Paul Scott Comment: For Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, apparently it isn't all about the "metrics"

decorahnews.com has always been about local news for Decorah, not about what's going on in Washington, D.C. or in Des Moines.  But there's no arguing that what happens in the state and federal government has an impact on Decorah.

Which is why Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds's latest coronavirus proclamation is so disappointing.  If you've been following her daily news conferences, she has responded to questions about whether she should take stronger steps to curb the spread of coronavirus by saying she was basing her decisions "on metrics."  Those metrics, she told us, were the reason she had not issued any "shelter in place" order. She wouldn't do so until a region of the state reached a score of "10" on the "metrics."

On Thursday, Reynolds announced that Northeast Iowa had reached a score of "10."  And, in response, she announced she would "dial it down a little bit."  Apparently, that meant banning any gatherings of under 10 people unless the 10 people were relatives or it was a wedding or a funeral.

She also made clear in a letter sent to Northeast Iowa's state legislators that she would continue to allow people to commute to work in the area.  She also said she is working not just to respond to coronavirus outbreaks, but is working on plans to get Iowa's economy back up and running, she said, "using the metrics we have in place."

This shows the discussion of "metrics" is being used as a smokescreen—a justification for taking steps that favor large businesses and put at risk the health and safety of average Iowans.  The governor apparently can't say the words "shelter in place" and this has everything to do with politics and not with public health.

She would disagree with that comment, I'm sure.  But I'm also sure that to refute the argument, she would rely on "the metrics" and refuse to answer any question about the politics.