And the lemmings leap into the sea.....(and get some pushback)

[Volkonski]

Can't let Texas be the only one.

CNN Breaking News
@cnnbrk
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has announced the state is lifting its county mask mandates and allowing businesses to operate at full capacity starting tomorrow https://cnn.it/37ZVsn6

[Volkonski]

Fort Worth Star-Telegram
@startelegram
Tarrant County ends mask mandate, effective immediately, following Gov. Abbott’s order

[AndyinPA]

These states don't admit mistakes very quickly. How many people will have to die before this ends?

[Volkonski]

Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
Judge
@LinaHidalgoTX
(D), the top executive in Texas's largest county of Harris, calls Gov. Abbott's lifting of the mask mandate "wishful thinking" at best—and a "cynical" distraction from the power grid failures at worst.

[Volkonski]

Morgan Chesky
@BreakingChesky
Mayor of San Antonio weighs in.
Quote Tweet
Mayor Ron | Wear a mask! Face with medical mask
@Ron_Nirenberg
· 22m
Opening everything to 100% while simultaneously nixing our state's mask mandate is a huge mistake.

COVID-19 is still widespread in our community and infecting far too many vulnerable residents.

Please join me in continuing to wear a mask.

We're not out of the woods yet. twitter.com/TexasTribune/s…

[Volkonski]

The Lincoln Project
@ProjectLincoln
Governor Abbott abandoned Texans during the worst winter storm in a generation and is now sentencing them to superspreader events by lifting COVID restrictions.

Wear. A. Mask.

[AndyinPA]

Someone maybe trying to change the subject from the weather?

[Volkonski]

Nate Silver
@NateSilver538
What's kind of screwed up is that states like Texas and Florida that are eager to fully open up tend not to have made the vaccine available for essential workers yet, whereas the more "closed" states (though nowhere is truly closed) largely have.

https://nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us ... doses.html

[Volkonski]

Morgan Chesky
@BreakingChesky
Mayor of Houston now.
Quote Tweet
Sylvester Turner
@SylvesterTurner
· 15m
The Governor is wrong to roll back the statewide mask order which is not supported by the medical professionals, science or data. @The87thTxlege must speak up and the people of Texas must hold their leaders accountable. st

[Maybenaut]

Someone maybe trying to change the subject from the weather?

And they’ll blame Biden for the inevitable uptick in cases and deaths.

[AndyinPA]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/ ... urth-surge

Rochelle Walensky, the director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), warned on Monday that a recent increase in coronavirus cases indicated a “fourth surge” could occur before a majority of the US is vaccinated.

“At this level of cases, with variants spreading, we stand to completely lose the hard-earned ground we have gained,” Walensky said, during a White House briefing.

“Now is not the time to relax the critical safeguards that we know can stop the spread of Covid-19 in our communities, not when we are so close. We have the ability to stop a potential fourth surge of cases in this country.”

According to Johns Hopkins University, the US has recorded more than 28.5m Covid-19 cases and nearly 513,000 deaths. Daily case numbers fell steeply after a peak in January but have started to increase again.

[Volkonski]

Alief ISD
@AliefISD
Governor Greg Abbott issued the statewide mask mandate & goes into effect 3/10/21. Although we are expecting further guidance from TEA, for the safety & security of AISD staff, students & community, the district’s safety protocols & procedures will continue until further notice.

I expect every ISD in Texas will be making this kind of announcement today.

[Volkonski]

Julián Castro
@JulianCastro
When
@GregAbbott_TX
reopened Texas too soon the first time, we were averaging around 5,000 cases per day.

Now, as he ignores public health once again, Texas averages 7,000 cases per day.

This is a reckless decision that will cost lives.

[Volkonski]

Michael Board
@MikeBoard1200
BREAKING: One of Texas's largest businesses,
@HEB
, will *not* require customers to wear masks under
@GovAbbott
's order. Employees and vendors will still be masked up.

[sugar magnolia]

Can't let Texas be the only one.

CNN Breaking News
@cnnbrk
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has announced the state is lifting its county mask mandates and allowing businesses to operate at full capacity starting tomorrow https://cnn.it/37ZVsn6

Except he didn't. We have never been under a state mandate, he did it county by county, and he didn't lift all restrictions either. Indoor areas are still at 50% capacity and all the rules for schools are still in place. A ton of towns have local mask mandates that have not been lifted so I don't really expect to see any changes in how things have been all along.

https://www.wlbt.com/2021/03/02/live-go ... vid-order/
https://www.wjtv.com/news/mississippi-g ... n-state-2/

[Volkonski]

Emily Donaldson
@EmilyJDonaldson
·
35m
NEW: Schools don't know what Abbott's announcement on rescinding the mask mandate means for them.

@dallasschools
will continue following CDC guidance -- including masks -- according to a district spokeswoman.

https://dallasnews.com/news/education/2 ... -students/

[Volkonski]

[Volkonski]

Alief ISD
@AliefISD
Governor Greg Abbott issued the statewide mask mandate & goes into effect 3/10/21. Although we are expecting further guidance from TEA, for the safety & security of AISD staff, students & community, the district’s safety protocols & procedures will continue until further notice.

I expect every ISD in Texas will be making this kind of announcement today.

To the above add-

Aldine ISD
Brazosport ISD
Magnolia ISD
Spring Branch ISD
Tomball ISD
Willis ISD

And...............

Texas Education Agency
@teainfo
Statement from the Texas Education Agency:

“Governor Abbott’s Executive Order (GA-34) takes effect next Wed., March 10, 2021. Updated public health guidance from TEA will be coming this week.”

Abbott's announcement surprised Texas educators.

[raison de arizona]

[AndyinPA]

Head banking wall.

[tek]

Gov. Abbott blames immigrants for spreading COVID in rhetoric that advocates dismiss as xenophobic

About 6.3% of immigrants have tested positive for the virus. Cameron County, where Brownsville is, has a 13.8% positivity rate

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politic ... -its-best/

[raison de arizona]

Effective immediately...

[raison de arizona]

Hey, great news! Newt got suspended from Twitter for the anti immigrant Tweet I quoted above.

Newt Gingrich Suspended From Twitter for Racist Tweets
https://hillreporter.com/newt-gingrich- ... eets-94605

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

DANCE! DANCE! DANCE!!!!!!

[bill_g]

Meanwhile in Sweden ...