Flag Day + 1

Long may they wave

At City Hall the flagpole has gotten a bit crowded.

The Stars and Stripes, the Rainbow Flag (it's Pride Month), and the light blue Foster City flag all flapped proudly in the breeze.

The California flag was tangled in the crossbar, unable to handle the atmospheric winds that pull it in all directions.

Speaking of crosscurrents, today California is officially re-opening: [bold added]

On June 15, California will generally align with the CDC’s mask recommendations, which means that if you’re fully vaccinated you don’t have to wear a mask in almost all settings, including shopping, going to a bar, working out at the gym or attending church services.

There are a few exceptions, such as health care settings and public transportation, including airports and transit stations.

If you are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, masks are still required indoors, and outdoors when 6 feet social distancing cannot be maintained. California will mostly rely on the honor system to enforce masking rules.

Comment 1: Honor system? I thought that went out of style half a century ago. Well, I'll put my skepticism aside and be open minded about whether that will work. Frankly, I think the danger will come from those who, lacking trust in others, will demand to see vaccination cards when they have no right to do so. I hope I'm wrong.

Comment 2: I'll still wear a mask pulled down over my chin. When I see a masked person approach, I'll pull it up out of courtesy. I often see masked parents out and about with their children, most of whom are not vaccinated. And I do believe that the risk is vanishingly small to children contracting COVID-19 when outdoors, and even if that does happen, the severity is much less. Nevertheless, parents' ability to assess risks is very poor when it comes to their children.

Be kind, even though you don't have to be--that's another meaning of the Flag.