59 Comments - NIU Grad - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:42 am: I wonder if that kind of requirement on business operations stretches the limits of the EO? Seems more of a local matter (one of those pesky “overreaching” local decisions I see Republicans complaining about). - Stones - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:45 am: I see more people wearing masks in grocery stores in my area than those not wearing masks. Some masks are better than others but at least it’s something. Not a bad idea until we get past this thing. - Retired Educator - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:46 am: Now tell us where we can get an ample supply. It is easy to say wear them, but a little harder to get the number of masks needed. They are all gone from store shelves, even in drug stores where they use to have a large supply. - 10th Ward - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:48 am: Glenview started this requirement on Sunday - Rich Miller - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:48 am: ===Now tell us where we can get an ample supply=== Pretty sure he’s talking about cloth masks. A bandana or scarf would suffice. - efudd - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:50 am: This is priceless. Okay, Mr. Small Government. How do you propose this requirement be enforced? Are you advocating government levy fines on businesses that are just trying to keep their doors open during these times? Are you advocating government fine patrons who are simply trying to stimulate the economy? Seriously, if Republicans didn’t exist, you’d have to make them up. - Midstate Indy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:51 am: In another world, this could be viewed as an attack on businesses and individual liberty by a Republican. That said, Rep. Batinick’s comments seem intelligently presented, perhaps a unified caucus could present the same argument. - DuPage Moderate - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:53 am: Where has the peak not arrived? Clearly not in Illinois as the “reliable models” changed the peak from 4 days from now to 7 days ago. - downstate dem - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:54 am: All customers should wear facemasks? Sounds just like a “champion of individual liberty.” https://repbatinick.com/about/ I agree with him, but I find it ironic that folks who pushed back against government regulation for years are now asking for government regulation. - Chicagonk - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:55 am: If you can shut down a restaurant with an EO, you can surely require people to wear masks. This is common sense and should be instituted asap. For those that do not have masks, there are some great tutorials online on how to make one at home. - 4 eyes - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:56 am: ===It should become a requirement for all employees and customers to wear face coverings inside stores and restaurants.=== “It should be a requirement that employers provide employees with face coverings and all customers wear face coverings inside stores and restaurants”. There Representative, fixed it for you. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:57 am: I don’t have too many issues with the letter, heck the helping of seniors being done by Rep. Batinick, he has walked the walk in many ways during this crisis. Instead of being those willing to embrace herd immunity, Rep. Batinick has tried to discuss options, but defaulting to scientists, even with a caveat. It’s pretty easy to see the thoughtful and honest to safety leaders. Rep. Batinick is one of those thoughtful leaders. No real problem with the letter. - Sayitaintso - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:59 am: I’ve done this almost from the start. Couple of things stood out when I did early on: I felt like Moses parting the Red Sea….got wide berth from those who saw me coming. I think, based on a worried look on several faces, some thought I was there to rob the joint. Why I’d do so in the meat department still puzzles me. I wanted to wear a placard that said (‘wearing this for DEFENSIVE purposes”)……never did though. It’s reasonable to do, and the more people that wear them the less you feel like a weirdo. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 9:59 am: ===I find it ironic that folks who pushed back against government regulation for years are now asking for government regulation.=== (Sigh) A global pandemic and health change thoughts to the greater good. It’s not ironic, it’s leaders recognizing differences in how policy is to be implemented without losing sight of who they are. - Leatherneck - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:00 am: I’ve started wearing masks whenever I go to stores. Not every time that I’m outside (including if I walk to a neighborhood park), however. I will reuse the mask I had been using for several days, squirting some Lysol on it when needed. - Grandson of Man - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:04 am: A few weeks ago when I went to a store with a confined space, an employee was not wearing a mask when everyone else was. That bothered me. The way to fight this is to act like we’re carriers and cover up when near others. Don’t know if it should be mandated but maybe not terribly upset if it would. - Just Me 2 - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:09 am: I’m curious. Are Republicans saying this pandemic is no big deal, or something everyone should be concerned about and take precautions. Batinick seems to say both. - {Sigh} - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:10 am: Let’s give Batnick some credit here. While most of his colleagues are in denial about impact of Covid, he at least realizes that crowds need to be limited and frontline workers need protection. Now, if he could just share some of his common sense (on Covid) with the Eastern Bloc and downstate. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:16 am: === Are Republicans=== It’s one here, Rep. Batinick. ===Batinick seems to say both.=== “Seems” appears to be doing a lot of work here with your straw man “ding” Did you *read* the letter? - SOIL M - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:17 am: This seems like a reasonable way to start to ease up some on the restrictions, and start the process of reopening on a slow rolling basis. Another area that is going to have to be reopened soon or many will be bankrupt is hospitals and clinics. Many have already started furloughs of employees. Many are trying to figure out how to restructure to stay in operation. It doesnt make sense to weaken the availability of healthcare in lower population areas of the State, especially when the latest models show us a week past the peak, and the needed resources are no where near what was originally projected. - muon - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:21 am: DuPage Moderate - I’ve been reporting on the IHME model over the last couple of weeks. That’s the one from the University of Washington with heavy support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Their model is sensitive to the input data, and for instance last week they had missing and erroneous inputs for Illinois last week and the projections bounced around. Their release yesterday has input data that now matches IDPH. That model projects that our peak was on April 8, but could be as recent as yesterday at 95% confidence. The last day of data they used was Sunday April 12. That was a relatively low death count for Illinois. That data point will tend to push the projected peak earlier. We know that Monday’s count was back up again, and though that is consistent with their current projection, using that data point will probably move their model slightly. It’s only when we see a couple more days like Sunday’s can we confirm that the peak has past. - Pundent - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:23 am: =If you can shut down a restaurant with an EO, you can surely require people to wear masks.= There are also OSHA rules to consider that state that if PPE is mandatory the employer has to furnish it at their cost. Right now that’s not possible for a large number of workers. Having said that, employers are like going to have to find a balance between the laws that are on the books and those that are being inacted. With the new workers’ compensation rules that came down yesterday it would be in any employers’ best interest to ensure that anyone working at this point has something over their face. I was at the grocery store Friday and it made me very uneasy to see two produce employees working in close proximity with no protection. And the only place I venture out to at this point is the grocery store. I think that Batinick is on the right track in calling for essential workers wearing masks, but I wouldn’t go as far as reopening more retailers, given our spotty compliance at this point, which seems to be his overarching objective. A lot of folks see the peak as synonymous with the virus being behind us. It’s nothing more than reaching the point where we’re able to contain the virus spread below what the health care system can manage. New York still had 700 deaths yesterday. You start to ease restrictions those numbers only go up from there. - Candy Dogood - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:29 am: We should not be calling a cloth mask PPE. There is no evidence to support that a cloth or fabric mask protects the wearer from COVID-19. That’s only N95 respirators or better. It’s been suggested that a cloth or fabric mask is better than nothing and reduces the liking hood of an infected individual transmitting the virus by physically covering their airways with a fabric barrier. No one. Absolutely no one. NONE OF US should trust the GOP Clowns that have helped insure that tens of thousands of us will die during this pandemic when they preach or discuss safety. They are playing a moral hazard with our lives for their stock portfolios and subway franchises. - Annonin - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:33 am: Aw Batty fightin’ back from being left out of Durkie’s Monday stunt. Who is next Skilly? Or is he poutin’ too. Let’s reask if Batty plans to drop off supplies or does his mandate for force to forage on their own? - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:38 am: ===NONE OF US should trust the GOP Clowns=== (Sigh) Did you read the letter. Defaulting to health professionals and science. This letter is *this letter*. Lumping Rep. Batinick with the “Hateful Eight” in the context of this letter, that’s more partisan than seeing the message in his words. With respect. - Hamlet's Ghost - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:47 am: == There is no evidence to support that a cloth or fabric mask protects the wearer from COVID-19.== Agreed, IMHO. However, these types of masks do offer some protection to others from the person wearing the mask. - LakeCo - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:48 am: After watching a store clerk without a mask cough as she stocked shelves at the drugstore, I’m all for this. - Hamlet's Ghost - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:50 am: Wearing a mask is like coughing into your elbow - it protects others from you. That’s why I now wear a mask everywhere in public - not to protect me - but to send the message that I’m less of a threat to you. - Leatherneck - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:01 am: And when state offices reopen, I would recommend that employees wear facemasks while at work too. At least for a while. And another question when facilities reopen, especially Secretary of State driver facilities. Will those facilities get the plastic-covers between the employees and the public, like you see at grocery stores at the check-out lanes? To protect employees and the public. - Reese's Pieces - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:06 am: Based on the number of (mask-free) Easter celebrations I saw on social media, I have a feeling we’re going to see some spikes again in the coming days. Maybe the good Rep. can remind folks that “staying home” DOESN’T mean inviting the family over for ham and corn casserole. - Candy Dogood - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:16 am: OW, I’ve read the letter. I’ll share with you my favorite part: ===While epidemiologists may understand how to decrease deaths due to this virus, they do not have a grasp on the entire life-expectancy picture.=== That section right there — at best — is a logical fallacy. At worst it’s an intentional effort to suggest that the MD MPH’s leading our response to this pandemic aren’t actually competent healthcare professionals or even public health professionals and is written by a person who clearly doesn’t understand the depth and breadth of what is covered under public health as a curriculum or even the requirements that are imposed on a person to be a director of public health. OW, I understand that you probably know Representative Batinick given your nome de guerre and that may give you a different perspective, but for my perspective I’ll just quote his campaign website, ===Mark is currently a commercial real estate broker.=== I don’t really understand how a commercial real estate broker whose professional accomplishments from his campaign website includes empty and non-specific boasts really expects to be in a place where they can call into question the qualifications of an entire field of study of which he is apparently not very familiar with what that field of study includes in a poorly thought out effort to try to fulfill the Illinois Policy Institute’s goals. I’m not sure he’s their GOPuppet in this letter, but this is the kind of thing one of their GOPuppets would write. Now what makes Representative Batinick’s letter even more damning is this part ==Other scientists will tell you== and then he fails to specifically reference any scientists who are “telling” the information he shares next. Again. Another argument from fallacy. Now I’m not trying to say that Representative Batinick is making a bad faith effort here or that he’s being malicious in his intent, however I do think that as the People of Illinois we really ought to avoid taking advice, counsel, or policy from a persons whose position is riddled with arguments from fallacy. Rep Batinick can make up all he wants when it comes to economic policy, and make all measure absurd claims about what will “fix” the budget or cause growth, but today, during this pandemic, tens of thousands of lives are on the line — so maybe for this issue we should as Representative Batinick to sit this one out until he comes up with better justifications for why we should be ignoring the only public health professionals whose entire expertise is responding to pandemics for his cadre of unnamed scientists who seem to be support his unstated position that we need to “reopen” our economy as soon as possible with as few safeguards for employees and the public as possible. Rep Batinick doesn’t even specify any numbers in his reference to statistical data or any specific communities. This isn’t a letter to Governor Pritzker, this is a Facebook post written by ===a small business owner and consultant=== who is masquerading as a person concerned with his constituents. - Generic Drone - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:17 am: @OW. Wouldn’t it be nice if “who they are” during this crisis is “who they are” without this crisis. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:24 am: === I understand that you probably know Representative Batinick given your nome de guerre and that may give you a different perspective=== Please do not assume. I do not know him. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:28 am: - Candy Dogood - If you’d like to take me and the Representative to task, have at it, as you did. === Did you read the letter. Defaulting to health professionals and science. This letter is *this letter*. Lumping Rep. Batinick with the “Hateful Eight” in the context of this letter, that’s more partisan than seeing the message in his words. With respect.=== I stand by my thoughts… I’ll take my measure of good, like in the opening paragraph, and the good he’s doing in the community… - Soccermom - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:32 am: Oh gosh. As many of you know, I’m a solid blue Dem. And I am appalled that people are responding to Rep. Batinick’s good idea — that we all wear masks in stores — by saying “Nyah, nyah, nyah, I thought Republicans were for personal freedom.” How do we expect to get out of this mess if we slam Republicans every time they, you know, support the right thing that helps us all? Look at how he started his letter: “Dear Governor, I wanted to express my deep gratitude for your efforts in combating COVID-19. I am grateful for your leadership over the past several weeks and know that Illinois’ effort has resulted in the saving of lives. In no way could you have imagined being in this situation when you decided to run for Governor, yet you have shown yourself to be up to the task.” Can we Dems maybe try to be half that gracious in response? Thank you, Representative. I respect you for this. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:35 am: === How do we expect to get out of this mess if we slam Republicans every time they, you know, support the right thing that helps us all? Look at how he started his letter: … Can we Dems maybe try to be half that gracious in response? Thank you, Representative. I respect you for this.=== Thanks, - Soccermom - I appreciate you seeing the big picture, as you seemingly always do. OW - Streamwood Retiree - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:43 am: Shopped this morning. Employees at Menard’s wore masks and gloves. (Bought coffee and garbage bags). Employees at Jewel wore nothing, except one woman at the fish counter that wore gloves and mask. My wife thought it odd that the home improvement store was more careful than the supermarket. - Candy Dogood - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:57 am: ===Defaulting to health professionals and science.=== I think you and I read this letter from a very different perspective. Representative Batinick starts with some things most folks reading his letter would agree with, expressing appreciation for a popular governor, praising saving lives, suggesting some restrictions be increased, and that we save lives. Representative Batinick’s letter opens with Barnum statements. He then makes some recommendations that are difficult to disagree with, like we should be wearing masks in public. How brave for Representative Batinick to take a position that has already been advocated for by the CDC. He the goes on talking about wanting to help seniors — another Barnum statement There’s a shout out to mental health — that’s used to subtly advocate reopening IDNR parks, but still a Barnum statement. Even his recommendation about revisiting what is and isn’t essential isn’t controversial. So, Representative Batinick puts together a letter that spends most of the first page advocating for positions that are already popular and well supported before he gets to the bit at the end of the letter under the heading called “science” where he goes on to suggest that the Governor isn’t listening to “all of the scientists” before attacking an entire field of study whose expertise was completely disregarded by the Republican Administration of which he is a full throated supporter which is why we are in a scenario where tens of thousands of Americans have already died from this pandemic and tens of thousands more Americans will die from this pandemic. I had to learn this lesson a long time ago — just because someone shows up with flowers doesn’t mean you be persuaded. So, no, I don’t see a sensible letter, I see an attack on the expertise that has already been ignored and questioned by fools in the real estate business who think they know better than people who have dedicated years of their lives to studying public health. Look past the Barnum statements to the meat of this letter and it’s true intent. Rep Batinick is suggesting that the Governor ignore the “experts of COVID-19″ and reopen non-essential businesses and state services and pretend it’s safe because people are wearing homemade masks. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:59 am: === I think you and I read this letter from a very different perspective.=== I think I admitted that. Anything else besides using me again to go after Rep. Batinick? If not, stay well. - Candy Dogood - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:03 pm: ===Anything else besides using me again to go after Rep. Batinick?=== I don’t mean to use you, I like you OW, and I like it when we’re on the same page. I’m sorry if it seems like I directed any of my outrage at you. That definitely wasn’t the intent. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:05 pm: - Candy Dogood - I’m good, thanks. - Candy Dogood - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:12 pm: We should have all just taken an opportunity to ask Rep Batinick how he proposes people eat through their masks at restaurants. - ArchPundit - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:13 pm: ====It should become a requirement for all employees and customers to wear face coverings inside stores and restaurants. Seriously, y’all aren’t seeing the basic problem with this idea in restaurants? It’s comedy gold. - Lynn S. - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:18 pm: Kinda surprised no one else has asked this question: Has Uihlein found a source for masks? Is that why the good representative is now calling for all people in public spaces (especially closed spaces) to wear some type of mask? - Rich Miller - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:27 pm: ===proposes people eat through their masks=== No on-site eating is permitted, so that’s a very silly thing to say. - vole - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:27 pm: I heard first hand that many Walmart employees in in Lincoln, today, were not wearing masks. After reports of a couple of Walmart employees dying in Illinois, this makes absolutely no sense. Walmart with worldwide sourcing and billionaire owners can’t procure masks to protect their workers and their customers? - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:30 pm: === We should have all just taken an opportunity to…=== I’m comfortable with how I commented. We read the letter differently. - TheInvisibleMan - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:55 pm: ===he has walked the walk in many ways during this crisis=== Except for when he and his plainfield buddies were posting memes about this being a hox back in feb. Remember, plainfield was about to go through with their St. Pats parade until statewide pressure was finally applied to get them to cancel. There’s a pretty large group of infections, above county averages, currently in plainfield. - Ducky LaMoore - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:01 pm: I feel like such an old man when I see a republican actually be thoughtful, respectful, friendly, helpful. It feels like its been oh, 12 years since I’ve seen it with any sort of consistency. Good for him. I hope others follow his example and bring the GOP to some semblance of sanity. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:04 pm: === Except for when he and his plainfield buddies were posting memes about this being a hox back in feb.=== Are you neglecting the help he’s giving to seniors? Walking the walk is someone not complaining about what isn’t being done for constituents, it’s legislators stepping in and being a solution for those constituents. Gloss over it. As to “context”, if you will, to the parade, the memes, however things are laid to bare… … I read a Republican right now whose gracious to leadership without fawning, someone who can point to being a help in helping during the crisis, and understanding the Governor is going to do what he’s going to do, and pointing out his own thoughts, not as ultimatums or expectations but as things he *hopes* will be thought, and saying the next steps will be done thoughtfully. Respectfully. - TheInvisibleMan - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:10 pm: OW It’s easy to offer help after a disaster has happened. A disaster he ignored all warnings of, even when it was clear what was coming. Leadership is preparing ahead of time through understanding that the wave is coming before it arrives, is what actually saves lives and should be applauded. Running triage after the fact is his guilty conscience in action. After seeing him in action through his term, he isn’t fooling too many people in the region. I’m glad you like his words and they give you comfort. Personally, I place much more respect in the people with the intelligence and cooperative mindset to have prepared before the storm came. There are plenty of them, and those are the ones who should be placed into public office. He is not one of those people. - Mama - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:16 pm: Please inform us on how the ‘H’ one can wear a mask in a restaurant while drinking and eating? - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:20 pm: === I’m glad you like his words and they give you comfort.=== (Sigh) It’s a letter. It’s tiring dealing with the “Hateful Eight” or Trumpkins, even now, deciding that the doubling down or insisting on being a problem and not a team player to leadership is “smart” It’s like so many are forgetting the oft times I’ve dinged Rep. Batinick, or in one crafty lil letter all alleged political sins are wiped clean… and we’re at “zero” again. All I can do right now is see the roadblocks… and recognize when words… words… a letter… aren’t/isn’t another noise-making waste of energy to get all upset about because the usual suspects are again unable to grasp the severity of the moment… this moment… right now… this letter. And it’s a wonder when elected officials give up trying to change tone and tenor… they get dinged either way… and then we all get mad because they, you guessed it, “double down” It’s a letter. He’s one of 177. Be fooled, not fooled, skeptical, angry… === I don’t have too many issues with the letter, heck the helping of seniors being done by Rep. Batinick, he has walked the walk in many ways during this crisis. Instead of being those willing to embrace herd immunity, Rep. Batinick has tried to discuss options, but defaulting to scientists, even with a caveat. It’s pretty easy to see the thoughtful and honest to safety leaders. Rep. Batinick is one of those thoughtful leaders. No real problem with the letter.=== I wrote what I wrote, exactly as i wrote it… to the letter. - Responsa - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:22 pm: Mama, I assume you missed Rich’s earlier comment: Rich Miller - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 12:27 pm: ===proposes people eat through their masks=== No on-site eating is permitted, so that’s a very silly thing to say. - Mama - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:26 pm: - Grandson of Man - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 10:04 am: Their employer may not allow his/her employees to wear a mask while serving the public. I asked the question about wearing a mask at a couple of drive-up food places I have been, and that is what I was told. In case you have not noticed, mask are not readily available to the public. - mana - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:30 pm: I kid you not, I saw one man in Walmart wearing a clean sanitary napkin over his nose and mouth in place of a mask. At least people are trying to follow the rules. - Ken_in_Aurora - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 1:35 pm: - Soccermom - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 11:32 am:… Golf clap for you, ma’am - thank you for rising above the partisan drivel. Some of what I’m reading here is appalling. We are only going to make it through this working together… the time for bipartisanship is right now. To the post: The excerpted portion of the Representative’s letter makes good sense, if only as a way of somewhat mitigating spread. No, an improvised mask isn’t going to do much to keep you from getting CV19, but if you’re asymptomatic and undiagnosed it may well cut down on the number of people you infect. - Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 2:03 pm: - Generic Drone - Apologies, I missed this earlier. Yes it would. That would be a nice change. OW - Anonymous - Tuesday, Apr 14, 20 @ 7:13 pm: Responding to the question regarding plastic guards in the SOS. It is my understanding they will or have been installed. The question is the protection for driving tests Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.