NJ government picks protesters over your business (Opinion)

The business climate in New Jersey is tenuous at best. For many, the shutdown was devastating. The good news is we heard from callers all Monday morning about people taking advantage of the summer weather and getting out to restaurants open for outdoor seating.

Although this is certainly welcome news and good start, government seems desperate to stand in the way and continue the "crisis acting." Look at what happened in Morristown over the weekend. A bar opens, people of course go to grab a drink, enjoy life and help get the restaurant back in business. Sadly, the local government, bent on making headlines for enforcing social distancing, shut them down. It’s outrageous when you think about it.

Thousands packing beaches in other parts of the country. Thousands packing the streets for George Floyd protests. 500,000 tests conducted daily across the country with the percentage of positive results dropping through the floor. The bottom line is that we are simply going to have to accept that this virus and other viruses will be with us for years, maybe decades … maybe forever.

If you can protest cops and stay healthy, you can frequent a local restaurant. If you can go to a big box store, you can go to a small business. The new rules laid down by Murphy and his cohorts have nothing to do with public health and safety. This is all about government control and money.

When the pandemic started, the entire policy was about flattening the curve to not overwhelm the medical system. A laudable and smart goal for sure. But we learned almost immediately that the disease was simply not as deadly as predicted and we never came close to overwhelming our health care system. Actually, the opposite happened. Furloughed docs and nurses and empty hospital bed were more common than packed hospitals. Even where there were exceptions of crowded ERs, the experts and front-line workers saw the curve flatten on April 7 in the Bronx and around April 14 in New Jersey.

The bottom line is we sent the extra ICU beds packing and kept most of the ventilators in storage. We should’ve reopened the economy on May 1 and let the kids finish out the school year. When "flatten the curve" turned into indefinite social distance and mask wearing, we went from a health situation to a dangerous political power grab. Will you stand and fight?

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own. Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015.

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