Here’s a little unsolicited advice for tone deaf politicians: After making an illogical and dangerous decision that has the consequence of destroying business and breaking up families, have just enough common sense to not do something that makes what you just did even worse.
Sheila Kuehl is a County Supervisor for Los Angeles County, and last week she was one of the radical members of the council who voted to ban outdoor dining at restaurants in LA County due to COVID-19 safety concerns, even though there has been absolutely no scientific data to show that socially distanced outdoor dining is a spreader of the coronavirus. Not one shred.
So what did Kuehl do following the vote? She was seen dining outside at Il Forno Trattoria, a restaurant in Santa Monica located not far from her home.
During the meeting that included the vote that would most likely result in hundreds of restaurants being forced to go out of business and thousands of employees being laid off during the holiday season, Kuehl referred to outside dining as “a most dangerous situation.”
What a brave leader, to partake in outdoor dining at a top So Cal restaurant, clearly putting her life in danger by doing it. “This is a serious health emergency and we must take it seriously,” Kuehl said. “The servers are not protected from us, and they’re not protected from their other tables that they’re serving at that particular time, plus all the hours in which they’re working.”
Fox 11 in Los Angeles reported on this story first. They received a statement from Kuehl’s spokesperson, which dripped of so much condescension it’s practically offensive. “She did dine al fresco at Il Forno on the very last day it was permissible,” the statement said. “She loves Il Forno, has been saddened to see it, like so many restaurants, suffer from a decline in revenue. She ate there, taking appropriate precautions, and sadly will not dine there again until our Public Health Orders permit.”
The order passed by a 3-2 vote. If Kuehl, the lover of Il Forno, had voted the other way on this matter, which she should have since the data does not show a proven danger of outdoor dining, she would have saved countless jobs and dreams.
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