A Spin-off Political Party

A Spin-off Political Party

The Spring Break Party

The level of irresponsibility of many political leaders, particularly governors in high-volume COVID states, sanctioning a general reopening of businesses and often making safe distancing/mask wearing optional, threatens to bring us yet another COVID infection surge just as we are turning the corner on containing the virus. This time however, older Americans – those most likely to have been vaccinated – are less the super-spreader risk than are those under 50, particularly those irresponsible and exceptionally naïve spring breakers in Florida beach communities like Miami and Miami/South Beach. Numbers show that we are experiencing the first statistically significant uptick in coronavirus infections since January.

As evidenced by the fear-laden pause in Europe’s deployment in the AstraZeneca vaccine, since shown to have been an unjustified reaction, the virus is anything but gone. As Italy and France reimpose lockdowns, the reduced number of those vaccinated has sent new cases soaring in Europe. The unjustified sense of invulnerability of young American spring break partygoers, flocking to Florida beaches mostly from other states, augurs badly for the coming months, even as the rollout of vaccine accelerates. Apparently unconcerned about their ability to spread the disease to others, particularly their own family, and perhaps unaware that even the mildest and even undetectable cases of COVID-19 can bring serious long-term aftereffects (PASC) that could impair their lives perhaps forever, party fever seems to have trumped the most basic notion of common sense.

The virus does not care that human beings’ rail against anything that limits human contact, that there is a (spring) breaking point where isolation cannot contain pent-up desires to restore and celebrate normalcy; the virus loves that reaction. We are watching more flights being booked, cruises being fully loaded, hotels taking reservations, even Las Vegas is filling up, as people suppose that that there is enough “containment” such that the pandemic is over. But as larger groups of people aggregate, even in high-vaccine dose nations, the expansion of exposure simply allows the virus to mutate into strains that defy (in whole or in part) the effectiveness of the vaccines that are being deployed. Add to that the politization of vaccination – in the United States, half of all Republican males refuse to be vaccinated – and the utter lack of vaccines in many non-first world nations… the notion of global herd immunity dissipates fast.

“In each of the metro areas of Miami, Tampa and Orlando, coronavirus cases have begun to rise among people aged 25 to 49 years old, according to The Miami Herald. The rise comes after months of decline in each of those areas, and the uptick has been particularly significant in Miami…

“The slight rise in cases is happening amid a surge in tourism across the state, where coronavirus restrictions are particularly lax. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, was one of the first state leaders to reopen bars, restaurants and beaches at full capacity in September... DeSantis also refused to implement a statewide mask mandate early into the pandemic, and instead stated that he preferred to let city leaders decide whether to implement them locally.

“Miami Beach—one the state's most popular spring break destinations—has such a mask ordinance in place, but revelers have largely been seen ignoring protocols… So far, over 1,000 arrests have been made in Miami Beach in the past week [the third week in March], after thousands of partygoers gathered in unruly crowds, refusing to wear face masks and also defacing property. Half of the arrestees had come from out of state and included 42 felony charges and 100 confiscated guns, Miami Beach Police said.

“On Tuesday [3/23], Democratic Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber blamed the issue on mixed messaging from the DeSantis... ‘I don't think we've done a great job statewide,’ Gelber said in an interview with Fox News. ‘What I think we didn't do well enough was really preach to people with one voice that they need to wear a mask and be smart ... [Visitors] were not getting that here. They were getting a lot of mixed messages, and I think that hurt us.’…

“The influx of spring break tourism also comes at a time when more than 70 percent of people age 16 or older have not yet received the coronavirus vaccine in Florida. So far, 24 percent of the state has received at least one dose of the vaccine, while 13.4 percent have been fully vaccinated, according to a New York Times database.

“Earlier this month, DeSantis said that the state would never reenter lockdown, even if its COVID-19 case numbers significantly worsened… ‘To even contemplate doing any kind of lockdown, honestly, it's insane, so that's not going to happen in the state of Florida,’ he said on March 12. ‘We like the fact that people have been able to work here ... so we're going to continue doing what works, but under no circumstances would we entertain doing anything of the sort’

“As of Wednesday [3/24], Florida ranks third out of the states with the highest overall number of reported coronavirus cases, according to the Times. Over 2 million people have contracted the virus in Florida, and 32,819 have died since the start of the pandemic.” Newsweek, March 24th. Self-proclaimed Trump-successor-in-chief, DeSantis has been one of those governors marginalizing the impact of COVID-19. He seems unconcerned that hard numbers and agonizing misery constantly contradict his beliefs. Tens of thousands of spring breakers have converged on Florida.

Outrageous behavior has only exacerbated the harm in those Florida beach communities. “Two North Carolina men on spring break in Florida have been charged with drugging and raping a woman who later died, possibly of a drug overdose, in Miami Beach, police said Tuesday [3/23]… Meanwhile, in Panama City Beach, a man has been charged with fatally shooting a teenager from Kentucky and another Florida man died when he jumped from the 23rd story of a beach resort with a parachute that did not open, authorities said.

“The deaths and alleged crimes come amid continuing chaos in South Beach, where police have arrested hundreds of partyers involved in violence and property destruction. Most of those involved have not been college students on spring break, but adults from Florida and out of state, authorities have said…

“South Beach was relatively calm Monday night [3/22], according to police. Since February, however, there have been more than 1,000 arrests there amid brawls and damage to property. City officials imposed a curfew from Thursday through Sunday each week until April 12, including the nighttime closing of causeways leading to Miami Beach from the mainland.” Associated Press, March 24th. We are going to live with a lingering version of COVID-19, made worse among those who insist on gathering without preventative measures, perhaps for a few years to come. 

   I’m Peter Dekom, and we are unlikely to see a clear and definitive “all clear” date for complete virus-free normalcy anytime in the near term, so learning how to live within reasonable prudential limits becomes a necessity.