Letter to the Editor - Not all Californians have Micheal Reagan's views

Editor,

As a subscriber to the Havre Daily News and a resident of California, I would like to suggest to your readers that the views expressed by Michael Reagan in his “Free California” column printed in the Havre Daily May 15 do not remotely come close to the feelings of the vast majority of Californians.

According to two polls in May, one by the University of California-Berkeley and the other by the Washington Post/IPSOS, 70 percent to 79 percent of Californians approve Gov. Newsom’s handling of the pandemic. Similar to the prudent approach taken by Montana’s Gov. Bullock, California’s governor acted quickly and decisively to try to curtail the spread of the deadly COVID-19 through various measures recommended by medical experts.

What Mr. Reagan seems to overlook in his misguided column is that without the steps taken by Newsom, county public health officials, and numerous city and county leaders, the number of deaths in California would be much higher than it is. He criticizes “panic-pushing media” for over-reacting to this pandemic when, in fact, the newspapers and other media outlets have been on the forefront of providing factual important information to the public about COVID-19. His complaints that the governor is “torturing everyone in the state” by requiring people to wear masks when entering retail stores flies in the face of what medical scientists recommend as a reasonable precaution to prevent the transmissions of the disease.  

California is now engaged in a phased re-opening of its businesses and public areas in a manner similar to that being done in Montana. According to reporting by the Los Angeles Times, 39 of California’s 58 counties have moved into Phase 2 of a four-phase program allowing counties that meet specific criteria including testing, tracing and hospital capacities to open many businesses; these are mostly rural areas with lower populations. The more populated counties in the Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay areas that have a greater number of cases and deaths are still under more stringent requirements. But when conditions improve in the future, these areas too will be able to relax their restrictions.

Reagan’s willingness to contract COVID-19 rather than follow public heath guidelines does not just put his own health at risk, but his selfish and reckless behavior could increase the spread of this deadly disease to others who are following the recommendations of our health experts.  

Ron Hoffman

Tujunga, California