Santa Clara County’s Immoral Health Order

Santa Clara County residents today received the following “emergency alert” on their smartphones:

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to rise. The Health Officer has issued updated risk reduction directives to slow the spread and protect hospital capacity, effective today. Also effective today, you must quarantine for 14 days after traveling more than 150 miles from Santa Clara County. For more information, visit sccgov.org/cv19summary.

This top-down decision by the ominous “Health Officer” affects roughly two million people. There appears to be no outrage in the general populace, no unrest, no demonstrations. People are just taking it. From the linked order summary:

Stores and other facilities open to the public will be limited to 10% capacity indoors.

Grocery stores, drug stores, and pharmacies, however, will be allowed to operate at 25% capacity indoors to ensure adequate access to food and medicine.

Well, thank you for this kind concession for access to food, O Health Officer.

All facilities open to the public must establish a “metering system” to ensure that the applicable capacity limits are not exceed by, for example, posting an employee at the facility entrance to track the number of people entering and exiting.

That’s the government forcing businesses into their enforcers.

All recreational activities that involve physical contact or close proximity to persons outside one’s household, including all contact sports, will be temporarily prohibited.

How about no?

Leisure and non-essential travel are strongly discouraged, and a new Mandatory Directive on Travel will require people to quarantine for 14 days upon return to the County from travel of more than 150 miles.

Or else what?

[…] businesses are allowed to open to the extent allowed under the State’s Blueprint […]

Well, thank you again for your generosity, O wise Health Officer, and for protecting us and sharing some of your endless wisdom. What would we do without you?

The tacit assumption in all this is that it is not only everyone’s job to keep cases down and hospital availability high, but that it’s okay to force them to that end. Santa Clara County is doing disgusting, immoral things. I hope they will soon be held accountable for their actions.

Altruism reigns supreme…

Residents should note that their right to protest is being protected, albeit restricted to 100 people:

Gatherings continue to be allowed only outdoors, with a maximum of 100 people. The State limits such gatherings to First Amendment protected activities, such as religious services or protests.

So, consider going to the streets over this before they find a way to take that away, too.