Written by Nicholas Vetrisek
On Monday, beaches around San Diego beaches officially reopened after several weeks of being closed. This has been a long time coming and there are two people who deserve the most credit: County Supervisors Kristin Gaspar and Jim Desmond. They have been arguing for weeks to get beaches reopened and they were the driving forces behind the reopening.
Supervisor @KristinDGaspar explains why she believes #SanDiego County should begin reopening their beaches and trails with certain safety protocols in place to maintain social distancing
Full Story: https://t.co/Ye64KGPlSu pic.twitter.com/uAMk2ivLmZ
— KUSI News (@KUSINews) April 21, 2020
Though he had no part in the reopening and was in fact one of the biggest opponents of it, County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher is attempting to take credit for it. He voted against Desmond’s proposition to create plans for reopening and was hostile to the idea as recently as last week.
But if you ask Fletcher, this was all a team effort and he’s the anointed spokesperson for all things good. “We previously closed all water activities in entire country (sic). We have now lifted that restriction for swimming, surfing, paddleboarding, etc.” It’s not “we”. He had nothing to do with it.
That isn’t accurate at all. We previously closed all water activities in entire country. We have now lifted that restriction for swimming, surfing, paddleboarding, etc. Cities and state parks control their beaches but can now allow access at their discretion.
— Nathan Fletcher (@nathanfletcher) April 24, 2020
Again, it’s ironic and deceitful for Fletcher to present this change with “we” when he adamantly opposed it. If he had it his way, our beaches would remain closed indefinitely, or at least until we receive the blessing of our divine bureaucrats.
Thankfully though, most people see through his charade and give the proper credit to whom it is due—Supervisors Gaspar and Desmond. A recent KUSI article was titled, “County Supervisor Kristin Gaspar credited with helping reopen beaches across San Diego County.” So it appears that the general consensus here is correct.
The beaches are now open in San Diego. It’s an excellent first step towards reopening the city and the people truly responsible for reopening should get the credit they deserve.
