Safe Recover or Stupid Stagnation

Many times I’ve stood up against stupid federal, state and local decisions, laws, ordinances, or rules. That’s why on Monday, I’m going to break one of Monterey County’s restrictions during this pandemic.

I’m going to deliberately support a local roofing-contractor to replace the old roof on my house. Why? So, income can start flowing to workers while not jeopardizing anyone from coming down with the Wuhan China coronavirus. And I’m going to do it without a county permit. A permit we asked for and were willing to pay. But oh no! I, and my neighbors, can’t do that until the brilliant supervisors and county staff say we can.

Please, let me quickly lay out how brilliant it is to impose a you-can’t-go-to-work policy if one-place in the county has a pandemic problem.

California open farm land

Fact 1: I live in Monterey County, California which is a coastal agricultural area 125-miles-long and 35-miles-wide. The majority of the population is in two urban areas near the ocean. The rest is county-jurisdiction, mainly farmland or mountains. I live in the rural area called North County where the vast-majority of parcels are 2.5 acres or larger.

Fact 2:  Here’s today’s pandemic statistics by location:

Salinas City = 62% of the infected people.
South County = 16%
Peninsula / coastal towns = 16%
North County = 5%

Fact 3: Here’s the City vs. County roofing permit status

>> Salinas City is issuing roofing permits in the 62% infection-area.
>> The county is NOT issuing building / roofing permits in the 5% area

Fact 4: This job can be safely performed. I’ve directed my roofer to ensure his people are socially distanced while working on my property. I will also not get near them. For example, I will put a start-work payment check on the porch instead of handing to the foreman. Plus, I will supply a sanitation station for the crew with hand sanitizer and hand washing items (hose + bowl + soap).

Conclusion 1: The county government is not flexible in removing work restrictions in the safest place to work in the county. That course of action delays the economic recovery for small-businesses in North County, California while the supervisors keep cashing their $10,000-a-month checks.

Laborers can socially distance themselves

Conclusion 2: A low-risk back-to-work transition can be started in sections of this county, state, and country with confidence, thought, and trust in working men and women.

Oh, and Ed’s a damn revolutionary.