# What state governments are acknowledged as handling this well? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [July 23, 2020, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085 "2020-07-23T07:37:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![agzem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@agzem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/agzem)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/41 "2020-07-25T19:28:03Z")
Each state has to make responsible choices. There’s no one-size-fits-all. Cuomo’s poor handling caused the virus to spread to the entire US. This shows just how bad Cuomo bungled this: Highest rates of death per million in the entire world: 1. New Jersey 1776 2. **New York 1673** 3. Connecticut 1233 4. Massachusetts 1221 5. Rhode Island 935 6. Belgium 845 7. England 667 8. Spain 608 9. **Italy 580** 10. Sweden 556 11. France 462 12. Chile 442 13. **United States 432** 14. Peru 394 15. Arizona 379 ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/42 "2020-07-25T19:42:23Z")
I said that NY screwed thing up in the beginning, when no one knew how bad this was going to be. They definitely should have shut things down earlier. However, from your earlier post, I understand that you think South Dakota did well by not shutting down, so is it your opinion that NY would have done better by not shutting down? New York had that early super-spreader that made things much worse than other places – lots of those people at that party were from NJ, and you can see the results of that. However, in the last few months, NY and NJ have looked much better than the most of the rest of the country – what is your opinion on how those states have done recently, in comparison to, say, Florida or Texas? So, I have two questions: Since you stated that SD did well by not shutting down, do you think NY should not have shut down? Over the last month or so, what is your opinion on how NY and NJ handled this relative to Florida and Texas? > [@agzem](#): > > The comparison is per capita. I got that. Is it your opinion that population density has no effect on the transmission of this kind of disease? That’s why I mentioned empty states – in NY and NJ, lots of transmission was due to packed subways, commuter trains, elevators, and so on. Do you think those conditions are the same in South Dakota? ETA: I guess I have four total questions. ---
**Author:** ![agzem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@agzem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/agzem)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/43 "2020-07-25T20:17:05Z")
There’s no need to shut down if it’s not warranted. It was warranted in NY but came way too late. De Blasio was telling everybody to go see a movie while the pandemic was raging. De Blasio even held a “social justice” party in early March attended by 320 people. In March Cuomo said everything was under control. Compare and contrast the death rate in the largest states: NY: 1,680 Florida : 269 California : 211 Texas : 172 ---
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/44 "2020-07-25T20:25:01Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > when no one knew how bad this was going to be. Bull. New York was after Italy and made the same stupid decisions. This is a political opinion question. Most states were going into some type of lockdown by mid March. Hence the cancellations of many states’ high school winter sports tournaments. IIRC, New York was late to the party. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/45 "2020-07-25T20:48:22Z")
I think Oregon is doing pretty well all things considered. We were holding under 5000 total cases for several months but even with a goodly jump since then we’re [7th from the bottom in cases per million](https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/)–and that’s even with WA to the north hit way harder than us and we also have a shit ton of asshole feds in town pulling people’s masks off and compromising lung function with tear gas and pepper spray. We also had a big jump due to correctional officers in our state prisons who refused to wear masks or social distance, leading to an outbreak of 120 cases in Snake River, where the fucking COs commute in from Idaho. Since there are only about 30K residents total in Malheur county where the prison is situated, it’s fairly clear what happened there. The prisons have been on a no visits status since March so the only way for COVID to get in is for employees ignoring the mask and sanitation orders interacting with inmates. Buncha chucklefuck law enforcement types are basically responsible for a large percentage of our cases. And churches. ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/46 "2020-07-25T21:02:42Z")
Michigan maybe should get a mention here. They were one of the worst states in the country in the middle of April. Governor Whitmer responded appropriately and did not back down in the face of anti-lockdown protests and other criticism. Now Michigan is doing pretty great. [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/nVSYwEdm93lPinj9j_0vuAqVOa7WKQRcuk9XXnJExNeaUMrc8BxJTJGdG5d_sGeIaj2GnUcnLHzGlYlxjZfKO-0zAH3I2rJTkp5emtLlSWdpUXcga7KA8eg__TarP0X7b_cV5V3n0Q=w560-h290-p-k "New item by K S") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/Mpa7izReEVSaqR1P8) ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/47 "2020-07-25T21:26:42Z")
> [@agzem](#): > > Compare and contrast the death rate in the largest states: I’ll respond to you when you answer my questions. > [@PoppaSan](#): > > Bull. New York was after Italy and made the same stupid decisions. > > This is a political opinion question. Most states were going into some type of lockdown by mid March. Hence the cancellations of many states’ high school winter sports tournaments. IIRC, New York was late to the party. I agree that NY made some mistakes early on, but according to the cite below, NY was among the earlier states to shut down: > **[U.S. state and local government responses to the COVID-19 pandemic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._state_and_local_government_responses_to_the_COVID-19_pandemic)** > > State, territorial, tribal, and local governments responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States with various declarations of emergency, closure of schools and public meeting places, lockdowns, and other restrictions intended to slow the progression of the virus. > Multiple groups of states formed compacts in an attempt to coordinate some of their responses. On the West coast: California, Oregon, and Washington state; in the Northeast: Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, ... They definitely should have shut down earlier, like California and NJ did. However, since then, NY has done a good job of staying shut and only cautiously reopening things that can be safely reopened. Agreed? Florida, Texas, California, and so on all rushed to reopen and that was obviously a mistake at the time they were doing it, agreed? ---
**Author:** ![agzem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@agzem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/agzem)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/48 "2020-07-25T21:43:39Z")
I think Florida, Texas, California got it about right. Now if they start having NY death numbers then I might change my mind but they are all far below New York’s numbers. It’s a worldwide pandemic and there’s no way to completely avoid some impact. The goal was to flatten the curve and those states have succeeded in doing that. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/49 "2020-07-25T21:58:00Z")
If you think that Florida has flattened the curve, then I think that our discussion won’t be fruitful. Thanks for responding to my questions. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/50 "2020-07-25T22:03:59Z")
> [@agzem](#): > > I think Florida, Texas, California got it about right. _#sorts World-o-meter by “new cases”#_ _#notes that Florida boasts 25% of new cases for the day#_ _#grabs calculator, figures out next in line Georgia only has 8% of new daily cases#_ Well, okay then. You have an _interesting_ view of what constitutes “getting it right.” ---
**Author:** ![RealityCheck71](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitycheck71/32/3493_2.png) [@RealityCheck71](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityCheck71)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/51 "2020-07-25T22:09:50Z")
> [@agzem](#): > > I think Florida, Texas, California got it about right. Now if they start having NY death numbers then I might change my mind but they are all far below New York’s numbers. So New York/Jersey have the worst numbers in the world and you’re saying everyone who does better is doing dandy. Surely you see how ridicilous that is when I spell it out here. You’re saying Spain and Italy didn’t do bad. Brazil is doing fine. Everything is fine as long as you aren’t the worst in the world. ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/52 "2020-07-25T22:15:10Z")
Florida is the number one state in the country for new cases per day per one million residents. | Rank | State | Cases | WoW | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Florida | 499.33 | -9.65% | | 2 | Louisiana | 465.37 | +8.53% | | 3 | Mississippi | 424.04 | +42.32% | | 4 | Alabama | 376.26 | +2.63% | | 5 | Georgia | 352.76 | +9.37% | Florida was relatively flat as far as deaths were concerned until July. [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eFES7vLBcWjQJUSruAK3gxS0EAp2SJSy0T7ufPXhR-zosVtY-LArGoA1-csz2_-a2WyeOvMIExJa8kLRCjhkFrb7Jh4EKRkzPz4g2XAgxBQDjwYLn0_5gI-VswTuBHsClWj3sH5FBw=w543-h290-p-k "New item by K S") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/gxnadSs23KJ9nKSA8) ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/53 "2020-07-25T22:28:40Z")
Texas is quite similar to Florida. [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/qClmzI3GS2ZnNA1MTQEmFRJ76urGJS_m3Fk-UfO03bqyMN9KTvXeZbOAiSsDKxsdLA-Gm_uVYbFuvaLCvBbprmWo4VBF9bCE91kgxH3I5XZXKYqfDV4iI44D7pUmjTotaIwd_rqRqQ=w535-h290-p-k "New item by K S") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/jSuXzjaJngVEDs2o7) Arizona is worse. [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/wHQwzTGwskLi4v3-nFW2PksdzfCehusz37t7ur_yvwRI9AMfztPsA9tiIvq6PBO3wi_7T1tpVOfr1H1jo0VZPnw69D-L7717ITM2sIKlToN7I14QLurtjcXxNhlnFzbuVir6M2h1dw=w548-h290-p-k "New item by K S") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/YRZP4UN894yvm1bu7) California has had a surge in one part of the state, but because of its massive population it is overall doing about as well as the country as whole. [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/q40EZZ9jhpKokBXg1Boh-dY-_-38EruRSEKh7QWIgbZMsV07NwXkH9s1rXSZrxj4q6HYixgyx9IHUsEuBH6BMXqk9PLpxnxd8Ium48UGTfnCn3yXo5DoTqZ4pl0eSgYBYdWBhnOsVA=w565-h290-p-k "New item by K S") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/kf5rK8e969UhqD4X9) ---
**Author:** ![agzem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@agzem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/agzem)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/54 "2020-07-25T22:33:59Z")
Florida is only showing about one-tenth of the projected deaths that the Imperial College modelers predicted for this period back in May ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/55 "2020-07-25T22:36:52Z")
Michigan’s positive test rate has bounced back up in the last three weeks or so…typically that’s preceded a bounce in deaths, though I don’t know if the age mix has changed. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/56 "2020-07-25T22:48:13Z")
> [@Trom](#): > > This is a pretty nice visualization of states’ case and death numbers in context: > [@agzem](#): > > Highest rates of death per million in the entire world: > > 1. New Jersey 1776 > 2. **New York 1673** > 3. Connecticut 1233 Wow. I had no idea the numbers here in CT were that high. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/57 "2020-07-25T23:15:22Z")
I can’t find these numbers anywhere. Can you provide your source? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![agzem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@agzem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/agzem)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/58 "2020-07-25T23:19:22Z")
It’s not just that they are doing better but they are doing A LOT BETTER. NY is almost 6 times worse than Florida. ---
**Author:** ![agzem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@agzem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/agzem)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/59 "2020-07-25T23:22:05Z")
Scroll down on this page: [https://www.outkick.com/a-left-wing-site-is-running-a-hit-piece-on-outkick/?fbclid=IwAR2TqlSDxfp1E05tW-2CCCcaYJQvd2aMmYjbzoKoCeTPuULeJz6NBBI7\_U8](https://www.outkick.com/a-left-wing-site-is-running-a-hit-piece-on-outkick/?fbclid=IwAR2TqlSDxfp1E05tW-2CCCcaYJQvd2aMmYjbzoKoCeTPuULeJz6NBBI7_U8) ---
**Author:** ![RealityCheck71](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitycheck71/32/3493_2.png) [@RealityCheck71](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityCheck71)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085/60 "2020-07-25T23:24:44Z")
So everyone has done a good job except them. That’s what you are saying. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-state-governments-are-acknowledged-as-handling-this-well/916085.md?page=4)