When It’s Convenient for Them

Michael Locatelli
For The Clock
mlocatelli@plymouth.edu

Two years of rules, rhetoric, and divisive government action have brought us to a boiling point with COVID-19. Some people are still worried and believe the virus has potential to pose great harm to them and their loved ones. While others have grown tired of government mandated regulations and are frustrated with our societal institutions, there are others that can’t seem to move on.

This frustration can be seen daily in the United States, but pressure to remove mandates can be felt worldwide. In Canada, there are ongoing protests that have lasted weeks. Citizens have occupied and blockaded multiple border crossings, and set up a makeshift city in downtown Ottawa, blockading the center of Canada’s capital city. The protests are a direct response to the Canadian government’s vaccination mandates, as well as ongoing COVID-19 restrictions.

This frustration is warranted as people are tired of having the government over-involved in the small processes of their lives. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court of the United States told the nation that they agree. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Biden Administrations vaccination mandate for corporations with 100+ employees. The New York Times reported that in a 6-3 decision, the court deemed the mandate to be unconstitutional, and had it been implemented, an estimated 80 million

U.S. workers would have been affected. When in our history has the government been so involved in our own personal lives?

To add to this frustration, Americans see right through the hypocrisy of many Democratic politicians. That is not to say Republicans don’t share in governmental hypocrisy, however regarding COVID-19, much of the hypocritic behavior has come from the left.

Take this occurrence for example:

This picture of Stacy Abrams, a Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate for the State of Georgia, says it all. This is what the protesting, and opposition to government mandates is about. People see that rules are only followed by those who make them when they find it convenient. A photo op during an election year seems highly convenient. Apparently you can’t catch COVID-19 in a public school if all the kids are masked, according to politicians like Ms. Abrams. Seeing a photo like this causes anger between people, especially parents who look at it and wonder, “What the heck is going on here? My kid is forced in a mask all day just trying to learn, but a politician supporting this mandate doesn’t have to follow the same rules?”

Ms. Abrams is not the first democratic politician to get caught breaking COVID-19 protocol. As reported by FOX News in July 2021, California Governor, Gavin Newsom, ordered all wineries in 19 separate counties to close, citing COVID-19 case numbers as the reason. Yet, his personal winery remained open and was unaffected by the order.

To coincide with this, NBC News reported that Gavin Newson, and Los Angeles Mayor, Eric Garcetti, were seen maskless while posing for photographs with Magic Johnson at the 49ers-Rams playoff game last week. The game took place at SoFi Stadium in LA County, a county where mask mandates are in effect in schools and other public indoor spaces. As quoted and reported by NBC News, when pressed by the media, Garcetti said that “When people ask for a photograph, I hold my breath.” He continued to say that “There’s a zero-percent chance of infection from that.”

Even the famous and popular Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), fled her lockdown state of New York for a vacation to Florida over the holidays. A state that has seen little to no regulation regarding COVID-19. According to the New York Post, AOC was seen in a packed nightclub, socializing, and maskless. She was also photographed at a restaurant maskless, while her own constituents and their children were forced to wear masks and vaccinate back in New York. As a response to the criticism, AOC tweeted “If Republicans are mad they can’t date me they can just say that instead of projecting their sexual frustrations onto my boyfriend’s feet, ya creepy weirdos.”

Um, What? How does that tweet address your hypocrisy regarding COVID-19 protocols Ms. Cortez? It is

incredible how instances such as this one are not further scrutinized by the public. Think about that tweet for a minute: an elected member of U.S Congress tweeting about sexual frustrations, and fetishizing feet as a response to breaking COVID-19 rules which she says she supports.

It is abundantly clear that some of our politicians only follow rules when it’s convenient for them to do so. If they were so truly worried about the risks of COVID-19, why go to an NFL game with 60,000+ other people who are maskless? Why close wineries in counties except the county your winery is in? Why go to a school and force all the children to wear masks while you smile away for the cameras without one? Why travel to Florida, the state with no COVID-19 restrictions at all?

The answer is simple, they are not worried about COVID-19 because they know that they specifically do not need to be. Politicians want to keep people masked and force vaccinations, while vilifying them as extremists if they don’t comply, because that’s the right thing to do, according to them.

Sources: Business Insider FOX News NBC News New York Post New York Post Article Two New York Times