Why some places are open (USA) but u think they shouldn't be

[Murrmurr]

My DIL works at a restaurant; hostess, waitress, and bar-tender, depending on the day of the week (and who didn't show up for work). Naturally, during lockdown, the restaurant closed for a couple weeks and during that time they set everything up to do take-out only, then reopened in that capacity. Months later, they got the ok to set up outdoor dining, and they did a decent amount of business but had to turn a lot of people away.

Recently, they reopened their doors; the whole restaurant. People eating and drinking indoors, no masks, and by the droves...lines out into the parking lot - it's always been a very popular place - and no one turned away.

Here's why : Corporate decided it was way, way cheaper to pay the fine than to keep the doors closed.

Bear in mind, no one is being forced to go inside and eat. People can still get take-out and there's also patio dining. All employees wear masks and chefs and food handlers are also required to wear gloves and to change them for new ones every 2 hours.

Maybe this is why some businesses that you wouldn't expect to be open right now are open. Maybe the losses of doing limited business are far greater than the fine, and/or they're paying the fine just to stay in business (which seems very mafioso-like to me).

 

[chic]

Nothing unexpected is open where I live. They are still trying to get the kids back to school. So far they only have been doing a two day week.

 

[Murrmurr]

Nothing unexpected is open where I live. They are still trying to get the kids back to school. So far they only have been doing a two day week.

Schools here are still closed. Supposed to reopen next term.

 

[Aneeda72]

As far as I can tell only county places are closed-like senior centers and libraries. My boys go back to sheltered workshop in March since that entire population will have been vaccinated. This is what is wrong-the different states decide what to do. Nothing is uniform.

 

[hollydolly]

Our restaurants , pubs and bars are all closed except for take-away.. it's a £10k fine for those owners who flout the law, and that will be for each day they remain open...plus we're in lockdown so as members of the public we're not permitted to go into a bar or restaurant, it will result in a £200 fine for every infraction of the law...

 

[funsearcher!]

Only 50% capacity here and subject to change at any time when percentages go up.

 

[Rosemarie]

I went into town this morning and it was dead...very few shops open and just a scattering of people wandering about. Ideal for someone who suffers from agoraphobia....gave me a chance to do some window shopping.

 

[Sunny]

Most of our restaurants are advertising "Limited capacity." So they're open, but limited. It keeps changing all the time.

 

[911]

This is my own opinion and very controversial, but here goes anyway.

After having read so much about so many different issues connected to Coronavirus, I am now believing that lockdowns, school closings and masks are a way that the government has of controlling us. These rules don't seem to apply to the very wealthy. I'm not trying to make this a political statement or become a conspiracist, but it is just the way I feel about these things going on in our time.

I feel so cheated out of being able to get back to normalcy. To get out and do whatever it is that I want to do and be free from the bonds that seem to be tying us down. If a person gets the 2 vaccine doses, by what I have read, we should have about a 95% rate of efficacy against the Virus. I think that's pretty good. Even when getting the annual flu shot, we don't get to that level.

We need to get things opened back up, get the kids back in school, parents back to work and us back to living again.

 

[Murrmurr]

Most of our restaurants are advertising "Limited capacity." So they're open, but limited. It keeps changing all the time.

Some businesses here got in on the stimulus and were able to either close temporarily or to outfit their shops and stores with virus barriers and hire "cleaners" and etc. What's interesting to me is that businesses owned by corporations with massive profits got massive stimulus checks and those with marginal profits were lucky to get any help at all, and by the time independent businesses were "in line" for help the money was gone. Most of them had to close and the majority of them can't reopen.

 

[chic]

@911, I completely agree with you. After a year of this and recognizing it has become a control issue primarily and a health issue secondarily, I feel we should reopen too.

If this goes on for years, and it could because certain areas of the world will not be easy to vaccinate like Southeast Asia, South America and Africa, the U.S. will experience the 2 million deaths it was so afraid of last year. Herd immunity will be hard to achieve to the satisfaction of those who continually move the goalposts during the game.

I understand this is not a popular viewpoint and don't intend to offend anyone by it. My apologies in advance.

 

[Murrmurr]

Most of our restaurants are advertising "Limited capacity." So they're open, but limited. It keeps changing all the time.

That was the case for the restaurant where my DIL works. They went to take-out only, then later they built an outdoor dining area. But after losing hundreds of thousands of dollars over a few months, they realized they'd lose a whole lot less (plus keep their business) if they just paid the fine and do business as usual. If they didn't pay the fine they'd have to close for good and file bankruptcy.

 

[Murrmurr]

@911, I completely agree with you. After a year of this and recognizing it has become a control issue primarily and a health issue secondarily, I feel we should reopen too.

If this goes on for years, and it could because certain areas of the world will not be easy to vaccinate like Southeast Asia, South America and Africa, the U.S. will experience the 2 million deaths it was so afraid of last year. Herd immunity will be hard to achieve to the satisfaction of those who continually move the goalposts during the game.

I understand this is not a popular viewpoint and don't intend to offend anyone by it. My apologies in advance.

It certainly appears to be when what is ordered to close and what isn't (for example) seems very selective. Eating in restaurants is dangerous, air travel is fine, attending school is a maximum risk, shopping at Walmart is fine. Even small scale stuff like at my apartments; you're kids can't touch the playground equipment but everyone touches the rent drop-box and the machines in the coin-op laundry rooms.

 

[hollydolly]

Nothing unexpected is open where I live. They are still trying to get the kids back to school. So far they only have been doing a two day week.

Schools have been closed here since before Christmas...then were only open for a couple of weeks previous to that after being closed most of the year..essentially our kids have been off school for a year!!..mainly the teaching unions calling for the schools to remain closed..

However, the schools are re-opening on the 8th of March, let's hope the teaching union allow them to stay this time

 

[Don M.]

Our immediate area has seen minimal impact....schools are open, along with most businesses. However, we went to a larger city about 50 miles away, yesterday, and I was amazed at how many places were closed. The usually busy shopping center was half deserted, most of the restaurants were take out only...we finally found one that had indoor seating, and most of the stores had minimal cars in their parking lots. The impact this virus is having on Retail and restaurants has to be massive.

 

[Murrmurr]

Schools have been closed here since before Christmas...then were only open for a couple of weeks previous to that after being closed most of the year..essentially our kids have been off school for a year!!..mainly the teaching unions calling for the schools to remain closed..

However, the schools are re-opening on the 8th of March, let's hope the teaching union allow them to stay this time

My 13yr-old grandson has done horribly with "distance learning" (Zoom class) and was told he'll have to be held back a grade when school reopens. His sister who's 10 was an A student but her grades have dropped to a C average. He always had a difficult time in school but he maintained decent grades because he got a little extra help from teachers and other students, and he's not getting that on Zoom. His sister flourishes when she has social contact with her fellow students, and that's discouraged in her Zoom class.

 

[Murrmurr]

Our immediate area has seen minimal impact....schools are open, along with most businesses. However, we went to a larger city about 50 miles away, yesterday, and I was amazed at how many places were closed. The usually busy shopping center was half deserted, most of the restaurants were take out only...we finally found one that had indoor seating, and most of the stores had minimal cars in their parking lots. The impact this virus is having on Retail and restaurants has to be massive.

No doubt it's more far-reaching than most of us can imagine.

I live in a depressed area where there are mostly independently owned businesses - large corporations are afraid to build here. The business owners here have basically supported the whole neighborhood, even paying some of the homeless to pick up trash in the parking area, sweep floors, clean the exterior glass and stuff like that. Now with almost all of them closed, you have to travel 8 miles or so to get a gallon of milk or whatever and not many families here have a vehicle. The one convenience store here is doing all it can to keep up with demand, but I can tell you they're having to order more alcohol than milk these days.