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OBSERVATIONS
April 10, 2020 |
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 Wingate Lassiter |
To be effective, social distancing
must be practiced everywhere we go
I'm glad Governor Roy Cooper has ordered new rules for retail and grocery stores to prevent the spread of the dreaded COVID-19 virus.
Practicing social distancing at the office, in public meetings, and even on the greenway is apparently having a positive impact on controlling the pandemic here and elsewhere.
But the grocery stores, especially, have been dangerous places to be when so many people show up at one time and crowd the aisles.
The Governor's rules, effective at 5 p.m., will require stores to limit the number of customers inside at any one time and take steps to keep them apart as they shop.
Meanwhile, not attending church on Easter Sunday has created some angst across the nation among the faithful who believe they have a constitutional right to take part in a congregational church service. Still, doing that alongside the usual number of worshipers would be a risky and yes, inconsiderate thing to do just now.
Think of it this way: If we got hit by a freak April blizzard that prompted the cancellation of services this Sunday, we wouldn't complain about having to miss church to safeguard our loved ones.
Thank goodness for the Internet and the ability of churches to live-stream their services. After all, religion is a spiritual pursuit that goes far beyond a physical place of worship.
Dr. Eric Janis's advice before the County Commissioners last month still rings in my ears: Until the data proves otherwise, "we have to assume that each one of us is infected and our neighbor is infected."
Employment in Johnston: an all-time high of 98,379
That's according to the latest report from the N.C. Department of Commerce --- for the month of February. That's right: February. The state's county-by-county numbers normally come out four or five weeks after the end of the month being reported.
February's unemployment rate for Johnston County was 3.4%.
We shudder to anticipate what it will be for the month of March, and then for April, which is bound to be even worse as the coronavirus pandemic tightens its grip.
A curtain call for Smithfield's azaleas
Still blooming a month after the first explosion of azaleas back in mid-March, these white azaleas in a yard beside Cedarwood Drive in South Smithfield are providing an Easter-season color that's fading as our spectacular dogwoods are on the wane. The natural rock out-cropping adds a nice touch to this classic Southern scene, complete with the trunk of an adolescent pine.
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