Stop cleaning everything for safety theater

Welcome to Day 326 of 15 days to stop the spread. As the rest of the country opens up, mountains packed, restaurants packed, New Jersey still lives in the masked, distance, limited social interaction of the COVID fog.

Now we’re starting to think about the summer — will it be normal? What’s that even mean? I support beach tags, but how many free beaches are just a drive away with normal activities for families? Will you stay in New Jersey for vacation? Has your summer vacation already been scrapped because of job loss? Lotta questions for many residents as we head toward a year of COVID panic.

Government is still functioning at low speed. Perhaps the only thing worse than unemployment service is Motor Vehicles. MVC is a mess. Lack of staff causing closures is the latest issue. Now if it's because people are refusing to work, unless the circumstances are actually dangerous are grounds for termination, but in the case of the media-induced panic and the government acting like the sky is still falling, I think the MVC workers have a point. Look at what the NJEA is getting away with!

Back to the point of cleaning. What an absurd inconsistency. Big Box stores and grocery stores with people streaming through, no need to clean in between people touching food and putting it back. Gym and restaurants? Gotta make the seat as sterile as an operating room. It's a burden that adds cost and slows the process of bringing in paying customers. And it seems that it's worse in New Jersey than just about anywhere else.

Driving south from a weekend of skiing, it was hard not to notice the packed restaurants on the way through upstate New York and Connecticut. You still see the silly signs about "wear a mask" and "keep your distance" but in practice, people are just fed up and back to normalcy.

When will the so-called adults in Jersey stop acting like scared kids? It's a cold virus. It's a re-categorized flu. And it's just not as deadly as the media wants you to believe.

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.