Virus puts damper on Halloween
As it has with just about everything else, the COVID-19 pandemic has put a damper on Halloween, leaving many parents to worry about how, or whether, to allow their children to trick or treat.
The state Health Department recently issued its guidance for those planning to celebrate Halloween. Among the recommendations: Avoid crowded parties and indoor haunted houses, limit group activities to fewer than 10 people, and see that trickor-treating is conducted in outdoor settings only.
Oh, and one more thing: “A costume mask is not an acceptable substitute for a cloth mask.”
Those who plan to hand out candy to youngsters, the Health Department said, should consider putting together goodie bags “for touch-free, grab-andgo trick-or-treating.”
Of course, those with COVID-19 or who think they may have been exposed to someone with it, should not take part in in-person festivities and shouldn't give out candy.
“Celebrate, but celebrate widely,” said Dr. Lance Frye, the state's health commissioner, “and continue following the three W's: Wear a mask, wash your hands and watch your distance.”
The weather forecast Saturday is for clear skies and mild temperatures. That's one bit of good news, at least.
Survivor Tree lives up to its name again
Officials with OG&E said that as of Friday, this week's ice storm ranked as the second-worst in the state's history. The storm damaged or felled thousands of trees, although we were heartened to see that the Oklahoma City National Memorial's “Survivor Tree” was not among them. The American Elm has served as a logo for the memorial since somehow surviving the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The tree lost a good-sized limb this week, one that the memorial's executive director, Kari Watkins, said was already damaged. Mark Bays with Oklahoma Forestry Services said the tree will come through OK. Bays was among those who helped prop up branches and clear ice off the tree Tuesday. The Survivor Tree, Bays told The Oklahoman's Steve Lackmeyer, “is one that means so much to so many people that we had to make sure it stands as this testament to strength.” Well done.
Grab the popcorn and prepare to settle in?
Polling this week showed former Vice President Joe Biden continuing to lead President Trump ahead of Tuesday's election, although the margins were narrowing a bit. The RealClearPolitics polling averages had Biden ahead nationally by 7.8 points, a slight dip from recent weeks. Biden led by roughly 8 points in Michigan and Wisconsin, two pieces of the Democrats' “blue wall” that Trump claimed in 2016. The race was within about a point in Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and Ohio, according to
RCP. A crucial state figures to be Pennsylvania, which Trump won four years ago but where Biden led by 3.6 points on Friday. Nate Silver with FiveThirtyEight. com said Trump's chances of winning the Electoral College are just 2% if he loses the Keystone State. A late change in Pennsylvania law allows the counting of mailed ballots that arrive as late as Friday. Bottom line: It could be that late, or later, before Americans know who the winner is.
Rising COVID cases prompt new lockdowns in Europe
Germany and France instituted new lockdowns this week amid a spike in COVID-19 cases. In Germany, restaurants, bars, gyms and theaters are closed for a month, and public gatherings can't exceed 10 people from two households. French residents must stay in their homes much of the time, with bars, shops and restaurants closed if they are deemed nonessential. Italy has seen violent protests since issuing new curfews and early closings of bars and clubs. Notable about these spikes is that during the spring, much of Europe, with lockdowns and mask mandates, was considered the model for how to reduce COVID spread. Some voices in the United States want a return of sweeping restrictions here. The Wall Street Journal offers a better idea: “Targeted closures that protect the vulnerable are better policy responses until better treatments and a vaccine arrive or some broader immunity is reached.”