Time for Pennsylvania Business Owners to “Take a Real Gamble” and Reopen

It’s time for Pennsylvania business owners to “take a real gamble” and fully reopen.

That’s what Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said he did when he violated his own pandemic response rules to show how virtuous he was by marching in a Black Lives Matter protest Wednesday.

Tom Wolf – The Chastiser

For months, they’ve been forced to either close entirely to the public or drastically alter how they do business. They were forced to do this because they followed orders from a person who swore the public’s health was gravely at risk if they dared to open their doors.

When anyone tried to go against those orders, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf – the man behind those tyrannical orders that started in March – lashed out at them.

Nearly a month ago, a group of Schuylkill County officials – political, business, and medical – agreed among themselves that our area was ready and prepared to enter the Yellow phase of Wolf’s pandemic response plan. Others followed suit.

How did Wolf respond?

The governor called us all “cowardly” and “selfish”. He said we “surrendered” to the virus. And to our County Commissioners, Wolf threatened to withhold any funding the Commonwealth was likely to receive from the federal government to aid in the response to the pandemic.

“To those politicians who decide to cave in to this coronavirus, they need to understand the consequences of their cowardly act,” Wolf said.

In Pottsville, we spoke with one particular business owner who threatened to open his doors to customers. The state responded by threatening to pull his liquor license, his occupancy permit, basically anything he needed to operate legally. State Police forced this owner to let them know of his intentions hours before he was planning to open. They said they’d show up in force to handle any potential protest that might develop.

Had he taken one single action that day, Mike Glauda, the owner of Goodfellas bar, would have lost everything he worked 20+ years to build.

Tom Wolf – The Gambler

As of now, Schuylkill County is in the Yellow phase of Wolf’s pandemic response plan. So is Dauphin County, where the Governor is supposed to be living.

Under the Yellow phase, there are still many businesses ordered to remain closed. Gatherings are limited to 25 or fewer people. It’s all in the interest of public health, not cowering to the virus Wolf has tried to convince us is so deadly and dangerous that it’s required the state to basically shut down its economy for more than 10 weeks.

But as the saying goes, those are orders for thee but not for he.

On Wednesday, Wolf decided to join a Black Lives Matter protest on the streets of Harrisburg. He posed for plenty of photos of him marching arm-in-arm with protestors.

The protest on Wednesday had far more than the 25 people limit imposed by the Yellow phase response. Wolf was literally breaking his own orders by marching in this protest.

Back in April, when business owners and concerned citizens gathered in Harrisburg, Health Secretary Rachel Levine warned, “If you come to Harrisburg and you are not practicing social distancing then you are putting all yourselves at risk. So, if a gathering like that happens, and they are not practicing social distancing and they’re not wearing gloves and they are not washing their hands, etc, then they will be more at risk from contracting the dangerous virus COVID-19.”

But remember, orders for thee but not for he.

So, when a reporter asked Wolf on Friday to respond to criticism of his participation in the Black Lives Matter protest earlier this week, the governor gave one of his most pompous and arrogant responses to date during this pandemic.

He said, “That was inconsistent, I acknowledge that. But I was trying to show support for a cause, the eradication of racism, that I think is very, very important, and I was trying to show my support for that effort.”

Wolf said his actions were a “real gamble” on Wednesday. He didn’t apologize for those actions and really, he tried to justify them for a he believed in strongly.

Time for Business Owners and All Pennsylvanians to “Take a Real Gamble”

Well, now it’s long past time that Pennsylvania business owners — and really, all Pennsylvanians — to “take a real gamble” and get back to the lives we’re all guaranteed under the US Constitution.

It’s time for businesses to open their doors to customers. And it’s time for their customers and employees to be able to choose for themselves whether they want to go to those businesses.

It’s time for all of us to “take a real gamble” and get back to life as we knew it. After all, isn’t a business owner’s business a cause which they believe is “very very important”? Doesn’t an employee who works for a closed business believe very strongly that they need to earn a living to provide for themselves and their family?

Those are very very important issues, too.

If Governor Wolf isn’t going to take his own pandemic restrictions seriously, why should anyone else?

ALSO READ: 

• Schuylkill County Staying in Yellow Phase At Least 2 More Weeks
• Tom Wolf Virtue Signals at Harrisburg Black Lives Matter Protest, Violates Own Pandemic Restrictions
• As Pennsylvania Small Businesses Struggle, Governor Pushes for Job-Killing $15 Minimum Wage
• The Green Phase is NOT the Goal – Wolf Conditioning for a “New Normal”
• Business and Social Life in Pennsylvania’s Yellow Phase – What to Expect in Schuylkill County
• Goodfellas Bar Owner Says He’s Had Enough – Reopening Friday
• Lebanon County Commissioner Against Going Rogue Goes Full Hypocrite
• Are Masks Really Mandatory in Pennsylvania? Probably Maybe
• Riot Act of 2020 – Tom Wolf Says Schuylkill County is Selfish, Cowardly and Surrendered to Chinese Virus

 

Subscribe to Coal Region Canary

Get email updates from Coal Region Canary by becoming a subscriber today. Just enter your email address below to get started!

Support Coal Region Canary

Like our reporting and want to support truly local news in Schuylkill County? Your small donations help. For as little as $5, your contribution will allow us to cover more news that directly affects you. Consider donating today by hitting the big yellow button below ...