Sound Off for May 20, 2020

Small sample

To “Wolf at the Door,” the study by Dr. Bhattacharya was not peer-reviewed prior to its release. It has been criticized by other scientists who say it covers too small a representative sample and thus the conclusions are wrong. A Swiss researcher said he’d use this study in one of his university classes as how not to interpret statistics.

Cold, hard fact

The wolf at the door is COVID. It’s a dangerous contagious disease. People need to realize and respect that as a cold hard fact. For the last time, “lockdowns” (or rather stay-home orders) weren’t intended to be a “solution” or a “wait for a cure.” They were instituted to slow transmission so hospitals wouldn’t be overwhelmed with critically ill patients.

Meat from farmers

The requirement to have USDA-certified meat is for purchasers who intend to it for resale. When someone purchases directly from a farmer, as I did, they pay the farmer for the animal when it is delivered to the processor. The processor cuts the meats to order, then charges a processing fee. When the meat is picked up, it is wrapped and marked that it is not for sale. We have found that our meat is superior to anything that we could get from a grocery store.

Buy direct

In response to “Government inspected,” for decades I have been buying beef directly from a local farmer here in Harrison County. I go to his farm, pick out the cow I want, and he takes it to the slaughterhouse for me. I know the quality of beef I am getting. When you go to the grocer, you do not know what you are getting or where it came from.

No bailouts

Not every business is intended to last forever. Anyone who decided on such a venture should have known there were risks and that they could face unpredictable adverse factors. It’s sad to see some close, but it’s not right to bailout small businesses and corporations with taxpayer dollars.

Avoid the casinos

Now that the state gaming commission has strong armed the governor to allow the casinos to reopen on a “soft” basis, let me assure you that there is nothing “soft” about it. To the gullible tourists, we might say, “Come on vacation, leave on probation.”

To submit a Sound Off, email soundoff@sunherald.com

This story was originally published May 19, 2020 at 12:56 PM with the headline "Sound Off for May 20, 2020."