- By Lisa Houserman and others
Just in case it slipped by you, this week we are back in print rather than being in the online only format. If you are holding a paper in your hands whilst reading this, that is what I mean!
This column is mainly for those who did not access the online version of the world-famous Community News. I’ve mentioned this several times but since you didn’t read those columns, you will be seeing it for the first time.
I had several NFBOW (Nameless, Faceless, Business Owners of the Week), take part in the virtual version of Rants and Raves. I want to show those of you who missed it what happened or what they said. For those who have already seen the columns in question, you are off the hook this week in terms of reading this piece. I just feel that those who took part in said NFBOW should be read a bit more than they were.
I will plunk down two of them as they were both short columns. I wanted to give them an opportunity, in an anonymous manner, to voice their views about the situation that was unfolding at the time. (It still IS unfolding but has changed a tad.)
You will have to time-travel back to April, as that is when we flipped over to the online version. (It’s difficult to conjure words that mean the same as “online,” so forgive my over-usage of that word if you would, and even if you wouldn’t.) I will be doing this for the first couple of weeks.
This is the April 20 column:
“Are you essential”
Written by, ???????
As I sit here enjoying my fifth week of vacation, I am wondering how long this time of “bliss” will last. (Five weeks of shuttered doors, watching “essentials” driving to and fro.) My business wasn’t big enough to get much in grants; $1000, for five weeks. I didn’t make enough to get the PPP, so I stay at home, while others I know are working on waiver jobs, and non waiver jobs, and receiving PPP (Payroll Protection Plan) to pay their employees while they are working! (Seems fair.) We have been told we are “non essential.” I disagree; we are non life sustaining, but I would argue that I am essential to my FAMILY and their livelihood. You can’t buy my products, but you can go to a “big box store” and buy the same. So it’s essential for them, but not for me? Is it “Un-American” to think I should work? Am I “Un-American” to think if I don’t work I may lose everything? The last thing I want to do is cause harm to someone else, but in doing so I am harming myself and family by not providing for them.
In March the deadliness of this “virus” became a staple in the news cycles. Governors across the nation decided, “we need to social distance - so let’s close down schools and businesses that I don’t deem to be essential.” Some said to stay at home—unless you need to go to Walmart to get food, medicine, clothes, paint, flowers, TVs, movies, music, or hey, whatever you want. Go ahead and go to Home Depot and buy drywall, lumber, paint, flooring and landscaping supplies, because, after all, you are supposed to be staying home. And you know what—let’s shutter the churches and we will start trout season two weeks early, cause, you know, we are supposed to stay home!
In good faith, we will send the closed businesses some money so they can pay employees, and bills, but you know,, only a portion of what they need because we don’t have enough to give everyone what they need.
We are all in this together! Yes we are, except we aren’t. Life sustaining workers are on overload, closed businesses are in danger of losing everything they have worked for and may have to decide if they are going to break the “new law” or just watch their dreams be crushed. Do we pay the bills to keep business in good standing or do I feed my family? We all have a choice and the majority of the people will do the right thing. But soon our choices may be fewer. As doors close for good, who will be essential? Will you?
This is the April 27 column:
This shouldn’t be one-size-fits all
By ???????
I own and operate a hair salon that has separate rooms divided off by walls. I told Lisa I didn’t care if she puts that in the paper.
I might not be considered to be “essential” by the standards they are using for these measures, but I think they are missing an important part of this whole thing which is mental health.
My business caters to men, women and children. We have customers ranging from the very young to senior citizens. It might seem trivial to some who are reading this but many people feel better about themselves when they look good on the outside!
Not only is their mental health at risk but I think that a lot of small business owners, like myself, are also going to have mental health problems because of these measures. All of this can have people feeling stressed out which has been proven to make people feel sick or to get sick.
I have thought from the start that people should be able to decide for themselves whether or not they want to come in for one of our services. Aren’t we supposed to be a free people? I can take measures to protect everyone involved. Because my business is sectioned off, this makes it even more ridiculous that I can’t see clients.
I could have had my employees working with protective coverings in the different rooms. They are using a blanket formula for all businesses and they shouldn’t do that.
Also I am very frustrated about basically having to use my computer for everything. All of the forms that had to be filled out to get help while being forced to close down are not easy to navigate on a computer. I’m not the only person who has problems with this either. Because of my particular business, everything has to be customized on the computer. I have to buy special programs for it and have someone help me.
A person has to practically have a law degree or be a certified public accountant to even wade through some of the forms I had to do online. As far as I can tell, only certain people qualify for that PPP (Payroll Protection Program). There seem to be a lot of different loopholes and things that might end up being detrimental when it comes to tax time next year.
It’s my understanding that 75% of the money has to go to payroll and the other 25% for utilities. It is also based on the status of the employees like if they are full time or salaried. My business is based on commissions so this might not even help me in the end! Like I said before, they seem to be wanting or doing a “one size fits all” here when it doesn’t work that way!
This closing down should have been decided on a local level or at a county level. There aren’t even that many cases in our county. Many of us feel that we end up being dictated to by the state in the end, no matter what our communities might want! I feel that we are not given any kind of chance for a rebuttal either. If they are going to police the small business owner, at least give them a chance to have a rebuttal!
This is going to screw everyone in the end. We live in a trickle down economy and this is not helping anyone.
THE END (cvpandemicinvestigation.com “War is a Racket,” by General Smedley Butler, “Where did the Towers Go?” by Dr. Judy Wood)