Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
But we aren't talking about just New York.
New York is nothing like where I live.
I also respect the fact that we live in a country where people are allowed to make their own choices so if someone isn't wanting to wear a mask because they choose not to believe it's right, that is their right to do.
I refuse to shove my beliefs down someone else's throat and I am old and experienced enough to know that if I am the one concerned about spread/contact then I am the one that should remain home instead of expecting others to do something first.
You are correct, we aren't just talking about NY. NY waited too long to take measures and that's why it got so bad here. Other states are learning from that mistake and taking measures before things get that bad. It is awful to see businesses go under and people going without any income. I am one of those people, but I am still doing my part to protect myself, my family and other people.
Here is a scenario for you to consider: Let's say you go to the grocery store unmasked, and there is a person standing in line behind you (also unmasked and not standing far enough away from you). That person sneezes in your face and you go home and carry on as usual. Then in about 5 days your healthy spouse becomes extremely ill. You bring him to the hospital but they're overloaded with other patients so your spouse doesn't get the treatment necessary and dies. How would you feel at that moment? Could you have done more to stop the spread? This is one of the reasons why the government is imposing these orders. This is why it's important to follow the orders.
I agree that we all must have rights but some people continue to make poor choices even when presented with facts against those poor choices.
Governors began all of this by giving guidelines and people had choices. From those choices, the virus kept quickly spreading and overwhelming the hospitals, so the state government took away the choices by making those guidelines into laws and enforcing them to better protect everyone.