It’s Day 238 of The First Ohio Shutdown and Day 174 of Rehearsing the Reset.
Deb and I are fine today. We have a big week ahead of us — stay tuned.
During the wee hours, in familiar dead-of-night fashion, this morning Ohio’s Ministry of Health issued yet another order. We got Mikey’s Really Big Mask Order the other day, of course, and more will follow, but here’s the gist of this one:
“All public and private gatherings of greater than 10 people occurring outside a single residence and the real estate on which it is located, or an apartment, condominium, or dormitory living unit are prohibited. This is in accordance with President Trump’s coronavirus guidelines issued March 16, 2020.”
(That last line is meant to thrust the governor’s thumb into the eye of Trump supporters, by the way.)
Read on:
“Paragraph 1 does not apply to wedding ceremonies and funeral observances.”
It gets better:
“No socializing or activities in open congregate areas and no dancing … Traditional wedding reception events such as first dance, toasts, and cutting the cake are permitted….”
You read that right — government thinks it can ban socializing and dancing at weddings.
I won’t bore you with the rest of the new “rules.” I’ll simply say that they’re maddeningly stupid and clearly unenforceable.
It’s worth noting that this particular royal decree doesn’t order the closure of bars and restaurants. And, as usual, it graciously includes a constitutional “carve-out”:
“Paragraph 1 does not apply to religious observances. … Paragraph 1 does not apply to First Amendment protected speech, including petition or referendum circulators and any activity by the Media…and to governmental meetings, which includes meetings that are required to be open to the public….”
Let’s start with the obvious: The State has no business dictating how many citizens may freely assemble, whether publicly or privately, for any peaceful purpose the People may judge to be worthy. When the State presumes such unlawful and unconstitutional authority, I believe we have a moral obligation to defy it.
Now just because the State lacks authority doesn’t mean it lacks the power to issue orders and punish violators. It has the unique and perverse ability to operate outside the law in order to inflict consequences.
But you can still screw with the State. You may be issued a citation, but you won’t lose.
Wear a political button. Put a MAGA bumper sticker on your truck. Take your Bible to the bar. Engaging in any activity covered by the First Amendment is an end-run around virtually every order issued by Ohio’s Ministry of Health.
Makes you wonder how a government order can both prohibit peaceable assembly and protect the exercise of First Amendment rights, doesn’t it?
If you want to get really creative you can exploit the giant loophole afforded the press. In this Internet age it’s not difficult — you can figure it out.
Whether it’s mandating masks, prohibiting mass gatherings or, as the governor is rumored to be considering, imposing a statewide 10pm curfew, remember that “no person has been successfully prosecuted for violating a health director’s order in 134 years.” That’s straight from the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law.
After I publish one of my daily posts, I’ll give Deb time to read it and then sit down and listen to her thoughts about what I’ve written that day. She’s always candid, always constructive. And usually there’s a moment when she’ll shoot me that look — to which I respond,
“No, I really don’t know where it all comes from.”
Seems I have a lot to say.
I remain grateful to those of you who decide that what I write is worth reading. I hope to continue to deserve your attention.
By the way, if you get my Ubi Libertas posts via my personal Facebook page, do me a favor — click on the link. It helps me gauge whether or not I’m on the right track here.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #OhioAgainstDeWine
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