Watch the dismount

State must maintain balance in covid-19 response

The notice came to our in-box from an organization understandably eager to restart weekly activities covid-19 had forced it to cancel back in early March.

“Arkansas is reopening May 4,” said the organizers, who were already making tentative plans to get back into a normal rhythm here in Northwest Arkansas. Oh, if it could only be that easy. We don’t know if Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson is a “Star Wars” fan. Perhaps he had no intention of picking what’s become known as Star Wars Day (“May the 4th be with you”) as a target date to begin easing the restrictions he and public health officials put in place more than a month go to battle the spread of the coronavirus. It might be that’s just coincidental- ly the date that falls on that first Monday of May.

What we do know is Arkansans, fans of the science fiction genre or not, are just as eager as those event organizers to recover some semblance of normalcy and get as many jobs back as possible. With Arkansas’ track record of having beaten the early projections for covid-19’s impact, even a moderate Republican (by today’s measure) like Hutchinson is feeling pressure to remove restrictions, particularly those contributing to an economic slowdown of historic proportions.

Perhaps it is because Hutchinson has taken an even-keeled approach to limitations on activities that Arkansas hasn’t witnessed the angry and largely misguided protests happening in other places. President Trump wrongly urged his backers to “liberate” Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia, a rally cry cynically targeted at three states with Democratic governors and which figure prominently in the 2020 presidential election.

Arkansas is so far safe from such shenanigans because it has a Republican governor who avoids conflict with the Trump White House even as he has to tiptoe around some of the president’s oddball comments and because Hutchinson appears as ready as any would-be protesters to stanch the economic losses.

On Thursday, Hutchinson again reflected the political balance beam he’s working harder than Simone Biles. In his covid-19 press conference the day before, he delivered a timeline setting dates to announce decisions about the restrictions or adjusted guidance for key parts of the Arkansas economy: April 29, restaurants; April 30, gyms; May 1, barber and beauty salons; and May 4, places of worship and larger venues.

Then yesterday, he offered assurances Arkansas won’t be rushed by any external forces.

“We’re not going to be stampeded into doing it,” Hutchinson said. “We weren’t stampeded into sheltering-in-place. We’re not going to be stampeded into making too quick of a decision or a decision just because it seems to be the national mood. We’re going to do what’s right for Arkansas based upon what we see here and the direction we need to go.”

Translation: The buck stops at the governor’s office. How refreshing.

But it’s important residents recognize the fluid nature of Arkansas’ planning. Just Thursday, the governor launched a “surge” campaign encouraging all residents who believe symptoms might be covid-19 to contact their doctors and be tested today or tomorrow. Clearly, Hutchinson is confident in testing supplies and is ready to get additional data-focused clues as to the extent of conditions in the Natural State. By early next week, any increase in the number of tests performed promises to provide more information upon which the governor and his public health advisers can make decisions.

Will it promote the governor’s timeline or throw it off balance?

In any case, Hutchinson earlier wisely warned that even with the goal of restoring “a normal life” represented by lifting restrictions, “we’re still a long ways from a full opening that we would have whenever we get further down the road.”

We all want to ease the limits that keep us from hanging out with friends or enjoying our favorite restaurants, that have thrown friends and family out of work, that have introduced a level of uncertainty that can be unnerving. But until a vaccine is developed, no one should even dream of behaving as if our world is back to “normal.” That kind of thinking will lead to unwise behaviors that increase dangers to ourselves and others — particularly those whose circumstances make them more vulnerable to covid-19’s worst outcomes.

We’re glad Arkansas isn’t Georgia, where the governor has announced plans to reopen many businesses starting today, a plan so aggressive even President Trump said it was “too soon,” even as the president stressed it’s Gov. Brian Kemp’s decision.

We take Gov. Hutchinson at his word that, while he’s set May 4 as a target to begin reopening Arkansas’ economy, he’s open to changing circumstances and information that could influence the decision.

When a gymnast is on a balance beam, every move is influenced by what came just before and by the next move the athlete will attempt. No matter how great a performance is going, one misstep can send the gymnast off balance and, potentially, crashing to the floor.

Following the governor’s lead, Arkansans need to step carefully, always mindful that success depends on exacting execution of every carefully planned move.