WASHINGTON, DC – This week’s repeal of the federal mask mandate on public transportation is creating unintended consequences.
This week, bi-partisan bills from both the Senate and House of Representatives advanced to the oval office this week to end the requirement of face masks indoors, public spaces, airplanes, buses, vans, and transportation hubs.
The bills in defiance of CDC recommendations and those from the Department of Public Health which suggest that any traveler should wear masks to stop the spread of COVID-19 regardless of vaccination status in the United States.
Senate, Congress Bill Lacks Definition
The bills named “No More Masks” and “Pandemic Ender” failed the specificity required for practicality.
One of the unintended consequences that grounded planes in the US this week for only the second time in history (first since 9/11) is that oxygen masks were deemed to violate this new order and had to be removed from aircraft.
“The intention was to end the requirement of face coverings on planes but to keep the bill as brief as possible and avoid additional tacked on pork, both bills impose “a prohibition of masks on airplanes. The problem is that in a literal sense, not only are masks not optional – they aren’t allowed at all.”
Representative Tim Locklear of Massachusetts (D.)
Prior to the shutdown of US air space, numerous incidents took place with the implementation of the law.
A scuffle broke out in Miami as famed kicker, Ray Finkle, tried to travel with his helmet, including its one-bar face mask.
At LAX and Burbank, numerous parents screamed in outrage as their children weren’t allowed to travel with masks from Disneyland following an otherwise joyful spring break.
A British Airways 777-200 landed in Gander, New Foundland after it turned back just 150 miles from its destination in Boston. A flight attendant found an empty “rejuvenation mask” packet in the aft lavatory.
Repeal the Repeal
Several airlines and even the President are calling to “repeal the repeal” but in order to do so, the country would return to a state where airlines require masks again without a replacement bill in place.
Pilot unions, flight attendant groups, and keen spring breakers begged and pleaded to be able to wear face coverings on airplanes again so flights could return to normal. “It’s hard enough to get both houses of Congress to agree on anything,” Senator Ted Cruz said. “Now you want them to agree to repeal the bill they agreed on, then rewrite another bill and agree on that. It’s sheer madness.”
Speaker Pelosi added in a joint press conference, “If we reinstate the mask mandate, just to repeal it again, won’t that cause more harm than good?” Questions from reporters were indecipherable shouts.
A number of consumer advocacy groups took the matter to court suing to abolish the anti-mandate-mandate. “We have to stop this right now. If people wear a cloth mask, fine, if they don’t – that’s fine too. We don’t care anymore, but Congress needs to do its job and fix this mess.” John Leopold of Do Your Job Coalition.
Best efforts by Leopold and his cohorts were thwarted this week when five of the nine justices couldn’t travel back to High Court as they were stuck in traffic.
