WEST BOYLSTON – Despite placing the item on their agenda, selectmen Wednesday opted not to discuss the May 17 email Police Chief Dennis Minnich Sr. sent to Worcester health officials regarding COVID-19 business restrictions that some found threatening.
The five-member board met via videoconference Wednesday, and while Chairman Patrick Crowley asked the town administrator to read a statement in which she labeled the matter closed, he did not permit board members to discuss the topic or ask questions.

Crowley told the approximately 15 people on the video call that selectmen could not discuss the matter because it was of a “personnel” nature, noting that Nancy Lucier, the administrator, is the person in town responsible for dealing with employment issues.

The attorney general’s office, which enforces the Open Meeting Law, confirmed to the Telegram & Gazette Thursday that the law does not prohibit certain topics from being discussed in a public meeting.

The text of the law says towns “may” go into executive session – a closed-door meeting - to discuss discipline against employees. It does not say they must.

Lucier said in her statement that the matter was closed after the chief apologized, and Crowley confirmed in an interview Thursday that no further discipline is being contemplated.
Minnich’s apology came after he emailed public health officials and appeared to suggest they might face arrest for trespassing if they attempted to enforce business restrictions that he labeled unconstitutional.
Minnich has told the T&G and numerous other outlets he did not mean the email to be threatening and would assist the Board of Health should they have any safety concerns.
Half a dozen constitutional law experts told the T&G recently that Baker’s business orders appear to pass constitutional muster.

Asked why selectmen wouldn’t be able to share their opinions about Minnich’s comments with the public – especially since no discipline was forthcoming – Crowley replied that the issue is one of liability.
If the town was ever to attempt to discipline the chief in the future, he said, comments the selectmen made in public could be used against them.
Robert W. Harnais, a Quincy lawyer who formerly served as president of the Massachusetts Bar Association, said Thursday that the issue before selectmen seems broader than a personnel issue.
Harnais noted that the incident involved multiple public officials and concerned public policy. He said while selectmen have the right to decline to discuss any topic, that’s not the same as the topic being legally off-limits.
Harnais said that, putting aside the topic of the chief’s conduct, a question he would have were he a business owner is whether the town intends to enforce Baker’s restrictions.

“If I was a private business owner, I’d like to know, is it going to be enforced or not going to be enforced?” he asked.

An email a town official sent to the state Tuesday indicates local health officials are attempting to enforce Baker’s order, and are concerned that the chief’s email could make that difficult.
Margaret Lee, the administrator for the West Boylston Board of Health, told state officials that one business owner had used profanities and refused to stop an activity with which the town’s health officer was concerned.
“As you may have heard, our Police Chief has said he will not provide enforcement and encouraged businesses to open,” Lee wrote. “Unfortunately, I think his statement has enabled the few who claim the Governor’s orders are unconstitutional.

“For instance, we noticed several businesses allowed to open 05/25, actually opened on Friday 05/22.”

The chairman of the Board of Health, Robert Barrell, did not return a phone call Thursday. Lucier wrote in an email that the chief’s comments have not caused issues for public health officials.
John L. Sullivan, a UMass doctor and West Boylston Board of Health member who originally sounded the alarm on the chief’s email, said Thursday that he is disappointed town leaders weren’t vocal about what he sees as a clearly inappropriate email.
Lucier said in her statement that Sullivan, who had initially called for the chief’s firing, thanked her for the “action taken” in the matter.
Asked about that Thursday night, Sullivan replied that while the action taken is not what he would have done, “I knew that was about all we were going to get.

“I think the most important thing out of this has been that he’s lost a lot of respect in the community, and that’s about all we can do,” he said.

Town officials said Thursday that reaction to Minnich’s comments has been about evenly split between people who support his comments and those who do not.
Minnich said he’s received a “couple hundred” emails on the topic, and he said 99% were supportive.

“I’ve taken my whacks, and I’m happy to do it,” he said, adding that he wasn’t sure why selectmen felt the need to bring the topic up again Wednesday.
Minnich said he wouldn’t have begrudged selectmen for sharing their opinions to a certain extent. However, he said he would take issue if board members crossed the line into calling for discipline or questioning his integrity, noting a resolution had already been reached.
Crowley said he placed the item on the agenda because of the correspondence the town received on the topic.

He said he wanted it on record that the town had come to a resolution in the matter, and added that if he felt what happened required discipline, he would have called for an executive session for such a discussion.
“At this point, I don’t think that is necessary,” he said. “Dennis has been the chief of police for many years – it was a one-off thing.”
The state has put together guidelines for how towns are supposed to enforce the governor’s business restrictions.
According to the guidelines, police participation in the process is expected to be limited to situations where a compliance issue “presents an immediate threat to health and safety or the risk of a violent confrontation.”
Lucier said in her statement Wednesday that the chief “intends to support the board of health should they have a need for assistance with any safety concerns.”

interesting read on MA economics.

https://www.masslive.com/coronavirus/2020/05/massachusetts-slow-climb-from-economic-mess-over-coronavirus-will-take-years-mtf-report-says.html

ScottOConnellTG

Posted May 19, 2020 at 7:58 PMUpdated at 6:32 AM

WORCESTER – Upset over Superintendent Maureen Binienda’s handling of the district’s remote learning amid the ongoing pandemic, the city teachers union on Tuesday afternoon said it planned on staging a protest Thursday.

Members of the Educational Association of Worcester intend to organize a “Caravan for Public Education” that will drive from the Immaculate Conception parking lot on Grove Street to City Hall on Thursday afternoon.

The union claims Binienda has “crafted an inadequate response to the impact that the coronavirus has had on public education,” referring to the remote learning model that has been in effect since physical schools closed on March 13.

“Superintendent Maureen Binienda is refusing to bargain in good faith with the EAW or to even set up joint management-labor committees,” union president Roger Nugent said in Tuesday’s statement. “The rapid transition to remote learning after schools closed in mid-March continues to present new challenges to students, families and educators. Instead of working collaboratively with those closest to the situation, the superintendent is issuing mandates that are doing more harm than good.”

Binienda on Tuesday afternoon said she had no comment about the union’s statement.

The EAW is calling on the administration to:

‒ Reduce the amount of time teachers are having to spend logging their work.

‒ Take better advantage of classroom support professionals, who the union says are being underused.

‒ More rapidly provide technology to students at home.

‒ Negotiate with the union through joint-labor management committees to find solutions to the schools shutdown.

The association said it has sent a letter detailing those requests to the superintendent.

Officials struggle with Phillipston budget

By GREG VINE

For Athol Daily News

Published: 5/18/2020 3:45:23 PM

Modified: 5/18/2020 3:45:19 PM

PHILLIPSTON – “In the budget I had started putting together, there was money for training, and money for capital investments and a lot of other things we were going to be able to do this year; right now, those are all on hold.”

That was the prelude Phillipston Chief Administrative Officer Kevin Flynn provided to last week’s joint remote meeting of the town’s Selectboard and Finance Committee, held to figure out just how to proceed with the municipal budget for FY21. The new fiscal year is supposed to begin July 1 but, due to the coronavirus pandemic, many municipal budgets may not be enacted until after that date.

Flynn explained that the state is allowing cities and towns, after July 1, to operate under a so-called one-twelfth budget — based on FY20 figures — until an overall spending package can be approved for the entire fiscal year.

“There are limits on that,” he explained. “It has to include the school district’s assessment. It would have to include money for pension and insurances, and similar assessments. It has to include debt service. We would not be able to use money from stabilization or free cash. And we can’t spend money on capital items or salary increases.”

Because of the local economic impact of the pandemic, as well as its effect on state revenues — and, thus, state aid — Flynn presented officials with an FY21 budget reflecting a slight increase of about $60,000, or about 1.5 percent, from the current year’s budget of just over $3.8 million. Much of the increase comes from a projected hike of $100,000 in the town’s share of Narragansett Regional School District budget.

Flynn estimated a loss of revenues from a variety of sources, due to the coronavirus, amounting to $235,000.

He stressed that these are preliminary figures only, which are subject to change following further deliberations by the Selectboard and Finance Committee.

Flynn noted that his FY21 budget plan did not include $93,000 in Proposition 2 ½ override monies approved by the town last year for additional funds for the Narragansett Regional School District.

“The $93,053 is shown here as a negative number,” Flynn said. “That’s because it was made clear to me that there were strong forces at work who were going to try to reverse the override, to try to put through an underride, and it was likely that money would not be available. So, that money is not used in any of my options.”

“Has the state given any direction at all of when they think they might tell us what they would reduce state funding by?” asked Finance Committee member Brian Nason.

“No,” Flynn responded. “What they have shared with us is all very dramatic information. The Senate chairman of the Ways and Means Committee has shared that (the state) is four to six billion dollars in deficit in revenues for this year. He said this is the worst year since 1946, when they started keeping records.

“Expect that there will be major hits to local revenues, to local education funds, and to regional transportation.”

Flynn said he would not consider an across-the-board cut in municipal pay.

“I don’t mind cutting 5 percent on expenses,” he said. “We can make that work; we stretch a little harder and we don’t get as much done as we want. But I don’t I don’t like cutting peoples’ wages. Especially because it’s only going to happen on the town side. The school department is not going to cut their employees’ wages 5 percent, we all know that.

“They’re going to say, ‘CBA — collective bargaining agreement — we can’t cut anybody’s wages over here. Sorry. So, nobody on the school side gets hurt when you do that; it’s only the town side that gets hurt, and it never catches up after that.”

Town officials will attempt to hammer down details of a budget proposal in time to present it to voters at the annual town meeting, currently scheduled for Monday, June 16.

The annual town election is set for Monday, June 22. Three positions — a one-year seat on the Board of Health, tax collector, and a three-year seat on the Narragansett Regional School Committee — have no candidates. There is but a single candidate for each of the remaining elective offices. A question on the ballot seeks to change the post of tax collector from an elected to an appointed position.

Massachusetts General Law, chapter 40:

Section 49: Annual town reports; publication; penalty for noncompliance

Section 49. The selectmen, before the annual town meeting, shall at the expense of the town make available the annual town report for the use of the inhabitants containing the report of the selectmen for the calendar or fiscal year preceding said meeting, the report of the school committee, statements in tabulated form prepared under section sixty of chapter forty-one unless otherwise printed as provided in said section, the annual report of the town accountant for the preceding fiscal year as provided in section sixty-one of chapter forty-one, the annual report of the town treasurer as provided in section thirty-five of chapter forty-one, and except as otherwise provided by vote or by-law of the town, of such other officers and boards as consider it expedient to make a report, the jury list as required by chapter two hundred and thirty-four, and such other matters as the law, or the town by vote or by-law, requires or as the selectmen consider expedient. If the selectmen neglect or refuse to make the annual report, they shall severally forfeit fifty dollars.

A town may by by-law provide for the printing of such fiscal year reports as it deems suitable within ninety days of the close of the fiscal year. A copy of such fiscal year reports shall be transmitted by the town clerk to the state library before the first day of November. A town may also by by-law provide for the printing of all reports of town officers and boards, committees and commissions on a fiscal year basis in place of the calendar year report required by this section.

https://www.templetonma.gov/home/news/closure-of-town-facilities-extended-to-june-1




https://www.templetonma.gov/board-of-health/news/face-coverings-now-required

https://www.templetonma.gov/sites/templetonma/files/uploads/declaration_of_postponement.pdf


About Templeton Annual Town Meeting postponement; note date document signed, time stamped and date posted to town web site.

The U.S. Supreme Court also dealt with the right to travel in the case of Saenz v. Roe, 526 U.S. 489 (1999). In that case, Justice John Paul Stevens, writing for the majority, held that the United States Constitution protected three separate aspects of the right to travel among the states:

(1) the right to enter one state and leave another (an inherent right with historical support from the Articles of Confederation),

(2) the right to be treated as a welcome visitor rather than a hostile stranger (protected by the "Privileges and Immunities" clause in Article IV, § 2), and

(3) (for those who become permanent residents of a state) the right to be treated equally to native-born citizens (this is protected by the 14th Amendment's Privileges or Immunities Clause; citing the majority opinion in the Slaughter-House Cases, Justice Stevens said, "the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment . . . has always been common ground that this Clause protects the third component of the right to travel.").

WEST BOYLSTON — The tee sheet was full from 7:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. on Friday as 150 golfers played on the first day of golf at Wachusett Country Club since Gov. Charlie Baker allowed golf courses to open on Thursday for the first time in six weeks due to the coronavirus.

"People are so happy today," Wachusett owner Cara Cullen said. "I think they felt like there's some hope. We haven't had a lot of hope for the last six weeks." Not everyone was happy, however. Among the strict guidelines golf courses had to follow in order to open was the banning of golf carts to promote social distancing. Golfers physically unable to walk 18 holes were upset they wouldn't be able to play. "I have been yelled at," Cullen said. "I have been screamed at. I have been threatened to be sued." Cullen said one golfer got in his car and left after screaming at her for discriminating against people with disabilities. She offered him phone numbers at the state house to register his complaints.

Cullen said after receiving complaints that the club was violating the Americans With Disabilities Act, she spoke with the Massachusetts Office on Disability on Friday. Cullen said she was told that the office had received thousands of complaints, that it should have been included on the 17-member Governor's Reopening Advisory Board that set the guidelines to reopen courses and that it planned to contact the governor's office. The T&G's call to the MOD for comment was not immediately returned.

Cullen hopes single riding carts will be allowed soon. She said a lot of her customers are older, Vietnam veterans, retired firefighters with COPD, people with heart and lung issues, people with knee replacements. But they can still golf if they can ride a cart. "I feel bad for them," Cullen said. "The people who can walk, they're so happy today to be golfing and the people who can't feel completely discriminated against by us and the state." Bob Smith, 72, of Worcester has been a member at Wachusett for 40 years, and he runs two leagues at the course. He recently underwent hip replacement surgery, so he can't walk while golfing, but he showed up on Friday to say hello to friends. He was upset he couldn't ride in a cart by himself.

Below link should allow you to watch advisory committee meeting; about 55 minutes into the meeting, listen to town administrator speak of scout hall.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZoAFiWccHI&t=1074s

TO: SelectBoard

FROM: Carter Terenzini, Town Administrator

RE: Scout Hall

DATE: February 5, 2020

CC: Advisory Committee; Accountant; file
______________________________________________________________________________

I write to follow-up on recent questions relative to Scout Hall raised by various bodies.

Let me first address the matter of expenditures to date. There have been two appropriations of $50k each to this project from CPA funds. Those were made at the Annual Town Meeting of 2016 and the Fall Town Meeting of 2019. To date, $38,859.26 has been expended. You will find the itemized breakdown and invoices attached.

Let me now move on to the matter of the request for the second round of funding. Over a period of time, this office somehow become more deeply involved in trying to assist with project bidding and implementation. Our DPW Director, which includes Buildings & Grounds, was assigned to be the lead person on this. As the project approached having roughly $10k on hand, it became apparent to him that there were insufficient funds to complete the project. He recommended we not proceed further until we could identify the remaining elements needed for a finished project and obtain funding to carry those out.

In a meeting with the Committee Chair, Ms. Julie Richard, Bob and I did verify such a list and Bob went on to compile the needed estimates. With that in hand, with the Fall Town Meeting approaching, with a project that had already been in progress far longer than anticipated, and with a Committee that seemed challenged to obtain a quorum and convene, I personally encouraged Ms. Richard to seek the needed funding from the CPC. In conjunction with that application I advised her there would also be a need to appear before the Capital Planning Committee. She did as asked and presented to both bodies the estimates compiled for her.

At this point I want to apologize to Ms. Richard for not have been more aggressive in defending her by explaining I asked her to do these things. If you have any questions about why I asked Mr. Szocik or Ms. Richard to do as they did feel free to ask and I will respond as best I can.

Where this project goes from here I leave to the Board.

From Today's webinar for:
Massachusetts Selectmen Association/MA Municipal Councillors Association
State Revenue and Budget Outlook
• Some History May Provide Some Guidance: ◦ In the Great Recession, State Tax Revenues Dropped by 10%, and Unrestricted Aid was Cut by More than 25% ◦ Yet Education Aid (Chapter 70) was Not Cut as Deeply Due to Federal Stimulus Aid (ARRA)
• The Key Question is Whether the Federal Government will Provide New Stabilization Aid to Support Local Government ◦ The MMA is Working with National Organizations to Call for AT LEAST $250 Billion in Direct Aid to Cities and Towns During the Coming Recession & at Least the Same for States ◦ This would Provide MA Communities with Nearly $6 Billion for over 2 Years
• Without Federal Aid, the Budget Crisis will be Unnecessarily Painful ….
Now back to Geoff to moderate the Q&A part of our program

Two former allies of Gov. Chris Christie who were convicted for their roles in the Bridgegate traffic jam scandal nearly four years ago and were facing prison terms are not going to jail after all. In a dramatic ruling today in Washington, D.C., the United States Supreme Court overturned the 2016 guilty verdicts in Newark federal court of Christie’s former deputy chief of staff, Bridget Anne Kelly, and William Baroni, the former governor’s top political appointment at the Port Authority. With all nine justices voting unanimously, the court threw out Kelly’s and Baroni’s convictions, thus setting them free to go on with their lives which had been in limbo since the scandal burst into the public spotlight with Kelly's infamous email:  "Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee. "Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning.Writing for the majority, Justice Elena Kagan said federal prosecutors in Newark improperly applied federal fraud laws in charging Kelly and Baroni with participating in the traffic scheme that reportedly was meant to punish the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee for his refusal to endorse the re-election of Christie, a Republican. 

The recreation committee has voted to cancel the spring Templeton Youth Softball season for 2020. This decision was not easy to make but the safety of our children, parents, and coaches is top priority. All registrations will be refunded within the next few weeks.

The committee has also voted to cancel the upcoming Summer Camp Playground for 2020.

The committee voted to keep Learn to Swim on the books as of right now and we will discuss in early June what direction the program will take based on the status of the COVID-19 protocols

Thank You,
​
Scott Dill

At some point, reality has to set in.
from Worcester Telegram:

From Wichita to Webster, police officers and other emergency responders across the country are the highlight of birthday parades for residents under stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But some local agencies, citing increased demand and the need to keep their ranks free to respond to emergency calls, are putting a halt to the procession.

The Holden Fire Department, in a Facebook post Monday morning, declared it would no longer join celebration parades.

“Due to the high demand requesting parades, we feel that it is not fair for us to do some parades and not be available to do others,” the department said.

“While we do feel honored to be requested to help celebrate such an important day for the kids, it has become too much for HFD to keep up with and it would be heartbreaking to not show up for a child/loved one that is expecting us,” the statement continued.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, with people stuck inside and birthday party plans being canceled, some police and fire departments have restored joy by parading past houses, with sirens blaring. In Webster on April 7, a procession of emergency vehicles made its way through North Village apartments, recognizing the 6th birthday of Valentina Garcia, who battles chronic lung disease. Her mother had planned a pool party. Still, it turned out to be a memorable birthday.

In Southbridge, the police and fire chiefs are saying no to the parade route.

Chief Shane D. Woodson said Monday the department was overwhelmed by 20 requests during the weekend. They even had requests for adult birthdays. Police and fire were able to accommodate some but not all requests, in part because of an increase in emergency calls for police services, Woodson said.

Some parents, after being told by police and fire command staff that they would participate in parades, promised their children, only for everyone to be disappointed, Woodson said.

“We made them that promise,” Woodson conceded. “Unfortunately, this weekend, with the weather getting warmer, we were overwhelmed with calls for service, not routine calls, but emergency calls for service.”

Southbridge Fire Chief Paul Normandin said: “It is very unfortunate. It’s very nice to see children and grandparents and parents on people’s lawns and in their homes, waving towards us. It’s important to the Fire Department and public safety personnel in regards to this situation ... And we at this point need to make an operational decision not to carry out in doing these events.

“Obviously, there will be towns around us that will still be doing this,” he said. “Unfortunately we’ve taken the role in the response that we will not do these events.”

from Worcester Telegram:

WORCESTER - Despite being slapped with a $300 fine for defying Gov. Charlie Baker’s ban on gatherings of more than 10 people, Kristopher D. Casey, pastor of Adams Square Baptist Church, said Monday he intends to hold church services again Wednesday and Sunday and has no intention of limiting the size of the gathering.

Casey said he is so committed to holding church services during the ban that he’s willing to get arrested standing up for his constitutional rights and his right to preach the Gospel.

The governor’s order says violations shall result in a warning for a first offense, and that violators may receive a civil citation and fine of up to $300 for a second offense. For subsequent offenses, violators may be subject to criminal penalties including a fine of up to $500, imprisonment, or both.

“I’m going to have church on Wednesday. I will happily accept the $500 find on Thursday. And then I will have church again on Sunday,” Casey said. “I’m not going to be the only pastor to be here. So if they feel that they need to arrest me, there will be somebody else to stand up and preach the Gospel.”

Adams Square Baptist Church can hold 300 to 325 people. Forty-six attendees were counted leaving through the front door of the church at 266 Lincoln St. after a service Sunday. On April 26, 56 people reportedly attended a Sunday service that Casey led at the church, drawing condemnation from city officials.

Casey, who planned to attend a Liberty Rally in Boston on Monday to urge the state government to allow businesses to reopen, confirmed that Police Chief Steven M. Sargent hand-delivered him notice of a $300 fine Monday morning for defying Gov. Charlie Baker’s ban on gatherings of more than 10 people for a second time Sunday.

“I don’t want to get fined, but I have to stand up for our constitutional rights and I have to stand up, more importantly, for what God has led me to do and say and preach and that’s the Gospel,” Casey said. “The Bill of Rights and the Constitution don’t go away because there’s a quarantine. They don’t go on vacation. They’re there all the time. So, we’ve got to stand up for it. And if nobody is willing to stand up for it, generations of people behind us will suffer the consequence.”

Casey said the church has received numerous small donations from people all over America to pay the $300 fine.

“People are excited about someone standing up and protecting our rights,” Casey said. “It’s not just Baptists. It’s rabbis and priests. It’s bishops. It’s people from all over America calling me and saying, ‘Thank you for taking a stand. I stand behind you.’ ”

Casey said extensive cleaning measures and safety practices, including temperature checks and mandatory wearing of face masks and rubber gloves, have been put in place at the church.

from Worcester Telegram; more conflicting statements from government:

WORCESTER — The city hopes to allow reopening of Walmart store that had a COVID-19 outbreak in the next couple of days, but it won’t open Monday, City Manager Edward M. Augustus said Sunday.

City officials said 81 employees of the Walmart Supercenter at 25 Tobias Boland Way have tested positive for COVID-19. That includes 58 of 391 employees who were tested Thursday and Friday, plus 23 other employees who tested positive before that.

“The store has been professionally cleaned,” Augustus said during Sunday’s press briefing at City Hall. “And the goal is to allow the store to open sometime in the next couple of days. It won’t be tomorrow. But we will let you know when the store will be cleared for opening.”

Dr. Michael P. Hirsh, the city’s medical director, said his team is very close to getting the Walmart up and running again.

“There’re some stray employees that were on leave and weren’t around to be tested on Thursday and Friday,” Hirsh said. “And we want to make sure that they’re tested so that we know that they are not going to be the ones that start an outbreak in the group that we have as negative. Once we know that, and we’re again going to do another inspection from our division in inspectional services, then we should be able to get this store back online.”

Hirsh said it was very unlikely that a customer in “a normal shopping experience” would have close enough contact to catch COVID-19 from someone who has the coronavirus that causes the disease.

“You have to be there 15 minutes in that person’s presence,” Hirsh said. “If you’re doing a routine kind of shopping you’re probably not going to have that kind of close contact. So we would not fear that many people would turn positive from a shopping experience at Walmart.”

What next, Governor Baker gonna think he can tell me to get hair cut?

BOSTON — Gov. Charlie Baker took a step toward preparing the public for what he said life might look like in Massachusetts when this period of staying at home to avoid COVID-19 infection ends, ordering all citizens to wear masks or facial coverings in public if they can’t socially distance.

Then he pulls a typical government response:

Asked specifically about joggers and bicyclists, Baker said if someone is running early in the morning and confident they won’t encounter other people they might be able to exercise without a mask, but if they go running during the afternoon when more people are out they should probably cover their face.

Huh? Last time I lived under institutional rules, military, if word came down the order of the day is now, say, sleeves rolled down, that was it, it was not an option, it was not, you should probably. . . .

When it comes to this latest suggestion from Baker, I fall back to one of his earliest comments; "I do not believe I can, nor should, I order people to stay indoors, inside their homes." Since his order contains possible $300.00 fine, what they gonna do if it is one of the 300,000 unemployed people whose benefit application is on hold; what are they going to do when the hear the words "I am not going to pay, I cannot pay"

Here in Templeton, majority of the board of selectmen and the town administrator want to quote a state law, but then not follow it; MGL chapter 41, section 108. Word is Gardner Court house closed for cleaning, corona virus. Again, many mixed messages from the governor; I wonder how many of those millions of masks that came from china are bad, KN95 reported on news that they don't work, but then governor and MADPH tells us a bandanna will work.

from USA Today:

As many states move toward reopening after a horrific April that saw nearly 60,000 deaths because of the coronavirus, a new report offers a stark warning: A group of experts has concluded the pandemic could last as long as two years, until 60% to 70% of the population is immune.

Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, suggested social distancing could continue in some form through the summer as the White House quietly allowed official guidelines to expire. Meanwhile, a new report warns the pandemic could last up to two years, until the world hits the threshold for herd immunity.

Amid all the reopening talk this week, Dr. Tom Inglesby, a leading expert on pandemics, reminded us: We will not have complete "normal" – no masks, fully social – until we have a vaccine.

"The daily merry go round"

More interest on masks for corona

(covid-19 for some)

Mornong news on tv, reported that masks given to police and fire not working; k95 masks, made in china not working, so those were replaced by N95 masks. So if all those kind of masks similar to n95 do not work, how come we are told to wear any kind of mask, even a bandanna thing if those made in china masks do not work?

Shown ambulance workers wearing respirator type units, maybe people should be ordering them and walk into grocery store to shop looking like you are ready to go into the paint booth. Again, first no masks, they do not work, you need to be fitted, etc., then wear any kind of mask and now, those masks issued to police and fire do not work, but you people going grocery shopping, wear a bandanna.

Some communities now making it mandatory to wear a mask if you leave your home and if you do not, you get fined up to $1,000.00. Question; what are authorities going to do if you do not pay? Put a lien on your home, place you in jail, attach your paycheck? Your honor, I am a renter, un-employed and I cannot pay the fine. Reported about 700,000 people in MA have signed up for un-employment benefit, with about 300,000 still on "hold" which means those people better have some source of funds until. Mean while, lines at food banks continue to grow. Templeton food pantry moving to Saturday hours, 12:00 P.M. to 3:00 P.M. Food pantry has gone from one day per week to 3 days per week (two time periods on Thursday)