It was bound to happen sooner or later. It's demoralizing reading hundreds of tweets daily of condescending COVID-19 progressives, mocking and lecturing protesters against related Draconian policies of state and local government officials. Not that law and order conservatives are necessarily that much better. One of my nephews posted (implied disapprovingly) of protesters, and my Mom commented something to the effect, "Well, they aren't doing what they've been told, are they?" (Now I'm happy that my Mom is complying. Both of my parents, including my late Dad, have gone though bouts with pneumonia in their senior years. Mom has recovered, but the last thing I want is her getting exposed to another respiratory disease.) As a libertarian I'm living through one of the most extreme challenges to freedom in my lifetime. Let's be clear: I am one of those libertarians who believes public health is a legitimate concern of government and I recently posted a pro-vaccination opinion.
But public policy should be more like a scalpel than a sledgehammer. Politicians started picking winners and losers in the economy, disadvantaging especially blue-collar workers and service industries, Heuristics like 6 feet apart and capacity limits became codified. Outdoor events were treated like indoor facilities like hospitals or nursing homes with shared ventilation systems where infections could spread, especially among at risk populations
Now one incident I've followed both on Twitter and my blog (e.g., a recent Ron Paul video clip) is the case if Dallas salon owner Shelley Luther; in defiance of business restrictions, she had reopened her hair salon with spacing between chairs, limited waiting seating for customers; workers and customers were wearing masks and she was taking patron temperatures. So she was convicted, fined and jailed out of vindictiveness by the judge who demanded contrition for attempting to earn a living to support her family. Never mind jails and prisons are a breeding ground for the rapid spread of infections. The Texas governor and attorney general took a personal sympathetic interest in Luther's case, and the end result was the Texas Supreme Court ordered her release.
So the Texas Supreme Court was trending on Twitter, and somehow I knew that the COVID-19 fascists would be trolling the trend and bashing the pro-liberty sentiment. But I snapped when I read some racial identity troll bash the alleged double standard of the SCOT liberating a white business owner "spreading a disease" while unarmed minority people are killed by police and no justice. (He may have been referring to this incident.)
First of all, over 95% of the US population, especially outside densely populated urban centers, is COVID-19 non-infected. Of the statistics I've seen, about 35000 Texas cases of 1.3 million US. So Texas has a 9% share of the US population but about 3% of reported infections. Second, I don't know the distribution of Ms. Luther's patrons, but I expect most are not at an at risk segment of the population. Third, in my experience, barbers do not face customers directly and practice good hygiene, washing hands, equipment, etc. Is that a guarantee? Of course not. But you could get into a traffic accident on your way to the salon. Saying a business is spreading the virus by remaining open is not based on evidence; it's reckless fear-mongering,
As for comparing police brutality with liberating Luther, first of all, Luther was not pardoned and still was being fined to the best of my knowledge. Second, two wrongs don't make a right. Third, if I identified the incident the troll was implicitly referencing, the officer has been charged with manslaughter. It's not really clear how the Texas Supreme Court is relevant to the discussion.
I myself have been an outspoken critic of cases like Eric Garner; I have been a consistent critic of this country's abnormal incarceration rate, the prosecution of victimless crimes, disproportionately affecting minority communities. When I look at Luther being prosecuted for running a legitimate business, I'm being entirely consistent in my views. When trolls attack Luther inconsistently, screw them. I'm sure if the salon owner was a black woman specializing in hair braiding, the troll wouldn't have targeted her.
