ACHTUNG: This is not a “fair and balanced” article. It is an editorial by the editor.

I was astonished this weekend to learn that eight states in the U.S., Arkansas, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, South Carolina, North Dakota. Iowa and Nebraska, are not under government orders to practice sheltering in place procedures because of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The eight governors, all Republicans, essentially have said it’s not the government’s place to tell citizens they must stay home during a deadly health crisis. Forget about insisting people using their best coping mechanism to slow or halt the spread of the disease. Wyoming’s governor offered the taunt that he wasn’t going to agree and ask “Mother may I?”

I was even more astonished to learn that Democrats have decided to proceed with the presidential primary election in Wisconsin Tuesday, despite the very real possibility of putting voters, clerks and poll workers at risk of catching and spreading a deadly disease.

It is alarming that government officials aren’t taking this pandemic seriously enough to implement procedures recommended by medical experts on behalf of the public health and welfare.

President Donald Trump was excoriated rightly not long ago for suggesting America get back to work as early as Easter Sunday. Critics maintained his plan would be wildly irresponsible and make the pandemic worse, all in the name of money and goosing the stock market.

Yet Democrats, including presumptive presidential nominee Joe Biden, have indicated they don’t have a problem with going ahead with a primary election that invites people into a closed space to wait in line and cast ballots for an election that very easily could have been postponed. Fifteen other states have already done so.

I wouldn’t mind so much if there was a better effort at mail-in voting, which perhaps is a better idea in normal times as well. Oregon has the highest voting percentage in the nation using that system and the evidence of vote fraud is extremely low. The health risk is low as well.

I hear tell about 7,000 prospective poll workers have indicated they won’t show up at the Wisconsin election sites, not being willing to risk their lives to provide a poorly paid public service. I stand with them. And so should the Democratic Party.

It’s like both parties are demonstrating a callous disregard for the health, safety and welfare of the general public, whether it’s for money or to solidify the process already under way in choosing Biden to take on Trump in November.

This is horribly disappointing that both parties want to conduct business as usual in a critical period that is unprecedented in our history.

We have eight red states with leaders thumbing their noses at advice from experts such as Dr. Anthony Fouci. Then we have a pseudo-blue state doing the same, yet its officials insist they care about the plight of the working people in this country.

The comedian George Carlin once told us, “They don’t care about you… they don’t give a f%ck about you… at all.” It isn’t funny any more.

A more appropriate and sad quote would be from the Supremes and the Vanilla Fudge: “And there ain’t nothin’ I can do about it.”