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The isolation and stress of the lockdown measures being taken during the COVID-19 pandemic are not easy, but they’re also necessary.
The best way to effectively stop the spread of a virus that nobody has immunity to, that can be transmitted by a person who has no symptoms, and that has been known to kill otherwise healthy, young people, is to keep people apart. But that is some surprisingly tough medicine to swallow.
It’s a highly stressful time, and going outside for some sunshine and exercise is a perfect remedy for that at least.
But whether the beach is the right place to go for that right now is highly controversial.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis received considerable criticism for not shutting down the state’s beaches to Spring Break crowds, and that criticism has been backed up by the state’s outbreak numbers, with at least 27,791 cases and 927 deaths as of the time of writing, according to the Florida Department of Health . It’s probably unknowable how many spring breakers spread the disease as well after returning to their home states.
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Florida officials did eventually shut the state’s beaches down even to walks, but just a few weeks later, Governor DeSantis announced he would leave it up to localities to re-open their beaches if they wanted to.
“Do it in a good way. Do it in a safe way,” he said, according to Business Insider .
And indeed some areas did decide to re-open to the public, although some stressed it was for “exercise only,” and not for sunbathers.
Needless to say, the was considerable skepticism about whether beachgoers would actually follow the guidelines.
And whether or not it’s just plain too early in the process of flattening the curve to be encouraging people to go outside, populating public places where they might be tempted to gather in unsafe ways.
It seemed, early on, like those who were braving the beaches were keeping apart, although there were conflicting reports of large crowds flocking to the sand and surf.
It has all made a lot of people uncomfortable.
Florida currently has more cases than all of India , a nation with more than a billion people, so the thought of sharing grocery stores with folks who have been out on the beaches possibly sharing a virus they might not even know they have puts many ill at ease.
It’s enough that one man has pledged to perform his own bit of public service, stalking Florida’s prematurely open beaches in a Grim Reaper costume.
Lawyer Daniel Uhlfelder announced on Twitter that, starting May 1, he’d be making the rounds on the state’s beaches, decked out in full Grim Reaper attire, including the trademark scythe, as a warning to beachgoers of the risks they were taking.
Uhlfelder’s stunt might be a recipe for dehydration, but it’s sure to get some attention as well.
And that’s also part of the point to it. As Uhlfelder admitted on Twitter, he’s using the opportunity to raise money for Democratic candidates in federal elections.
According to Uhlfelder’s most recent update , he’s raised $3,417 of his $20,000 goal so far.
