right? Clogging the streets- what a fucking joke. Exactly who the hell were they blocking besides each other?
Unlike the moronic left that like to shut down highways and city streets during rush hour.
Whitmer was being interviewed by Creepy Joe yesterday during the rally...
So really this isn't an article about any actual facts, but just more political hackery. Gotchya.
300,000 people say it is actual facts. I am not allowed to go to a job and work by myself. I am not allowed to jump in my boat and go fishing. I am not allowed to buy paint to paint my bathroom walls. I am not allowed to buy seeds to plant for my garden. Is that enough overreach for you? I just had a woman call me wanting me to replace her deck. when I told her I couldn't because I'm not paying the thousand dollar fine if some Nazi turns me in she said she would call someone else. Guess what, you can not buy the lumber to replace her deck. the lumber yards will not sell to you for new construction. So don't tell me it is political hackery Perrie.
How? Please explain?
Yet I just read that it's not all boats but motor boats that are prohibited.
Sure you can if you have paint and seed at home. What you can't do is go into a part of a store that sells those supplies. And as I said earlier, maybe that has to do with personnel. No one has answered that question for me.
As for the lumber situation do you have the personnel to sell? Is it actually banned to sell lumber from lumber yards?
And btw, throwing around the Nazi word I find offensive since I don't see you being taken away to death camps. Godwin's rule.
Also what I was referring to was the dumb meme that had nothing to do with this article and shows me that this is politically motivated.
Do not put words into my mouth and do not call me a secular progressive urban elites. I never called anyone a hick and as far as I am concerned I live in the country.
What is to explain? It is decreed that renovations are unnecessary, period.
And? You can gas up your car to go to the park to take a walk but I can't gas up my boat. Do you think her decree has pissed people off? remember what state you are talking about.
Well then its up to the stores to establish safe guidelines like they have already done here. It is not the personnel. It is her mandate. Peoples livelihood depends on spring sales.
The personnel is there. I can call in a order, a person loads it on a truck. It gets dumped on the job. 90% of the time I am not even there for a lumber delivery. Again, her mandate. Oh and FYI the lumber companies have not laid off there employees.
KD,
I have read your post and it leads me to want to read the actual decree since none of it makes sense and I don't see how it could be beneficial to either the state, or her re-election. In fact, the gas thing just sounds nuts. There has to be more to this than that.
That is a simple one to answer. You can't stop interstate highways, so people from out of the state can come in. For that very reason, I don't see how they can stop in staters from doing the same. What happens when they try? Are there blockades all over the state on every road, including back roads? That is why I am not getting this.
Give me your address and I'll buy paint and seeds online and send them to you.
Oh nevermind. You could do that for yourself.
I wonder if her hair smells like jasmine.
😬
Least he didn't just straight up rape her or grab her pussy like Trump would have.
When did he do that? Please be specific with charges that were filed and the dates he was found guilty.
... while attempts to reassign blame for WH foot dragging at the onset of the covfefe virus continue
Name one country, just one, that was prepared for this? Go ahead, we can wait while you dream up this non existent place.
Trump received nothing but shit from Democrats for his partial travel ban with China. He would have received shit from both sides of the isle if he would have put a complete ban on everything, including goods, going in and out of China.
Of course the Chinese have no blame for lying about this disease; or letting it spread outside of the country. Nor does WHO that believed Chinese damn lies; and was overly slow to react. Once it left China it was too damn late for the rest of the world.
But Trruuummmmppppp!!!!!!!
Thankfully Obama isn't at the helm- want to talk about slow reactions? Remember the H1N1 swine flu and his bullshit attitude?
Of course Obama warned about another epidemic in 2014- and did jack shit of nothing to prepare for it.
But Trruuummmmppppp!!!!!!
When you have nothing worth of value to add scream Trump's name and pretend that it ends the argument.
Don't worry, those in power across the world haven't learned anything from this pandemic either. There will be a next one, and maybe it will be lethal enough to knock some sense into the morons in charge across the globe.
Too much false information to address...
South Korea. First reported case on the same day as the US, thus far 10.5k cases, 262 deaths.
Trump received nothing but shit from Democrats for his partial travel ban with China. He would have received shit from both sides of the isle if he would have put a complete ban on everything, including goods, going in and out of China.
No Xx. The vast majority of the comment has been debunked ad nauseam. If you don't know that, you haven't been reading many of the comments in your own fucking seeds for the last couple of weeks.
Well I am not mowing my lawn. I would have a heart attack pushing a mower up the hills I have. Maybe I will try and sue her dumbass.
What does she expect people to do?
Yeah, beer and cigs are fine to go out and buy but don't you touch those plants.
Me neither except the heart attack would come from trying to push through 2 ft of snow.
You forgot to take your cigarette boat for a spin
Is there some reason you think I care? I made a joke to Sunshine, your to do list is of no interest or relevance.
Yes I assure you it would be very difficult to mow a lawn covered in snow
Honestly I'm not sure I could even start my lawn mower in the current temps here
LMAO you suck, although it has been getting nicer here it's supposed to warm up to 11 today with some low teens through next week.
And probably some of Trump's "base" believes everything he says..without question!
(If he said "jump out of a firve story window onto the concrete sidewalk, you will survive" many of them would unquestionably jump...)
Dr Birx is speaking this morning towards what I’ve been saying about this epidemic for awhile. That is to say we need to react in a microscopic (granular was the word she used) way not macroscopic.
Michigan is a great example of this. The map tells the tale:
Hot spots clearly require more restriction than lesser affected areas. One size does not fit all. This is just one area where Whitmer is failing the people.