The highest officials of the state believe us to be so pitifully incapable of our own well-being that Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) have thought it prudent to go as far as to place ridiculous restrictions on the way we may privately gather in our own homes.
The CDPH mandatory guidelines define private gatherings as “social situations that bring together people from different households at the same time in a single space or place.”
According to the CDPH, no more than three households are allowed at any one social gathering. We may note that one household can consist of any number of people, and thus it would make sufficient sense that a greater amount of restrictions would be placed on gatherings of larger households, but the CDPH overlooks that, and will treat all gatherings the same.
Gatherings must also be kept at two hours or less. Not only is it absurd to expect anyone to gather with friends and family for so short a period, especially during the holidays, but two hours is also very arbitrary given that we are told the virus can be transmitted within mere minutes of interaction.
Our state officials are so distrusting of our ability to care for our own safety, that the CDPH goes as far as to recommend how we ought to behave with loved ones. Enough space must be available so that everyone maintains a six-foot distance from one another. When seated, households must be six feet apart in all directions from the others. Masks should always stay on, with a brief exception when eating.
Very rarely is a celebration expected to be done silently, but the CDHP guidelines strongly discourage any singing, chanting, and shouting. It is strongly recommended that the festivities be done quietly, at most at the volume of a normal speaking voice, according to the guidelines.
The CDHP’s restrictions and recommendations will very likely be taken as a joke by the great majority of Californians, but residents should nevertheless be angered—if not offended—by Newsom’s ever-increasing coddling. He and state officials should understand that we do not need more restrictions to understand the gravity of the pandemic.
In the mind of every person in the state—and every citizen in the country—is their own health and that of their loved ones. The last thing the people of California want is the government telling them that they aren’t doing enough in their own homes.
