EDITORIAL
No Masks, No Vaccines, Required While COVID Still Lingers D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser dealt District residents the decision they have long been waiting for. Effective Feb. 15, she removed the mandate requiring indoor venues to verify patrons are vaccinated. She went one step further. Beginning March 1, masks will only be needed for those businesses that require masks for their employees and customers. Bowser’s announcement this week reportedly caught legislators off guard after announcing one month ago the requirement for “three things needed before heading out.” Proof of vaccination (12 years +), proof of vaccination and photo ID (18 years +) and masks and proof of vaccination for restaurant, cafe and bar patrons. D.C. joins seven states to remove mask mandates this year, making it one of the last remaining states upholding the requirement. But politics continues to play a significant role in the mask debate. D.C. Councilmember Brianne Nadeau (D-Ward 1) announced Tuesday plans to introduce emergency legislation to reinstate the mask mandate. Along with At-Large Councilmembers Christina Henderson and Robert White, she was reportedly taken aback by Bowser’s surprise move. Politics aside, the CDC still recommends wearing masks. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], has expressed her warning that this is not the moment to start relaxing restrictions. In D.C., infection rates and deaths are declining but the CDC doesn’t feel the decline is low enough to relax mask requirements and vaccines. People are still getting COVID-19 or the Omicron variant, and many continue to die from it, as well. No matter what Bowser, the council, or the CDC suggests, local residents will continue to do what they feel is necessary to keep themselves and their families safe. There’s no shame in their game to get vaccinated, declare it to those who ask and wear masks anywhere folks are gathered. They should continue to regularly wash their hands and keep a reasonable 6-feet distance from others. There’s no doubt these mandates lead to confusion and the mixed signals result in a diminished view of a virus that has killed nearly 1 million people in the U.S. alone. We can only continue to urge readers to take every precaution to stay safe, including getting vaccinated and boosted and continuing to wear a mask. Do this for yourself and don’t be distracted by the bantering among politicians. With or without a mandate, COVID-19 is still here. Do what you feel you need to do to stay safe. WI
Will Inflation Be the Nail in the Coffin? As the world enters the third year of the still deadly coronavirus pandemic, Americans face yet another hurdle that could prove equally as challenging, if not devastating for millions of citizens. In one word – it’s called “inflation.” And the rate of inflation now hitting our pockets has reached a rate not seen in 40 years. Low-income workers have been hit the hardest with the gains they’ve experienced during the pandemic due to a long-awaited rise in the minimum wage, offset by prices that seem to just keep going up and up and up. But it’s not just low-income families and workers who are feeling the pinch. Members of the middle class are struggling too, pinching pennies and delaying all forms of gratification just to keep the lights and heat on. As for rent, well, that’s another hurdle for many families as the rent increase nationwide in 2021 rose by 14 percent. And while we must all eat, paying for quality groceries has suddenly required greater proficiency in balancing a budget than ever before. Anyone who’s gone to the supermarket knows that a dollar seems to be nearly worthless these days. The price for essentials like milk, juice, cheese, fresh fruit, eggs and meat have skyrocketed. Forget about planning meals based on your tastes or desires. If you hope to have any change left in your pocket, you’d better be willing to eat based on the prices for the week. If it’s on sale – and that’s a rarity – you may want to purchase that item and try to pretend to enjoy whatever it is. By the way, if you were hoping to finally purchase a used car, believing that you could save a few bucks, guess again. Recent reports indicate that the price for a used car is often higher than the cost of a brand new one – if you can find one, that is. Wealthier Americans have greater protections against inflation and rising prices,
TO THE EDITOR Condolences and Congrats
First, let me say rest peacefully to Hyattsville Mayor Kevin Ward. Also, sending congratulations to Dr. Monifa Knight, the new public school superintendent for Montgomery County. She’s the first Black woman to hold the position, and I know she will do exceedingly well with her pedigree. Charles Carroll Silver Spring, Md.
with substantial retirement savings and investments. Most of them also own their homes as well as one, if not several automobiles. But for the middle- and lower-class, it’s a very different situation. Those who rent their homes, already struggling to pay the bill in this third year of COVID-19, continue to see their rent increase. Stimulus benefits or child-tax
WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER
Fixing Crime Begins at Home
The D.C. carjackings are out of control, and everybody’s afraid to say it — well, I’ll say it. These young people out on the streets committing these crimes come from homes that have failed them. There are no family units, present parents, structure in the house, none of that. They’re left to figure it out with nothing but bad influences in their face. I believe crime will diminish when the old values become new again. Richard Fenley Washington, D.C. credit payments have been spent months ago. And the cost of utilities, also increasing steadily, have people afraid that they won’t be able to keep the electricity and heat on for much longer. Can things get any worse? It’s hard to imagine but it’s possible. Americans are in trouble. WI
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