Houston Mayor Turner vs Bow Wow vs Covid vs Concert goers

Lil Bow Wow would never do something like this.

 

People need to start going to jail for stuff like this. Start with the promoter and dumb rapper.

 

It is an interesting experiment.

It's like we're pre civil war again and every state is its own country. Mayors really have no power to defy governors, at least not in Texas, and I'm assuming it's similar in most states. So Abbott has to balance the interests of the medical field, city execs, business interests, politicians, and active constituents. I mean, he could go full science, but that's probably too much to expect of him. He could go full Trump, but he tries to not be all the way there. So what does he do? He restricts bars, while actively allowing bars to reclassify, lol.

I don't hate it because when the Texas legislature would do worse than him imo. They're more Trumpian than Abbott, and Abbott is arguably a loyal supporter. We'll see if they actively try to undermine the weak regulations Abbott implemented when he took over emergency powers.

So if you're going to allow state level loopholes and you're going to limit the power of mayors, then of course, performers will come. I mean it's not like they're going do DC or LA or Seattle or Chicago or anywhere else that's super restricted right now governors who are defer to the medical experts more than Trump.

And I'm glad we have a black mayor who can medical shame the rappers, lol, because I'd hate the racial overtones if Mayor Turner was white and doing this. And really, that's all the power Turner has, the power of his voice, because Abbott isn't going to allow him to shut it down. But I don't really blame them. Young people generally don't care much about societal health if it comes to giving up partying. That's just what young people do and they'll party if it's allowed. I'm making a lot of generalizations here, lol.

 

This natural selection for anyone paying to see Bow Wow perform in 2021.

 

Bow Wow can pack a club?

 

Abbott doesn't care. This kind of stuff is on him. If he wanted to curb the spread then clubs wouldn't have been open in the first place. These kinds of Covid spreading party clubs are just a petri dish for spreading the virus. The lack of lockdowns and lame loopholes for clubs "serving food" are a big part of the problem. Leave them open and the kids will come. It's not rocket science. It's not essential business, and it certainly is part of the problem with why we have over 32,000 dead Texans this past year.

Even back in November there were more than 2,700 bars open under that loophole with hundreds more applying. We are talking hundreds of thousands of Covid spreading fools, who go back to work or their families after a night or 2 of bar hopping and continue spreading the virus.

 

I posted a thread about bars on Washington. I was in a packed one, no mask wearing including me. I was at another thin crowd attended, TABC came in and shut it down

I'm not an anti masker and I don't need to be in heavily packed bars at my age, but I'm pretty apathetic about it. I have a first cousin who died of Corona. She was very careful. She was 65 and spent 3 rough weeks on a respirator.

Seeing this story play out, this club had been in the news before for the same reason. Whom ever fault it is, they're gonna be in trouble for lying to the state to get reclassified as a restaurant.

 

Abbott has been running this state under emergency powers for almost a year now, and the legislature wasn't in session anyways. I honestly think there was this tacit understanding that A) we'll make these rules to mollify the masses and the medical field and B) we'll tell the bar industry (that has actively been suing the governor over restrictions) that we're going to look the other way when you abuse the loopholes. Abbott is trying to balance a bunch of things, including the crazy anti-maskers. This is why the hardcore Trumpers on a radio show or podcast basically called him a pussycat and insulted his lack of legs because of his lack of balls or something and then they got caught on a hot mic doing that...it was in the news.

So I don't think there will be hell to pay for any business or owner. It's hard to definitively prove where COVID outbreaks came from, especially if your state agency isn't actively trying to contact trace. I think Abbott is consciously accepting a higher sickness/hospitalization/death rate for Texas than in say, Maryland, in order to not rock the boat too much. You can hate him all you want, and I too think he's morally wrong, but at least he isn't going full Wyoming. He's making a political decision. And Turner has to deal with the ramifications the best he can...and he can go mad dog on the mic against young people and minorities because he has the political capital to do so. Maybe he's a better person than Abbott and would still destroy his carreer to save a few thousand more people, but who knows.

Edit: found the story: https://www.texastribune.org/2020/06/19/empower-texans-greg-abbott/

 

Agreed on everything and ill go step further on where the spread intensifies. Bars are just hard to regulate. That being said if people can in restaurants obviously eating is mask exempt then what's the logic of allowing restaurants but not bars?

 

I agree that it's somewhat arbitrary. That's why some states have outdoor dining only. Other states have takeout only. Abbott is trying to appease multiple parties.

One can argue that bars by nature are not meant to be socially distanced. You drink, mingle in groups, and move around. A restaurant is where you're only there with your group and stationary. But yes, I agree it's dumb. But you have to make different political calculations in Texas than in California.

But even the thresholds that are supposed to trigger heavier restrictions have loopholes. It's like you set the rules, cross your fingers that the numbers stay a certain level, and as long as those levels aren't shattered, you look the other way and leave mayors holding the bag.

 

This is obviously a business friendly state. I don't know how much clout bars would have in court, if you get enough together. they obviously can hire the best attorneys.

That being said if the state did a better job contact tracing, they.could hold individual businesses accountable.

 

Here in lies a potential underlying. People are so desperate for social connection they pack clubs to see Bow Wow

 

Bars sued in multiple courts and lost in some and others haven't advanced yet. The policies have also changed since the first few lawsuits, hence I think it's a wink-wink deal to allow bars to reclassify as restaurants. That's why I also think Texas (not the medical Texas, but the state government) doesn't really care about contact tracing.

Regarding #3, the city and county cannot undermine state authority. That is what Austin did to its bars during NYE and the Texas state government sued in the Texas Supreme Court and won. That's why Mayor Turner is on tv. It's Bow Wow and other urban rappers and other performers in bed with the freakin GOP of Texas, lol. Strange times and strange bedfellows. Young party people and anti-masking / election conspiracy / Obama birthers / Trumpers all together against Democratic mayors trying to protect public health.

 

I won't believe that theory until T-Pain packs a club during these times. (I would go )